Chainguard
UnclaimedThe trusted source for secure-by-default open source software components.
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175 reviews trackedThe Bottom Line
Entry price
Free plan available, paid tiers above
Biggest pro
Significantly reduces vulnerability counts (average 97.6% reduction in CVEs).
Biggest con
Specific pricing details for paid tiers require a custom quote.
TL;DR - Chainguard
- Provides secure-by-default container images, language libraries, and VMs.
- Significantly reduces CVEs and attack surface in open-source components.
- Accelerates compliance and reduces engineering effort for supply chain security.
Pricing: Free plan available
Best for: Growing teams
4.6/5 across review platforms
What is Chainguard?
Chainguard provides hardened, secure, and production-ready builds of open source software components, including container images, language libraries, and virtual machine images. It is designed for engineering teams and organizations that require high levels of security and compliance for their software supply chain, particularly those operating in regulated environments or aiming to minimize CVEs and attack surface.
The platform focuses on delivering minimal, zero-CVE artifacts with a strong emphasis on supply chain security. This includes features like continuous building from source, SLSA L2 hardened infrastructure, Sigstore signed artifacts, and comprehensive build-time SBOMs. By offloading the burden of vulnerability management and compliance, Chainguard enables developers to focus on innovation while ensuring their software stack meets stringent security requirements like FedRAMP, CRA, Essential Eight, NIS2, PCI DSS, and HIPAA.
Pros & Cons
Pros
- Significantly reduces vulnerability counts (average 97.6% reduction in CVEs).
- Accelerates compliance with regulations like FedRAMP, HIPAA, and PCI DSS.
- Frees up engineering teams by minimizing CVE remediation and security overhead.
- Provides transparent attestation and full software provenance with Sigstore signing.
- Offers contractual CVE remediation SLAs for critical and high-severity issues.
Cons
- Specific pricing details for paid tiers require a custom quote.
- Backported CVE patching for language libraries is currently limited to Python.
Ratings Across the Web
4.6(175 reviews)
Ratings aggregated from independent review platforms. Learn more
Preview
Key Features
Minimal, customizable, zero-CVE container images with CVE remediation SLAGuarded catalog of malware-resistant language libraries (Python, Java, JavaScript)Secure-by-design virtual machine images for various deploymentsContinuously built from source in SLSA L2 hardened infrastructure with CVE patchingSigstore signed artifacts with full build-time SBOMs and digital attestationsFIPS-validated and STIG-hardened images for compliance requirements
Pricing
Freemium
Chainguard offers a generous free tier with optional paid upgrades for advanced features.
Reviews
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4.6/5
Across 175 verified user reviews on G2, SourceForge
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Chainguard FAQ
How does Chainguard help engineering teams improve security?
Chainguard provides hardened, secure, and production-ready open source software components that significantly reduce vulnerability counts. It offloads the burden of vulnerability management, allowing developers to focus on innovation while meeting stringent security requirements.
What kind of user benefits most from Chainguard?
Chainguard is designed for engineering teams and organizations that require high levels of security and compliance for their software supply chain. This includes those operating in regulated environments or aiming to minimize CVEs and their attack surface.
How does Chainguard compare to tools like Trivy for vulnerability scanning?
While Trivy focuses on vulnerability scanning, Chainguard differentiates itself by providing pre-hardened, secure-by-default open source components with an average 97.6% reduction in CVEs. Chainguard also offers contractual CVE remediation SLAs for critical and high-severity issues.
What are the limitations of Chainguard's language library support?
Chainguard's backported CVE patching for language libraries is currently limited to Python. Specific pricing details for paid tiers also require a custom quote.
How is Chainguard priced?
Chainguard is available on a free tier, with paid plans offered for more extensive usage and additional features. Specific pricing details for these paid tiers require a custom quote.
Can Chainguard help organizations meet compliance standards?
Yes, Chainguard accelerates compliance with various regulations such as FedRAMP, HIPAA, PCI DSS, CRA, Essential Eight, and NIS2. It does this by providing minimal, zero-CVE artifacts and comprehensive build-time SBOMs.
Does Chainguard provide transparency into software provenance?
Chainguard offers transparent attestation and full software provenance through Sigstore signed artifacts. This ensures the integrity and origin of the open source components used in a software supply chain.
Source: chainguard.dev