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Barracuda WAF-as-a-Service vs Barracuda Web Application Firewall comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jan 1, 2025

Review summaries and opinions

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

ROI

Sentiment score
5.5
Barracuda WAF-as-a-Service boosts security, reduces cyber threats and costs, increases productivity, and lowers hardware expenses significantly.
Sentiment score
5.8
Barracuda Web Application Firewall provides positive ROI, enhanced security, reduced manual efforts, and peace of mind against attacks.
Barracuda WAF-as-a-Service has positively impacted our organization by reducing cyber threats like ransomware and phishing by ninety-five percent.
Devops Manager at Flash
For us, the biggest value comes from improved security and the reduced workload on the team, which makes the investment feel justified.
network security engineer at a outsourcing company with 11-50 employees
From an ROI and impact perspective, there is a 20 to 35% reduction in day-to-day administrative effort.
Security Practitioner at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
My development team is working on the latest language tools or applications, so until then, this web application firewall is essential in my network to protect my existing online assets or software.
Director Information Technology at College of Physicians & Surgeons Pakistan
We have seen a return on investment as the manual work for monitoring attacks and generating reports is reduced significantly, saving money.
Senior Security Systems Engineer at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
5.3
Barracuda WAF-as-a-Service offers highly rated, promptly effective customer support, though complex issues may take longer to resolve.
Sentiment score
6.4
Barracuda Web Application Firewall service is variable, with efficient higher-level support but regional delays and AWS integration issues.
We had an incident requiring direct support, and the representatives were really helpful, resolving our query within forty-five minutes.
Devops Manager at Flash
The engineers were helpful and knowledgeable, and we were able to get the guidance we needed.
network security engineer at a outsourcing company with 11-50 employees
I would rate Barracuda WAF-as-a-Service customer support as a nine on a scale of one to ten.
Networking Admin at a tech company with 51-200 employees
I would rate customer support a solid ten, as they are consistently on top of every issue, addressing them without delays and providing excellent support twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week.
Senior Security Systems Engineer at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
The customer service and support from Barracuda have been excellent.
Technical Lead at cmsit services
The customer service and support are exceptional, and I would give them a ten out of ten.
Cyber Security Consultant at Axle iT
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
5.8
Barracuda WAF-as-a-Service offers high scalability, enabling effortless expansion to meet growing traffic and application demands effectively.
Sentiment score
6.4
Barracuda Web Application Firewall is scalable, managing resources efficiently, though some users note room for improvement, especially with upgrades.
Scalability is good for Barracuda WAF-as-a-Service; we can scale up or down based on our needs.
Devops Manager at Flash
As our needs have grown and we have added more applications, it has handled this expansion without creating extra management overhead.
network security engineer at a outsourcing company with 11-50 employees
The VMSS feature allows for easy upgrades or scaling of virtual editions.
Senior Security Systems Engineer at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
I believe Barracuda Web Application Firewall is quite scalable, and I would rate it as an eight.
Cyber Security Consultant at Axle iT
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.7
Users find Barracuda WAF-as-a-Service stable and reliable; issues mainly relate to policy tuning, with ratings from four to ten.
Sentiment score
7.8
Barracuda Web Application Firewall is generally stable but occasionally faces UI crashes and appliance failures affecting performance.
We have not faced any downtime, crashes, or lag.
Devops Manager at Flash
Barracuda WAF-as-a-Service is extremely accurate in detection and reporting, and I find very few false positives.
Security Practitioner at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Barracuda WAF-as-a-Service has been stable in our experience, and we have not faced any major downtime or service-impacting issues.
network security engineer at a outsourcing company with 11-50 employees
These result in clients complaining about blocked transactions on a daily basis.
Technical Lead at cmsit services
Barracuda Web Application Firewall is stable in my experience.
Senior Security Systems Engineer at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
 

