GitHub Advanced Security vs Semgrep for AI code security

ANSWER FIRST

GitHub Advanced Security scores 2.9 and Semgrep 3.5 on our AI code security criteria, so Semgrep ranks higher on the published weights. GHAS leads on pricing and buying clarity; Semgrep leads on AI code and assistant coverage, endpoint deployment and tamper resistance, governance and policy control and remediation and ASPM depth; they tie on developer experience. The widest gap is endpoint deployment and tamper resistance, where Semgrep scores 3.0 against 1.5.

Editorial assessment · Compiled from vendor product, docs, pricing and marketplace pages · Rated October 2026

How do GitHub Advanced Security and Semgrep score side by side?

GitHub Advanced Security and Semgrep: editorial assessment, 0-5. Last reviewed October 2026.
Criterion	Weight	GitHub Advanced Security	Semgrep	Edge
Coverage of AI-generated code and AI coding assistants	25%	3.0	3.5	Semgrep
Endpoint deployment and tamper resistance	20%	1.5	3.0	Semgrep
Governance and policy control for the CISO	20%	2.0	2.5	Semgrep
Developer experience and low friction	15%	4.5	4.5	Tie
Pricing and buying clarity	10%	4.5	4.0	GHAS
Remediation and ASPM depth	10%	3.5	4.0	Semgrep
Weighted total		2.9	3.5

GitHub Advanced Security leads on 1 criteria, Semgrep leads on 4, and 1 is tied.

GitHub Advanced Security

diff --verdict github-advanced-security · reviewed 2026-09

@@ strengths @@

Strength:Published prices: GitHub Secret Protection $19 and GitHub Code Security $30 per active committer per month. [source]
Strength:Copilot coding agent runs CodeQL, Advisory Database and secret scanning checks on its own changes, no GHAS license needed. [source]
Strength:Push protection blocks commits that contain secrets; AI-detected secrets included. [source]
Strength:Copilot Autofix suggests fixes for code scanning alerts. [source]

@@ limitations @@

Limitation:No controls for third-party assistants such as Cursor or Claude Code on the pages reviewed. [source]
Limitation:For repositories on GitHub, on GitHub Team or GitHub Enterprise Cloud plans. [source]

Semgrep

diff --verdict semgrep · reviewed 2026-09

@@ strengths @@

Strength:Free for up to 10 contributors and 10 private repositories. [source]
Strength:Teams priced at $30 per contributor per month (Code or Supply Chain) and $15 for Secrets. [source]
Strength:Semgrep Guardian runs an MCP server and hooks that fire on every file write in Claude Code, Cursor and Windsurf. [source]
Strength:Guardian blocks malicious dependencies and hardcoded credentials at generation time. [source]

@@ limitations @@

Limitation:No org-wide discovery of assistants or MCP servers on the pages reviewed. [source]
Limitation:GitHub Copilot is not listed for Guardian; Guardian pricing not stated. [source]

How do GitHub Advanced Security and Semgrep cover AI code and coding assistants?

GitHub Advanced Security: CodeQL scans every pull request whoever wrote it, and the Copilot coding agent checks its own changes; Copilot is the only assistant named, and there is no discovery of other agents or MCP servers.

Semgrep: Semgrep Guardian scans inside Claude Code, Cursor and Windsurf as code is written; org-wide discovery of assistants or MCP servers is not described and Copilot is not listed.

Assistants named on their public pages: GitHub Advanced Security: GitHub Copilot; Semgrep: Claude Code, Cursor and Windsurf.

Where do their controls run on the developer machine?

GitHub Advanced Security: Runs on GitHub at push and pull request; no endpoint agent is described.

Semgrep: Guardian runs on the developer machine as an MCP server, hooks on every file write and skills; tamper resistance is not described.

How much control does the security team get?

GitHub Advanced Security: Organization-level security overview, campaigns and push protection; agent checks cover GitHub's own Copilot coding agent, not third-party assistants.

Semgrep: Guardian enforces checks per agent, but the pages reviewed show no central inventory or policy over which agents and MCP servers may run.

How do they fit the developer's workflow?

GitHub Advanced Security: Native to pull requests on GitHub.

Semgrep: Free for up to 10 contributors and 10 private repos, with VS Code and JetBrains support.

How do they fix and prioritize findings?

GitHub Advanced Security: Copilot Autofix suggests fixes and security campaigns organize remediation; no reachability or business-context scoring is described.

Semgrep: Semgrep Assistant auto-triages findings, and remediation guidance appears in pull requests and IDEs.

How do they compare on price?

Semgrep: free tier: Yes: up to 10 contributors; lowest published paid option: $30 per contributor per month (Code or Supply Chain); $15 (Secrets); pricing unit: Contributor.

Source: GitHub Advanced Security pricing · Reviewed Sep 2026

Source: Semgrep pricing · Reviewed Sep 2026

Which should you choose?

Choose GitHub Advanced Security if pricing and buying clarity and developer experience matter most: GHAS scores 4.5 and 4.5 there, against 4.0 and 4.5 for Semgrep. Choose Semgrep if remediation and ASPM depth and AI code and assistant coverage matter most: Semgrep scores 4.0 and 3.5 there, against 3.5 and 3.0 for GHAS.

Frequently asked questions

Is GitHub Advanced Security or Semgrep better for AI code security?

GitHub Advanced Security scores 2.9 and Semgrep 3.5 on our AI code security criteria, so Semgrep ranks higher on the published weights. GHAS leads on 1 of 6 criteria and Semgrep on 4; 1 is tied. Which is better depends on which criteria matter most to you; the calculator on this site re-weights them.

How do GitHub Advanced Security and Semgrep price their plans?

GitHub Advanced Security: free tier: Free for public repositories (code scanning, secret scanning, Dependabot alerts); lowest published paid option: $19 (Secret Protection) or $30 (Code Security) per active committer per month. Semgrep: free tier: Yes: up to 10 contributors; lowest published paid option: $30 per contributor per month (Code or Supply Chain); $15 (Secrets). Prices as published on vendor pages and marketplace listings, reviewed 2026-10-11.

Which AI coding assistants do GitHub Advanced Security and Semgrep name?

On the pages we reviewed, GitHub Advanced Security names GitHub Copilot and Semgrep names Claude Code, Cursor and Windsurf. 'Not named' means we did not find the assistant on the vendor's pages; it does not prove the tool cannot work with it.

Read the full reviews

Where next?

More head-to-heads

Sources reviewed

GitHub Advanced Security

Semgrep

Last reviewed October 2026. Editorial assessment from public vendor material; no hands-on testing.