Kali Linux vs. macOS

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Kali Linux
Score 9.3 out of 10
N/A
Kali Linux is an open source, advanced penetration testing platform supported by Offensive Security headquartered in New York.N/A
macOS
Score 9.3 out of 10
N/A
macOS is the graphical operating system for Apple desktop devices.N/A
Pricing
Kali LinuxmacOS
Editions & Modules
No answers on this topic
No answers on this topic
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
Kali LinuxmacOS
Free Trial
NoNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional Details
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
Kali LinuxmacOS
Considered Both Products
Kali Linux
Chose Kali Linux
The hard feature to be beat Kali with is the amount of preinstalled tools. I.e. Ubuntu is great but you would have to install each and every tool separately.
Chose Kali Linux
As Parrot security OS is relatively new to the game, Kali Linux has an edge as it is in the market since 2013. Kali Linux has an advantage that it is opensource and has good back end technical support by open source developers worldwide. Also Parrot security OS is based on …
Chose Kali Linux
Different suite of tools and need of specialists to be familiar with the tools to use the best features. Most of the users will be familiar with Kali Linux compared with Blackbox. But easy to switch between the two and is more to complement with each other on the areas needed …
macOS
Chose macOS
macOS is much more user-friendly and designed for the novice user. Linux, while providing excellent performance, is not a system that regular non-expert users feel comfortable with out of the box. Windows is more complicated to support because it must accommodate a wide …
Chose macOS
Just that simplicity of day to day activities and management.
It's basically zero hassle with the ability to scale and power up if needed.
Chose macOS
Way faster and better than Windows OS. Only instance Windows OS wins is cost.
Chose macOS
macOS just makes sense to me. Each OS has its pros and cons.. macOS works for me. It's well designed, intuitive, and efficient. But it's not cheap... well, macOS is basically free, but you need the hardware to run it, and the hardware isn't cheap. Pick the right tool for the …
Chose macOS
More reliable, better for power users, more feature rich
Features
Kali LinuxmacOS
Operating System
Comparison of Operating System features of Product A and Product B
Kali Linux
-
Ratings
macOS
9.5
Ratings
8% above category average
File Management00 Ratings9.00 Ratings
Software Application Management00 Ratings9.80 Ratings
System Update Frequency00 Ratings9.80 Ratings
Operating System Security00 Ratings9.50 Ratings
Best Alternatives
Kali LinuxmacOS
Small Businesses

No answers on this topic

Ubuntu
Ubuntu
Score 8.2 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
Veracode
Veracode
Score 8.6 out of 10
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)
Score 9.1 out of 10
Enterprises
Veracode
Veracode
Score 8.6 out of 10
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)
Score 9.1 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
Kali LinuxmacOS
Likelihood to Recommend
10.0
(0 ratings)
9.1
(0 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
7.3
(0 ratings)
10.0
(0 ratings)
Usability
-
(0 ratings)
9.4
(0 ratings)
Availability
-
(0 ratings)
10.0
(0 ratings)
Performance
-
(0 ratings)
9.0
(0 ratings)
Product Scalability
-
(0 ratings)
9.0
(0 ratings)
User Testimonials
Kali LinuxmacOS
Likelihood to Recommend
Kali is well suited for the following:



  • Analyzing SSL certs to verify
    they are installed correctly
  • Analyzing SSL configuration on
    servers to confirm correct ciphers are enabled
  • Scanning our web servers for
    vulnerabilities as part of our regular security testing
  • Scanning wordpress sites to
    identify out of date plugins and other potential security issues.
  • Running port scans on our servers
    to make sure only certain ports are open
It is not appropriate for users who aren't already familiar with cybersecurity. Kali is an advanced OS geared for cybersecurity applications.
Read full review
It's generally great all round. IT will love it for the easy management and patching. Enforcing updates is straightforward. As a developer it has all the tools and software you could need, apart from windows apps development.
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Pros
  • Open source
  • Suite of tools for PT
  • NEtHunter
Read full review
  • Integrates with other apple devices seamlessly
  • Information passed between those devices is encrypted end to end (understanding that apple has the keys in some cases)
  • Compact design
  • Aesthetically pleasing
Read full review
Cons
  • Usage wise, it is tough for use by beginners. Can be improved.
  • With Kali Linux have noticed driver related issues especially with Nvidia graphics cards.
  • Kali Linux can be improved for use as a day to day OS.
Read full review
  • Intrusiveness of security features is sometimes detrimental.
  • "Apple tax" (premium pricing).
  • Integration with open source and public domain development.
  • Strictly limited to Apple hardware.
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Likelihood to Renew
No answers on this topic
Its simply the best operating system
Read full review
Usability
No answers on this topic
I'm sure I'm biased. I've been using a Mac for 30+ yrs. I am significantly more productive on a Mac than on any other platform. It comes down to some personal preference and familiarity, but I just think the interface is more intuitive and streamlined
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Reliability and Availability
No answers on this topic
macOS tends to be very reliable, and Apple distributes updates as needed to patch known vulnerabilities or issues. It is very seldom that a macOS-based system is unavailable, and if that happens, the cloud-based storage and identity management support make it very easy to slot in a loaner machine while the user's primary machine is repaired.
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Performance
No answers on this topic
The Apple Silicon hardware allows macOS to perform very well, with rapid response. Local processing for Apple Intelligence-related items is quite fast, and the response is impressively complete. Our experience with integrations to other enterprise systems is that the other system is usually the bottleneck in the process, rather than macOS.
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Alternatives Considered
As Parrot security OS is relatively new to the game, Kali Linux has an edge as it is in the market since 2013. Kali Linux has an advantage that it is opensource and has good back end technical support by open source developers worldwide. Also Parrot security OS is based on cloud environments and Kali Linux OS is made to run in house.
Read full review
macOS is much more user-friendly and designed for the novice user. Linux, while providing excellent performance, is not a system that regular non-expert users feel comfortable with out of the box. Windows is more complicated to support because it must accommodate a wide variety of manufacturers' hardware, down to motherboards. macOS has a very well-defined set of hardware to support, and it is very well integrated. It is just simpler to use and simpler to support than the alternatives.
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Scalability
No answers on this topic
macOS is very easily deployed with central MDM/DDM management systems. There are several of these available to select, depending on the amount and type of deployment needed. We use Jamf Pro to support a "zero touch" deployment model, which makes it almost as easy to deploy 100 endpoints as 10 (other than delivery and unboxing).
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Return on Investment
  • Kali is a free OS which makes it very useful to install so many tools while not paying a premium
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  • DLP and overall security on macOS is just far superior than Windows OS
  • Updates are easier to push out on macOS so security has been further improved
Read full review
ScreenShots