WAF Cost Comparison Calculator

WAF pricing is notoriously opaque. Some charge per request, others per site, per GB, or flat-rate. Hidden costs like bot management add-ons, CAPTCHA fees, and overage charges make comparison nearly impossible.

This calculator cuts through the noise. Enter your traffic volume and see estimated monthly costs across every WAF provider we track — sorted cheapest-first, with real pricing data from each vendor's published tiers.

Features

Side-by-Side Comparison

See estimated costs across 50+ WAF providers in one sortable table.

Real Provider Pricing

Calculations based on actual published pricing tiers from each vendor.

Smart Filters

Filter by free tier availability, maximum budget, and sort by cost, name, or cost per million requests.

Instant Results

Get immediate cost estimates without sharing any data or signing up.

How to Use

Enter your monthly requests: Input your total monthly HTTP requests. You can find this in your CDN dashboard, Google Analytics, or server logs.
Set number of domains: Enter how many domains or sites need WAF protection. Per-site WAFs will multiply accordingly.
Apply filters (optional): Check "Free tier only" to see only free options, or set a maximum monthly budget.
Click Compare Costs: The tool calculates costs for each provider and shows results sorted cheapest-first.
Explore results: Click "Cost breakdown" on any provider to see the math and all available tiers. Click "View Review" for the full provider analysis.

Methodology

This calculator estimates WAF costs using the following approach:

Pricing Calculation

Monthly Cost = (Base Price × Number of Domains) + Usage Overage

Usage Overage = max(0, Monthly Requests - Included Requests) × Per-Million Rate

How We Compare

For each provider, we select the cheapest tier that can handle your traffic volume
Per-site WAFs (like Cloudflare) are multiplied by your domain count
Per-request WAFs (like AWS WAF) are calculated based on your actual traffic
Enterprise/custom-priced tiers are excluded since they require contacting sales

Limitations

Estimates are based on published pricing and may not reflect negotiated enterprise rates
Add-ons (bot management, API security, managed rules) are not included
Some vendors charge per-rule or per-Web-ACL fees not captured here
Free tiers may have feature limitations not reflected in cost alone

Frequently Asked Questions

How accurate are these cost estimates?

These estimates are based on published pricing tiers from each WAF vendor. They give you a reliable ballpark for comparison purposes. Actual costs may vary based on negotiated rates, add-on features, and specific billing dimensions not captured in our model (such as per-rule fees or bandwidth charges). We recommend using these estimates to shortlist 3-5 providers, then requesting formal quotes.

Why are some WAF providers missing from the results?

We only show providers with published, calculable pricing tiers. Vendors that require "Contact Sales" for all plans (common with enterprise WAFs) cannot be included in automated cost calculations. These providers are still reviewed on our site — check the full provider directory.

Does this calculator account for add-on costs?

No. Most WAF vendors charge extra for features like bot management, API security, managed rule subscriptions, and DDoS protection. For example, AWS WAF charges $10/month extra for Bot Control plus per-request fees. These add-ons can significantly increase your total cost. We show base WAF pricing to enable fair comparison.

What about multi-year discounts or committed use pricing?

This calculator uses standard month-to-month pricing. Many vendors offer 10-30% discounts for annual commitments. If a provider looks promising at monthly rates, annual pricing will only make it more attractive. Ask the vendor directly about commitment discounts.

Should I just pick the cheapest WAF?

No. Cost is one factor among many. A $0/month WAF with limited rules and no API protection may cost you more in breaches than a $200/month WAF that blocks 99% of attacks. Use this calculator to understand your budget range, then read our head-to-head comparisons and best-for guides to evaluate features, support, and overall value.