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AWS Direct Connect vs Citrix Gateway comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 6, 2024

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
Citrix Gateway
Ranking in Enterprise Infrastructure VPN
9th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.4
Number of Reviews
40
Ranking in other categories
Universal Access Gateways (1st), SSL VPN (1st)
 

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 Citrix Gateway is 3.7%, up from 3.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Enterprise Infrastructure VPN Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Citrix Gateway3.7%
AWS Direct Connect1.7%
Other94.6%
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.
PEDRO FONSECA - PeerSpot reviewer
Citrix VDI & Windows Virtualization Specialist at ATOS
Modular security has protected remote access and simplifies endpoint compliance management
The most valuable feature in Citrix Gateway is the securable, modular solution. The most useful behaviors that Citrix has is that you can secure the applications and all the infrastructure in a modular way. You can segment the securization in groups, allowing you to do a lot of things. Citrix Gateway is really strong and secure for the companies to have the Endpoint Analysis feature configured. You can configure this to check what the company needs to be checked. Companies need to authorize some devices to check if antivirus can accomplish the necessities of the company. The final appliance is really secure for accessing the company's network resources. You have many ways to maintain security protocols. One way is using Citrix Gateway, and another is the Citrix policies where you can configure many things in desktops and applications published for the company.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"It is a stable solution."
"Direct Connect provides an improved connection quality and a diversified link, which contributes to high availability and failover capabilities."
"AWS Direct Connect is highly secure and much faster compared to normal network infrastructure."
"AWS Direct Connect offers higher security options by avoiding internet-related problems such as DDoS attacks and provides stable bandwidth."
"The most valuable feature of Direct Connect is its low latency to the users."
"The platform's most valuable feature for us is its robust network performance."
"Overall, I rate the solution ten out of ten."
"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."
"The features I find most valuable in Citrix Gateway are the GSLB features for disaster recovery, primarily due to the native integration with Citrix applications, the CVAD product, and Citrix Gateway."
"For our use case, it was scalable. There were at least 25 end users using this solution from remote locations. And once the connection was established, there weren't any complaints."
"For customers who are concerned with security and would want to have virtual machines in their environment, I recommend this solution."
"The features that we have found most valuable are the web app support and VPN."
"These days, I find Citrix products to be very stable, and there is no need to struggle with them."
"I like the very flexible configuration of Citrix; it's very useful for our regulations where we are able to log features and combinations, and it offers a greater variety of features than any other gateway."
"The solution is very stable. If I were to rate it out of ten, I would give stability a nine."
"Citrix Gateway is stable once I am connected."
 

Cons

"Its terminologies are challenging to interpret."
"It can be difficult to configure compared to cloud-based GUIs."
"There is no room for improvement in Direct Connect right now."
"AWS Direct Connect is straightforward and performs well for me."
"We encountered issues with the connection. The VPN was not connecting on multiple occasions."
"The platform's stability needs improvement."
"It is complicated to do additional BGP configuration for the product."
"It would be good if we could connect AWS Direct Connect from different networks."
"Stability and security could be enhanced."
"The solution has unnecessary limitations."
"The product should be more secure."
"The initial setup could be made easier."
"Technical support could be improved."
"I'd like to see support for reverse proxy and more security features."
"The WAF needs to be improved because it doesn't work well."
"As an organization, our initiative is to move to the cloud, Citrix Gateway needs to improve its cloud capabilities and make the cloud solution more robust."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is an expensive solution."
"It has reasonable pricing in terms of the features offered."
"Pricing is very high if you do a comparison with what is available in the market."
"Citrix is quite expensive."
"I believe the pricing is comparable to SaaS"
"Usually with Citrix the issue is the pricing, especially for the African region. We believe it's really expensive."
"It is expensive and requires proper planning with strategy."
"There are two or three different models, but you can actually have a CapEx where you purchase the unit outright and then there's a yearly maintenance cost on top for years two and three, and four, or you can actually do a subscription purchase through Citrix cloud and you pay on a monthly basis, or you can have a three-year subscription contract as well. I give the solution a six out of ten for its cost."
"The price could be lower."
"It costs about 4,000 a year."
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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%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Comms Service Provider
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 Business15
Midsize Enterprise9
Large Enterprise17
 

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 Citrix Gateway?
The price is one aspect, but technically it is complete. Technically, it is really complete.
What needs improvement with Citrix Gateway?
I see room for improvement in several areas. The monitoring site could be much better because monitoring NetScaler and Citrix Gateway is too difficult with just SNMP traps available. Improving the ...
What is your primary use case for Citrix Gateway?
I am on the customer side using Citrix products, specifically Citrix CVAD for Virtual and Desktop virtualization. I am using Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service. We are using Citrix Gateway an...
 

Also Known As

No data available
Citrix NetScaler Unified Gateway
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Expedia, Intuit, Royal Dutch Shell, Brooks Brothers
Aeronamic, Avianca, Bechtel Corporation, Betfair UK, Catholic University Leuven (K.U. Leuven), Centene Corporation, Cerner, Charityshare, City of High Point, Clark Builders
Find out what your peers are saying about AWS Direct Connect vs. Citrix Gateway and other solutions. Updated: August 2026.
909,725 professionals have used our research since 2012.