Side by side
IDA Pro vs radare2
Both stand on reverse engineering tools. Which one you can start free with, which one lets you read the code, and what each costs once you pay.
Free plan LinuxMacWindows
IDA Pro combines disassembly, decompilation, debugging and automation tools, with team and private knowledge-base options. Consider the yearly commitment and the listed IDA Free edition if you want to check basic capabilities first.
Visit IDA Pro Free plan AndroidAPIiPhone+4
radare2 offers a broad command-line toolkit, scripting and plugin options at no cost. Users should account for its licensing variation and the project's stated limits on old-release security fixes.
Visit radare2The facts
| IDA Pro | radare2 | |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Open source | Not published | Not published |
| Runs on | Linux, Mac, Windows | Android, API, iPhone, Linux, Mac, Self-hosted, Windows |
| Lowest paid plan | IDA Pro Essential: $1,099 a year | Free or on request |
| Plans published | 7 | 1 |
| Maker | Not published | Not published |
| Website | hex-rays.com | radare.org |
| On reverse engineering tools | #21 of 73 | #25 of 73 |
IDA Pro: what it does well
- Disassembly support covers more than 60 processor families.
- Debugger supports multiple targets and remote applications.
- Automation includes IDAPython and a headless library.
- Runs on Linux, macOS and Windows.
What to know first
- No free trial is offered.
- Subscriptions require at least a one-year commitment.
- Monthly payments are not permitted.
radare2: what it does well
- Analyzes, emulates, debugs, modifies and disassembles binaries.
- Supports firmware analysis and decompilation.
- Offers JavaScript and r2pipe scripting.
- Plugins can be managed with r2pm.
- Free toolkit with an official Qt interface.
What to know first
- Most security fixes are not backported to old releases.
- No bug bounty program.
- Dependencies and plugins may use different licenses.
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