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Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) vs Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jun 15, 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
6.3
Check Point Harmony SASE users report fewer security incidents, cost savings, enhanced productivity, and reduced traditional VPN reliance.
Sentiment score
7.1
Cisco Secure Client offers seamless, user-friendly connectivity, simplifying remote work despite unclear direct ROI.
Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) blocked access to those URLs at the network level before users could click through.
We are saving 40% of our time, which is good.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
7.0
Check Point Harmony SASE receives mixed to positive reviews for responsive support, though some users experienced delays in resolution.
Sentiment score
6.7
Users find Cisco support knowledgeable and effective, despite occasional access difficulties, relying often on internal IT for Secure Client.
I would rate support 10 out of 10.
After updating firmware, data utilization was visible for a few days before collapsing again.
Cisco offers very high-quality customer service.
Cisco technical support is difficult, and it requires lots of contracts.
Over the years, there's been a decline in the quality, mainly in areas such as the experience level of support engineers and the time taken to address and escalate issues.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
8.1
Check Point Harmony SASE is scalable, cloud-based, and adaptable but faces some redundancy limitations compared to competitors.
Sentiment score
7.3
Cisco Secure Client is scalable and effective for thousands of users, with flexible licensing for diverse environments and remote work.
The cloud-native model ensures we are not tied to any specific location or hardware, which has been a great game changer in terms of agility.
The scalability of Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) is good, and I can add more users and devices easily as my organization grows.
I would rate it nine out of ten for scalability.
A smaller firewall can handle fewer sessions, while a larger one can handle tens of thousands of sessions.
The scalability of Cisco Secure Client depends on the hardware I choose.
Regarding scalability, Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) rates as excellent because we can scale out by simply buying more licenses from the vendor.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.8
Check Point Harmony SASE is stable with 99.9% uptime, despite rare glitches, earning high user reliability ratings.
Sentiment score
8.0
Cisco Secure Client is highly stable and reliable, with user satisfaction and minimal technical issues reported, scoring 8-10 regularly.
Even the support team does not have a proper solution for this issue.
There are some lags and glitches with connectivity, so I would rate the stability as between seven or eight out of ten.
After the last improvement, I can say it is much more stable now.
I would rate the stability ten out of ten.
The stability is really good, and I would rate it up to nine.
Regarding the performance of Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect), I have not seen any issues because performance-wise it functions properly.
 

Room For Improvement

Check Point Harmony SASE could improve with SD-WAN, alerts, better UI, analytics, integration, support, and documentation enhancements.
Users desire improvements in Cisco Secure Client's interface, ease of use, connectivity, security, updates, and integration with systems.
An example of when the support cycle took longer than expected was when I had a ticket open for nearly six to seven months regarding a simple issue.
A local data center in Turkey would enhance the product, as currently, our Internet traffic goes to another country, which is problematic for us.
One area for improvement is integration with third-party identity providers.
I am using Intune for deployments, and it's not easy to create an automated deployment where users do not need to register server addresses.
Vendors offer more features, such as a kill switch.
Cisco's security portfolio, including Secure Client and the firewalls, is falling behind.
 

Setup Cost

Check Point Harmony SASE offers clear pricing and flexibility, ideal for large enterprises but costly for small businesses.
Cisco Secure Client pricing is reasonable with term-based licensing, but some users find it costly compared to free competitors.
Cost efficiency is a consideration, as SASE products are not the cheapest security products.
It is a bit expensive.
My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing for Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) is that it is a rental service, but I find it satisfactory.
Palo Alto and Fortinet provide free VPN connections, but Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) requires a license purchase.
I perceive the pricing to be a seven, however, I have perpetual licenses.
The pricing seems to align equally with other competitors like Palo Alto during a competitive situation.
 

Valuable Features

Check Point Harmony SASE enhances security with Zero Trust Access, Secure Gateway, and ThreatCloud intelligence, optimizing remote work management.
Cisco Secure Client provides seamless, secure VPN access with user-friendly setup, cross-platform support, and integration with enterprise software.
The firewall management is the most valuable feature for me.
The Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA) feature is a major highlight as it gives users seamless and secure access to internal resources without requiring a full-blown VPN, which improves both security and user experience.
The best key features of Harmony are stabilization, private access, and Internet access.
Beneficial for businesses needing secure access outside the office.
Additionally, it gives the user flexibility of working from anywhere, which is a major feature we are looking at.
Cisco Secure Client's AnyConnect VPN's reliability has been absolutely wonderful, as well as the ability to connect from any network, regardless of location.
 

Categories and Ranking

Check Point Harmony SASE (f...
Ranking in Enterprise Infrastructure VPN
7th
Ranking in ZTNA as a Service
4th
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
61
Ranking in other categories
Secure Web Gateways (SWG) (7th), Firewalls (15th), Anti-Malware Tools (6th), ZTNA (2nd), Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) (6th)
Cisco Secure Client (includ...
Ranking in Enterprise Infrastructure VPN
3rd
Ranking in ZTNA as a Service
9th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
77
Ranking in other categories
SSL VPN (1st), Cisco Security Portfolio (5th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2025, in the Enterprise Infrastructure VPN category, the mindshare of Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) is 2.3%, up from 2.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) is 7.0%, down from 8.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Enterprise Infrastructure VPN
 

Featured Reviews

Nasseer Qureshi - PeerSpot reviewer
Delivers seamless and secure remote access while enhancing security posture
Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) offers strong features, but there are areas that could be improved. One area for improvement is integration with third-party identity providers. It works with standard SAML and SSO, but we would prefer deeper integrations with solutions such as Ping for more advanced identity-based policies. Additionally, a mobile-specific client or lightweight agent would be helpful for securing access from smartphones, especially in BYOD environments. We would appreciate more granular reporting and analytics, including better drill-down capabilities to investigate specific users or app activity. The logs are comprehensive, but filtering them can sometimes feel messy. The user interface on the management portal could be more intuitive, especially when managing multiple sites or remote offices. Some of the policy configuration steps are nested and could be streamlined.
Wouter Beer - PeerSpot reviewer
Generates revenue through service offering while needing additional safety features
The primary use case for Cisco Secure Client, including AnyConnect, is as a VPN for remote access I use AnyConnect because I have Cisco infrastructure. It utilizes certificates, which allows for automatic setup. The security features are beneficial, and the whole idea of the app is that it should…
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
16%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Manufacturing Company
6%
Government
5%
Computer Software Company
33%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Government
7%
Manufacturing Company
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Perimeter 81?
Even after restarting, it tries to quickly reestablish connection which is very helpful.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Perimeter 81?
It's essential to consider the organization's specific requirements and budget. Here are some general recommendations: * Evaluate your needs * Understand pricing models * Request a quote * Compare ...
What needs improvement with Perimeter 81?
In terms of improvement, Perimeter 81 could enhance its reporting and analytics capabilities to provide more detailed insights into network activity. Additionally, expanding integration options wit...
What do you like most about Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client?
The tool is user-friendly, robust and easy to use in any environment.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client?
Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) is somewhat expensive compared to others such as Fortinet or Palo Alto, which provide free VPN when the firewall is purchased. Palo Alto and Fortinet prov...
What needs improvement with Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client?
At times there is confusion regarding when to keep the proxy on or off, a problem faced by some users.
 

Also Known As

Check Point Quantum SASE
Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Aqua Security, Cognito, Multipoint, Kustomer, Postman, Meredith
MST, Molina Healthcare, Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers, Arup, New South Wales Rural FireService
Find out what your peers are saying about Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) vs. Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) and other solutions. Updated: July 2025.
864,155 professionals have used our research since 2012.