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Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) vs Netskope Private Access comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

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 Secure Client (includ...
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), Enterprise Infrastructure VPN (3rd), Cisco Security Portfolio (5th)
Netskope Private Access
Ranking in ZTNA as a Service
6th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.8
Number of Reviews
15
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2025, in the ZTNA as a Service category, the mindshare of Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) is 3.6%, up from 3.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Netskope Private Access is 5.0%, up from 3.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
ZTNA as a Service
 

Featured Reviews

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…
Christian Dagal - PeerSpot reviewer
Provides network visibility, infrastructure protection and advanced security protections, especially the DLP (Data Loss Protection)
Room for improvement is more on the policies offered for DLP. Netskope detects certain data or contents, but there are some limitations on how we can customize those policies for DLP. In the next release, I hope we can see more use cases for mobile devices, not just for laptops or servers but also for key features that will be available on mobile devices or smartphones.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The most valuable features of the Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client is the reliability and scalability."
"The initial setup is straightforward."
"It is an easy system to set up."
"You don't have to think about it very much. It just works."
"On Cisco's side, the Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) story is quite valuable."
"Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client is very stable."
"The ability to connect to the VPN remotely."
"The most valuable feature is the connection feature."
"The initial setup of Netskope Private Access is pretty simple and straightforward."
"There are several valuable features, like advanced security protections, especially the DLP (Data Loss Protection), and there's also browser and web filtering, or content filtering for our users to protect them when accessing certain links or websites, ensuring their security and permission."
"The base features have been fantastic. The ability to be able to granularly assign application access to end-users has been really good."
"In the firewall, we don't have a user-based policies list, and we can't create them. Netskope helps us to create user-based policies. For example, if there are specific teams like HR or more than nine teams, and we want logs from access over particular URLs, and we don't want to allow that specific URL for certain users, we can create these policies in Netskope. It's handy, easy to use for new users, and has a cool GUI interface. We can create multiple policies, and as for the proxy, it's a leading solution."
"The most valuable feature is being able to see who is accessing the application, whether it is a managed device or a bring-your-own-device published by Netskope."
"It is a stable solution...It is a scalable solution."
"In the VPN scenario, what was happening, the user would get back to the complete source. But in NPA, the application will go to the user. There is an outbound connection. There is no inbound. Storage providers are also not there. It's the best feature because it is the replacement of the VPN."
"Netskope enables users to securely access private applications remotely without a VPN."
 

Cons

"It should implement something like a kill switch."
"The support could be more proactive in their recommendations. I noticed that the Cisco support agents tend to leave customers to do what they need to do in many ways, and you can choose how you want to do it. However, it would be great if they could proactively be involved in best practices and let other customers know how most people are doing it."
"Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client could improve by adding faster connectivity."
"Even when your internet speed is good, once you connect to the VPN the speed gets automatically reduced, which is worrisome."
"At times, the login process takes a lot of time."
"Usability could be improved, as the look and feel of it is somewhat dated."
"Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client would be perfect if it weren't for the fingerprint feature."
"The price could be reduced."
"The major problem that we are facing is if we deploy Netskope on the server level or if we get a new server in the EMEA factor, it will affect all the machines. Recently, this has caused us to fail some reviews."
"Netskope Private Access only supports TCP and UDP ports and does not support ICMP or ping."
"There could be an ability to access one server from another when we have console access to the first server."
"Netskope Private Access allows mapping only one DNS server. If a user uses a secondary DNS on-premises, Netskope fails to disconnect them. This is an issue that needs to be addressed."
"The product is not easy to use."
"I would like to see them go down the path of including SD-WAN. Currently, they don't do SD-WAN. If they could somehow natively do that inside of the platform, that would be amazing. I don't know if they're going to do it, but it would be amazing if they do."
"The solution needs to develop faster features. Its interoperability feature is not working. It takes six months to one year for any product to implement the improvements. However, the process should be faster to implement the changes quickly."
"The ability to provide more security around agentless access has room for improvement."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The pricing depends on the requirement, so proper planning and an RF analysis help to properly size the solution and get the best pricing."
"The price is okay."
"The solution is reasonably priced and costs $600 for a five-year license in our scenario."
"There is a license needed to use this solution. There are different licensing models available, such as a three-year license."
"It is not a free solution and the user needs to buy license."
"The licensing costs are reasonable."
"I would rate the pricing for the license of Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client around four to five out of ten. It's not the cheapest option, but it's also not overly expensive."
"The solution is based on an annual licensing model and is expensive."
"It is not cheap, but the value of the solution is there. It's worth the investment."
"It is significantly cost-effective compared to its contenders."
"I believe that the price for Netskope Private Access is included in the features or functionality my company purchased from NetSkope."
"Netskope Private Access is more inexpensive than other products."
"It is not the most expensive option, being more affordable than Zscaler, but it's also not the most budget-friendly choice available."
"The pricing of the solution is cheap."
"When it comes to pricing, Netskope Private Access is relatively cheap compared to other solutions."
"The tool's price is normal. It is not very cheap but good compared to the competitors."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
33%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Government
7%
Manufacturing Company
6%
Computer Software Company
13%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Insurance Company
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

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.
What do you like most about Netskope Private Access?
Even without extensive training, if you're a proficient IT professional, you can easily configure it.
What needs improvement with Netskope Private Access?
Netskope Private Access could improve by enhancing visibility of user performance and application performance. It should also integrate wider DLP ( /categories/data-loss-prevention-dlp ) and inspec...
What is your primary use case for Netskope Private Access?
Our primary use case for Netskope Private Access ( /products/netskope-private-access-reviews ) was for internal access to NAS ( /categories/nas ) drives, internal webpages, and internal resources. ...
 

Also Known As

Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

MST, Molina Healthcare, Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers, Arup, New South Wales Rural FireService
Evalueserve, Stroock, Apria, Ather Energy
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) vs. Netskope Private Access and other solutions. Updated: July 2025.
864,155 professionals have used our research since 2012.