Binary Ninja vs Ghidra
Ghidra 12.1.4 (September 2026) is free under Apache-2.0, while Binary Ninja Personal costs $199 and Commercial $1799 plus taxes and fees on Vector 35's official purchase page (checked October 18, 2026).
Ghidra is free and open source (Apache-2.0). Binary Ninja is a commercial product from Vector 35 with Free / Personal / Commercial editions listed on binary.ninja/purchase.
Checked 2026-10-17 (UTC): Ghidra release 12.1.4; Binary Ninja list prices Personal $199, Commercial $1799 (plus taxes/fees; student discounts $49 / $449). Personal is described as non-commercial use.
Side-by-side
| Dimension | Ghidra | Binary Ninja |
|---|---|---|
| Publisher | NSA (open source) | Vector 35 |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Proprietary editions |
| Cash cost | $0 | Free $0; Personal $199; Commercial $1799 (+ tax/fees) |
| Student discount (BN page) | — | Personal $49; Commercial $449 |
| Decompiler | Built-in | Included; architecture count differs by edition (page: Free 5 / paid 12+) |
| Headless / GUI-less plugins | Via Ghidra headless | Commercial & Ultimate (page: headless processing) |
| Latest Ghidra tag checked | Ghidra_12.1.4_build | Verify BN version in-app / vendor notes |
When to pick Ghidra
- Zero license budget and Apache-2.0 matters.
- You want a large public plugin/script community around an OSS framework.
- You already standardize on JDK + Ghidra in the lab.
When to pick Binary Ninja
- You want Vector 35's UX/API and can pay Personal or Commercial.
- You need commercial-use rights (Personal explicitly targets non-commercial/hobby use on the purchase page).
- Headless automation is required (Commercial/Ultimate per vendor comparison).
Related on BinBench
FAQ
Is Binary Ninja Free open source?
No. It is a proprietary free edition for evaluation/education per Vector 35.
Does Personal allow freelancing?
The purchase page states the Non-Commercial (Personal) edition's primary restriction is non-commercial use. Read the license text before paid work.
Can I pirate Commercial?
No. BinBench only links legal purchase pages.
Do we rank decompiler quality?
No. Compare on your authorized samples.