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Aruba ClearPass vs Fortinet FortiNAC vs Portnox comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

ROI

Sentiment score
4.9
Aruba ClearPass offers strong ROI through enhanced security and management, but licensing needs and industry use affect results.
Sentiment score
6.4
Fortinet FortiNAC boosts security and ROI by streamlining processes, reducing costs and effort, and ensuring authorized network access.
Sentiment score
4.1
Portnox enhances security and efficiency, reducing IT costs and workload through cloud-based management of device access and policies.
Using Aruba ClearPass has resulted in less engineering time compared to other products we've used.
Owner at Channelserve
The investment is huge for enterprise clients, but Aruba ClearPass makes processes easier.
Pre-Sales Consultant at a consultancy with 201-500 employees
We have saved resources and time, and we have also secured our network, confirming we have a return on investment.
Cybersecurity Team Leader at EMAK For Computer Manufacturing (ECM)
If I compare this to an on-premises environment using Cisco ISE or Aruba ClearPass, it would require phenomenally large teams for infrastructure management.
Principle Cloud Architect at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
If you were moving from a traditional on-premise NAC that was 100% managed by the IT department, there would be great savings in going to a cloud-based NAC with Portnox.
IT Infrastructure Manager at a tech vendor with 501-1,000 employees
Most customers feel value immediately upon deployment.
Product Manager at Applied Principles Limited
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
7.3
Aruba ClearPass support is praised for expertise, though some note improvements needed in response time and escalation processes.
Sentiment score
7.2
Fortinet FortiNAC support varies by region, praised for responsiveness but criticized for delays and communication issues.
Sentiment score
7.0
Portnox is praised for its attentive, responsive customer service, efficient problem-solving, and minimal downtime during updates.
Portnox is one level up, as their customer support is outstanding.
Chief Digital Officer at Clarity AI
We have faced delays in the resolution of production issues after raising tickets, which impacts productivity.
Network Support Engineer at HDFC Life
If Aruba ClearPass is not working, then the organization is not working because this is the access control in the organization.
Presales Engineer, Solutions Architect
They provide sessions to help with various questions.
Network &Security Engineer at Natioanal Drug Authority Uganda
They could do more to improve, not because of the product itself but because of the support they provide.
Senior Cyber Security Engineer at Beta Information Technology
Fortinet FortiNAC's customer support is very good, as is typical from Fortinet.
Cybersecurity Team Leader at EMAK For Computer Manufacturing (ECM)
The main area needing improvement is the technical knowledge of support staff.
Senior Network Engineer at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
For very high severity issues where the entire office is non-functional, response time is within 30 minutes.
Principle Cloud Architect at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
In terms of support, it is usually quite impressive. I usually get support in a matter of minutes or seconds, depending on the priority of the ticket.
Engineer at Applied Principles Limited
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
8.1
Aruba ClearPass is praised for its scalability, supporting diverse user numbers and environments with flexibility in licensing and virtualization.
Sentiment score
7.5
Fortinet FortiNAC is praised for scalability, supporting easy network expansion for enterprises, highly rated by users despite licensing impacts.
Sentiment score
7.7
Portnox effectively scales to support thousands of endpoints, offering flexible and seamless cloud-based expansion to meet growing demands.
I believe the scalability of ClearPass is rated as ten out of ten.
Senior Security & Infra Technology Systems Engineer at BARQ Systems
Everything will be handled when you add new users because all configurations are deployed from the beginning.
Network Product Manager/ Senior Presales engineer at a computer software company with 501-1,000 employees
In our environment, ClearPass handles up to 100,000 users, which is better than some other NAC solutions like Fortinox that scale up to 25,000.
Network Engineer at a outsourcing company with 11-50 employees
The pricing model makes it challenging as the cost is substantial due to the per-node licensing model.
Network &Security Engineer at Natioanal Drug Authority Uganda
We have never had any challenge based on a customer who has 1,000 devices versus a customer who has 30,000 devices; the feel is the same.
Product Manager at Applied Principles Limited
They ensure the backend can support it and do the provisioning while maintaining headroom and elasticity.
Principle Cloud Architect at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
I rate scalability a ten; you simply pay and you get more.
Network And Security Engineer at a manufacturing company with 1,001-5,000 employees
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.9
Aruba ClearPass is highly stable, praised for reliability, with occasional upgrade issues often due to misconfigurations, not system flaws.
Sentiment score
7.6
Fortinet FortiNAC's stability is mixed, with praise for performance but issues during setup, resolved over time for some.
Sentiment score
7.4
Portnox is generally stable, with high user ratings, though on-premises versions and update issues impact reliability.
I have experienced more than three years without zero downtime with Aruba ClearPass.
Senior Enterprise Customer Solutions Specialist at a comms service provider with 1,001-5,000 employees
There are issues with some versions, especially in integrating with AD and SSL configurations over port sixty-three.
Network Support Engineer at HDFC Life
However, there are disadvantages when it is not on-premises, as every NAC suffers from it if it is not on-premises.
Presales Engineer, Solutions Architect
The product itself is available and its uptime is 100%.
Systems Analyst at a construction company with 1,001-5,000 employees
In the four years that I used Portnox, if it crashed or the server crashed, that would not have been more than once.
Information Technology System Administrator at a energy/utilities company with 10,001+ employees
If there is a version one and another version, the communication between the organization using it and Portnox should be firm so they can coordinate effectively.
Windows Server Administrator/ IT Support Officer at a financial services firm with 5,001-10,000 employees
 

