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Cisco IOS SSL VPN vs Sangfor SSL VPN comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jun 3, 2026

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 SSL VPN
Ranking in SSL VPN
4th
Ranking in Enterprise Infrastructure VPN
14th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
50
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Sangfor SSL VPN
Ranking in SSL VPN
8th
Ranking in Enterprise Infrastructure VPN
17th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.6
Number of Reviews
6
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2026, in the SSL VPN category, the mindshare of Cisco IOS SSL VPN is 10.7%, up from 9.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Sangfor SSL VPN is 7.2%, up from 3.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
SSL VPN Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Cisco IOS SSL VPN10.7%
Sangfor SSL VPN7.2%
Other82.1%
SSL VPN
 

Featured Reviews

VM
student at a university with 1,001-5,000 employees
Ease and speed of connectivity impress and recommend
I have not found any areas that could be improved so far. I am not sure how Cisco IOS SSL VPN can continue their improvements for the future, but I think it is a great product. To stay on top, they probably need updates to this product. I do not know what kind of improvements these updates are offering. It is a great product so far.
Wajeeh Ul Hasan . - PeerSpot reviewer
Network Administrator at Shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto Institute of Science and Technology
A secure and user-friendly solution that is simple to implement and configure
We used Sangfor SSL VPN to access our servers from home during COVID-19 in case of emergency Sangfor SSL VPN has secured our organization, and we haven't faced any attacks. Sangfor SSL VPN is a secure and user-friendly solution. The other valuable features of the solution include web access…

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Cisco certainly has a really strong support team."
"The solution is very stable."
"The most valuable features are that it's reliable, convenient, and easy. It always works if configured well."
"The setup and installation was easy."
"The solution is very reliable, and Cisco as an OEM and a service provider is very trustworthy."
"The product is great because it is easy and simple."
"The product's most valuable features are security, stability, and troubleshooting capabilities."
"Cisco IOS SSL VPN provides fast connectivity and the option to connect through multiple servers."
"Sangfor SSL VPN is a secure and user-friendly solution."
"The most valuable feature is our ability to limit access by user, IP address, or MAC address."
"It is a stable solution...The initial setup of the product is very easy."
"The platform is easy to use."
"Sangfor SSL VPN provides secure encryption for communication."
"Altogether, this is a very good product."
"Sangfor SSL VPN has a user-friendly user interface."
 

Cons

"Cisco device management is quite difficult. They should work to simplify this."
"Multi-factor authentication in Cisco IOS SSL VPN has certain shortcomings that need improvement."
"I think the administration can be improved to include web interfaces."
"Cisco ASA system doesn't provide interface with radius based user mapping, other than the standard schema of users and groups."
"The solution takes some time to log in because of some unavoidable security barriers, but it would be better if that could happen faster."
"The system needs to be upgraded to replace the Token Authentication software, which will no longer be supported."
"The graphical interface is old and needs to improve."
"Unfortunately, the pricing is making us get out from incorporating Cisco products."
"No solution is perfect, so there is room for improvement."
"In redundancy mode, when the firewall goes off, the VPN should be able to connect to the secondary firewall automatically."
"The solution's integration with other firewall vendors could be improved."
"I think Sangfor can provide a web-based SSL VPN version."
"The technical support team takes around two months to respond to queries. It is very time-consuming."
"Sangfor SSL VPN should provide advanced protection against ransomware and better data analysis."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"FortiGate does not charge the client a licensing fee, although Cisco charges clients a couple of dollars per year for each license."
"There are no pricing programs for non-profit organizations and the product is otherwise expensive by comparison."
"The tool is expensive."
"It stands as the priciest solution available in the market."
"The product costs less."
"Cisco IOS SSL VPN comes with a cost-effective subscription."
"The licensing fee is expensive."
"The licensing cost of the solution is on a yearly basis, and it is expensive compared to other solutions in the market."
"Sangfor SSL VPN is a cheap solution."
"The pricing is good and the standard license allows for 30 users."
"My company has a three-year license for Sangfor SSL VPN."
"The product is inexpensive."
"The first 30 licenses are free, and you have to purchase the rest if required."
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908,858 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Construction Company
21%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Healthcare Company
8%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Comms Service Provider
11%
Construction Company
9%
University
8%
Financial Services Firm
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business23
Midsize Enterprise4
Large Enterprise26
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with Cisco IOS SSL VPN?
I have not found any areas that could be improved so far. I am not sure how Cisco IOS SSL VPN can continue their improvements for the future, but I think it is a great product. To stay on top, they...
What is your primary use case for Cisco IOS SSL VPN?
Currently, I use Cisco IOS SSL VPN to VPN in, but not with high frequency. We use Cisco IOS SSL VPN as our VPN client to connect to our network. This is for health.
What needs improvement with Sangfor SSL VPN?
The solution's integration with other firewall vendors could be improved. Its interoperability matrices and different configurations with other vendor products also need improvements. Our client ha...
What is your primary use case for Sangfor SSL VPN?
We're currently exploring Sangfor SSL VPN more on the cybersecurity side.
 

Also Known As

Cisco SSL VPN
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

MST Systems
Investcorp, Central Bancorp, Griffiths & Armour
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco IOS SSL VPN vs. Sangfor SSL VPN and other solutions. Updated: August 2026.
908,858 professionals have used our research since 2012.