Profits remain clear, and faster growth shows new signs
- Q2 revenue grew 11% to $182.2 million, and full-year revenue guidance was raised to $732 million to $738 million.
- Total net dollar expansion ticked up to 105%, breaking a streak of flat growth.
- Customers using ETM or CSAM maintained a strong 107% net dollar expansion.
- Partner-led revenue reached 54% of total revenue and grew 22% year over year.
- Google's March 2026 purchase of Wiz raises the risk that cloud security pricing gets tougher.
A steady compounder finds a spark
Qualys is showing signs of re-accelerating growth while keeping a clean execution story. It beat Q2 expectations, raised full-year revenue guidance to 9% to 10% growth, and kept showing strong profit discipline. The company operates with 46% EBITDA margins, fitting its long-running pitch as a highly efficient software provider.
The better news is under the surface. Total net dollar expansion ticked up to 105% in Q2, breaking a streak of flat growth. Customers using its newer Enterprise TruRisk Management, or ETM, and Cybersecurity Asset Management, or CSAM, products held strong at 107% net dollar expansion. The upward move in the total company rate suggests the platform strategy is starting to pull the broader customer base higher.
The partner strategy is also paying off. Partner-led sales now account for 54% of total revenue and grew 22% year over year. The company recently took its flexible QFlex pricing live for enterprise customers, which should help accelerate multi-product adoption.
Competition and leadership turnover remain risks. Qualys names Wiz as a competitor, and Wiz was acquired by Google in March 2026, creating a giant rival in cloud security. The company is also still searching for a permanent Chief Revenue Officer, and recently saw its CISO and ETM general manager depart. The stock can work if platform adoption and the partner channel keep building, but execution must stay sharp.
Subscriptions built around risk
Qualys makes money by selling subscriptions to its Enterprise TruRisk Platform. Customers pay for modules that cover jobs like vulnerability management, patching, asset tracking, cloud security, and risk measurement. The more modules a customer uses, the more valuable the platform should become.
The model works best when Qualys lands with its core vulnerability product, then adds other tools over time. That is why net dollar expansion matters. With the total rate reaching 105%, Qualys is showing it can grow without needing every dollar to come from new customers.
The go-to-market mix is heavily shifting toward partners. Partner-led revenue reached 54% of total revenue in Q2 2026, up significantly from previous years, and grew 22%. Direct channel revenue remained flat. This partner motion widens reach, but it places almost the entire growth burden on channel execution.
Where it can break is in the core market. Vulnerability management is mature and faces pricing pressure. If newer products like TotalCloud and ETM fail to sell into the installed base, Qualys may stay a profitable but slower-growth software company.
From finding bugs to fixing them
VMDR with TruRisk
Vulnerability Management, Detection and Response is the core product. It helps customers find security flaws, rank them by risk, and decide what to fix first.
Patch Management
Patch Management helps automate the fix after a weakness is found. It supports the move from alerting customers to helping them take action.
CSAM with EASM
Cybersecurity Asset Management shows customers what technology assets they have. Its 107% cohort expansion with ETM is a sign that platform adoption can improve spending.
TotalCloud CNAPP
TotalCloud is Qualys' cloud security product. It is strategically important, but competition is rising after Google's acquisition of Wiz.
Enterprise TruRisk Management
ETM helps security teams turn many alerts into a clearer risk score and action plan. The product is central to Qualys' platform upsell story.
TotalAI 2.0 & InstaScan
TotalAI 2.0 helps secure AI workloads, and InstaScan provides continuous, scanless detection. These strengthen the AI-native risk operations story.
QFlex pricing
QFlex is a flexible pricing model allowing customers to purchase Qualys units and use modules of their choice. It is now live for enterprise customers.
A balanced revenue base
The geographic mix is from Q2 2026. Qualys also discloses channel mix, where partner-led revenue reached 54% of total revenue.
What could break the thesis
Cloud security gets tougher after Wiz
High impact · Medium oddsQualys competes with large security platforms. Google's acquisition of Wiz adds a cloud giant with large distribution and deep funding. This could hurt TotalCloud CNAPP win rates, lengthen sales cycles, or pressure prices.
Sales leadership remains unsettled
Medium impact · Medium oddsQualys still lacks a permanent Chief Revenue Officer, and the general manager for the fast-growing ETM business recently left. A long delay in building stable leadership could create friction in the field.
Direct sales channel is flat
Medium impact · High oddsWhile partner-led revenue grew 22% in Q2, the direct channel was largely unchanged year over year. This places the entire growth burden on partners.
Budget caution slows upsells
Medium impact · Medium oddsManagement continues to cite macro volatility. When security budgets are tight, customers may delay adding new modules even if they renew core products.
In one breath
What does Qualys do?
Qualys sells cloud-based cybersecurity software. Its tools help companies find assets, detect security weaknesses, rank risk, and fix the most urgent problems.
Why does net dollar expansion matter for Qualys?
Net dollar expansion shows whether existing customers spend more over time after renewals, upgrades, and downgrades. Qualys' total rate was 105% in Q2 2026, while ETM and CSAM customers were at 107%.
Is Qualys growing fast?
Qualys is growing, but not at a high-growth software pace. Q2 revenue grew 11%, and full-year guidance points to 9% to 10% revenue growth.
What is the biggest risk for Qualys?
The biggest risk is that newer platform products do not grow fast enough to offset a maturing core vulnerability market. Competition in cloud security also increased after Google bought Wiz.
