Metasploit review
Free modular tools for network testing, with guided workflows and reporting in Metasploit Pro.
Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Oct 2026
Metasploit is Rapid7’s penetration testing framework, maintained through collaboration between Rapid7 and the open-source community. Its free, open-source Framework is aimed at security practitioners and teams validating vulnerabilities and assessing networks. It is a fit for people who want modular reconnaissance, exploitation, payload, and post-exploitation capabilities, rather than a product centered on a single testing workflow. The Framework is installed locally and is available through official installers for Linux and macOS.
The Framework’s breadth comes from its modules: auxiliary modules support data gathering and administrative scanning, exploit modules test known vulnerabilities, and payload and post-exploitation modules support execution and session-data gathering or enumeration. Module search and configurable run options help practitioners work across these capabilities. This makes the free edition relevant to network testing, while buyers seeking scan data import, discovery scans, session and credential management, evidence collection, assessment reports, or a web application testing wizard should look at Metasploit Pro instead.
The commercial edition also provides a web interface, guided web application testing, reporting, evidence collection, and team collaboration. Metasploit lists InsightVM and Nexpose integrations, and the product is described as self-hosted. Community support is the listed support channel. Choose the Framework if free, modular tools and local installation suit your testing needs; consider Pro when managed scan data, evidence, reporting, or guided web testing are central requirements. Teams that need those commercial capabilities should account for the difference between editions before choosing.
Metasploit pros and cons
- Where it wins
- Free Framework includes auxiliary, exploit, payload, and post-exploitation modules
- Supports module search and configurable run options
- Metasploit Pro adds evidence collection, reports, and guided web testing
- Where it doesn't
- Framework is installed locally and is listed for Linux and macOS
- Scan imports, evidence collection, reports, and web testing are Pro features
- Support channels listed for the product are community-based
Metasploit fact sheet, pricing and score →
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