The Best Red Teaming Tools of 2026: What You Need to Know

As AI-generated threats continue to rise, more organisations are turning to red teaming to turn the tide. Nothing provides a better understanding of your security posture like letting a red team loose on your environment to simulate a real-world attack. 

Here is a list of some of the top red teaming tools you’ll find in 2026—along with what you’ll need to know to make your choice.  

Cobalt Strike (Fortra)  

Cobalt Strike is one of the most widely used red teaming tools in cybersecurity today. As one engineer noted, “It was the product that changed the industry” as its insights spurred the development of Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR). Now, nearly a decade and a half later, it continues to be the professional’s choice and is estimated to be in use by 60% of red teamers out there.  

Strengths 

• Vetted Exploits: One of Cobalt Strike’s key advantages is its interoperability. By integrating closely with Core Impact, it offers users full access to Core Impact’s library of core certified exploits, which is widely trusted by security experts over potentially risky open-source options.  

• Malleable C2: Traffic can be made to resemble legitimate apps (by altering URLs, headers, payload formatting, etc.), a mature and well-documented technique. 

• Integrated Workflow: Bundles payload generation, post-exploitation features, a team server for collaboration, and a single operator workflow—instead of making teams cobble together separate OSS components. 

• Superior Support: Commercial licensing comes with professional support; vendor maintenance, documentation, and live help. For teams that want compatibility with corporate tooling and predictable updates, this is key.  

• Mature Solution with Repeatable Results: Polished GUIs, established C2 features, team collaboration workflows, and vetted exploits mean repeatable, credible results.  

Limitations 

• Commercial Licensing: Commercial pricing can be high for smaller teams. 

• Legal Considerations: Cobalt Strike can only be used in authorised engagements. 

Watch Now: See Cobalt Strike explained in two minutes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9BUxptcYZCk 

Mythic 

Mythic is an open-source, modular command-and-control (C2) framework perfect for creating customised “agents” across Windows, macOS, and Linux targets.  

Strengths 

• Highly Extensible: New features easily added or modified without an extensive overhaul. Every feature runs as a containerized microservice. 

• Fully Customisable: Used for openness, flexibility, and the ability to research and craft new payloads. 

• Development and Research: Many use Mythic for research, educational, and development purposes as it provides full control and zero licensing costs.  

Limitations 

• Requires Orchestration: Container orchestration, agent configuration, and more administrative effort than commercial tools are required. 

• Steep Learning Curve: Without a “turnkey” setup or a single-vendor installer, operators must be experienced to get Mythic up and running. 

AdaptixC2  

AdaptixC2 is a fairly new open-source red teaming tool that entered the market in January 2025. It offers flexibility, a modular architecture, and works across multiple operating systems. With no licensing costs, it is good for labs and bespoke engagements. 

Strengths 

• Cross-Platform Support: It offers support for Windows, Linux, and macOS agents. 

• “Extenders” and Plug-Ins: Add in additional capabilities like lateral movement, credential harvesting, and custom payloads. 

• Modifiable and Open-Source: Great for emulating bespoke adversaries as it is deeply customisable and easily expanded.  

Limitations 

• Less Mature: Being newer on the market means fewer “out of the box” modules and less battle-tested experience.  

• Less Standardised and Established: Integrating with other red-team ecosystems (toolchains, training, reporting workflows) may require more customisation. 

Sliver 

Developed by Bishop Fox, Sliver is an open-source adversary emulation platform that implants “slivers” (malicious binaries) across many architectures and supports multiple transport options. 

Strengths 

• Staged and Stageless Payloads: Sliver delivers both staged and stageless payloads to launch both larger, immediate-impact attacks and smaller, size-constricted ones. 

• Flexible Transport Options: Offers native support for DNS, HTTP(S), mTLS, WireGuard and custom transports for varied emulation of egress patterns.  

• Dynamic Code Generation: Reduces static detections (when configured properly) with per-binary keys and compile-time options to change fingerprints.  

Limitations 

• No Commercial SLA: Teams need to invest in their own internal support, testing, hardening, and expertise.  

• Payload Size: Some users report the need to reduce forensic artefacts.  

Havoc  

Havoc has rapidly gained traction in the red teaming community as one of the few open-source C2 tools to be designed with operator UX in mind.  

Strengths 

• Fully Customisable: Teams can extend, modify, and audit the framework (again, good for research, education, and custom engagements).  

• Fast Set Up: Documentation, tutorials, and YouTube walk-throughs shorten the learning curve, along with active community engagement. 

• Approachable UX: A GUI-driven framework smooths set up and provides a more polished, modern user experience comparable to commercial-grade tools. 

Limitations 

• Younger Ecosystem: Less battle-tested than older, more established red teaming tools; capabilities may evolve unevenly. 

• Operational Hardening Required: To achieve enterprise-grade OPSEC, internal investment is required: cleaning proxies, testing against EDR/XDR stacks, hardening listeners.   

Outflank Security Tooling (OST)  

Outflank Security Tooling, or OST, is a collection of advanced red teaming tools made “by red teamers, for red teamers.” This broad, evasive toolset emulates real-world attacks by simulating APT techniques, bypassing defences, and providing high-end offensive security. 