Room For Improvement

Aruba ClearPass needs simplified licensing, UI, better integration, enhanced features, and improved support and documentation resources.
Fortinet FortiNAC requires improved integration, user interface, reporting, compatibility, and documentation, while simplifying setup and enhancing automation and support.
Portnox users seek flexible pricing, better integration, and enhanced features to improve functionality and user experience across organizations.
The language and policy enforcement mechanisms are not clear, making it difficult to use the product effectively.
Project Manager at a tech consulting company with 51-200 employees
It is also better to improve threat intelligence for built-in threat detection and prevention.
Network Engineer at a outsourcing company with 11-50 employees
A more streamlined menu of licensing options would be helpful.
Owner at Channelserve
Improvement in the interface design would make FortiNAC a better solution.
Network &Security Engineer at Natioanal Drug Authority Uganda
The graphical user interface (GUI) of Fortinet FortiNAC is very poor compared to competitors like Forcepoint and Cisco ISE.
Senior Cyber Security Engineer at Beta Information Technology
Fortinet FortiNAC can be improved as the GUI is very poor compared to other competitors such as Cisco ISE.
Cybersecurity Team Leader at EMAK For Computer Manufacturing (ECM)
Ideally, we should be able to search for any MAC address in the database, regardless of its authentication status, to see all its associated groups and potential conflicts.
President at TrackerSoft
When I reach the technical support, they give solutions that do not help me much, so I try to search the internet for other users' experiences to find solutions.
IT Project Manager at Xpress technologies
When I'm doing filtering at times, it doesn't filter the items properly.
Systems Analyst at a construction company with 1,001-5,000 employees
 

Setup Cost

Aruba ClearPass's complex licensing can be costly, with better affordability than Cisco, necessitating careful initial licensing understanding.
Fortinet FortiNAC offers flexible, fair pricing and licensing options, often rated 7-9, with rising costs but lower than Cisco.
Portnox offers flexible, fair pricing with annual licenses, negotiable fees, and subscription-based options, appealing to larger organizations.
Achieving the best price requires careful selection from a menu of licensing options.
Owner at Channelserve
We cannot mix in prices, and of course, prices are going higher.
IT Network Operations Manager at KEDS
Aruba ClearPass is a premium product with higher pricing, which seems unnecessary given its complexity.
Project Manager at a tech consulting company with 51-200 employees
My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing for Fortinet FortiNAC is that, as is typical from Fortinet, all their products have a very good licensing model and competitive pricing.
Cybersecurity Team Leader at EMAK For Computer Manufacturing (ECM)
Fortinet FortiNAC is relatively cheap compared to other solutions.
Senior Cyber Security Engineer at Beta Information Technology
If you compare Portnox with all other well-known standard products, it is the cheapest.
IT Network Engineer at a tech vendor with 5,001-10,000 employees
The pricing is a bit high, possibly due to the cloud features and running instances across regions like the US, Asia, and Europe.
President at TrackerSoft
You are charged according to the number of users.
Senior Network Engineer at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
 

