SecurityHeaders.com Shut Down Its API — Here Are the Best Alternatives (2026)

SecurityHeaders.com was the go-to tool for checking HTTP security headers. In April 2026, it shut down its public API, leaving pentesters and developers without their primary automated scanning option. This guide covers the best free alternatives and why WebAudit is the strongest replacement for Indian security professionals.

What Was SecurityHeaders.com?

SecurityHeaders.com, built by Scott Helme, was a free online scanner that graded websites on the quality of their HTTP security headers. You pasted a URL, it fetched the headers, assigned a grade from A+ to F, and showed you exactly what was missing. It became a standard reference — consultants used it in client reports, developers checked it before launch, and pentesters cited its grades in findings.

The site's real value was its API. For a low monthly fee, you could integrate it into CI/CD pipelines, automate regression testing, and generate data at scale. That API was shut down in April 2026, making automated workflows that depended on it immediately non-functional.

Without an API or PDF export, it no longer meets the needs of professionals who need to deliver client-ready reports or automate security testing.

SecurityHeaders.com API shutdown date: April 2026. If your scripts or CI pipelines call the SecurityHeaders.com API, they are now silently failing or returning errors. You need a replacement.

What to Look for in an Alternative

Not all header scanners are equal. Before choosing a replacement, consider these criteria:

Comparison: Best SecurityHeaders.com Alternatives

Tool Free scan PDF (free tier) API (free tier) Pricing No account needed Full results on free tier COMPLIANCE REPORT
WebAudit (webaudit.in) ✗ Pro only ✗ Pro only ✓ ₹499/mo Pro (India)
$7/mo (international)
₹99 / $2 one-time scan
₹249 / $3 compliance PDF
₹999/mo Agency (India) · $28/mo (Intl)
API key, no signup ~ partial ✓ ₹249 / $3
SiteSecurityScore (sitesecurityscore.com) ~ 3/mo ~ 10 calls/mo ✗ USD $7/mo Pro ✗ account required ~ partial
ImmuniWeb (immuniweb.com) ~ limited ✗ enterprise only ✗ USD only ✗ account required ~ limited

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The table above covers the most actively developed alternatives with documented APIs and ongoing development.

Why WebAudit Is the Best Alternative for Indian Pentesters

No account needed — instant results

Paste a URL, get a grade. No signup, no account, no onboarding flow. Results appear in under 10 seconds covering HTTP headers, TLS certificate details, and DNS email security (SPF, DMARC, DKIM). Pro access is delivered via an API key — no dashboard login required. Cookie security and cross-origin isolation analysis are available on Pro. The free tier shows header, TLS, and DNS results on screen with no restrictions on how many manual scans you run.

INR pricing — no dollar conversion

WebAudit Pro is priced at ₹499/month for India (billed in INR through Razorpay) or $7/month internationally (billed in USD through LemonSqueezy). There is no currency conversion or international transaction fee for Indian users, and no need for a dollar-denominated card. For Indian freelancers billing clients in rupees, this matters: you are not paying a 3–5% forex surcharge on top of the subscription fee every month. Teams handling multiple clients can upgrade to the Agency tier at ₹999/month (India) or $28/month (international), which monitors up to 25 domains with automated weekly or monthly scheduled scans and PDF delivery by email.

For one-off engagements where a monthly subscription makes no sense, a ₹99 (~$2) one-time scan is also available — pay once, get a full Pro-level report for one URL with all fix recommendations included. No account, no subscription, no recurring charge.

PDF reports your clients can read

The single biggest gap left by SecurityHeaders.com for professional use was the absence of a downloadable report. WebAudit Pro generates a full branded PDF containing the security grade, all header findings with fix recommendations, TLS details, and DNS analysis. You attach it to a deliverable or share it with a client without any additional formatting work.

REST API for automation

The WebAudit API is a documented REST API. Pro subscribers get an API key that can be used to run programmatic scans, integrate with CI/CD pipelines, and pull raw JSON results for custom reporting. The endpoints mirror what SecurityHeaders.com's API offered — a POST /api/scan/pro with a URL body returns grade, score, and per-header findings.

curl -X POST https://api.webaudit.in/api/scan/pro \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -H "X-API-Key: YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -d '{"url": "https://example.com"}'

Broader coverage than just headers

SecurityHeaders.com checked headers only. WebAudit checks headers, TLS/SSL certificates, DNS email security records, cookie security attributes, cross-origin isolation headers, server fingerprinting, and page-level issues like mixed content and missing Subresource Integrity (SRI) checks — all in a single scan.

World Security Index — global benchmarking

WebAudit maintains a public World Security Index — security grades for the top 100 global websites, updated weekly. This gives you an immediate benchmark: see how your client's site compares to major banks, e-commerce platforms, and tech companies worldwide. SecurityHeaders.com had no such benchmarking feature.

Migrating from SecurityHeaders.com API

If you had scripts calling the SecurityHeaders.com API, here is what needs to change:

Migration is straightforward. The WebAudit API uses the same conceptual model as SecurityHeaders.com — POST a URL, get back a grade and per-header findings. The response JSON is richer, but the core workflow is identical.

The Bottom Line

For developers and pentesters who want the most complete free replacement — no account, no signup, instant results — WebAudit covers everything SecurityHeaders.com did plus TLS, DNS, and cookies. Pro unlocks PDF export and API access at ₹499/month (India) or $7/month (international). Need just one report without subscribing? A ₹99 / $2 one-time scan gives a full Pro-level result for a single URL. Teams monitoring multiple clients can use the Agency tier (₹999/month India · $28/month international) for automated scheduled scans across 25 domains with PDF delivery by email. INR pricing is a bonus for Indian users, but the tool works the same everywhere.

For teams that need free-tier PDF and API access, SiteSecurityScore offers 3 PDFs and 10 API calls monthly on its free plan but requires an account and USD pricing. ImmuniWeb suits occasional manual checks but lacks a usable API at accessible prices.

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No login required. Results in under 10 seconds. Headers, TLS, DNS, cookies — all in one report.

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