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Check Point CloudGuard Network Security vs Netgate pfSense Plus Firewall/VPN/Router comparison

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Executive Summary

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

Fortinet FortiGate
Sponsored
Ranking in Firewalls
1st
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
580
Ranking in other categories
Secure Web Gateways (SWG) (2nd), Intrusion Detection and Prevention Software (IDPS) (1st), Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions (1st), WAN Edge (1st), ZTNA (1st), Unified Threat Management (UTM) (1st)
Check Point CloudGuard Netw...
Ranking in Firewalls
8th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
161
Ranking in other categories
Managed Security Services Providers (MSSP) (1st), Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions (3rd), Cloud and Data Center Security (4th), WAN Edge (3rd), Unified Threat Management (UTM) (3rd)
Netgate pfSense Plus Firewa...
Ranking in Firewalls
27th
Average Rating
9.4
Reviews Sentiment
4.3
Number of Reviews
3
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Featured Reviews

Vasu Gala - PeerSpot reviewer
Manager, Information Technology Operation/Presales at TechMonarch
A stable solution with an intuitive interface and quick customer service
I have been working with Fortinet FortiGate, WatchGuard, Sophos, and SonicWall. I'm not as comfortable with SonicWall because of their UI and limitations. I prefer Fortinet above all other options. When it comes to configuration, I am confident in my ability to handle various tasks, including creating policies such as firewall rules, web policies, and application policies. Additionally, I can configure VPNs and implement load balancing, among other tasks. Overall, I feel much more comfortable working with Fortinet. Fortinet has made significant improvements by integrating AI with firewalls for threat analysis and prevention. In the past 2-3 years, they have launched FortiSASE and SIEM, and they also provide SOC services. Both Palo Alto and Fortinet FortiGate are excellent. While Fortinet FortiGate comes at higher prices, the functionality and support justify the cost. They promptly resolve firmware issues and inform all support providers about configuration changes.
Martin Raška - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Security Engineer & Instructor at Arrow Electronics
Unification of security features strengthens network protection
The overall network security is good. It's big-picture, all in one bundle. It's valuable to have everything in one place instead of spreading across different products. Unified security management positively affects a company's security operations. They have one unified view of the security. I can connect multiple gateways to the management and have it in one place. I can have reporting and views in a single pane of glass on the consolidated platform. It's easy to use. The management is the best on the market. It's very easy to work with, read, understand, and navigate. It helps increase our customer's security posture. We can see in some cases CloudGuard improves our customers' posture overall.
Jim Voige - PeerSpot reviewer
Site Manager at a consultancy with 11-50 employees
High availability routing has secured our network and delivers reliable support every day
One downside of Netgate pfSense Plus Firewall_VPN_Router is the need for a better understanding of what hardware it would run on. Right now, we're using Netgate's hardware, but I'm interested in knowing if there are other hardware options available, particularly heavier duty hardware, because the Supermicro 1537 version we have only has a single power supply, which is a shortcoming in an IT environment where dual power supplies are ideal. The pricing for the hardware of Netgate pfSense Plus Firewall_VPN_Router is steep, which is one reason I'd explore other options. I'm familiar with the costs of Supermicro servers, and I believe Netgate charges a premium for their server hardware without enough upside to justify it. The pricing is not justified.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The product's most valuable features are SD-WAN and the integration of WiFi and switches."
"The most valuable features are SD-WAN, application control, IPS control, and FortiSandbox."
"The solution is easy to use and checks the access control as a firewall."
"User-friendly and affordable security solution that's recommended for SMB customers. This solution has good technical support."
"The VPN is the most valuable feature."
"The solution is easy to configure and maintain remotely."
"One of the valuable features is a standardized OS."
"The Fortinet FortiGate local partners were good. I did not have direct contact with Fortinet support."
"The automation and unified security management have helped me significantly; it saves me eighty percent of the time and reduces errors."
"The tool's most valuable features are IPS and blades. These features are valuable for security."
"The tool's most valuable feature is its scalability. You will only have to pay less for scaling up. Its notable benefit is deployment complexity. Regional deployment is simpler compared to on-premise setup."
"I have no problems with stability. There is no downtime."
"The most valuable feature for us is the ability to run the gateways as virtual machines in our virtual data center. The tool protects the virtual data centers."
"It has become less complex to use yet more complex in terms of infrastructure."
"The solution has been quite stable."
"Check Point has pretty simple solutions, like the virtual appliance which you just download and it is imported into VMware and you just start using it."
"It's very simple to use, efficient, up to date, and the hardware is very available; it's very safe."
"Overall, the entire Netgate pfSense Plus Firewall_VPN_Router product has been reliable, though some of their smaller gear aimed at remote offices hasn't been cost-effective."
"I do not have complaints about Netgate pfSense Plus Firewall_VPN_Router with Firewall, VPN, and Router; it is really comfortable for use, and it does a pretty good job."
 

