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AWS Direct Connect vs Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Mar 29, 2026

Review summaries and opinions

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

Categories and Ranking

AWS Direct Connect
Ranking in Enterprise Infrastructure VPN
11th
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.2
Number of Reviews
12
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Check Point Harmony SASE (f...
Ranking in Enterprise Infrastructure VPN
8th
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
61
Ranking in other categories
Secure Web Gateways (SWG) (8th), Firewalls (22nd), Anti-Malware Tools (13th), ZTNA as a Service (7th), ZTNA (3rd), Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) (8th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2026, in the Enterprise Infrastructure VPN category, the mindshare of AWS Direct Connect is 1.7%, down from 2.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) is 4.8%, up from 2.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Enterprise Infrastructure VPN Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81)4.8%
AWS Direct Connect1.7%
Other93.5%
Enterprise Infrastructure VPN
 

Featured Reviews

reviewer2231871 - PeerSpot reviewer
Product Manager at a comms service provider with 201-500 employees
Offers secure high-bandwidth connectivity without internet-related risks
Regarding the benefits from the multiple virtual interfaces in the product, there is no interface for the product; it is just a connection that we have. It is an ethernet connection we offer. The customer, from the customer side to AWS, receives an ethernet point-to-point connection, and that is it. The interface and everything along with the communication with AWS, the customer has to do by themselves to build the routes and everything. The connection speed that our clients are using ranges from 100 megabits up to 10 gigabits. The main concern is the port costs. Clients do not report technical problems, so it is mainly always an issue of money. The solution is nice, but sometimes they avoid it because the port costs are high. This is not a problem AWS has exclusively; Azure has the same costs, and these port costs are quite expensive. I would rate this review as an 8 out of 10.
Nasseer Qureshi - PeerSpot reviewer
Pre Sales Consultant at Redington Group
Delivers seamless and secure remote access while enhancing security posture
Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) offers strong features, but there are areas that could be improved. One area for improvement is integration with third-party identity providers. It works with standard SAML and SSO, but we would prefer deeper integrations with solutions such as Ping for more advanced identity-based policies. Additionally, a mobile-specific client or lightweight agent would be helpful for securing access from smartphones, especially in BYOD environments. We would appreciate more granular reporting and analytics, including better drill-down capabilities to investigate specific users or app activity. The logs are comprehensive, but filtering them can sometimes feel messy. The user interface on the management portal could be more intuitive, especially when managing multiple sites or remote offices. Some of the policy configuration steps are nested and could be streamlined.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"AWS Direct Connect is highly secure and much faster compared to normal network infrastructure."
"It is a highly scalable solution."
"Direct Connect provides an improved connection quality and a diversified link, which contributes to high availability and failover capabilities."
"It is a stable solution."
"AWS Direct Connect offers higher security options by avoiding internet-related problems such as DDoS attacks and provides stable bandwidth."
"Overall, I rate the solution ten out of ten."
"The platform's most valuable feature for us is its robust network performance."
"AWS VPN is cost-effective and affordable; it has the security regulation with 3DES protocol, and they have the security protocol required to encrypt the information in the link."
"Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) has positively impacted my organization by leading to overall security improvements, especially for our VPN users."
"Its most effective feature is controlling employee access to specific applications. I can manage and monitor every step of the access process."
"The solution provides high performance along with ATP prevention, policy management, remote activity, and IoT support."
"Distributing the agent was very simple, allowing us to enforce security posture on our devices (i.e. S1, Disk-encryption, etc.)."
"The product is great as it allows users to deliver the most security value at the fastest speed."
"Using the preboot VPN option, we can reset a user who is working remotely that has forgotten their Windows login credentials."
"Having Perimeter 81 as a solution in those instances to keep our team secure has been really great."
"The tool is easy to use and set up."
 

Cons

"AWS Direct Connect is straightforward and performs well for me."
"AWS Direct Connect should support cross-cloud connections, such as migrations between Azure and AWS, for disaster recovery purposes on different cloud platforms."
"One area that needs improvement is the cost of the ports, which is a concern as these charges are quite high."
"It can be difficult to configure compared to cloud-based GUIs."
"The platform's stability needs improvement."
"I would like to see better traffic visibility and higher throughput security, especially for organizations that require more than what the current limit allows."
"Having more locations could improve the convenience of using the service."
"There is no room for improvement in Direct Connect right now."
"They could improve on the available public documentation."
"The access to the portal should be faster. It shouldn't crash a lot."
"The platform still lacks relevant dashboards and the ability to customize them based on our needs."
"Perimeter 81 could enhance its reporting and analytics capabilities to provide more detailed insights into network activity."
"Zero Trust Network Access can be a security breach if not used correctly."
"The user interface on the management portal could be more intuitive, especially when managing multiple sites or remote offices."
"Check Point is an expensive product so support should be more adequate."
"In mobile devices, there is also sometimes a bit of tear when it is via LTE, however, that must be due to connectivity."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is an expensive solution."
"It has reasonable pricing in terms of the features offered."
"Regarding pricing, I can say that the more the number of users, the less they have to pay."
"The product is reasonably priced."
"The solution's pricing model may not be suitable for smaller companies, as they might find it expensive. Larger companies tend to receive more value due to many users."
"Annual licenses cost $30 to $40 each."
"The product is neither cheap nor expensive."
"Overall I am very happy with the solution’s flexibility and pricing."
"I would rate Harmony Connect's pricing at six out of ten. It wasn't particularly expensive, but it wasn't super cheap either."
"I consider the product to be a medium-priced solution. There are no additional costs attached to the tool."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Comms Service Provider
15%
Outsourcing Company
10%
Computer Software Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Construction Company
14%
Comms Service Provider
9%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Outsourcing Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business3
Midsize Enterprise7
Large Enterprise3
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business53
Midsize Enterprise19
Large Enterprise14
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with AWS Direct Connect?
One area that needs improvement is the cost of the ports, which is a concern as these charges are quite high. It is primarily a budget issue because while the solution is effective, the port costs ...
What is your primary use case for AWS Direct Connect?
Our customers primarily use AWS Direct Connect for hybrid cloud solutions. They have parts of their equipment in their on-premise data center, while also using AWS infrastructure for backups, datab...
What advice do you have for others considering AWS Direct Connect?
Regarding the benefits from the multiple virtual interfaces in the product, there is no interface for the product; it is just a connection that we have. It is an ethernet connection we offer. The c...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Harmony Connect?
I am not aware of the pricing, setup cost, and licensing, but I would say the setup cost is our resource, and we have invested many hours into this project.
What needs improvement with Harmony Connect?
When I'm raising a ticket for Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81), it's a bit technical for non-technical people. It could have been clearer and easier for them to raise a ticket becau...
What is your primary use case for Harmony Connect?
I have experience with this product as a user. Currently, the Check Point product that I worked with mostly was the Firewall, the R81. I'm not working with Check Point WAF, Web Application Firewall...
 

Also Known As

No data available
Check Point Quantum SASE
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Expedia, Intuit, Royal Dutch Shell, Brooks Brothers
Aqua Security, Cognito, Multipoint, Kustomer, Postman, Meredith
Find out what your peers are saying about AWS Direct Connect vs. Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) and other solutions. Updated: August 2026.
909,725 professionals have used our research since 2012.