Room For Improvement

Barracuda WAF-as-a-Service needs improvements in data storage, UI, licensing, support, deployment, analytics, and security features.
Barracuda Web Application Firewall needs UI updates, better integration, enhanced features, and improved support for multi-cloud environments.
The ROI they have given us is tremendous, and they are doing really well in terms of product, scalability, and service.
Devops Manager at Flash
Modernizing the UI further, simplifying packaging and licensing clarity, enhancing the executive reporting and risk dashboard, and expanding broader cloud-native integration would be beneficial improvements.
Security Practitioner at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
There is one issue regarding local data storage, as they do not have that capability, and we are storing the data in another foreign country, which is against the law.
IT Project Manager at Brilliant telecommunications
Reducing false positives must be a priority.
Director Information Technology at College of Physicians & Surgeons Pakistan
The issues with false positives affect client transactions, leading to complaints about blocked transactions.
Technical Lead at cmsit services
Tenable provides more comprehensive dark web scanning capabilities, which Barracuda could improve upon.
Cyber Security Consultant at Axle iT
 

Setup Cost

Enterprise users value Barracuda WAF-as-a-Service for its flexible pricing, scalability, and valuable security features justifying the cost.
Barracuda Web Application Firewall offers competitive pricing for enterprises, though potentially pricey for smaller businesses; negotiation can assist.
This system allows us to pay only for what we use, saving a lot of money, so I give it a ten out of ten as it is both a money and time saver for the organization.
Devops Manager at Flash
Barracuda service is customizable but external references note that licensing and cost planning can become complex.
Security Practitioner at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
While it may not be the cheapest solution available, we believe the security, ease of management, and operational benefits provide good value for the investment.
network security engineer at a outsourcing company with 11-50 employees
I requested a quote from Barracuda's UK team, which was half the price I was quoted in Pakistan.
Director Information Technology at College of Physicians & Surgeons Pakistan
The pricing for Barracuda is quite high compared to other OEMs.
Technical Lead at cmsit services
They are competitive when compared to other vendors including F5 and Imperva, who tend to have higher prices.
Senior Security Systems Engineer at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
 

Valuable Features

Barracuda WAF-as-a-Service offers real-time security, DDoS protection, and ease-of-use, reducing operational burden with automated features.
Barracuda Web Application Firewall excels in bot management, DDoS defense, ease of use, integration, scalability, and robust support.
The centralized dashboard is helping us streamline visibility across our admin panels and provides site-to-site visibility deployed directly to our AWS environment, securing VPC traffic and ensuring the firewall is in place.
Devops Manager at Flash
One of the strongest points is the speed of deployment, which features a three-step deployment wizard, pre-built templates, and quick onboarding, making it suitable for teams that want protection fast without complex infrastructure setup.
Security Practitioner at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
I particularly appreciate its ability to automatically detect and block common web attacks such as SQL injection, XSS, and bot-based threats without requiring manual intervention.
network security engineer at a outsourcing company with 11-50 employees
The most valuable features of Barracuda Web Application Firewall include advanced bot protection, DDoS protection, and addressing the top ten vulnerabilities.
Technical Lead at cmsit services
This process protects against attacks including SQL injection or cross-site scripting, where Barracuda Web Application Firewall will block any request that matches attack signatures.
Senior Security Systems Engineer at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
The most valuable feature of Barracuda Web Application Firewall is managing bot traffic.
Cyber Security Consultant at Axle iT
 

Categories and Ranking

Barracuda WAF-as-a-Service
Ranking in Web Application Firewall (WAF)
21st
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
5.7
Number of Reviews
14
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Barracuda Web Application F...
Ranking in Web Application Firewall (WAF)
16th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
47
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of November 2026, in the Web Application Firewall (WAF) category, the mindshare of Barracuda WAF-as-a-Service is 1.0%, up from 0.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Barracuda Web Application Firewall is 1.8%, down from 2.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Web Application Firewall (WAF) Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Barracuda Web Application Firewall1.8%
Barracuda WAF-as-a-Service1.0%
Other97.2%
Web Application Firewall (WAF)
 

