HEAD-TO-HEAD · FACTS ONLY

Cortex Xpanse vs Hadrian: exposure management facts side by side

SHORT ANSWER

Cortex Xpanse describes 3 of the five tool types on the pages we read and Hadrian describes 4; they differ on exposure validation. On proof, Cortex Xpanse does not describe exploit testing on the pages we read and Hadrian describes attack-style testing. We do not score either; the right choice depends on your estate, current platform, WAFs and capacity to fix.

By The Exposure Desk · Exposure Management Finder · Published 2026-10-11

Desk research from public vendor pages read in September 2026, updated 2026-10-11. Profiles follow our published method; we did not run the products.

How do their shapes compare?

Cortex Xpanse
Hadrian

Outer point: described on the vendor's pages we read
Inner point: not in our sources (it may exist; we did not find it)

The shape shows what each vendor's own pages describe, or how your answers weigh the five tool types. It is not a measure of how well a product works.

What are the facts, side by side?

From each vendor's own pages, read in September 2026 and updated on 11 October 2026. Differs marks rows where the recorded status or check value differs.
Fact	Cortex Xpanse	Hadrian
Positioning	Palo Alto Networks' attack surface management product, built on internet-wide scanning and automated response playbooks, sold within the Cortex portfolio.	An agentic AI platform for attack surface management and penetration testing, with continuous external exposure management (ATLAS) and priced agentic penetration tests (NOVA).
Deployment	Part of the Palo Alto Networks Cortex portfolio, with Cortex XSOAR playbooks and Prisma Cloud alongside. Source: Cortex Xpanse attack surface management · Read 27 Sep 2026	Scans run hourly or when an event triggers them. Source: Hadrian technology · Read 27 Sep 2026
EASM discovery	Described Palo Alto Networks says Xpanse scans all 4.3 billion IPv4 addresses multiple times a day and more than 500 billion ports daily. Source: Cortex Xpanse · Read 27 Sep 2026	Described Continuous discovery with hourly or event-triggered scans; machine learning confirms asset ownership. Source: Hadrian technology · Read 27 Sep 2026
Exposure validationDiffers	Not in our sources	Described Agentic AI that, by Hadrian's account, proves exploitability within 15 minutes. Source: Hadrian technology · Read 27 Sep 2026
Exposure management platforms	Described Sits in Cortex exposure management alongside Cortex XSOAR and Prisma Cloud. Source: Cortex exposure management · Read 27 Sep 2026	Described ATLAS is priced as continuous external exposure management; internal assets are not described. Source: Hadrian pricing · Read 27 Sep 2026
CTEM programme support	Described Discovery and automated response are described; exploit validation is not. Source: Cortex Xpanse · Read 27 Sep 2026	Described Discovery, prioritisation, exploit validation, remediation guidance, automatic tickets and automatic regression testing. Source: Hadrian technology · Read 27 Sep 2026
WAF posture	Not in our sources	Not in our sources
Subsidiary and owner attribution	Partly Identifies the stakeholders for third-party exposures; subsidiary attribution is not described. Source: Cortex Xpanse attack surface management · Read 27 Sep 2026	Partly Hadrian lists a mergers and acquisitions assessment add-on for Atlas; ownership is confirmed by machine learning. Source: Hadrian pricing (re-read) · Read 13 Oct 2026
Internal as well as external assets	Not in our sources	Not in our sources
Cloud connections namedDiffers	Matches Xpanse works with Prisma Cloud. Source: Cortex Xpanse attack surface management · Read 27 Sep 2026	Not in our sources
Exploitability checkedDiffers	Not in our sources	Matches Proves exploitability with agentic testing. Source: Hadrian technology · Read 27 Sep 2026
Attack-style testingDiffers	Not in our sources	Matches Agentic AI simulates attacks to prove impact. Source: Hadrian technology · Read 27 Sep 2026
Works through your WAF or edge	Not in our sources	Not in our sources
WAF coverage across several vendors	Not in our sources	Not in our sources
Retests after a fixDiffers	Not in our sources	Matches Automatic regression testing after fixes. Source: Hadrian technology · Read 27 Sep 2026
Routes findings to owners and tickets	Matches Routing and remediation through Cortex XSOAR playbooks. Source: Cortex Xpanse attack surface management · Read 27 Sep 2026	Matches Automatic ticket creation, with Jira, ServiceNow, GLPI, Slack, Microsoft Teams, SentinelOne, Datadog and Zendesk. Source: Hadrian integrations · Read 27 Sep 2026
Applies a compensating controlDiffers	Matches Active Response runs built-in automated playbooks. Source: Cortex Xpanse · Read 27 Sep 2026	Not in our sources
Price or pricing basis publishedDiffers	Partly No price from Palo Alto Networks; a UK G-Cloud 14 listing by reseller KHIPU Networks shows £70,850.84 per instance per year. Source: UK G-Cloud 14 listing: Cortex Xpanse (reseller KHIPU Networks) · Read 11 Oct 2026	Matches NOVA agentic penetration tests cost from 1,250 euros per test excluding VAT, bundles available. Source: Hadrian pricing (re-read) · Read 13 Oct 2026
Trial or self-serve start	Not in our sources	Not in our sources
Platform it extends	Native ties to Cortex XSOAR playbooks and Prisma Cloud. Source: Cortex Xpanse attack surface management · Read 27 Sep 2026	None
Integrations	Cortex XSOAR and Prisma Cloud inside the Palo Alto Networks portfolio. Source: Cortex Xpanse attack surface management · Read 27 Sep 2026	Jira, ServiceNow, GLPI, Slack, Microsoft Teams, SentinelOne, Datadog, Zendesk and HubSpot, plus an API. Source: Hadrian integrations · Read 27 Sep 2026
Price	Not published by Palo Alto Networks. Reseller listing (UK G-Cloud 14, KHIPU Networks): £70,850.84 an instance a year, no free trial, public-facing attack surfaces only. Source: UK G-Cloud 14 listing: Cortex Xpanse (reseller KHIPU Networks) · Read 11 Oct 2026	NOVA agentic penetration test: from 1,250 euros per test excluding VAT, bundles available. ATLAS on AWS Marketplace, 12-month contract: up to 250 assets (domains, IP addresses and certificates) $50,000. Source: AWS Marketplace: Atlas External Attack Surface Management · Read 11 Oct 2026

