No more typing reviews! Try our Samantha, our new voice AI agent.

Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN vs Fortinet FortiManager comparison

Why PeerSpot?
 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jan 2, 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
6.2
Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN cuts costs and increases ROI through MPLS replacement, centralized management, and improved uptime with diverse connectivity.
Sentiment score
4.9
Fortinet FortiManager offers cost-effectiveness with 24% reduced administration costs and high ROI through integrated security and centralized management.
With Zero Trust provisioning via the Catalyst Center and Meraki dashboard, new branch offices are configured in hours instead of weeks, freeing engineering teams to focus on strategic initiatives rather than manual deployment.
Network engineer at Inniti Network Solutions
They are now back to do that with the remainder of their company, so they've realized the value in 12 months and are willing to invest in the remainder of their organization.
Information Technology Consultant at Island Networks
There are many scenarios where we replace MPLS with the internet because now we have the flexibility to migrate to Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN and we do not need private connectivity such as MPLS.
Regional Manager at Orange
Fortinet provides a strong ROI for organizations focused on comprehensive security.
Network Security Engineer/ Firewall Engineer at Charter Communications
The cost has been reduced for us by 24%.
Global Head of IT Infrastructure at EPL Americas
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
7.4
Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN's customer service is highly rated for its responsive, professional support and knowledgeable, easily reachable staff.
Sentiment score
7.0
Fortinet FortiManager is efficient and reliable, though improvements in wait times, technical depth, and local support are desired.
The principal third-level support is very good.
Technology supervisor at a non-profit with 1-10 employees
I would consider Cisco support a 10 out of 10.
Information Technology Consultant at Island Networks
I would rate Cisco's support, their customer service, and technical support as excellent.
Solution Architect at Sonda S.A.
The people are very good, and they are very attentive.
Engineer of Preventa Sir at InterNexa S.A
They are responsive and resolve issues quickly when I raise a ticket.
Senior Associate at City Union Bank Ltd
Fortinet support is responsive and helpful.
Global Head of IT Infrastructure at EPL Americas
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.2
Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN offers high scalability and robust orchestration, but licensing limitations and costs may deter some organizations.
Sentiment score
7.2
Fortinet FortiManager is praised for scalability and centralized management, supporting various environments while requiring potential licensing upgrades.
Its controller architecture is highly matured, making it one of the most valuable and reliable LAN platforms for large enterprises.
Network engineer at Inniti Network Solutions
Cisco SD-WAN is highly scalable and can be expanded to more than 10,000 sites.
Technical Consultant at Vertex Techno Solutions (B) Pvt Ltd
The ease of configuration and features like zero-touch provisioning enhance the scalability of Cisco SD-WAN, especially in disaster recovery situations.
Engineer at Routz
Whenever you are monitoring or managing more than 10 or 20 firewalls, it is evident that you need a single pane of glass, which Fortinet FortiManager is offering.
Global Head of IT Infrastructure at EPL Americas
You can raise the capacity as you go, and there is no limit for hardware.
Security Architect at Bouygues Telecom Mobile
The problem is cloud connectivity and roaming profiles are not working, as there is no option for them.
Network engineer at JOYALUKKAS
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.4
Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN is stable, reliable, and flexible, with occasional issues during initial setup and complex configurations.
Sentiment score
7.9
Fortinet FortiManager is stable and reliable with proper hardware, though performance slightly varies; maintenance and updates are crucial.
For example, with zero-touch provisioning, if we are adding new sites, we can do it with a few simple clicks.
Regional Manager at Orange
While some software-related issues and bugs were encountered, they did not cause the whole environment to crash.
Engineer at Routz
A simple issue in the control connections between the fabric causes numerous complexities.
Network Manager at HPCL
95% of the time, there are no problems interacting with other devices.
Security Architect at Bouygues Telecom Mobile
It is an absolutely very stable product, and we have not encountered any kind of disruption as far as the product is concerned.
Global Head of IT Infrastructure at EPL Americas
 

Room For Improvement

Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN needs improved security, user-friendliness, automation, flexible licensing, better integration, and enhanced reporting to compete effectively.
Fortinet FortiManager needs better documentation, UI, third-party integration, and improved performance amidst pricing, licensing, and support challenges.
Now, they change frequently, making it difficult to obtain long-term support.
Technology supervisor at a non-profit with 1-10 employees
Better documentation with real-world examples, improved third-party integration, and more detailed monitoring dashboards would make Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN even more effective.
Network engineer at Inniti Network Solutions
Including more features like integrating with Splunk for monitoring vulnerabilities would help eliminate the need for other SOC solutions.
Technical Consultant at Vertex Techno Solutions (B) Pvt Ltd
FortiManager is a good tool, but there is a lack of really advanced documentation.
Security Architect at Bouygues Telecom Mobile
The graphical user interface could use improvement as it appears complex and not user-friendly.
Senior Network Engineer at SP SYSNET PTE. LTD.
Fortinet FortiManager could benefit from integrations with Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) solutions.
Senior Associate at City Union Bank Ltd
 

Setup Cost

Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN offers robust performance but is costly, with high pricing and licensing complexity impacting smaller enterprises.
Fortinet FortiManager's pricing is competitive, with varying opinions, cost-effective for larger deployments, and negotiable for existing customers.
Its pricing is justifiable due to the comprehensive solution it offers.
Technical Consultant at Vertex Techno Solutions (B) Pvt Ltd
It is also relatively cost-effective for smaller businesses when using the Meraki version.
Engineer at Routz
The pricing of Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN is rated between eight and nine out of ten, where ten is the most expensive.
Technology supervisor at a non-profit with 1-10 employees
I find Fortinet FortiManager to be a bit more expensive, especially when considering the environment.
Head of Presales at AcSys Networks Private Limited
I am satisfied with the licensing cost, and I would rate it an 8.5.
Global Head of IT Infrastructure at EPL Americas
 

