How much does Penetration Testing cost?
Estimate a sensible budget for application, API, cloud or infrastructure penetration testing before requesting proposals.
Baseline planning range£6,500–£18,000 Indicative baseline before size/complexity adjustments.
What affects penetration testing pricing?
- Number of applications, APIs and endpoints
- Authenticated vs unauthenticated testing
- Cloud and infrastructure scope
- Retesting and reporting requirements
What a typical scope may include
- Scoping and rules of engagement
- Manual security testing
- Findings and risk ratings
- Report and remediation retest
Questions to ask vendors
- How many tester-days are included?
- Is remediation retesting included?
- Are APIs and cloud assets in scope?
- Will we receive an executive and technical report?
Penetration Testing cost calculator
Adjust two broad scope factors to create an early planning range.
More Penetration Testing cost guides
Web Application Penetration Testing CostEstimate testing costs for customer-facing and internal web applications.API Penetration Testing CostBudget for REST, GraphQL or other API security testing.Mobile App Penetration Testing CostPlan security testing for iOS and Android applications.Network Penetration Testing CostEstimate internal or external network penetration testing.CREST Penetration Testing CostUnderstand budgeting considerations when CREST-accredited capability matters.Penetration Testing Day RatesTranslate tester-day quotes into a comparable project budget.Penetration Testing Cost for Small BusinessesScope a useful test without buying unnecessary breadth.How to Compare Penetration Testing CompaniesCompare providers on manual depth, credentials, reporting and retesting.
Penetration Testing pricing FAQ
What does a penetration test cost?
VendorCosts uses a £6,500–£18,000 planning baseline for a typical business engagement. Narrow tests can be lower; broad multi-system scopes can be higher.
Is automated scanning the same as a penetration test?
No. A meaningful penetration test normally combines tooling with manual investigation and exploitation attempts within an agreed scope.
Methodology note: VendorCosts publishes planning ranges, not guaranteed market prices. Estimates are designed for early budgeting and should be validated with current provider quotes. Read the methodology.