AWS Transfer for SFTP [EOL] vs GoAnywhere MFT comparison

Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Fortra are both solutions in the Managed File Transfer (MFT) category. Additionally, 75% of Amazon Web Services (AWS) users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of Fortra users who would recommend it.

AWS Transfer for SFTP [EOL]

Read 3 AWS Transfer for SFTP [EOL] reviews

75% willing to recommend

GoAnywhere MFT

Read 44 GoAnywhere MFT reviews

2,404 Views
1,129 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

AWS Transfer for SFTP [EOL]

GoAnywhere MFT

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Download the report

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jun 8, 2025

GoAnywhere MFT and AWS Transfer for SFTP [EOL] are in the secure file transfer category. GoAnywhere MFT has an upper hand in feature flexibility and customization, while AWS Transfer for SFTP [EOL] benefits from better cloud integration and scalability.

Features: GoAnywhere MFT provides comprehensive file transfer automation, user access controls, and auditing capabilities. It supports numerous protocols, making it versatile for different scenarios. AWS Transfer for SFTP [EOL] offers strong integration with AWS services, excellent cloud-native features, and scalability options suited for organizations within the AWS ecosystem.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: AWS Transfer for SFTP [EOL] facilitates easy deployment with existing AWS infrastructures, reducing complexities due to well-aligned support resources. GoAnywhere MFT has a more intricate deployment process rooted in on-premises installations but provides extensive customer support and guidance.

Pricing and ROI: GoAnywhere MFT presents a higher upfront cost with infrastructure and maintenance investments, yet yields a solid ROI from its range of features. AWS Transfer for SFTP [EOL] applies a flexible, consumption-based pricing model in line with AWS pricing, offering potential savings for AWS-reliant businesses.

To learn more, read our detailed Managed File Transfer (MFT) Report (Updated: May 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Managed File Transfer (MFT)

May 2025

Download the complete report

Helped 857,028 peers since 2012

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 Transfer for SFTP [EOL]

Average Rating

8.0

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

GoAnywhere MFT

Average Rating

9.0

Reviews Sentiment

7.3

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Managed File Transfer (MFT) (2nd)

Featured Reviews

Kyle Titus

Chief Technology Officer at Revio

Always works, handles all types of load, and allows us to have S3 files as storage

Its cost needs improvement. In addition, there could be a universal client that works on all desktops. There could be client software that you use to connect to the server. Generally, AWS doesn't provide one for you, so you have to use either your CLI, maybe your SSH CLI, or use some kind of desktop solution. I had to find a desktop app from a third party to run this. Our clients also do the same everywhere else, so it would be nice if the SFTP Gateway solution came with a client that anyone could download on their Mac, Windows, or any other machine.

Read full review

Joel Vinas

Senior Analyst at a comms service provider with 10,001+ employees

Created a much better working relationship with our partners and saved a lot of time

While I was happy with the training and support, more of it could be beneficial. We had some basic training and support. I talked with Fortra recently, and they said that they revamped and changed their training support. I have not used it since December. I got support in February and May of last year, and it was not bad. I was just not sure which questions to ask. Trying to learn this stuff on the fly as you are handed a project is always stressful. I like that you can tweak the interface so much, but it would be nice to be able to tweak it some more. The ability to further tweak the interface would be advantageous, as our end users had some questions about modifications that we could not address. Other than that, GoAnywhere seemed to fulfill its role as a simple solution for secure file transfer.

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

"Being able to have the S3 files as storage is most valuable. We can use S3 as storage instead of an SFTP server or a machine."

"The solution has helped with collaboration in our organization."

"The solution offers good data recovery."

"The solution provides secure, customized forms where users can input values and share details, which is very important for internal data sharing."

"The usability is valuable because I am self-taught and have not had any formal training in the product. The help feature is quite handy."

"GoDrive eliminates the need to use the exchange server for file sharing."

"It has saved significant time on both the security aspect and data transfers."

