Cisco IOS Security vs Sangfor NGAF comparison

Cisco and Sangfor are both solutions in the Firewalls category. Cisco is ranked #41 with an average rating of 8.0, while Sangfor is ranked #22 with an average rating of 8.4. Cisco holds a 0.6% mindshare in Firewalls, compared to Sangfor’s 1.1% mindshare. Additionally, 91% of Cisco users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 90% of Sangfor users who would recommend it.

Cisco IOS Security

Read 49 Cisco IOS Security reviews

3,637 Views
2,073 Comparison Views

91% willing to recommend

Sangfor NGAF

Read 34 Sangfor NGAF reviews

4,864 Views
4,718 Comparison Views

90% willing to recommend

Cisco IOS Security

Sangfor NGAF

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Jan 25, 2026

Cisco IOS Security and Sangfor NGAF are strong competitors in the network security sector. Cisco IOS Security holds a slight advantage with its comprehensive feature set and scalability, appealing to larger enterprises. Sangfor NGAF gains an edge in cost-effectiveness and simplicity, making it preferable for smaller businesses.

Features: Cisco IOS Security stands out with features like robust AAA protocols, comprehensive VPN solutions, and advanced scalability on Cisco hardware. It includes sophisticated tools like IPsec configuration, content filtering, and intrusion prevention. Sangfor NGAF is notable for user-friendliness, featuring powerful application control, a Web Application Firewall (WAF), and effective vulnerability assessments, aligning well with smaller scale setups.

Room for Improvement: Cisco IOS Security could improve in resource management for ACL and zone-based firewalls. Enhancements in user interfaces and reporting tools would add significant value. Sangfor NGAF requires better reporting features and ongoing updates to address emerging threats effectively. The complexity in port definitions and interface usability also needs refinement for optimal user experience.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Cisco IOS Security supports extensive deployment options both on-premises and hybrid, but there is a need for faster technical support response times. Sangfor NGAF excels in straightforward setup and is praised for reliable support within its tiered market, making it ideal for quick deployments.

Pricing and ROI: Cisco IOS Security is priced at a premium, designed for medium to large enterprises, offering long-term ROI despite higher initial costs. Sangfor NGAF is cost-effective, particularly appealing to smaller firms, delivering substantial ROI with its affordable pricing and effective operations.

To learn more, read our detailed Cisco IOS Security vs. Sangfor NGAF Report (Updated: August 2026).

Buyer's Guide

Cisco IOS Security vs. Sangfor NGAF

August 2026

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Helped 908,858 peers since 2012

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

Cisco IOS Security

Ranking in Firewalls

41st

Average Rating

8.0

Reviews Sentiment

6.8

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Intrusion Detection and Prevention Software (IDPS) (16th)

Sangfor NGAF

Ranking in Firewalls

22nd

Average Rating

8.0

Reviews Sentiment

6.5

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2026, in the Firewalls category, the mindshare of Cisco IOS Security is 0.6%, up from 0.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Sangfor NGAF is 1.1%, down from 1.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Firewalls Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
Sangfor NGAF	1.1%
Cisco IOS Security	0.6%
Other	98.3%

Firewalls

Featured Reviews

Danijel Cerovecki

Head of Cyber Defense Department and Network Technologies Department at Verso Altima

Have faced challenges in keeping licensing clear and consistent while ensuring reliable network protection

