Semgrep's Coverage Gap: Why Free SAST Isn't Enough for Real Security

While Semgrep's open-source CLI offers genuine value for basic pattern matching at zero cost, security teams face a critical trade-off: the free tier detects only 44-48% of vulnerabilities compared to 72-75% with the paid Pro engine. Essential capabilities like cross-file dataflow analysis, managed rule sets, and SCA with reachability analysis remain behind the paid wall, making the choice between free and commercial Semgrep a question of acceptable security risk rather than pure cost efficiency.