Valuable Features

Aruba ClearPass provides robust network access control with features like role-based management, third-party integration, and user-friendly configuration.
Fortinet FortiNAC offers enhanced security, automation, and integration, excelling in network visibility and compliance across diverse environments.
Portnox offers agentless scalability, seamless integrations, and enhanced security, improving efficiency with intuitive UI and diverse device compatibility.
In Aruba ClearPass, you can have control of all authentication in the company.
Senior Enterprise Customer Solutions Specialist at a comms service provider with 1,001-5,000 employees
The ClearPass solution has reduced the amount of engineering time compared to previous solutions, making it more efficient for our purposes.
Owner at Channelserve
The most effective feature for us is the OnGuard feature.
Senior Security & Infra Technology Systems Engineer at BARQ Systems
I appreciate the feature where it can connect with different vendor equipment, regardless of the network devices from other vendors.
Network &Security Engineer at Natioanal Drug Authority Uganda
The best features Fortinet FortiNAC offers include great integration with other Fortinet products.
Cybersecurity Team Leader at EMAK For Computer Manufacturing (ECM)
The main advantage of Fortinet FortiNAC is its integration with the entire Fortinet product portfolio.
Senior Cyber Security Engineer at Beta Information Technology
It's notable how Portnox has improved operational efficiency.
IT Network Engineer at a tech vendor with 5,001-10,000 employees
It is a very robust application because three teams use that part: the network team, the security team, and the support people.
Windows Server Administrator/ IT Support Officer at a financial services firm with 5,001-10,000 employees
It is possible to find the MAC address in the switch, but in Portnox, it is very useful to see the status of those ports, and that increases our security.
Assistant System Engineer at Tata Consultancy
 

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2026, in the Network Access Control (NAC) category, the mindshare of Aruba ClearPass is 18.0%, down from 24.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Fortinet FortiNAC is 13.7%, down from 18.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Portnox is 6.9%, up from 3.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Network Access Control (NAC) Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Aruba ClearPass18.0%
Fortinet FortiNAC13.7%
Portnox6.9%
Other61.4%
Network Access Control (NAC)
 