We are a Gold Partner with Cisco. Our customers come from various industries, including service providers, and we target service providers and enterprise customers.We do not extensively use Zone-Based Firewalls in Cisco IOS Security, instead typically deploying standalone firewalls such as Cisco FTDs or Cisco ASA devices. For threat analytics and vulnerability scanning, we utilize third-party vendors with dedicated devices and software. We use products such as Tenable from Nessus for this type of analysis. We have implemented Secure Access Control Server in Cisco IOS Security, which combines multiple security mechanisms including AAA, 802.1X for network access control with Cisco ICE, TrustSec for identity-based segmentation, and Cisco DNA Center. Cisco IOS Security's VPN support is comprehensive and increasingly important in daily communication, from basic site-to-site tunnels to remote access VPNs and SD-WAN secure VPNs. Protecting and encrypting communication is essential in modern networks. The challenges with Cisco IOS Security are more operational than product-related. There is an understaffing issue, making automation and orchestration capabilities particularly valuable. For the products themselves, we only encounter routine operational matters such as addressing new vulnerabilities and patching. For those considering Cisco IOS Security, it is important to understand that Cisco offers a complete ecosystem. When embracing the Cisco ecosystem fully, customers receive excellent products and comprehensive solutions. On a scale of 1-10, I rate Cisco IOS Security a 9.

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Zaid Farooqui

CIO at Indus Motor Company

Enhanced threat detection with integrated security features and good support

We are using application firewalling, WAF, and SD-WAN. The capabilities are mostly within the box. For example, you will get web application firewall WAF as part and parcel of this. SD-WAN is also bundled. It integrates with their SIEM and SOAR solutions very nicely. Lastly, the pricing point is very cost-efficient as well.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Cisco products are very secure and integrate easily with other devices."

"We are able to filter a lot of traffic especially when a lot of the traffic is in layer 7."

"The security is very good."

"The solution is stable."

"The most valuable feature is the scalability, and the nice thing with the bigger vendors is that they're very good at scale."

"In terms of scalability, it definitely suits all enterprise needs; the product is all we need for today's enterprise, for the client, and for me, in terms of scalability, Cisco has the full package."

"There is a positive impact on security, particularly the intrusion feature, which helps keep the solution concealed and secure."

"Cisco IOS Security is pretty reliable, and it also has really good documentation."

More Cisco IOS Security pros

"It offers good value for money and is much cheaper compared to other firewalls."

"The solution is quite safe and good, and furthermore, it is very good for different environments."

"The built-in features function as intended, providing exceptional value."

"In our hospital, Sangfor NGAF works well for us in terms of ensuring confidentiality and availability, which are crucial in the healthcare industry."

"The level of support provided to local companies is good. They transform their application control and other settings according to that country."

"The most valuable feature of Sangfor NGAF is its integration."

"Sangfor has the best capabilities for securing connections, securing web browsers, securing servers, and general threat protection."

"Sangfor is a good solution that provides a WAF and firewall solution; most other vendors, like Sophos and Fortinet and Cisco, only provide one solution, and that's a valuable feature of Sangfor."

More Sangfor NGAF pros

Cons

"I would love it if it has a link-by-link feature, integration with Unified Threat Management (UTM), and load balancers. They haven't got any link-by-link feature right now, which can be a very attractive option. This link-by-link feature can also be made available for Cisco's UTM firewalls. The link-by-link feature is available in some of the other firewalls. Currently, integration with UTM is missing. Cisco IOS Security also doesn't have the load balancers and a few things that need to be done to get a good UTM firewall. Normally, other firewalls have UTM. As a next-generation firewall, it's good, but as a UTM, it has to do some work."

"As it is a tailored solution, it is not very scalable, but this is a trade off; you need a hammer or a scalpel."

"With respect to user-friendliness, it is a command-line interface and those with such experience will get along just fine, whereas others may struggle."

"Cisco changes their licensing policy quite frequently, which is becoming confusing and complicated."

"A few things have room for improvement in your opinion. That would start with cost."

"The whole process can be complex."

"I would like upgrading iOS to be a bit easier."

"It takes too much time to deploy a policy to FMC. It takes around eight minutes. You can't afford any downtime when you're changing policies."

More Cisco IOS Security cons

"The cost of licensing is very high compared to other firewalls available here. There should be improvements in hardware scalability, allowing for more storage and memory capacity."

"It has an issue with the Sangfor Cloud Platform rather than the firewall. When we run a virtual machine, the window tabs display Chinese characters."

"Our experience with its customer support was quite challenging."

"The support offered by the product has certain shortcomings where improvements are required. The knowledge levels and response time of the support team need improvement."