Cons

"There should be some open-source training or free training for decision makers, or some webinars should be available."
"We have an issue with hotel guest vouchers."
"Vulnerability scanning could be improved."
"The dashboard is not user friendly so is a bit complicated."
"I would like to see better pricing in the next release, as well as a simplification of the installation."
"When we cluster the two Fortinet FortiGate boxes together we have some issues."
"Fortinet FortiGate could improve by having better visibility. Palo Alto has better visibility."
"Backup can be improved."
"In terms of user interface and usability, the Smart Console UI is feature-rich; however, for new admins, navigation is not always intuitive, and log search feels clunky compared to SIM tools."
"The costs are high."
"I'm quite satisfied with the solution. I don't have any notes for improvements."
"In case the device is inaccessible due to some issue such as CPU or memory, there is no separate port or hardware partition provided for troubleshooting purposes."
"More support from our partners would be beneficial. A lot could be explained more."
"While Check Point does offer some VWAN offerings, they appear to be more static and less tailored to cloud-native environments compared to Palo Alto's dynamic and flexible approach."
"We did not use the AWS Transit Gateway, and that's one of the things that we're currently using. I believe we will be working with Check Point again, in the near future, to implement it, once they start having proper support for a single customer with multiple accounts. When we were using them, we had to install Check Point on each and every single account."
"It is somewhat problematic in the area of the cloud."
"The pricing for the hardware of Netgate pfSense Plus Firewall_VPN_Router is steep, which is one reason I'd explore other options."
"The effectiveness of Netgate pfSense Plus Firewall_VPN_Router traffic shaping is quite good, but I am not very satisfied with the interface for control."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I would rate the pricing a six out of ten, where one is cheap and ten is expensive."
"On a scale of one being cheap and ten being expensive, I rate the tool's price as an eight."
"The tool's pricing is neither cheap nor expensive. Overall, I find it to be competitive in the market."
"I would rate pricing to be about four or five out of ten, it is reasonable."
"It's an expensive solution"
"Setup cost may be not so low, as you expect, because it depends on different factors, but TCO for 5 years may pleasantly surprise you."
"Their licensing costs are annual. The UTM feature license along with their support is called FortiCare. We include that as a part of the annual maintenance cost. Palo Alto or Juniper also have an annual subscription charge for UTM. Price, of course, can always be more competitive, but it is not the most expensive product. The price-performance ratio is quite high for FortiGate."
"Currently, we are paying about $1,500 a month for three sites."
"It is an expensive product, but when you realize that you need it, it does not feel so expensive. We have had a good experience with them as partners. They have helped us with designing and having good architecture and the best equipment at the best prices. We find it a good deal."
"The tool's pricing is reasonable."
"I like the flexibility because I am pretty sure you can use the same license on Azure or AWS. I forgot the name of the license, but there is a specific type you can use that lets you interchange them, and that is pretty good. I like that."
"It is not expensive."
"It is expensive."
"Licensing is available on a monthly or yearly basis."
"The solution's licensing is based on the number of users of the VMs. We follow a pay-as-you-go model. Its pricing is competitive."
"The tool's monthly costs have undergone a significant reduction, dropping from approximately 12,000 euros to around 4,000. This represents a cost reduction of over 60 percent. However, it's essential to note that while costs decreased in some areas, they increased in others due to shifts in our environment. As our overall environment has grown, currently connecting 50 accounts to the cloud, it's challenging to directly compare costs with the state of our setup three years ago."
Information not available
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
12%
Comms Service Provider
9%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
6%
Computer Software Company
16%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Performing Arts
8%
Outsourcing Company
7%
No data available
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business357
Midsize Enterprise133
Large Enterprise188
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business67
Midsize Enterprise40
Large Enterprise76
No data available
 

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What do you like most about Check Point CloudGuard Network Security?
The tool's most valuable feature is its management console.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Check Point CloudGuard Network Security?
Although I do not know much about the pricing or setup costs, Check Point CloudGuard Network Security is very cost-ef...
What needs improvement with Check Point CloudGuard Network Security?
Check Point CloudGuard Network Security could be improved with faster policy propagation across large multi-cloud env...
What needs improvement with Netgate pfSense Plus Firewall/VPN/Router?
One downside of Netgate pfSense Plus Firewall_VPN_Router is the need for a better understanding of what hardware it w...
What is your primary use case for Netgate pfSense Plus Firewall/VPN/Router?
We use Netgate pfSense Plus Firewall_VPN_Router as a high availability BGP solution.
What advice do you have for others considering Netgate pfSense Plus Firewall/VPN/Router?
We use the Plus version of Netgate pfSense Plus Firewall_VPN_Router, which comes automatically with any Netgate hardw...
 

Also Known As

Fortinet FortiGate Next-Generation Firewall
CloudGuard IaaS, Check Point vSEC, CloudGuard IaaS, Check Point Virtual Systems, Check Point CloudGuard Network Security
No data available
 

Overview

Information not available
 

Sample Customers

Amazon Web Services, Microsoft, IBM, Cisco, Dell, HP, Oracle, Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint, Vodafone, Orange, BT Group, Telstra, Deutsche Telekom, Comcast, Time Warner Cable, CenturyLink, NTT Communications, Tata Communications, SoftBank, China Mobile, Singtel, Telus, Rogers Communications, Bell Canada, Telkom Indonesia, Telkom South Africa, Telmex, Telia Company, Telkom Kenya
Physicians Choice Laboratory Services, Helvetica Insurance
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Find out what your peers are saying about Check Point CloudGuard Network Security vs. Netgate pfSense Plus Firewall/VPN/Router and other solutions. Updated: January 2026.
881,114 professionals have used our research since 2012.