head to head · open source
PentestGPT vs WhatWeb
PentestGPT has 16,332 GitHub stars, 2,858 forks, 81 open issues and last shipped 4 months ago. WhatWeb has 6,995 stars, 1,020 forks, 51 open issues and last shipped 7 months ago. PentestGPT leads on adoption by 133% (16,332 vs 6,995 stars). PentestGPT is written in Python under MIT; WhatWeb is written in Ruby under GPL-2.0. PentestGPT has attracted 17% as many forks as stars, WhatWeb 15%. PentestGPT was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (penetration-testing), so they are genuine substitutes rather than adjacent tools.
Two open source projects, one decision. Both are free and self-hostable — the differences are community size, license terms, language stack and release pace.
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Side by side
| PentestGPT | WhatWeb | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 16K | ★ 7.0K |
| License | MIT | GPL-2.0 |
| Written in | Python | Ruby |
| Last push | 2026-07-14 | 2026-04-02 |
| Forks | ⑂ 2.9K | ⑂ 1.0K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick PentestGPT if
- You weight community size — 16K stars and counting
- You want the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick WhatWeb if
- You want the WhatWeb feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the GPL-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Ruby
- You evaluated both and WhatWeb fits your workflow better
About PentestGPT
[![Contributors][contributors shield]][contributors url] [![Forks][forks shield]][forks url] [![Stargazers][stars shield]][stars url] [![Issues][issues shield]][issues url] [![MIT License][license shield]][license url] [![Discord][discord shield]][discord url] PentestGPT AI Powered Autonomous Penetration Testing Agent Published at USENIX Security 2024 Official Website: pentestgpt.com » Research Paper · Report Bug · Request Feature Demo Installation Watch on YouTube PentestGPT in Action Watch on YouTube What's New in v1.0 (Agentic Upgrade) Multi Stage Pipeline The agent works through staged phases (recon →…
read the full PentestGPT overview →
About WhatWeb
WhatWeb Next generation web scanner Developed by Andrew Horton urbanadventurer and Brendan Coles bcoles Latest Release: v0.6.4. April 3, 2026 License: GPLv2 This product is subject to the terms detailed in the license agreement. For more information about WhatWeb visit Wiki: If you have any questions, comments or concerns regarding WhatWeb, please consult the documentation prior to contacting one of the developers. Your feedback is always welcome. Contents About WhatWeb Example Usage Usage Logging & Output Plugins Aggression Performance & Stability Optional Dependencies Writing Plugins Updates & Additional…
read the full WhatWeb overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is PentestGPT or WhatWeb more popular?
PentestGPT has 16,332 GitHub stars and WhatWeb has 6,995. PentestGPT has the larger community by that measure.
Are PentestGPT and WhatWeb free?
Both are open source. PentestGPT is licensed under MIT and WhatWeb under GPL-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between PentestGPT and WhatWeb?
PentestGPT is written in Python and WhatWeb in Ruby. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, PentestGPT or WhatWeb?
Choose PentestGPT if you want the larger community (16,332 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose WhatWeb if its feature set, stack or GPL-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.