Strengths 

• Expert Maintained: OST is continuously updated by the hackers and experts that use it themselves, making it well-suited for mature and sensitive target environments. 

• Full Kill Chain Coverage: Get advanced tools to break the attack chain at any stage. Small teams can punch above their weight with shortcuts for hard stages like EDR evasion, initial access, and OPSEC-safe lateral movement. 

• Unique Industry Advantage: OST features techniques not yet weaponized or even published by other teams, giving organisations a unique advantage over other tools and attackers.  

Limitations 

• Vetted Audience: Because of its powerful capabilities, Outflank Security Tooling is not a tool for the masses. Instead, it is available only to a vetted community of responsible buyers and red team professionals because of its real-world attack potential. 

• OS-Specific Evasion: Evasion techniques are carefully crafted to work with certain operating systems and configurations, just like an attackers’ techniques. This means that an exploit designed for a Windows 11 endpoint may not work on Windows 10. 

Kali Linux 

Maintained by Offensive Security, Kali Linux is a Debian-based Linux construction used for red teaming, pen testing, and digital forensics. Rather than a specialised red teaming tool, it is a complete operating system and toolkit.  

Strengths 

• Preinstalled Security Tools: Kali Linux ships with 600+ preinstalled security tools (from John the Ripper to Burp Suite to Wireshark). 

• Free and Open Source: Users can modify, inspect, and rebuild it. No licensing or usage fees.  

• Open to Integration: Kali Linux serves as the foundation for red teaming tools, integrating with frameworks like Sliver and Havoc (C2 operators) to act as host. 

Limitations 

• Not a C2 Framework: While Kali Linux supports C2 frameworks, it is an environment—not a post-exploitation or C2 platform in its own right. 

• Inconsistent Tool Maturity: Tools can overlap, lead to inefficiencies, or (in the case of older tools) be buggy, outdated, or redundant.  

Matrix Table 

Conclusion: Commercial vs Open-Source 

Ultimately, the choice between commercial red teaming tools and open-source options depends on where you are willing to sacrifice. 

As SANS notes, “Balance the cost against the potential ROI. Open-source tools…may be cost-effective and community-driven, while commercial tools…often come with a additional capabilities and a curated database. This typically includes the latest threat intelligence, attack vectors, new campaigns and overall support.” 

Whether your organisation is looking for a cost-friendly option or a mature, licensed solution, there is a red teaming vendor that can fit your needs in 2026.  

FAQ:

What is a red team? 

A red team is a group of ethical hackers that play the part of adversaries in simulating a real-world cyberattack for the purpose of testing an organization’s cybersecurity defences. They play a key role in offensive security. 

What is the difference between a red team and a blue team? 

A red team attacks; a blue team defends. Though they play opposite roles in red team engagements, all are on the same side: improving the cybersecurity posture of the target organisation.  

This is why teams should prioritise blue team success over red team wins.  

Watch this explainer video for more: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E3ZMAipJvao 

How is red teaming different from penetration testing?
Pen testing searches for and catalogues vulnerabilities, specifically.  Red teaming leverages advanced and creative ways to breach an organisation, from social engineering to APTs and beyond. It is broader, less predictable, and tests everything from the tool stack to the response capabilities of the blue team.

What is the goal of a red team exercise?

The goal of a red team exercise is to uncover ways in which threat actors could leverage internal weaknesses, misconfigurations, and oversights – along with technical exploits and expertise – to access an organisation’s internal network, services, or applications and disrupt operations, exfiltrate data, and otherwise inflict harm.  

How do you get legal/ethical approval to run a red team? 

The red team engagement needs to be authorised and approved by the organisation and key stakeholders. Basic steps include: 

• Scope and Justification: Define what you’re testing and why 
• Sign-Off: Approval from legal, risk/compliance, SOC/security, IT/network operations, HR (if phishing), C-Suite sponsor 
• Rules of Engagement (RoE): Defines technical boundaries, allowed techniques, and things like safe words and kill switches. 

What kind of tools do red teams use?  

Red teams typically use command-and-control (C2) platforms to run red team engagements. These frameworks can be commercial-grade or open-sourced, and include tools such as: 

• Beacons/Agents/Slivers 

• Adversary Emulation Platforms 

• Exploit Frameworks 

• Lateral-Movement Tools 

• Post-Exploitation Tools (Outflank Security Tooling (OST)) 

• Payload Builders/Obfuscators/Packers 

• Transport and Tunneling Tools 

• Reconnaissance and Scanning Tools (Shodan, theHarvester) 

• Social Engineering and Phishing Toolkits (Social Engineering Toolkit (SET)) 

• Penetration Testing Tools (Core Impact) 

• Network/Application Testing Tools (Wireshark, Burp Suite) 

• Physical Tools (RFID cloners, lock-pick sets) 

• Command Libraries/Scripts/ Automation 

Cobalt Strike was one of the first public red team C2 frameworks and is a favourite in the red teaming community.  

What’s a purple team exercise and should we do one? 

A purple team exercise brings red teams and blue teams together in a collaborative security assessment. The focus is on bringing both skillsets to the table for the purpose of learning, teaching, and improving—not “winning.”  

A purple team mindset recognizes red and blue as the same team – with the ultimate goal of beating attackers – and fosters engagements that act as an open-communication training opportunity.