AWS Direct Connect vs SonicWall SMA comparison

Amazon Web Services (AWS) and SonicWall are both solutions in the Enterprise Infrastructure VPN category. Amazon Web Services (AWS) is ranked #12 with an average rating of 9.1, while SonicWall is ranked #15 with an average rating of 9.5. Amazon Web Services (AWS) holds a 1.9% mindshare in EIV, compared to SonicWall’s 2.0% mindshare. Additionally, 100% of Amazon Web Services (AWS) users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 91% of SonicWall users who would recommend it.

AWS Direct Connect

Read 11 AWS Direct Connect reviews

971 Views
942 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

SonicWall SMA

Read 15 SonicWall SMA reviews

1,196 Views
981 Comparison Views

91% willing to recommend

AWS Direct Connect

SonicWall SMA

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 6, 2024

SonicWall SMA and AWS Direct Connect compete in the area of network solutions. Users find SonicWall SMA more affordable with better support, whereas AWS Direct Connect stands out with its robust features despite a higher price.

Features: SonicWall SMA offers secure remote access, endpoint compliance enforcement, and increased security. AWS Direct Connect provides high bandwidth, reliable network connections to on-premises data centers, and facilitates high-volume data transfer. SonicWall focuses on security and easy access, AWS on connectivity and performance for large-scale operations.

Room for Improvement: SonicWall SMA needs better scalability, more modern management functionalities, and quicker updates to meet growing demands. AWS Direct Connect requires improvements in customer service response, better integration tools, and enhanced support.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: SonicWall SMA is praised for its simple deployment and effective customer service. AWS Direct Connect has complex deployments due to high customization, leading to mixed feedback on customer service.

Pricing and ROI: SonicWall SMA is noted for being cost-effective and providing satisfactory ROI. AWS Direct Connect, though more expensive, is valuable for businesses with intensive data transfer needs, offering compelling ROI.

To learn more, read our detailed AWS Direct Connect vs. SonicWall SMA Report (Updated: December 2025).

Buyer's Guide

AWS Direct Connect vs. SonicWall SMA

December 2025

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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

12th

Average Rating

9.0

Reviews Sentiment

6.2

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

SonicWall SMA

Ranking in Enterprise Infrastructure VPN

15th

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

5.6

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Universal Access Gateways (2nd), SSL VPN (6th)

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the Enterprise Infrastructure VPN category, the mindshare of AWS Direct Connect is 1.9%, down from 1.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SonicWall SMA is 2.0%, up from 1.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Enterprise Infrastructure VPN Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
AWS Direct Connect	1.9%
SonicWall SMA	2.0%
Other	96.1%

Enterprise Infrastructure VPN

Featured Reviews

Harendra Sisodia

Business Analyst & Agile Strategist at Charles Schwab

enables seamless hybrid cloud connectivity and ensures secure, low-latency data transfers with robust security features

AWS Direct Connect is very useful for transferring data between on-premise and cloud servers quickly, with minimal latency issues. It is cost-effective for large data transfers and offers excellent network performance, even with low internet quality. Its security features are critical, especially for industries like healthcare and finance, providing secure data transfer without breaches. It supports multi-account and multi-tenant environments, allowing centralized management with a single connectivity.

Read full review

Barry Arendt

Owner at ThinkEzIT

Security enhances through autonomous protection and strong support while multi-factor authentication secures access

I haven't utilized the high availability and scalability features of SonicWall SMA yet because I've never had a need to. I don't know where they can focus their energy on continuous improvements, as I haven't been looking at what they're releasing. We're a small shop, so we drop stuff in and manage it and do what we need to do to maintain it. If we run into an issue, we contact support. There's a learning curve, but it comes down to getting support to train you on the product, and then once you have the training you need, you're able to make the changes and updates that you need to.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The most valuable feature of Direct Connect is its low latency to the users."

"AWS Direct Connect allows me to connect our on-premise infrastructure directly with AWS infrastructure."

"The most valuable feature of Direct Connect is its low latency to the users."

"AWS Direct Connect allows me to connect our on-premise infrastructure directly with AWS infrastructure."

"Overall, I rate the solution ten out of ten."

"AWS Direct Connect is highly secure and much faster compared to normal network infrastructure."

"It is a stable solution."

"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."

More AWS Direct Connect pros

"The performance is good."

"The advanced threat protection and the endpoint control features of SonicWall SMA have helped improve security measures tremendously."

"SonicWall SMA has the most valuable feature of proprietary security technologies like Capture ATP."

"This solution has many options for remote desktop and access."

"What I like best about SonicWall SMA is the relationship between its features and its price, because the solution is both affordable and functional."

"It is faster than other security options when using remote connections."

"I like the load balancing capability."

"The solution is reliable and has good overall performance."

More SonicWall SMA pros

Cons

"The platform's stability needs improvement."

"AWS Direct Connect is straightforward and performs well for me."

"It can be difficult to configure compared to cloud-based GUIs."

"It would be good if we could connect AWS Direct Connect from different networks."

"There is no room for improvement in Direct Connect right now."

"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 is complicated to do additional BGP configuration for the product."

"Having more locations could improve the convenience of using the service."

More AWS Direct Connect cons

"The overall menu is not very user-friendly and it could be easier."

"SonicWall SMA is difficult to use and it does not provide easy access to different parts of the network."

"The product itself is very good, but Dell needs to work on product visibility in their advertising."

"The solution could integrate better with other platforms."

"The product's technical support services could be improved."

