Trivy review
A broad free scanner for container and infrastructure coverage, without reachability analysis.
Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Oct 2026
Trivy is an open-source security scanner maintained by Aqua Security for teams that need broad coverage across software packages, container images, code repositories, binary artifacts, virtual-machine images, filesystems, root filesystems, and Kubernetes environments. It supports operating-system packages and ecosystems including Ruby, Python, PHP, Node.js, .NET, Java, Go, Rust, C/C++, Elixir, Dart, Swift, and Julia. The tool runs on Windows, macOS, and Linux, and is primarily delivered as a command-line tool that can be installed locally or run as a container.
Its strongest differentiator is breadth. Trivy combines vulnerability scanning with license scanning, infrastructure-as-code misconfiguration scanning, secrets scanning, SBOM generation, SBOM document scanning, VEX support, and vulnerability suppression. Published capabilities include CycloneDX and SPDX SBOM formats, pull request scanning, and CI/CD integration through GitHub Actions and Azure DevOps. Kubernetes is supported both as a scanning target and as an integration point, making Trivy a practical fit for teams that want one open-source tool across application, image, infrastructure, and cluster workflows.
The trade-off is depth in specific analysis areas. Trivy does not provide reachability analysis, which matters to teams prioritizing whether vulnerable code paths are actually reachable. Its self-hosted model and command-line delivery also suit engineering teams comfortable incorporating scanning into their own environments and pipelines. Choose Trivy when free, open-source coverage across containers, infrastructure, packages, SBOMs, licenses, secrets, and IaC is the priority. Consider a different option when reachability analysis is required or when a managed scanning service is preferred.
Trivy pros and cons
- Where it wins
- Scans packages, containers, filesystems, Kubernetes, virtual machines, and repositories
- Generates CycloneDX and SPDX SBOMs with document scanning support
- Covers licenses, IaC misconfigurations, secrets, VEX, and vulnerability suppression
- Where it doesn't
- Does not provide reachability analysis
- Primarily delivered as a command-line tool
- Self-hosted deployment requires teams to manage the scanning environment
Trivy fact sheet, pricing and score →
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