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Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center vs Fortinet FortiGate Cloud comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 4, 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
1.8
Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center offers mixed financial results, but benefits include cost reduction, efficiency, and ransomware protection.
Sentiment score
4.0
Fortinet FortiGate Cloud boosts efficiency, reduces costs by 40%, and offers significant savings over alternatives like Palo Alto or Cisco.
There are a lot of solutions which can provide the same features.
Senior Network and Security Engineer at Symbol Technologies PLC
Fortinet FortiGate Cloud has improved our clients' cost savings and efficiency.
Broadband Tech Expert at New Sky Internet Limited
The cloud aspect provides flexibility in disaster recovery and cost management.
Vice President of Infrustructure at Core Technologies Limited
In terms of cost savings or efficiency in our company's IT network management, I would say that the tool is very efficient because we have no problems with it at all.
Chief Executive Officer at EE Solutions GmbH
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
7.2
Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center's support is praised but has response time issues, sanctions, and overwhelming documentation.
Sentiment score
7.2
Fortinet FortiGate Cloud support is praised for knowledge and reliability, though response times vary; premium support enhances satisfaction.
I rate the technical support from Cisco as ten out of ten.
Sr. Solutions Architect, Consulting Engineer at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
I have received good support from FortiGate, and I would rate it a ten out of ten.
Group IT Manager at Araliya Group of Companies
Technically, the support team is good, and they have very good relations with users and even partners.
Tecnical manager at Watronix Information Technology Ltd
The team is responsive, and most cases are handled promptly.
Vice President of Infrustructure at Core Technologies Limited
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.8
Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center excels in scalability, effectively supporting diverse user needs and network environments with flexible licensing.
Sentiment score
7.8
Fortinet FortiGate Cloud is praised for scalability and flexibility, despite potential hardware limitations requiring careful sizing.
I would rate scalability capabilities as ten out of ten.
Senior Network and Security Engineer at Symbol Technologies PLC
For the 3000 new series and the 4000, we can make a cluster.
Sr. Solutions Architect, Consulting Engineer at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
We plan to deploy VoIP in the future and aim to leverage more VoIP capabilities for our remote operations.
Senior Network Engineer at Association of Village Council Presidents
I rate the product's scalability a ten out of ten.
IT manager at a agriculture with 10,001+ employees
It's very easy to add new devices and push the configuration templates.
Consultant at SKYE AS
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.1
Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center is stable and reliable, with most users rating it 7-9/10 despite occasional update issues.
Sentiment score
7.8
Fortinet FortiGate Cloud is highly stable and dependable, with minimal issues and high user satisfaction ratings.
We weren't bothered even by a single incident for the past three years.
IT manager at a agriculture with 10,001+ employees
But in three or four years, I only had problems logging in three times.
Engineering manager at Solcomp Technologies
It is a very stable solution.
Chief Executive Officer at EE Solutions GmbH
 

Room For Improvement

Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center struggles with pricing, performance, support, integration, user management, and lacks SD-WAN functionality.
Fortinet FortiGate Cloud needs better integration, security, interface, support, scalability, and cost reduction, plus SD-WAN features.
I remember version 6.4 had an integration with Eddie, allowing me to define a policy according to my users, however, the latest version, lacks this integration.
Senior Network and Security Engineer at Symbol Technologies PLC
Now Cisco has published the 120 series and the 1100 series, which support SD-WAN features in the firewall.
Sr. Solutions Architect, Consulting Engineer at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
There's a need to improve or invest more in an application that can follow users wherever they go.
IT Manager at Plasser do Brasil
The Linux version currently lacks some of the latest features, notably in the IPv6 tool stack, which is available for Windows clients.
Network Engineer at Static IPs Bremerhaven-2
It would be advantageous if it were more cost-effective.
Senior Network Engineer at Association of Village Council Presidents
 

Setup Cost

Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center is costly but offers flexible licensing and cost-effective virtual options for minimal device management.
Fortinet FortiGate Cloud pricing varies, with mixed perceptions of cost-effectiveness, especially where security value outweighs expense concerns.
I find the pricing for Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center to be very reasonable, as they offer the license for both virtual and hardware options.
Sr. Solutions Architect, Consulting Engineer at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
There are no additional costs.
Network Engineer at Static IPs Bremerhaven-2
Therefore, the cost-benefit is quite significant.
IT Manager at Plasser do Brasil
You shouldn't prioritize cheapness over security or other poor technology.
Engineering manager at Solcomp Technologies
 