"However, the maintenance cost can be a bit high."

"The GUI needs to be improved, lacks logic in some areas."

"An area for improvement would be the number of ports defined on the box. In the next release, I would like them to develop their provisioning stage of enrolling end devices."

"Lacks consistency in terms of filtering certain websites and applications."

More Sangfor NGAF cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The pricing is average and includes all features with support."

"Price is certainly something that the IOS technology has fallen behind the competition on."

"The pricing for Cisco IOS Security is reasonable compared to other Cisco products."

"The pricing is very expensive. Normally I do a yearly contract; I don't know the exact pricing, but it's around $75,000 USD per year. That's the standard licensing."

"Cisco IOS Security is not very expensive, and pricing depends on where you live. It's affordable for both individuals and institutions. On a scale from one to five, I would give Cisco's pricing a four."

"They have smart licenses that can be provided for one year, two years, three years, five years, and seven years. Alternatively, they have perpetual licenses available."

"The price of the solution should be cheaper, and the license is purchase annually."

"Cisco IOS Security price could be reduced, it is more expensive than many of the other solutions, such as Sophos and Fortinet FortiGate."

More Cisco IOS Security pricing and cost advice

"The price could be more competitive."

"It is one of the cheapest tools in the market."

"The product is very cost-effective compared to other brands or vendors."

"In my opinion, the price of the tool is good in the Pakistani market. We can easily get discounts if needed."

"The license of Sangfor NGAF can be purchased at different interval lengths, such as annually or three years. They offer a range of packages to choose from, such as combo or hybrid packages. We are using the complete solution package which includes IM, NGF and SSL VPN, and WAF."

"The price falls in the mid-range, neither exceptionally low nor high."

"The pricing is reasonable."

"Price-wise, I would not consider Sangfor NGAF to be a cheap product. It is an expensive firewall solution, though not as expensive as something like Palo Alto, which is costly. However, the higher price point is justifiable given the feature set the tool provides that other firewalls may not offer in a single dedicated appliance."

More Sangfor NGAF pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Construction Company

19%

Outsourcing Company

11%

Financial Services Firm

Comms Service Provider

Financial Services Firm

11%

Comms Service Provider

11%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Construction Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	20
Midsize Enterprise	14
Large Enterprise	18

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	15
Midsize Enterprise	10
Large Enterprise	10

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco IOS Security?

The cost of Cisco IOS Security for customers is on the higher end of pricing compared to the competition, depending on the targeted customers.This can be a major issue as enterprise customers are o...

See all answers

What needs improvement with Cisco IOS Security?

Regarding improvements in Cisco IOS Security, what consistently confuses me is the inability of Cisco to maintain a clear licensing policy.This is an issue that I have observed for years now. Cisco...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Cisco IOS Security?

The main use cases for Cisco IOS Security include elementary device hardening, access control, control-plane policing, AAA (Authentication, Authorization, and Accounting), network security, Layer 2...

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Sangfor NGAF?

The licensing cost is quite high compared to other available firewalls in the market.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Sangfor NGAF?

The cost of licensing is very high compared to other firewalls available here. There should be improvements in hardware scalability, allowing for more storage and memory capacity. Making the soluti...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Sangfor NGAF?

We are hosting applications over the platform, including websites and NAT traffic from our side. Because it's deployed in our data center, which is fully operational, we have various applications h...

See all answers

Comparisons

Fortinet FortiGate vs Cisco IOS Security

Compared 10% of the time

Cisco Secure Firewall vs Cisco IOS Security

Compared 10% of the time

Darktrace vs Cisco IOS Security

Compared 6% of the time

OPNsense vs Cisco IOS Security

Compared 6% of the time

Palo Alto Networks Advanced Threat Prevention vs Cisco IOS Security

Compared 2% of the time

More Cisco IOS Security Competitors

Fortinet FortiGate vs Sangfor NGAF

Compared 10% of the time

Cisco Secure Firewall vs Sangfor NGAF

Compared 10% of the time

Sophos Firewall vs Sangfor NGAF

Compared 10% of the time

H3C SecPath Firewalls vs Sangfor NGAF

Compared 8% of the time

Check Point Cloud Firewall (formerly CloudGuard Network Security) vs Sangfor NGAF

