Loading...
GHAS locks you into GitHub at $57 per committer. CodeStax works across every VCS, adds AI triage, and extends to IaC, containers, and code-quality for less.
Our opinionated read on where CodeStax leads and where GitHub Advanced Security holds ground.
Drag the sliders. Same scan surface. Flat per-seat pricing vs GitHub Advanced Security.
Based on published rates. Your actual quote may differ.
Estimate based on GHAS $57/active committer/mo published rate. Active committers typically ≥ total seats; your GHAS bill may be higher.
The comparison your security + platform teams will do anyway — laid out plainly.
| Capability | CodeStax Growth | CodeStax Pro | GHAS (GHEC) | GHAS (GHES) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scanning engines | ||||
| SAST (code vulnerabilities) | Included | Included | CodeQL-based | CodeQL-based |
| SCA (dependency scanning) | Included | Included | Dependabot | Dependabot |
| Secret detection | Included | Included | Yes | Yes |
| IaC scanning | Included | Included | Limited (CodeQL queries) | Limited |
| Container security | Included | Included | Not in GHAS | Not in GHAS |
| Code quality & complexity | Included | Included | Not offered | Not offered |
| Platform support | ||||
| GitHub | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| GitLab | Yes | Yes | Not supported | Not supported |
| Bitbucket | Yes | Yes | Not supported | Not supported |
| Multi-VCS reporting | Unified | Unified | GitHub only | GitHub only |
| Pricing & TCO | ||||
| Annual price (per seat/committer) | $144/seat/yr | $264/seat/yr | ~$684/committer/yr | Custom |
| Billing basis | Per seat | Per seat | Per active committer | Per active committer |
| Free tier | 1 dev, 15 scans/mo | 1 dev, 15 scans/mo | Public repos only | Public repos only |
| Add-on to existing license? | Standalone | Standalone | Requires GitHub Enterprise | Requires GitHub Enterprise |
| AI & triage | ||||
| AI-verified exploitability triage | Built-in | Built-in | Not offered | Not offered |
| AI fix suggestions as diffs | Yes | Yes | Copilot Autofix (preview) | Copilot Autofix (preview) |
| Reachability analysis | Yes | Yes | CodeQL queries (manual) | CodeQL queries (manual) |
| Enterprise | ||||
| SSO & SCIM | Contact Sales | Yes | Via GitHub Enterprise | Via GitHub Enterprise |
| SIEM / webhook export | Contact Sales | Yes | Via GitHub APIs | Via GitHub APIs |
| Compliance reports (SOC 2, PCI, HIPAA, GDPR) | Contact Sales | Yes | Limited | Limited |
What your developer actually sees when a risky change lands.
- const token = req.headers["x-token"];+ const token = req.headers["x-token"]?.toString().trim();+ if (!token || !/^[A-Za-z0-9._-]+$/.test(token)) {+ return res.status(400).json({ error: "bad token" });+ }const session = await verify(token);
Things that don't show up on the pricing page, but do show up in the invoice and the roadmap.
Teams with GitLab, Bitbucket, or self-hosted Git don't have GHAS as an option. Multi-VCS orgs end up buying GHAS plus another tool.
$57/active committer/mo is higher than almost every per-seat alternative. The active-committer count is also volatile — your bill changes every month.
GHAS is an add-on to GitHub Enterprise Cloud or Server — which itself is a paid tier. CodeStax is standalone.
Powerful queries require maintaining custom CodeQL. Most teams rely on defaults, which miss codebase-specific risks AI triage catches automatically.
Seven reasons we hear from teams that consolidated onto CodeStax.
CodeStax Pro at $264/seat/yr is ~60% cheaper than GHAS per active committer — and predictable, regardless of active-committer churn.
Both install in minutes where supported. CodeStax also runs on GitLab + Bitbucket — no separate second tool needed.
CodeStax ships unified dashboards across all your VCS platforms. GHAS only reports on GitHub.
CodeStax adds container security and code-quality — not part of GHAS. IaC coverage is also broader.
AI-verified triage vs CodeQL's rule-based ranking. Fewer false positives, less manual query tuning.
Committable fix diffs on every finding — not just the ones Copilot Autofix covers.
Non-blocking default + AI triage keeps merge queues moving. GHAS defaults can stall PRs when CodeQL finds low-exploitability issues.
Most teams cut over in a single sprint. Here's the arc.
Connect your VCS. All six engines available from the first scan.
Run CodeStax next to GitHub Advanced Security on a pilot repo for a sprint.
Bring existing triage state via SARIF or manual import.
Enable non-blocking PR comments. Opt into critical-only CI gates later.
Disable GitHub Advanced Security once parity is confirmed. Pocket the savings.
Straight answers to the questions prospects usually send via email.
Start free in under 2 minutes. All six engines from day one. Book a demo if you'd like a hand mapping your current setup.