Featured Reviews

Darko Skurla - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Enterprise Customer Solutions Specialist at a comms service provider with 1,001-5,000 employees
Role-based policies have simplified secure access control for all users and smart devices
I do not know about the functionality of Aruba ClearPass integration with a third party. If you ask me if there is support for Zebra and for different IoT devices, they have it. However, I do not know how to describe integration with other products. Aruba ClearPass can act as a RADIUS server and it can connect to the domain RADIUS server, for example. The biggest problem is when a customer does not know what they want with Aruba ClearPass. I can recommend Aruba ClearPass to other users because it is very stable. My review rating for this product is ten out of ten.
Mohamed Fouad - PeerSpot reviewer
Cybersecurity Team Leader at EMAK For Computer Manufacturing (ECM)
Network access control has centralized device profiling and automated user isolation
The best features Fortinet FortiNAC offers include great integration with other Fortinet products. We have most of the cybersecurity products from Fortinet, including FortiMail, FortiGate, and FortiManager, among many Fortinet products. The best feature is the integration with these products. Fortinet FortiNAC can also integrate with any switching vendor using SSH to manage switches. This integration capability is very beneficial. The integration with other Fortinet products and managing switches from different vendors has helped my workflow by providing automation that makes it easy to run actions. We execute and trigger actions through Fortinet FortiNAC on FortiGate. We set up trigger actions on FortiGate to be run through Fortinet FortiNAC directly. Whenever an action happens, it is triggered on Fortinet FortiNAC, allowing us to disable and isolate a user if that machine is infected. The automation and response functionality is powerful, and the integration is very good. Fortinet FortiNAC has positively impacted my organization by allowing us to control our network and save time. We manage multiple switches that allow many users, including guest users and corporate users. We have saved time and secured our resources while accomplishing a lot with Fortinet FortiNAC.
Maurice Mwaura - PeerSpot reviewer
Product Manager at Applied Principles Limited
Unified access control has improved compliance visibility and simplified passwordless access
There is work to be done when it comes to making the solution more seamless. For example, when a user is denied access, they would need a way to maybe self-resolve themselves, perhaps a way to generate a ticket on their own, something around resolutions. When it comes to users using the product, that is where good products are differentiated from products that are a bit of a challenge. Portnox has much to do in terms of their reporting. The generated reports need improvement. Things that other tools would say are normal are usually not present. For example, there is a page called NAS devices or NAS network that is able to show the switches that have been managed. Currently, there is no way of generating an easy report or an easy way of just generating something to tell the customer what they have been able to achieve so far. This is not done yet and is still very manual. I think there is work to be done there. More integrations around the various products being used would be beneficial. So far I have not encountered any major challenge. Where there was a challenge, I think support came in and helped us resolve. In fact, most of the challenges are not with the product; they are with the customer environment. I think that is just to update their documentation where they have come across a new vendor for easier integrations in the future.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Government
8%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Computer Software Company
7%
Financial Services Firm
6%
Manufacturing Company
13%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Computer Software Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Manufacturing Company
16%
Financial Services Firm
14%
Healthcare Company
7%
Construction Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business44
Midsize Enterprise25
Large Enterprise34
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business30
Midsize Enterprise14
Large Enterprise14
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business17
Midsize Enterprise5
Large Enterprise10
 

Questions from the Community

Which is better - Aruba Clearpass or Cisco ISE?
Aruba ClearPass is a Network Access Control tool that gives secure network access to multiple device types. You can...
What is the biggest difference between Aruba ClearPass and FortiNAC?
I've done quite a lot of work with ClearPass, and not a lot with FortiNAC/Bradford. ClearPass incorporates a number ...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Aruba ClearPass?
Compared to Cisco and others, the pricing is reasonable. Licensing costs are case-specific and have been manageable.
How does Cisco ISE compare with Fortinet FortiNAC?
Cisco ISE uses AI endpoint analytics to identify new devices based on their behavior. It will also notify you if some...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Fortinet FortiNAC?
My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing for Fortinet FortiNAC is that, as is typical from Fortinet, all...
What needs improvement with Fortinet FortiNAC?
Fortinet FortiNAC can be improved as the GUI is very poor compared to other competitors such as Cisco ISE. I have wor...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Portnox Clear?
My thoughts on the pricing are that they are usually very flexible. They work with the customer's budget. In terms of...
What needs improvement with Portnox Clear?
The area that has room for improvement that I had is actually the one that they fixed about two or three days ago reg...
What is your primary use case for Portnox Clear?
Some of the best features that I have experienced with Portnox is the integration with identity providers and the fac...
 

Also Known As

Avenda eTIPS
FortiNAC, Bradford Networks, Bradford Networks Sentry, Network Sentry Family
Access Layers Portnox, Portnox CLEAR
 

Interactive Demo

Demo not available
Demo not available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Consulate Health Care, Los Angeles Unified School District, Science Applications International Corp (SAIC), San Diego State University, KFC, ACTS Retirement-Life Communities
Isavia, Pepperdine University, Medical University of South Carolina, Columbia University Medical Center, Utah Valley University
Data Realty, Royal London, Wales Millennium Centre, McLaren Construction Group, EL AL Israeli Airlines, 
Find out what your peers are saying about Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Fortinet, Cisco and others in Network Access Control (NAC). Updated: June 2026.
900,196 professionals have used our research since 2012.