"The solution is easy to learn and user-friendly, which makes it accessible even to those without programming backgrounds and extensive scripting training. Newcomers can quickly get to grips with the platform, and as it's a more object-oriented application, it's easier to use and program."

"The most valuable feature is the Advanced Workflows."

"Whenever a customer has to create a case, they create a case directly through our support portal."

"GoAnywhere stands out for its user-friendly project creation, intuitive testing and troubleshooting, and especially its notification system, which keeps me informed of any issues that need attention, a feature we lacked before."

More GoAnywhere MFT pros

Cons

"Could be more automated, particularly for file transfers."

"The tool's UI should be pretty easy and straightforward. I would also like to see a simple audit report of the SFTP guest account that shows the amount of data transfers and security kind enabled."

"Its cost needs improvement. In addition, there could be a universal client that works on all desktops."

"The support desk has room for improvement. I keep opening tickets and they keep telling me that they're closed, but they're not resolved."

"If the hostname has a dash in it then it does not work."

"There are a number of built-in tasks in GoAnywhere. One, in particular, the write to CSV task, is slow. If you have, say, 100,000 records in your row set and you want to write them to a CSV file, it takes a long time. That definitely requires performance improvement."

"The reporting could be more customizable."

"Improvement in support or product relies on being ingenious, supportive, and listening to its customer base."

"The security could be upgraded to address novel cyberattacks. I'm not sure whether the product's security is being updated periodically."

"On the platform side, I would like to see some improvements in the dashboarding and telemetry data."

"There is a function referred to as write CSV, to write a general text file. In this scenario of creating a simple text file, I ran into a situation where, if the product saw a quote or a double-quote in the data, it started wrapping all the text fields in double-quotes. The request I put in asks them to provide a feature that leaves my data alone and does not interpret anything."

More GoAnywhere MFT cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It's $249 per month per instance. It's not great; it's pretty pricey. We've got multiple users on that one instance. If we had to build it by hand, we would win on cost there, but obviously, there is effort and time. In terms of the additional costs, they do have some specific pricing, but for our use case, we don't end up going over $249. They do specify in their pricing what they're charging for."

"The cost of GoAnywhere versus the value it brings to our data transfer operations is reasonable... The cost is relatively expensive but, back to the car analogy, that's to be expected with a Ferrari."

"Pricing is based on a one-time license."

"Licensing can be expensive and it depends upon which features you want to buy."

"It is moderately priced. If I compare it with other products that we have been using, its price is moderate. There are approximately 30% to 40% savings."

"GoAnywhere's price is justified by its features and the time it saves me."

"I find it to be very fair. It is very good."

"Fortra's GoAnywhere MFT carries a higher price tag than other MFT solutions."

"It is very attractive. In terms of the capacity of the product and functionality, it is a good price."

More GoAnywhere MFT pricing and cost advice

See which vendors are best for you

Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Managed File Transfer (MFT) solutions are best for your needs.

See recommendations

857,028 professionals have used our research since 2012.

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

27%

Computer Software Company

12%

Insurance Company

Manufacturing Company

Financial Services Firm

15%

Manufacturing Company

11%

Healthcare Company

Computer Software Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

No data available

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about AWS Transfer for SFTP?

The solution has helped with collaboration in our organization.

See all answers

What needs improvement with AWS Transfer for SFTP?

The tool's UI should be pretty easy and straightforward. I would also like to see a simple audit report of the SFTP guest account that shows the amount of data transfers and security kind enabled.

See all answers

What advice do you have for others considering AWS Transfer for SFTP?

I would rate AWS Transfer for SFTP a six out of ten. I would recommend the solution but there are other tools in the market with better UI.

See all answers

What do you like most about Fortra's GoAnywhere MFT?

GoDrive eliminates the need to use the exchange server for file sharing.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Fortra's GoAnywhere MFT?

The pricing for GoAnywhere MFT seems reasonable when compared to other similar services, especially cloud services. Azure is significantly more expensive.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Fortra's GoAnywhere MFT?

