CrowdStrike vs Zscaler: Revenue, Profit and Business Model
CrowdStrike had $4.8B of annual revenue in FY2026 and a net loss of $162.5M. Zscaler had $3.4B of annual revenue in FY2026 and a net loss of $63.2M.
Latest financial snapshot
CrowdStrike
- Latest annual revenue
- $4.8B (FY2026)
- Net income
- -$162.5M
- Net margin
- -3.4%
- Revenue growth
- +58.8% a year, FY2018–FY2026
Zscaler
- Latest annual revenue
- $3.4B (FY2026)
- Net income
- -$63.2M
- Net margin
- -1.9%
- Revenue growth
- +44.0% a year, FY2017–FY2026
Financial summary
CrowdStrike
CrowdStrike is a high-growth subscription business with strong cash generation but thin GAAP profits. Fiscal 2026 revenue was $4.81 billion, up about 22% from $3.95 billion. Ending ARR rose 24% to $5.25 billion, with a record $1.01 billion of net new ARR. Free cash flow reached $1.24 billion (26% of revenue), yet the GAAP net loss widened to $162.5 million because of stock-based compensation and outage-related costs. Growth accelerated in fiscal 2027: Q2 revenue was $1.47 billion (+26%), ARR reached $5.84 billion (+25%), and Q2 free cash flow was a record $377 million. Management raised its fiscal 2027 net new ARR growth outlook to 34% at the midpoint and keeps a long-term target of $10 billion in ending ARR by fiscal 2031. CrowdStrike is a dominant force in modern cybersecurity, boasting a massive market valuation that generally exceeds $70 billion.
Zscaler
Fiscal 2026 revenue grew 25% to $3.353 billion; excluding Red Canary it grew 20% to $3.209 billion. GAAP loss from operations was $133.3 million, while non-GAAP operating income rose to $767.1 million, or 23% of revenue. GAAP net loss was $63.2 million. Fourth-quarter revenue was $898.2 million and ARR ended the year at $3.771 billion. For fiscal 2027, CFO Kevin Rubin guided to revenue of $3.908 billion to $3.938 billion and ARR of $4.396 billion to $4.426 billion, growth of roughly 17%.
Revenue and profit by year
CrowdStrike
| Year | Revenue | Net income | Margin | Growth | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2026 | $4.8B | -$162.5M | -3.4% | +21.7% | Source |
| FY2025 | $4B | -$15.2M | -0.4% | +29.4% | Source |
| FY2024 | $3.1B | $72.2M | 2.4% | +36.3% | Source |
| FY2023 | $2.2B | -$183.2M | -8.2% | +54.4% | Source |
| FY2022 | $1.5B | -$234.8M | -16.2% | +66.0% | Source |
| FY2021 | $874.4M | -$92.6M | -10.6% | +81.6% | Source |
| FY2020 | $481.4M | -$141.8M | -29.5% | +92.7% | Source |
| FY2019 | $249.8M | -$140.1M | -56.1% | +110.4% | Source |
| FY2018 | $118.8M | -$135.5M | -114.1% | — | Source |
Zscaler
| Year | Revenue | Net income | Margin | Growth | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2026 | $3.4B | -$63.2M | -1.9% | +25.4% | Source |
| FY2025 | $2.7B | -$41.5M | -1.6% | +23.3% | Source |
| FY2024 | $2.2B | -$57.7M | -2.7% | +34.1% | Source |
| FY2023 | $1.6B | -$202.3M | -12.5% | +48.2% | Source |
| FY2022 | $1.1B | -$390.3M | -35.8% | +62.1% | Source |
| FY2021 | $673.1M | -$262M | -38.9% | +56.1% | Source |
| FY2020 | $431.3M | -$115.1M | -26.7% | +42.4% | Source |
| FY2019 | $302.8M | -$28.7M | -9.5% | +59.2% | Source |
| FY2018 | $190.2M | -$33.6M | -17.7% | +51.3% | Source |
| FY2017 | $125.7M | -$35.5M | -28.2% | — | Source |
Where the revenue comes from
CrowdStrike
- Subscription Revenue~95%
Recurring Falcon platform subscriptions across endpoint, identity, cloud, SIEM, exposure management, threat intelligence, and Falcon Complete managed services.
