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Barracuda Email Security Gateway vs Proofpoint Email Protection vs Webroot Advanced Email Encryption powered by Zix comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

Review summaries and opinions

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

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the Secure Email Gateway (SEG) category, the mindshare of Barracuda Email Security Gateway is 6.5%, down from 8.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Proofpoint Email Protection is 21.0%, up from 18.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Webroot Advanced Email Encryption powered by Zix is 0.8%, down from 0.9% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Secure Email Gateway (SEG) Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Proofpoint Email Protection21.0%
Barracuda Email Security Gateway6.5%
Webroot Advanced Email Encryption powered by Zix0.8%
Other71.7%
Secure Email Gateway (SEG)
 

Featured Reviews

WalidChowdhury - PeerSpot reviewer
Robust email protection with advanced features such as effective spam filtering, virus and malware defense, phishing protection and high scalability
Our customer faced a significant challenge with spam, leading to increased expenses. The complexity of their email infrastructure added to the issue, with some clients using Microsoft Exchange, others relying on different systems, and some operating on Linux platforms. To address this, we…
AhmedRamadan - PeerSpot reviewer
Optimize email security with effective sandboxing and auto Pull for quarantine
Proofpoint is used as an email security gateway for big enterprises, primarily for their on-premises servers. Many customers also use it alongside Office 365 Proofpoint offers a complete solution for email security with features like DLP, email archiving, and encryption. The most valuable…
John Zupancic - PeerSpot reviewer
Inexpensive, with good email security, but the technical support could be improved
We don't have as many problems with email security. They have some areas that could be improved. For example, we also use this solution for email encryption, which was clunky and could be improved, but the email security itself has been excellent. The web interface works well but the Outlook plug-in has been problematic. We've had to uninstall/reinstall it. On some Outlook clients (including mine), it causes Outlook to stop responding. I disabled the Outlook plug-in and only use the web interface.

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 the Barracuda Email Security Gateway is the cloud ATP functionality not available on the on-premise version. Most of the zero-day attacks can be mitigated with ATP. Additionally, the reporting functionality is good."
"It's easy to use. The configuration and web interface are user-friendly."
"Barracuda Email Security Gateway is very simple to use."
"Eliminating inbox clutter creates an opportunity to be more productive instead of wasting time manually sorting through spam."
"We find the product to be scalable."
"Customer support is the solution's strongest point."
"It is lightweight, and we can filter all of our inbound and outbound emails. We have controls for rate control, quarantine, and tagging. We can see whether an email is a spam email or a phishing email."
"It catches a lot of things and has the ability to add domains as well as add senders and update their things."
"The most valuable feature is the option to edit the inbound security."
"The archive feature is valuable."
"Proofpoint Email Protection is stable enough and does its job of virus, malware, and email scam detection. Setting it up is not too complicated."
"I recommend all of my customers to migrate and start using Proofpoint as it is secure, minimizes risk, and eliminates phishing attacks."
"It was easy to set up."
"Compared to other products, Proofpoint's real-time threat intelligence makes it less noisy; they collect and share threat information effectively, which benefits all customers."
"A one-stop shop for email protection"
"The most valuable features of Proofpoint Email Protection are ease of use, data loss prevention, antivirus, and spam protection."
"They do a better job of determining what's real and what's not than most of the other solutions we have tried, and it's been very painless to use."
 