The application uses resources such as network connections to shared directories or SFTP connections. I would appreciate seeing utilization metrics for these resources. For example, when opening a ...

See all answers

Comparisons

Kiteworks vs AWS Transfer for SFTP [EOL]

Compared 100% of the time

More AWS Transfer for SFTP [EOL] Competitors

IBM Sterling File Gateway vs GoAnywhere MFT

Compared 15% of the time

MOVEit vs GoAnywhere MFT

Compared 12% of the time

JSCAPE by Redwood vs GoAnywhere MFT

Compared 10% of the time

Control-M vs GoAnywhere MFT

Compared 6% of the time

BMC Control-M Managed File Transfer vs GoAnywhere MFT

Compared 6% of the time

More GoAnywhere MFT Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Managed File Transfer (MFT)

May 2025

Download AWS Transfer for SFTP [EOL] product report

Buyer's Guide

GoAnywhere MFT

June 2025

Download GoAnywhere MFT product report

Also Known As

No data available

HelpSystems GoAnywhere MFT, GoAnywhere MFT, GoAnywhere Managed File Transfer,

Overview

AWS Transfer for SFTP is a fully managed service that enables the transfer of files directly into and out of Amazon S3 using the Secure File Transfer Protocol (SFTP)—also known as Secure Shell (SSH) File Transfer Protocol.

Amazon Web Services (AWS)

GoAnywhere MFT offers user-friendly workflow features, advanced security, and seamless integrations. Its intuitive interface supports streamlined operations and rapid project creation, making it suitable for managing secure file transfers.

GoAnywhere MFT provides sophisticated automation through Advanced Workflows, enabling reduced manual tasks and improved efficiency. With centralized data exchange, file monitoring, and comprehensive security protocols, it supports scalability, encryption, and IP filtering for enhanced protection. Users appreciate its adaptability with systems including IBM and Epic, contributing to improved process management and significant time savings. While beneficial, enhancements in DNS support, user interface intuitiveness, and customer service responsiveness are potential growth areas. License costs are noted as high, with demands for better documentation, cloud service integrations, and improved scalability and load-balancing functionalities.

What are the key features of GoAnywhere MFT?

User-Friendly Workflows: Intuitive interface streamlines operations.
Advanced Security: Includes encryption, IP filters, and monitoring.
Seamless Integrations: Adapts to systems like IBM and Epic.
Automation: Simplifies processes with reduced manual tasks.
Scalability: Grows with business needs.

What are the benefits and ROI of using GoAnywhere MFT?

Improved Efficiency: Reduces workload through automation.
Time Savings: Accelerates project delivery.
Enhanced Security: Protects data with advanced protocols.
Adaptability: Supports multiple platforms and integrations.
Process Management: Simplifies and streamlines data exchange.

GoAnywhere MFT is deployed by organizations for secure file transfers across systems like financial, healthcare, and corporate sectors. It supports SFTP, FTP, and HTTPS for data exchanges and is highly effective in automating processes and managing large file movements efficiently. It integrates well with cloud platforms like Azure and accommodates environments such as Windows, Linux, and IBM iSeries.

Fortra

Sample Customers

Myriota, FINRA, Celgene, Kontor New Media, Belong, ThinkCX, BluTV

McKesson City of Modesto, California Kwik Trip Northwestern University Charter Communications

Buyer's Guide

Managed File Transfer (MFT)

May 2025

Download Free Report

Find out what your peers are saying about IBM, Fortra, Progress Software and others in Managed File Transfer (MFT). Updated: May 2025.

DOWNLOAD NOW

857,028 professionals have used our research since 2012.

See our list of best Managed File Transfer (MFT) vendors.

We monitor all Managed File Transfer (MFT) reviews to prevent fraudulent reviews and keep review quality high. We do not post reviews by company employees or direct competitors. We validate each review for authenticity via cross-reference with LinkedIn, and personal follow-up with the reviewer when necessary.