Valuable Features

Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center enhances security with advanced features, seamless integration, and customization options for effective threat management.
Fortinet FortiGate Cloud provides robust security, centralized management, and scalability, excelling in SD-WAN, VPN, and integration features.
I consider Talos feedback that Cisco provides as free threat intelligence to be the most valuable for me and for the operation of the security policy in my organization.
Sr. Solutions Architect, Consulting Engineer at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
It provides full visibility of my devices, whether I have six or ten devices.
Senior Network and Security Engineer at Symbol Technologies PLC
The solution's most valuable feature is log reporting.
Head of Presales at AcSys Networks Private Limited
The solution's most valuable feature is its ease of use.
Chief Executive Officer at EE Solutions GmbH
The most valuable feature is its user-friendly interface - even those unfamiliar with firewalls can easily manage it.
Solution architect at NETS International
 

Categories and Ranking

Cisco Secure Firewall Manag...
Ranking in Firewall Security Management
7th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.4
Number of Reviews
28
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Fortinet FortiGate Cloud
Ranking in Firewall Security Management
5th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
80
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the Firewall Security Management category, the mindshare of Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center is 1.6%, up from 0.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Fortinet FortiGate Cloud is 4.5%, down from 5.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Firewall Security Management Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Fortinet FortiGate Cloud4.5%
Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center1.6%
Other93.9%
Firewall Security Management
 

Featured Reviews

Yonas Abebe - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Network and Security Engineer at Symbol Technologies PLC
Great dashboard with extensive visibility and good support
I expect more integration with AI. I expect Cisco to be easier for users in India, especially for junior users. For a junior one, it may somehow be complex, especially when configuring something. I remember version 6.4 had an integration with Eddie, allowing me to define a policy according to my users, however, the latest version, lacks this integration. The logging of FMC should be improved as it does not offer real-time solutions like DazaSodo.
FS
Security Engineer at Exclusive Networks
Cloud logs have supported long-term auditing but security vulnerabilities still raise concerns
It depends on the user. When he needs maybe data retention for one year, for three months or more, I recommend Fortinet FortiGate Cloud. If he doesn't want to set the log on FortiAnalyzer, I will recommend him with Fortinet FortiGate Cloud. It depends. As I mentioned before, if they don't have a syslog server or any other SIEM, I will recommend it. If they need an audit for one year of data retention, I will recommend it because it's worth the money for one year of log retention. It's straightforward. If I enable Fortinet FortiGate Cloud feature on the FortiGate on-premise or VM, it will copy the configuration on the cloud. Depending on my license, I can configure it or have it as read-only with a limited license. That's one of the main purposes of Fortinet FortiGate Cloud for me. The report doesn't have many templates, but the log retention is so good with one-year retention. If you compare it with the FortiAnalyzer or maybe with any other product such as a FortiSIEM template, with the limited license, you only get the 360 template, it's called. I think the security function, I mainly use it for configuration purposes and log retention purposes. The security is the same as the VM or the hardware, I think. The sandbox. I think it has it, but not a lot if you only have the default capability with only 10 files per minute. I think the user needs to be selective with the files that they want to send to the sandbox on the cloud.
report
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
13%
Healthcare Company
9%
Retailer
9%
Performing Arts
9%
Computer Software Company
12%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Comms Service Provider
9%
Financial Services Firm
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business12
Midsize Enterprise9
Large Enterprise7
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business50
Midsize Enterprise10
Large Enterprise22
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center?
The platform has significantly enhanced our organization's operations by providing secure communication channels between different office locations.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center?
I find the pricing for Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center to be very reasonable, as they offer the license for both virtual and hardware options. For the virtual option, they have minimum lice...
What needs improvement with Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center?
So far, I find that everything related to Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center is adequate. The only thing that was missing in the portfolio was SD-WAN, which I would like to use similar to Fort...
What do you like most about Fortinet FortiGate Cloud?
Fortinet FortiGate Cloud has valuable firewall, SSL VPN, and web filtering features.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Fortinet FortiGate Cloud?
I am very satisfied with the price and licensing cost of Fortinet FortiGate Cloud, rating it an eight out of ten.
What needs improvement with Fortinet FortiGate Cloud?
Some disadvantages include future limitations, issues with FortiAnalyzer, and data residency concerns, which create less control. I think Fortinet FortiGate Cloud could benefit from additional feat...
 

Also Known As

No data available
FortiCloud, FortiGate Cloud
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
Black Gold Regional Schools, Amadeus Hospitality, Jefferson County, Chunghwa Telecom, City of Boroondara, Dimension Data
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center vs. Fortinet FortiGate Cloud and other solutions. Updated: December 2025.
881,082 professionals have used our research since 2012.