Valuable Features

Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN offers centralized management, zero-touch provisioning, application-aware routing, integrated security, and seamless scalability for enhanced efficiency.
Fortinet FortiManager offers centralized management, automation, scalability, and integration, enhancing security and efficiency across complex network environments.
It also provides robust security features, including port security, analysis, mirroring, and multiple other security solutions.
Technology supervisor at a non-profit with 1-10 employees
Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN has integrated security features which include base firewall, URL filtering, IPS, and secure segmentation.
Solution Architect at Sonda S.A.
The centralized dashboard gives me a clear view of all branch sites, making it easy to manage and monitor tunnel health, bandwidth usage, and device status from one place.
Network engineer at Inniti Network Solutions
I can automate the installation of configurations using different programming languages like Python or HPE, and it's a GUI solution, so it's pretty easy to use, even for basic users.
Security Architect at Bouygues Telecom Mobile
Being able to push consistent firewall rules and configuration changes across multiple FortiGates saves a ton of time and reduces errors compared to managing each device individually.
Network Security Engineer/ Firewall Engineer at Charter Communications
I centrally log in to one portal, which is Fortinet FortiManager, and after that, I can access any FortiGate devices and manage them.
Technical Manager at a real estate/law firm with 1,001-5,000 employees
 

Categories and Ranking

Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN
Ranking in Network Management Applications
4th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.5
Number of Reviews
103
Ranking in other categories
Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions (1st), WAN Edge (2nd)
Fortinet FortiManager
Ranking in Network Management Applications
3rd
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
74
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of September 2026, in the Network Management Applications category, the mindshare of Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN is 2.3%, down from 2.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Fortinet FortiManager is 4.1%, down from 5.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Network Management Applications Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Fortinet FortiManager4.1%
Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN2.3%
Other93.6%
Network Management Applications
 

Featured Reviews

Ashwani-Tyagi - PeerSpot reviewer
Regional Manager at Orange
Centralized control has simplified cloud access and has improved operational visibility
If they can have better firewall features as their competitors have, such as Fortinet and Versa, that would help to place this solution better so that we can address security related things. If they can have all the IPS, IDS, everything built on all the edge devices, whether physical or virtual, that could be one improvement. Actually, if customers are existing Cisco customers, if Cisco can be more flexible to leverage the existing investment, that could be another important aspect to save on cost and be more competitive from a pricing perspective. Overall, the pricing or the segment that Cisco deals with is a bit premium, which they charge a bit premium against the competition on the licensing, hardware, and services. The implementation is not straightforward. You need a specialized partner or specialized people who can implement this. It can be simplified a bit from that perspective as well. Mostly the way we implement the policies for a big environment requires a lot of things that we need to take care of. If that can somehow be improved, because they have different components, like they have vManage, they have vSmart, and vBond and all these components have to work with a certain flow that they need to follow.
SudeepMaydeo - PeerSpot reviewer
Global Head of IT Infrastructure at EPL Americas
Ensures seamless integration and centralized visibility for network security operations
The version upgrade from a single dashboard for all the firewalls in one click is the beauty of Fortinet FortiManager as the most impactful feature in managing our network security. Fortinet FortiManager's policy management enhances our security protocols by enabling us and giving integrated centralized visibility, which has proven to be very healthy. Because of this, we have identified some of the vulnerabilities in our systems, and we mitigated them through Fortinet FortiManager. The central dashboards and the visibility are what appealed to us to go with Fortinet FortiManager. Fortinet FortiManager has adapted to changes in our network scale and complexity as we have geographically 18 international locations, all equipped with firewalls and some cybersecurity initiatives and IT infrastructure initiatives.
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Network Management Applications solutions are best for your needs.
912,069 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
11%
Outsourcing Company
9%
Construction Company
8%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Computer Software Company
8%
Construction Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business47
Midsize Enterprise15
Large Enterprise49
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business34
Midsize Enterprise17
Large Enterprise21
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco SD-WAN?
Cisco offers premium enterprise capabilities, but its pricing, setup cost, and licensing models represent the most significant hurdles for IT organizations. Cisco hardware commands a premium price ...
What needs improvement with Cisco SD-WAN?
Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN is a strong and reliable SD-WAN solution, but there are a few areas where it could be improved. The user interface could be more intuitive for new users, and reporting and ana...
What is your primary use case for Cisco SD-WAN?
My main use case for Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN is managing and monitoring SD-WAN connectivity across branch locations. I primarily use it to monitor network health, troubleshoot tunnel and routing issu...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Fortinet FortiManager?
I am satisfied with the licensing cost, and I would rate it an 8.5.
What needs improvement with Fortinet FortiManager?
I think Fortinet FortiManager can be improved as the web page loading is slightly slow.
What is your primary use case for Fortinet FortiManager?
My main use case for Fortinet FortiManager is to manage multiple FortiGate devices. I can confirm that I use Fortinet FortiManager perfectly in my main use case.
 

Also Known As

Cisco SD-WAN
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Doyle Research, Ashton Metzler & Associates
Black Gold Regional Schools, Amadeus Hospitality, Jefferson County, Chunghwa Telecom, City of Boroondara, Dimension Data
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN vs. Fortinet FortiManager and other solutions. Updated: September 2026.
912,069 professionals have used our research since 2012.