Featured Reviews

Samir Paul - PeerSpot reviewer
Security Practitioner at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Cloud WAF has protected critical web apps and APIs and delivers fast bot and DDoS defense
Regarding improvements for Barracuda WAF-as-a-Service, the UI and user experience can feel dated. While the interface is functional and centralized, some third-party reviews indicate that the UI can feel outdated, and enhancements are required to provide an executive look that can be aligned with modern and intuitive next-generation competitors. The licensing and cost structure perspective may need clear planning. Barracuda service is customizable but external references note that licensing and cost planning can become complex. Advanced analytics and executive reporting could be better. The platform provides visibility and compliance reporting but organizations looking for a very polished executive dashboard, deep attack visualization, or broader cloud-native security context may find it more focused on WAF operation. Barracuda WAF-as-a-Service is best suited for app and API protection and is not a full CNAPP platform. It is strong for application layer protection but is not positioned as a full CNAPP covering posture management. Modernizing the UI further, simplifying packaging and licensing clarity, enhancing the executive reporting and risk dashboard, and expanding broader cloud-native integration would be beneficial improvements.
reviewer2797602 - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Security Systems Engineer at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
Advanced application protection has reduced manual monitoring and improved attack visibility
For example, if we consider a company that has an application with a payment gateway configured, which provides services including money transactions, we deploy Barracuda Web Application Firewall for that application. We host the service in Barracuda Web Application Firewall. When a client requests access to the application, the request goes to Barracuda Web Application Firewall first, which will verify the request contents and create a separate TCP connection to the backend server if the request is legitimate. This process protects against attacks including SQL injection or cross-site scripting, where Barracuda Web Application Firewall will block any request that matches attack signatures. The reporting features are quite good as they have reporting charts and dashboards that provide lists of attacks and real-time verification of those attacks, helping in better reporting by tracking requests based on time and unique endpoints. I believe URL Profiles and Website Profiles are the most unique features offered. They create separate endpoints for each request integrated with the application, providing different security profiles based on the requirements. Moreover, the learning feature is very comprehensive, allowing us to monitor the applications before switching to protect mode, creating automatic profiles based on learned traffic, which helps to fine-tune security policy. Barracuda Web Application Firewall's user interface automates the blocking of malicious IP addresses, reducing the manual burden. Additionally, enabling the learning feature allows for quick preparation of security profiles, creating URL profiles automatically, which significantly reduces manual intervention and false positives.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Outsourcing Company
16%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Computer Software Company
8%
Construction Company
6%
Financial Services Firm
13%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Outsourcing Company
10%
University
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business12
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise6
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business26
Midsize Enterprise8
Large Enterprise12
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with Barracuda WAF-as-a-Service?
Barracuda WAF-as-a-Service is strong, but there are definite areas where it could be improved to deliver even more value. Enhancing reporting customization would be beneficial, as compliance logs a...
What is your primary use case for Barracuda WAF-as-a-Service?
Barracuda WAF-as-a-Service protects web applications and apps from external threats while simplifying deployment and management.During the last week, I used Barracuda WAF-as-a-Service to protect my...
What advice do you have for others considering Barracuda WAF-as-a-Service?
I rate Barracuda WAF-as-a-Service an eight on a scale of one to ten. I chose an eight out of ten perhaps because the price is very high and not recommended for all organizations.Regarding Barracuda...
What is your primary use case for Barracuda Web Application Firewall?
My main use case for Barracuda Web Application Firewall is utilizing it in the areas of perimeter security, load balancing, and deploying it on the cloud, hybrid, and on-premises environments, whic...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Barracuda Web Application Firewall?
The pricing, setup cost, and licensing for Barracuda Web Application Firewall are reasonable. They are competitive when compared to other vendors including F5 and Imperva, who tend to have higher p...
What needs improvement with Barracuda Web Application Firewall?
I think Barracuda Web Application Firewall can be improved by providing more information around data integrity control, which would be interesting to see.
 

Also Known As

Barracuda WAF as a Service
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Salvation Army
Oracle, CBS, Pioneer, Hyundai, Publix, Barnes Noble, Calzedonia, Nordstrom, Samsung, Nascar
Find out what your peers are saying about Barracuda WAF-as-a-Service vs. Barracuda Web Application Firewall and other solutions. Updated: November 2026.
920,939 professionals have used our research since 2012.