- Professional Services Revenue~5%
Incident response, forensic investigations, tabletop exercises, and security advisory engagements, which often lead to subscription sales.
Zscaler
- Subscription services
Nearly all revenue
Recurring fees for the Zero Trust Exchange modules, typically on annual or multi-year contracts priced by users, workloads, or modules.
- Managed detection and response
$141M ARR (FY2026)
Red Canary's managed detection and response services, acquired in 2025.
Business model and strategy
CrowdStrike
How it makes money
CrowdStrike makes money mainly from subscriptions to its Falcon platform, which accounts for roughly 95% of revenue; the rest comes from professional services such as incident response. Customers deploy one sensor and pay per protected endpoint, workload, or identity, then add modules (EDR/XDR, identity protection, cloud security, Next-Gen SIEM, exposure management, Charlotte AI) without installing new software.
Growth strategy
CrowdStrike's growth strategy is to become the consolidation platform for the security operations center. Beyond endpoint protection, it is pushing Next-Gen SIEM, cloud security, identity protection, exposure management, and Charlotte AI agentic security workflows.
Competitive advantage
CrowdStrike's advantage comes from its single-agent, cloud-native architecture and the volume of telemetry it collects. One sensor supports dozens of modules, so customers can add new products without new deployments, and data from its large installed base feeds detection models and the Counter Adversary Operations intelligence team.
Zscaler
How it makes money
Zscaler earns almost all of its revenue from subscriptions to cloud security services, usually sold on annual or multi-year contracts and priced by users, workloads, or modules.
Growth strategy
Zscaler is trying to grow beyond seat-based internet and private access by selling data security, workload and branch connectivity, security operations through Red Canary, and security for AI applications and agents. It also uses Z-Flex, a flexible purchasing program, to move customers onto more modules.
Competitive advantage
Zscaler built its proxy architecture for the cloud from the start rather than adapting hardware firewalls. Customers route traffic through its service, which gives it a large installed base for cross-selling private access, data protection, and newer security-operations and AI-security products.
Questions about CrowdStrike vs Zscaler
Which company has higher revenue — CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. or Zscaler, Inc.?
CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. had $4.8B (FY2026), while Zscaler, Inc. had $3.4B (FY2026). By latest annual revenue, CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. is the larger business, with Zscaler, Inc. showing a smaller revenue base.
What is the market cap of CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. vs Zscaler, Inc.?
CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc.'s market capitalisation stands at $269.0B, while Zscaler, Inc.'s is $32.6B. CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. carries the higher market valuation, reflecting investors' expectations of its future earnings power relative to Zscaler, Inc..
How does revenue per employee compare for CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. and Zscaler, Inc.?
CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. has $450k / employee in revenue per employee, while Zscaler, Inc. has $424k / employee. Headcounts may use different dates, so the ratio alone does not establish which business operates more efficiently.
How do CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. and Zscaler, Inc. make money?
CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. and Zscaler, Inc. generate revenue in fundamentally different ways. CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc.: CrowdStrike makes money mainly from subscriptions to its Falcon platform, which accounts for roughly 95% of revenue; the rest comes from professional services such as incident response. Zscaler, Inc.: Zscaler earns almost all of its revenue from subscriptions to cloud security services, usually sold on annual or multi-year contracts and priced by users, workloads, or modules.
Which company is valued higher relative to revenue — CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. or Zscaler, Inc.?
On a price-to-sales (P/S) basis, CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. trades at 55.9x P/S and Zscaler, Inc. at 9.7x P/S. CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. commands a higher revenue multiple, typically indicating that investors expect faster growth or higher future margins compared to Zscaler, Inc.. A higher multiple is not inherently better — it may also signal that the stock is priced for perfection.
Is CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. bigger than Zscaler, Inc.?
By last reported revenue, CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. ($4.8B (FY2026)) is the larger company compared to Zscaler, Inc. ($3.4B (FY2026)). Revenue scale is one dimension of size — market capitalisation, employee count, and geographic reach are also relevant depending on the context.
Figures come from each company's filings and the sources linked beside them. Amounts reported in another currency are shown in US dollars at an approximate rate and marked with ~. Back to the CrowdStrike vs Zscaler overview