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AWS Direct Connect vs Fortinet FortiClient comparison

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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
Fortinet FortiClient
Ranking in Enterprise Infrastructure VPN
3rd
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.7
Number of Reviews
102
Ranking in other categories
Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP) (9th), Endpoint Compliance (1st)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of September 2026, in the Enterprise Infrastructure VPN category, the mindshare of AWS Direct Connect is 1.7%, down from 1.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Fortinet FortiClient is 4.6%, down from 10.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Enterprise Infrastructure VPN Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Fortinet FortiClient4.6%
AWS Direct Connect1.7%
Other93.7%
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.
KL
Senior Technical Manager at Flexaccel
Remote access has become seamless and secure while deployment remains simple for our users
Performance could be improved today. People are now moving toward SASE, which stands for Secure Access, Secure Edge Solution. Fortinet also has that offering, which would be easier since it operates through the cloud, acting as a first line of defense. When the user connects to the internet, they connect to the cloud first for posture assessment and monitoring before connecting to the outside world. The impact is significant because nowadays people are adopting SASE. During COVID time, many users were trying to connect back to their office, causing the performance or CPU utilization of the firewall to increase tremendously, which slowed down performance. I have not worked with endpoint telemetry in Fortinet FortiClient that could have been helpful for threat mitigation.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Overall, I rate the solution ten out of ten."
"AWS Direct Connect allows me to connect our on-premise infrastructure directly with AWS infrastructure."
"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."
"AWS Direct Connect is highly secure and much faster compared to normal network infrastructure."
"The most valuable feature of Direct Connect is its low latency to the users."
"AWS Direct Connect provides a secure and encrypted connection over the internet."
"The platform's most valuable feature for us is its robust network performance."
"It is very simple to use. I've used some of the others in the past, such as Cisco AnyConnect, which was a nightmare. I've used a couple of others, but FortiClient is very simple to use."
"The performance of FortiClient is impressive."
"The most valuable feature of FortiClient is its high security level."
"Fortinet FortiClient provides several benefits such as saving time, saving money, and improving security."
"It works well and the performance is good."
"For one looking for a secure virtual private network that maintains connectivity and has future development for next generations of VPN, the solution is a good place to start."
"Fortinet FortiClient can be used with FortiManager to observe all actions that are happening."
"The connection speed is fast, I can connect quickly at any time, and there are never any interruptions to the FortiClient connection, so I could easily code into the client's server with that connection with no lag."
 

Cons

"AWS Direct Connect should support cross-cloud connections, such as migrations between Azure and AWS, for disaster recovery purposes on different cloud platforms."
"It can be difficult to configure compared to cloud-based GUIs."
"One area that needs improvement is the cost of the ports, which is a concern as these charges are quite high."
"It is complicated to do additional BGP configuration for the product."
"We encountered issues with the connection. The VPN was not connecting on multiple occasions."
"I would like to see better traffic visibility and higher throughput security, especially for organizations that require more than what the current limit allows."
"It would be good if we could connect AWS Direct Connect from different networks."
"Having more locations could improve the convenience of using the service."
"The initial setup was probably more complex. The configuration was somewhat unclear."
"It has a horrible performance. It is one of the most unstable VPNs I have ever used."
"The quality and response time of the support team must be improved."
"With Fortinet, some clients have to wait two to four days for a response. That is the biggest complaint from end customer about Fortinet's technical support."
"The setup process could be more simplified."
"Fortinet FortiClient could improve the connection because sometimes it drops."
"Fortinet FortiClient should improve its visibility of the consumption of traffic and end-user action, which is very low."
"The solution has some stability issues on the user side but is improving."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It has reasonable pricing in terms of the features offered."
"It is an expensive solution."
"It is not that expensive. It was within the range. A dollar per user per month is nothing."
"An annual license costs about 1.5 to 3,000 US dollars. There are no additional costs."
"I don't have the licensing schema for the VPN solution because we just purchased the VPN gateway."
"The price is okay and competitive."
"The price of the solution depends on the type of firewall you have from FortiGate. I am satisfied with the price of the solution."
"The product's licensing is yearly and expensive."
"Fortinet requires you to buy a lot of product in order for you to have proper protection."
"Generally, Fortinet is not cheap. The features that are available for free are only for FortiClient VPN clients, not other solutions. It includes web security, antivirus, and one more feature."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Comms Service Provider
17%
Outsourcing Company
11%
Computer Software Company
10%
Healthcare Company
8%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Construction Company
9%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Financial Services Firm
8%
 

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 Business59
Midsize Enterprise23
Large Enterprise25
 

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...
How does Fortinet FortiClient compare with Open VPN Access Server?
Fortinet FortiClient is a feature-rich solution that is easy to use and deploy without sacrificing safety and security. It has a very fast connection rate and has a built-in VPN. With this solution...
What's the difference between Fortinet's FortiEDR and FortiClient?
I suggest Fortinet’s FortiEDR over FortiClient for several reasons. For starters, FortiEDR guarantees solid protection because it continually scans servers for emerging vulnerabilities, which gives...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Fortinet FortiClient?
The solution is not cloud-based; it comes from the firewall itself.
 

Also Known As

No data available
FortiClient
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Expedia, Intuit, Royal Dutch Shell, Brooks Brothers
Black Gold Regional Schools, Amadeus Hospitality, Jefferson County, Chunghwa Telecom, City of Boroondara, Dimension Data
Find out what your peers are saying about AWS Direct Connect vs. Fortinet FortiClient and other solutions. Updated: September 2026.
914,109 professionals have used our research since 2012.