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Cisco Secure Access vs FortiSASE comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 10, 2024

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
7.1
Cisco Secure Access offers enhanced security, cost reduction, and integration by consolidating multiple platforms, despite internal organizational challenges.
Sentiment score
6.8
FortiSASE delivers cost-neutral operations, rapid training, and efficiency gains, significantly benefiting hybrid work environments and reducing troubleshooting time.
At Amazon, we knew exactly how much it would cost if a fulfillment center was down for an hour.
From my point of view, the biggest return on investment when using Cisco Secure Access is the security it provides, and I believe the best word to describe it is best security, ensuring our protection.
There was a significant cost reduction.
With FortiCASB, we manage to save around 50% on our budget compared to other products.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
6.9
Cisco Secure Access support is generally praised for technical assistance, though some users report delays and require escalations.
Sentiment score
6.6
FortiSASE support experiences vary, with reports of both excellent assistance and issues with delays and response times.
This stems from their original business in networking, integrating router and switch operations, as well as security devices.
Although Cisco is reliable, the process to raise a support ticket has become more complex, requiring specific user accounts and access to specialized platforms.
Our engineers are very satisfied with the features, technical assistance, and documentation provided by Cisco.
If there is a solution in the market, the people supporting it should be technical enough to resolve issues at their first level or second level, or at least at the third level.
The technical support from Fortinet is highly commendable
They improved their technical support assistance recently.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.8
Cisco Secure Access is praised for its scalability, adaptability, and seamless integration, effectively meeting diverse organizational needs.
Sentiment score
7.0
FortiSASE is praised for scalability, ease of use, flexible licensing, and efficient cloud processing for businesses of all sizes.
We turn the traffic to the Cisco Secure Access cloud, and we can manage and apply the policies that are necessary, making it very easy to scale the solution.
I would rate scalability at eight to nine out of ten.
Cisco Secure Access scales with the growing needs of our company.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
8.5
Cisco Secure Access is highly rated for stability and reliability, with minimal reported performance and availability issues worldwide.
Sentiment score
6.4
FortiSASE's stability is widely praised with high availability, but some users report occasional glitches and connectivity issues.
I rate the stability of Cisco Secure Access as ten out of ten.
The solution is stable enough, and I did not experience any latency or performance issues.
I have not experienced any downtime, crashes, or performance issues.
They maintain high availability using numerous data centers globally.
FortiSASE is not stable yet and is in the learning stage.
 

Room For Improvement

Cisco Secure Access needs security, pricing, and integration improvements, including better AI features and global coverage for enhanced user satisfaction.
FortiSASE needs enhancements in security, integration, and user-friendliness, facing challenges in deployment, pricing, and technical issues.
Modernization is needed, specifically in the enhancement of security features and functionality.
Previously, sending an email would automatically create a ticket, but now it requires accessing specific portals, making the process complicated.
Prices are high when compared to competitors, which makes it challenging to position the product with customers.
FortiSASE implementation is too complex where other products take two to three months or maximum four months to implement, FortiSASE took more than double that time.
While connectivity from outside to inside is okay, inside to outside is not.
Although FortiCASB performs well in many areas, I believe its security aspects could be enhanced further.
 

Setup Cost

Cisco Secure Access is costly, yet competitive to some for its value and features despite limited discounts and complex pricing.
FortiSASE pricing has mixed reviews, offering discounts for education and varied affordability based on organization size and region.
Renewal prices have been surprisingly high.
Cisco is known for being a premium product, and its pricing reflects this.
The main issue with pricing is that it is higher compared to other competitors.
FortiSASE is an expensive product and the cost is indeed high.
The pricing for FortiCASB is competitive and not expensive.
When combining everything for a full SASE solution, I notice the pricing becomes quite high.
 