Where do they differ?

Exposure validation: Cortex Xpanse is not in our sources; Hadrian describes it.
Cloud connections named: Cortex Xpanse matches; Hadrian is not in our sources.
Exploitability checked: Cortex Xpanse is not in our sources; Hadrian matches.
Attack-style testing: Cortex Xpanse is not in our sources; Hadrian matches.
Retests after a fix: Cortex Xpanse is not in our sources; Hadrian matches.
Applies a compensating control: Cortex Xpanse matches; Hadrian is not in our sources.
Price or pricing basis published: Cortex Xpanse partly matches; Hadrian matches.

Choose Cortex Xpanse if

You already run Cortex XSOAR or Prisma Cloud
You want automated response playbooks on newly found exposures

Choose Hadrian if

You want attack-style proof and a price you can see before a call
You need fixes retested automatically

Which limits should you check?

Cortex Xpanse

Exploit validation is not described on the product pages we read.
No price from Palo Alto Networks (only a UK reseller listing), and subsidiary attribution is not described.

Hadrian

Hadrian lists a mergers and acquisitions assessment add-on for Atlas; ownership is confirmed by machine learning.
No WAF or edge mitigation is described.

Put Cortex Xpanse and Hadrian in columns with others Run the finder

Questions readers ask

Is Cortex Xpanse or Hadrian better?

Neither is scored on this site. Cortex Xpanse describes 3 of five tool types and Hadrian 4 on the pages we read, and they differ on 7 recorded facts. Which fits depends on your estate, current platform, need for proof, WAFs and capacity to fix; the finder checks those.

Which of the two proves exploitability?

Cortex Xpanse: exploitability checked: Not in our sources; attack-style testing: Not in our sources. Hadrian: exploitability checked: Matches; attack-style testing: Matches.

Do Cortex Xpanse or Hadrian publish prices?

Cortex Xpanse: Not published by Palo Alto Networks. Reseller listing (UK G-Cloud 14, KHIPU Networks): £70,850.84 an instance a year, no free trial, public-facing attack surfaces only. Hadrian: NOVA agentic penetration test: from 1,250 euros per test excluding VAT, bundles available. ATLAS on AWS Marketplace, 12-month contract: up to 250 assets (domains, IP addresses and certificates) $50,000.