Compared 8% of the time

More Sangfor NGAF Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Cisco IOS Security

August 2026

Download Cisco IOS Security product report

Buyer's Guide

Sangfor NGAF

July 2026

Download Sangfor NGAF product report

Also Known As

IOS Security

Sangfor NGAF Firewall Platform

Overview

Cisco IOS Security integrates advanced VPN capabilities, IPsec security, and firewall features, ensuring scalable and reliable protection suitable for enterprise networks.

Cisco IOS Security offers comprehensive firewall integration, robust AAA capabilities, and encryption, empowering organizations with a reliable network environment. EEM provides flexibility and programmability, while integrated threat detection, intrusion prevention, and centralized management enhance its security profile. Despite its reliability, challenges include complexity in configuration, high pricing, and confusing licensing policies. Performance issues and the need for enhanced integration, automation, and better monitoring tools are areas for improvement.

What are the key features of Cisco IOS Security?

VPN Capabilities: Ensures secure remote connectivity.
IPsec Security: Offers robust encryption for data protection.
Firewall Integration: Enhances network defense with built-in firewalls.
AAA Capabilities: Provides secure authentication, authorization, and accounting.
Threat Detection: Identifies and mitigates threats proactively.

What benefits should organizations look for in reviews?

Reliability: Recognized for its stable network performance.
Scalability: Supports growing network demands seamlessly.
Comprehensive Security: Offers robust protection against diverse cyber threats.
Ease of Configuration: Facilitates efficient network setup and management.

Industries leverage Cisco IOS Security to protect against zero-day attacks, deploy secure VPNs, and facilitate network access control and compliance checks. Organizations utilize its features for firewalls, routing, and switching, integrating technologies like Cisco ICE and TrustSec to enhance security across enterprise environments.

Cisco

Sangfor NGAF offers a user-friendly firewall solution with a strong virus database and competitive pricing. It supports SSL VPN connectivity, intrusion detection, and is known for easy deployment and integration capabilities.

Sangfor NGAF is a comprehensive security platform providing robust network protection through its application control and detailed threat insights. While effective in preventing threats and ensuring network security, it has areas needing improvement such as real-time reporting and system support. It delivers secure internet and VPN connections, proficiently handling malware threats. However, it faces challenges with user experience, reporting capabilities, hardware scalability, and needs better third-party integration. Licensing costs are noted to be high, and there are performance variations between versions.

What are the key features of Sangfor NGAF?

User-friendly deployment: Offers an uncomplicated setup process.
Robust virus database: Provides reliable threat detection.
SSL VPN connectivity: Ensures secure remote access.
Application control: Manages application usage for enhanced security.
Intrusion detection: Detects unauthorized access attempts.
URL filtering: Prevents access to malicious websites.

What benefits should users expect when evaluating Sangfor NGAF?

Affordability: Competitive pricing compared to peers.
Integration: Good capabilities with existing systems.
Support: Noted for providing reliable customer service.
Threat prevention: Effective in securing networks against various threats.

Sangfor NGAF is widely used across industries including education, healthcare, and finance for its reliable network security. It is favored for securing internal servers, offering robust threat protection, and managing bandwidth efficiently at a budget-friendly rate.

Sangfor

Sample Customers

Arup Group, Brunel University London, City of Biel, Gobierno de Castilla-La Mancha, K&L Gates , New South Wales Rural Fire Service, Offshore Northern Seas, Transplace

The Ministry of Science, Technology, and Innovation (Indonesia), Lawson, Inc. (Philippines), Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin (Indonesia), TEK Automotive (Italy), etc.

Buyer's Guide

Cisco IOS Security vs. Sangfor NGAF

August 2026

Free Report: Cisco IOS Security vs. Sangfor NGAF

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