Cons

"Barracuda's spam database isn't on par with its competitors. Users complain about the spam email they're receiving, and we report the issue. Barracuda said they are going to update their system to block the malicious email we received, but we're still getting the same spam. The signatures are not in their database. They need to update their spam signatures because spam is bypassing Barracuda."
"Barracuda has shown difficulty in providing us with the solutions we sought."
"The reports are standard, and it would be nice to be able to customize them."
"The scalability needs improvement, it's the only feature that is required."
"Barracuda Email Security Gateway can improve email detection. We have some emails that are bypassing the threat scanning. There are some impersonation emails passing through."
"The solution should include an improvised anti-phishing feature, since it blocks certain genuine emails."
"We still have critical threats coming into our environment and delivered to our users. When we compare it with other solutions, these other solutions can already detect those threats."
"We would like to have a local support center in India so that they are operating in the same time zone and speak the same language."
"The product's deployment is complex and requires technical knowledge."
"They do not have an on-demand scan for the internal viruses and internal users, and they don't have a scan for the exchange server against viruses and spam as Symantec does."
"Proofpoint Email Protection could improve the Mail Trace feature and make navigation easier."
"It's scalable, but the devil's in the details — you have to know your email volumes."
"The Secure Mail aspect should have an Outlook add-in, instead of an external dashboard that outside users have to access."
"The setup requires expertise. It needs someone with experience on managing it, and I would rate the implementation as needing someone experienced."
"Integration and filtering out who you want and don't want to have integrated ID could be improved."
"The largest complaint that we hear from our customers is that there is no local support."
"They have some areas that could be improved. For example, we also use this solution for email encryption, which was clunky and could be improved, but the email security itself has been excellent."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The licensing fees are part of a bundled support package that we pay for."
"The licensing cost is competitive, it's not too high and not too low."
"We pay between $8 and $10 USD per user per month."
"The solution is priced low. We have received a good price discount here in Sri Lanka. There are additional licenses we have to purchase a license for the ATP."
"This is one of the major points for integrating this solution in any organization. Barracuda Email Security Gateway needs to make it a bit more tolerable for customers because it is increasing every year. They should create a plan for reducing the cost."
"It is an expensive solution and I would rate it 5 out of 10."
"We find the solution's pricing okay."
"For overall value and cost, Barracuda came in as most appropriate, price as well as services provided. In terms of price, it's average . It's not the most expensive, it's not the least expensive but it works well."
"I rate the price of Proofpoint Email Protection a four out of five."
"The solution charges per user per month to use it. There are not any additional fees in addition to the standard living fees."
"In general, the pricing is competitive."
"We sell annual licenses for this solution."
"The licensing model for Proofpoint Email Protection is simple. It's based on the number of users. Price-wise, Proofpoint Email Protection is a five out of ten because it's a pretty expensive solution."
"Pricing has recently been increased and the cost is a downside"
"Clients pay for an annual subscription of Proofpoint Email Protection. Every client always finds it expensive."
"The licensing is basically $8/user."
"In terms of pricing, I believe they provide excellent value."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
14%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Government
6%
Computer Software Company
14%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Government
6%
No data available
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business34
Midsize Enterprise12
Large Enterprise13
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business21
Midsize Enterprise13
Large Enterprise17
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Barracuda Sentinel?
It not only tackles spam effectively but also incorporates advanced features like ATP and active features which ensu...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Barracuda Sentinel?
I would suggest that pricing for Barracuda Email Security Gateway rates around seven. It is not too expensive, but it...
What needs improvement with Barracuda Sentinel?
Regarding real-time intelligent features of the Barracuda Email Security Gateway, some spam emails are still being re...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Proofpoint Email Protection?
In terms of pricing, it is okay compared to others. I would say it is normal. Additional costs do come in, but it enh...
What needs improvement with Proofpoint Email Protection?
I believe they still need to improve by consolidating some portals, as currently, you have to log in separately to a ...
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Also Known As

Barracuda Spam and Virus Firewall, Barracuda Sentinel
Proofpoint Enterprise Protection, Cofense PhishMe, Proofpoint Digital Protection
Zix Email Encryption, ZixEncrypt
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Evolution Recruitment Solutions, Evans Delivery Company, Osoyoos Credit Union, Synovis Life Technologies, Camden County Technical Schools, DEK, Evans Delivery Company, Colgate Rochester Crozer, Hemmera, South Carolina Heart Center, Ferma Corporation, Major League Baseball (MLB), Healy Brothers Automotive Group
Blocket, University of Waterloo, Lincoln Memorial University, WellSpan Health, U-Haul, Carestream Health, Westinghouse
Erie County of Pennsylvania’s Human Services Department, Justice Federal Credit Union, STAR Financial Group, Chisago County, Minn., The National Banks of Central Texas, Kentucky Retirement Systems (KRS), Frankfort, Ky, Athletico Physical Therapy, District of Columbia Retirement Board (DCRB), CIBM Bank
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft, Abnormal AI, Proofpoint and others in Secure Email Gateway (SEG). Updated: September 2025.
869,202 professionals have used our research since 2012.