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Guardra vs Semgrep
Guardra vs Semgrep
Open-source rules engine. Powerful, but rules-only.
The honest take
Semgrep is a great rules engine for developers who want to author their own checks. It doesn't audit AI agents, doesn't ship fixes, and asks your team to maintain the detector library.
Teams use Semgrep and Guardra together — Semgrep for custom organizational rules, Guardra for everything else. Or they consolidate fully on Guardra to eliminate the maintenance burden.
| Capability | Guardra | Semgrep |
|---|---|---|
| AI agent auditing | Native | |
| LLM-as-judge analysis for business logic | Included | |
| Pre-built detectors | 12,000+ · updated weekly | ~3,000 community |
| Who maintains rules? | Guardra Labs | You |
| Auto-fix PRs | Included · with tests | Partial · rule-level autofix |
| Secret scanning | Full history + runtime | Basic |
| SCA / dependency vulns | Included | Separate product |
| Compliance exports | Auto | Build your own |
| False-positive rate | < 5% | ~40% |
Why teams switch
- You want detectors, not a detector-authoring project.
- You need AI-era coverage (prompts, agents, tools).
- You want fixes, not just findings.
- Compliance evidence is a deliverable, not a weekend hack.
See it in your own repo
Most migrations take a day. Run Guardra side-by-side with Semgrep on one repo — keep whatever wins.