"SonicWall's reporting isn't good. Reports should be part of a data plan. The login mechanism should be improved. It would be helpful if the client could use an agent to log in. An agent-server model would improve the performance of the RDB, which consumes a lot of bandwidth."

"User interface could be improved."

"The problem is that when combined with what the client already has, there are two different logins and two different management systems, and these should be consolidated into a single interface."

More SonicWall SMA cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is an expensive solution."

"It has reasonable pricing in terms of the features offered."

"The platform has medium pricing."

"I don't know about the pricing of the SSL-VPN box. I know the SSL-VPN software is free. Global VPN client, by comparison, is licensed for around $150 or something like that. But the SSL-VPN software is free. It is already built-in with the box."

"The cost of the licensing is based on the maximum number of concurrent users, and it costs a lot to add them."

"This solution is priced well and we currently have the maximum number of licenses allowed."

"Our licenses are stackable and can be anywhere from five users to a million users."

"All the costs are included in a bundled license."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

15%

Comms Service Provider

12%

University

Financial Services Firm

Manufacturing Company

12%

Computer Software Company

11%

Comms Service Provider

Retailer

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	3
Midsize Enterprise	7
Large Enterprise	3

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	11
Midsize Enterprise	3
Large Enterprise	2

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about AWS Direct Connect?

AWS Direct Connect provides a secure and encrypted connection over the internet.

See all answers

What needs improvement with AWS Direct Connect?

We encountered issues with the connection. The VPN was not connecting on multiple occasions.

See all answers

What is your primary use case for AWS Direct Connect?

I'm not an end user of any of those SAP products. I wanted to have a comparison between different solutions for process mining and process modeling, but I'm not an end user of any. I have Microsoft...

See all answers

What do you like most about SonicWall SMA?

Blocklisting and allowlisting are the most beneficial features for network security.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SonicWall SMA?

The pricing for the solution could be a lot less.

See all answers

What needs improvement with SonicWall SMA?

See all answers

Comparisons

AWS PrivateLink vs AWS Direct Connect

Compared 22% of the time

Fortinet FortiClient vs AWS Direct Connect

Compared 21% of the time

Prisma Access by Palo Alto Networks vs AWS Direct Connect

Compared 18% of the time

Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) vs AWS Direct Connect

Compared 10% of the time

SonicWall Connect Tunnel vs AWS Direct Connect

Compared 8% of the time

More AWS Direct Connect Competitors

Citrix Gateway vs SonicWall SMA

Compared 12% of the time

SonicWall Netextender vs SonicWall SMA

Compared 11% of the time

Ivanti Connect Secure vs SonicWall SMA

Compared 11% of the time

Sangfor SSL VPN vs SonicWall SMA

Compared 10% of the time

OpenVPN Access Server vs SonicWall SMA

Compared 9% of the time

More SonicWall SMA Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Enterprise Infrastructure VPN

January 2026

Download AWS Direct Connect product report

Buyer's Guide

SonicWall SMA

January 2026

Download SonicWall SMA product report

Also Known As

No data available

SonicWall Aventail, SonicWall SMA SSL-VPN, SonicWall Secure Mobile Access

Overview

AWS Direct Connect offers low-latency, reliable connectivity with secure data transfers between on-premise infrastructures and AWS environments. It ensures high availability and cost-effectiveness for large data transfers, integrating seamlessly with existing systems.

AWS Direct Connect is recognized for its robust network and security, providing minimal latency and reliable connectivity. It seamlessly integrates with on-premise infrastructure, enabling secure and fast data transfers. Users benefit from its high availability and low maintenance, making it cost-effective for large data transfers. Multi-account environment support is a key feature. Despite a complex configuration process compared to cloud GUIs, it enhances security by avoiding public internet exposure. Room for improvement includes the setup of credentials and terminology, upgrade process, BGP configuration, multi-network connections, traffic visibility, stability, and throughput security. Expanding data center locations and cross-cloud connections can be advantageous. Promotion is necessary for awareness. Some report VPN connection issues while some are content with its performance.

What are the key features of AWS Direct Connect?

Secure Connectivity: Enhances security by avoiding public internet exposure
Low Latency: Provides minimal latency for fast data transfers
High Availability: Ensures continuous connectivity with low maintenance
Cost-Effective: Reduces costs for large data transfers and multi-account environments
Seamless Integration: Easily integrates with on-premise infrastructure

What benefits and ROI should users look for?

Reliability: Sturdy and consistent connectivity minimizes downtime
Efficient Data Transfers: Cost reduction and efficiency for large data volumes
Security: Avoids exposure to the public internet, enhancing data protection
Resource Integration: Facilitates hybrid cloud environments by integrating on-premises and cloud resources

In industries like finance, healthcare, and media, AWS Direct Connect is implemented to ensure secure and efficient connectivity between on-premises data centers and AWS environments. It supports operations like database management and application deployment, facilitating data and application migration while enabling hybrid cloud connectivity.

Amazon Web Services (AWS)

SonicWall SMA is a unified secure access gateway that enables organizations to provide anytime, anywhere and any device access to mission critical corporate resources. SMA's granular access control policy engine, context aware device authorization, application level VPN and advanced authentication with single sign-on empowers organizations to embrace BYOD and mobility in a hybrid IT environment.

SonicWall

Sample Customers

Expedia, Intuit, Royal Dutch Shell, Brooks Brothers

UnitedStack, Newport City Homes, Faith Lutheran College Redlands, PRIME aerostructures GmbH, Celtic Manor Resort

Buyer's Guide

AWS Direct Connect vs. SonicWall SMA

December 2025

Free Report: AWS Direct Connect vs. SonicWall SMA

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