Valuable Features

Cisco Secure Access offers robust security, seamless connectivity, user-friendly management, and reliable threat protection with frequent updates for evolving needs.
FortiSASE offers centralized management, strong security, and cost savings with user-friendly features, making it globally appealing.
It eliminates the hassle of switching on VPNs and provides a direct connection to resources via Cisco Secure Access.
The main feature of interest to me and the customers is DNS security and Integrated Secure Web Control (ISWC).
The most valuable feature of Cisco Secure Access is the level of security it provides.
The important aspects are twofold. One is authorization, and the second is access control.
FortiCASB is user-friendly and integrates well with other Forti-products, providing enhanced management capabilities.
In FortiSASE, these features are bundled, and since they are tightly integrated with the firewall, SD-WAN works without additional payment.
 

Categories and Ranking

Cisco Secure Access
Ranking in Secure Access Service Edge (SASE)
11th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.5
Number of Reviews
11
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
FortiSASE
Ranking in Secure Access Service Edge (SASE)
8th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.7
Number of Reviews
16
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2025, in the Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) category, the mindshare of Cisco Secure Access is 4.0%, up from 0.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of FortiSASE is 7.0%, up from 4.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Secure Access Service Edge (SASE)
 

Featured Reviews

Vasil Blagov - PeerSpot reviewer
Easy management and security ensure reliable 24/7 connectivity
Zero Trust Network Access has helped my organization in securing standard applications because it's mandated to have it. It provides peace of mind knowing that we have that deployed in our network. Cisco Secure Access's ability to provide secure access via standard HTTP2, and optionally, QUIC protocol is good. It complies with the new standards. The impact of Cisco Secure Access on protecting my organization from phishing and ransomware threats has been good so far. We've been doing well with no threats.
Yusuke Murasato - PeerSpot reviewer
Efficient access control and authorization with easy configurations
The important aspects are twofold. One is authorization, and the second is access control. FortiSASE can operate in a cloud environment with client certificates for authorizations and access control using features like PostureCheck. The service assesses device security, checking updates on antivirus software and confirming Windows OS specifications. I can use it anywhere I want as long as I have an Internet connection. It's very easy to configure the environment.
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Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) solutions are best for your needs.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
15%
Manufacturing Company
13%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Construction Company
7%
Computer Software Company
20%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Construction Company
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco Secure Access?
For what you get, it's a fair price in comparison to other products.
What is your primary use case for Cisco Secure Access?
Our main use cases for Cisco Secure Access are security and managing access.
What advice do you have for others considering Cisco Secure Access?
My advice to other organizations considering Cisco Secure Access is that they should definitely give it a try. It's overall a good product. If you have other Cisco products, it integrates efficient...
What do you like most about FortiSASE ?
The integration with the company's existing security infrastructure enhanced our security posture since it was a straightforward process.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for FortiSASE ?
I have not fully explored the costs yet, but when dealing solely with firewalls and switches, I find Fortinet's pricing to be competitive. However, when combining everything for a full SASE solutio...
What needs improvement with FortiSASE ?
For other solutions such as FortiAnalyzer and FortiSIEM, integration is easy, but it's not straightforward due to license complexity. As FortiSASE is new in the market in India, if you want to use ...
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

1. IBM 2. Microsoft 3. Amazon 4. Google 5. Apple 6. Cisco Systems 7. Oracle 8. Intel 9. HP Inc. 10. Dell Technologies 11. Verizon Communications 12. AT&T 13. Comcast 14. T-Mobile 15. Sprint 16. Vodafone 17. Orange 18. BT Group 19. Deutsche Telekom 20. Telefonica 21. Nokia 22. Ericsson 23. Samsung Electronics 24. Sony 25. Panasonic 26. LG Electronics 27. Siemens 28. General Electric 29. Ford Motor Company 30. General Motors 31. Toyota Motor Corporation 32. Volkswagen Group
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Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco Secure Access vs. FortiSASE and other solutions. Updated: July 2025.
864,053 professionals have used our research since 2012.