Free Tools
Free Phishing Tools
Free phishing tools to test and train your team: a hosted simulator with a free plan, plus how it compares with open source options like Gophish. No credit card, no hidden fees. From realistic phishing simulations to risk scoring, everything you need to measure and improve your human firewall.
Free Phishing Simulator
Launch realistic email phishing simulations against your employees. No credit card. No campaigns to configure.
Vishing Simulation
Test your team's resilience against phone-based social engineering attacks.
Security Awareness Training
Deliver personalised micro-learning modules automatically based on each employee's behaviour.
Attack Template Library
Browse hand-crafted attack templates to simulate the latest phishing threats.
Free phishing simulation tools: hosted vs open source
"Free" comes in two flavours: open source software you run yourself, and hosted platforms with a free plan. Both let you simulate phishing attacks; they differ in what happens after the click. For the full paid-and-free market rundown, see our guide to the best phishing simulation tools.
Gophish
The best-known open-source phishing framework. A single Go binary with template editing and campaign analytics. You self-host it, manage deliverability yourself, and there's no training layer, so clicks are measured but not taught.
King Phisher & SET
Open source phishing toolkits built for red teams and penetration testers. Powerful and scriptable, but designed for authorised offensive engagements, not for running an ongoing employee awareness programme.
PhishGrid (free plan)
Hosted free phishing simulation with a template library, an AI template generator, automatic training for employees who click, and report-rate analytics. No server to run, no deliverability battles, and free forever rather than a trial.
Open-source phishing simulation frameworks: are they maintained?
Only campaign frameworks are useful for an awareness programme. We checked each one on GitHub on 19 October 2026. The last commit shows whether anyone still works on it; an old release means security fixes are up to you. Self-hosting also means running the server, getting mail delivered and writing your own lessons.
| Tool | What it is | Last commit | Latest release | Licence | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gophish | Campaign framework (Go, single binary) | Sep 2024 | v0.12.1, Sep 2022 | MIT | Quiet: works, but plan to patch it yourself |
| King Phisher | Campaign toolkit (Python) | Apr 2026 | v1.15.0, Sep 2019 | BSD-3-Clause | README says no longer maintained |
| FiercePhish | Campaign framework (PHP) | Jan 2024 | v1.2.2, Jun 2017 | GPL-3.0 | Quiet |
| Phishing Frenzy | Campaign framework (Rails) | Nov 2023 | none | GPL-3.0 | Quiet |
Red-team tools such as Evilginx and the Social-Engineer Toolkit are actively maintained but built for authorised penetration tests, not staff training: they have no lessons and no report tracking. Login-page clone kits sold as "phishing apps" collect real passwords and have no place in an awareness programme.
Free phishing tools: FAQs
Can I run phishing simulations without paying for software?
Yes, two ways. Self-host an open source tool like Gophish (free, but you manage servers, deliverability and follow-up training yourself), or use PhishGrid's free plan, which is hosted and includes the full simulation workflow: templates, campaigns, click tracking, and automatic security awareness training. For most teams the hosted route costs less in practice, because the engineering hours are the real price of DIY.
Do free phishing simulation tools actually work?
Yes. A free phishing test measures click rates just as well as a paid one. The difference shows after the click: behaviour only changes when a click triggers an immediate teachable moment and follow-up training. That closed loop is what PhishGrid's free plan includes and what bare open-source tools leave you to build.
Are free and open source phishing tools worth it?
For technical security teams that want total control, absolutely: Gophish in particular is excellent for testing technical defences. For changing employee behaviour at an organisation, a managed platform wins: templates stay current with real attack trends (including AI-generated and QR-code phishing), and training happens automatically.
Is it legal to run a free phishing test on my employees?
Yes, when you test your own employees on your own systems. It's standard practice under frameworks like ISO 27001 and SOC 2. Disclose simulated phishing testing in your security policy, keep lures professional, and never store submitted credentials.
What's the catch with PhishGrid's free plan?
No credit card and no trial clock. The free plan has limits based on your organisation's size and revenue (see the pricing page). Paid plans add custom templates, vishing, ransomware simulation, the AI attack engine and the fully managed service; email simulation, templates, training and reporting stay free.
Why are PhishGrid tools free?
We believe cybersecurity is a basic right. Our mission is to make enterprise-grade phishing simulation accessible to every organisation, regardless of budget. Our paid plans exist for organisations that need advanced features, but the core platform is genuinely free, forever.