Ogma vs Burp Suite
Burp Suite is the established industry standard for web security testing, with a large extension library and over a decade of production use. Ogma is a newer, open-source alternative that covers the same core workflows without a license cost. This page compares them factually.
Summary
| Feature | Ogma | Burp Suite Community | Burp Suite Professional |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | Free (AGPLv3) | Free | $499/yr per seat |
| License | Open-source | Proprietary (free tier) | Proprietary |
| Account required | No | Yes | Yes |
| Platform | Linux, macOS, Windows | Linux, macOS, Windows | Linux, macOS, Windows |
| Tech stack | Rust backend, Vue frontend | Java (Swing UI) | Java (Swing UI) |
| HTTPS proxy | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| WebSocket proxy | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Intercept | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Replay / Repeater | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Intruder / Automate (fuzzing) | Yes - Sniper, Pitchfork, Cluster Bomb, no rate limit | Yes - rate-limited intentionally | Yes - unlimited |
| Passive scanner | Yes | No | Yes |
| Active scanner | Yes - 8 check categories | No | Yes - more comprehensive |
| Content discovery | Yes - 9,300-path wordlist built in | No | No (via extensions) |
| Extensions / Plugins | Yes - sandboxed JS, QuickJS runtime | Yes - Java-based (BApp Store, 300+ extensions) | Yes - Java-based (BApp Store, 300+ extensions) |
| Custom logic | HTTPQL + StreamQL for filtering; workflow nodes | Bambdas (Java/Groovy) for filtering; BChecks for scan rules | Bambdas + BChecks |
| AI features | Yes - Anthropic, OpenAI, Google; 36 assistant tools | No | No |
| MCP integration | Yes - 125+ tools | No | No |
| CLI / headless | Yes - server mode + ogma pentest <url> | No | No |
| Project export/import | Yes - full ZIP archive | No | No (via project save/load) |
| Free tier | Full feature access | Manual tools only; Intruder rate-limited; no scanner | N/A |
Pricing and access
Burp Suite Community is free but removes the scanner entirely and applies intentional rate limiting to Intruder attacks, which makes it unsuitable for anything beyond basic manual testing. Burp Suite Professional costs $499/year per seat and enables the scanner and unlimited Intruder. Burp Suite Enterprise adds automated DAST at custom pricing.
Ogma is free and open-source. All features - scanner, fuzzing, workflows, AI assistant - are available with no license.
Features in depth
Filtering and search
Burp uses Bambdas - inline Java or Groovy expressions - as the query language for filtering HTTP history. They are expressive and familiar to Java developers, but require Java knowledge to write.
Ogma uses HTTPQL, a purpose-built query language for HTTP traffic. Filters read like structured conditions (host = "example.com" and status >= 400) and do not require knowing a general-purpose language. Ogma also has StreamQL for WebSocket and SSE filtering, which Burp does not have a direct equivalent for.
Fuzzing / Intruder
Both tools support Sniper, Pitchfork, and Cluster Bomb attack modes. In Burp Community, Intruder attacks are rate-limited to discourage production use - this is intentional, not a bug. Burp Professional removes the rate limit.
Ogma's Automate has no rate limit in any tier.
Scanning
Burp Professional's scanner is more mature and comprehensive than Ogma's. It covers a wider range of vulnerability classes, has years of refinement, and is tested against a large corpus of real-world applications. Ogma's active scanner covers 8 categories (SQLi, XSS, SSTI, SSRF, path traversal, open redirect, header injection, misconfiguration) and is newer.
Burp Community has no scanner.
Extensions and plugins
Burp's extension ecosystem (BApp Store) has 300+ extensions accumulated over many years. Extensions are written in Java (or Python/Ruby via legacy Jython/JRuby stubs), which requires Java knowledge. The API surface is large and well-documented.
Ogma plugins use JavaScript (QuickJS sandbox for backend, sandboxed iframe for frontend). No Java knowledge is needed. The ecosystem is newer and smaller. For teams with existing Burp extensions, porting to Ogma requires rewriting in JavaScript.
Custom logic
Burp introduced Bambdas for filtering and BChecks for custom passive scan rules. Both use Java/Groovy syntax. BChecks are a structured DSL for defining scan checks without writing a full extension.
Ogma does not have a BCheck equivalent. Custom scan rules require writing a plugin. HTTPQL handles filtering without a general-purpose language.
AI features
Burp Professional has no built-in AI features. Ogma includes an AI assistant (Anthropic/OpenAI/Google) embedded in Replay and Intercept, with 36 tools covering request editing, scanning, browsing, and findings. The MCP server exposes 125+ tools to external AI agents.
CLI and headless
Burp Suite does not have a headless CLI mode for scripted testing. Burp Enterprise covers automated DAST but at a separate product tier and pricing.
Ogma's ogma pentest <url> command runs a crawl-and-scan pass from the command line and outputs a Markdown report with a CI/CD-friendly exit code.
Which to choose
- Choose Ogma if: cost is a factor, you want an open-source tool with no vendor lock-in, you need AI and MCP integration, or you want a built-in CLI mode for automation.
- Choose Burp Suite Professional if: you need the most battle-tested scanner available, you rely on the BApp Store extension library, your team already knows Burp workflows, or your organization requires a Gartner-recognized commercial product.
- Note on Burp Community: It is a reasonable starting point for learning proxy concepts, but the Intruder rate limiting and absent scanner limit it to introductory use. Ogma is a more capable free alternative for day-to-day testing.