Try our new research platform with insights from 80,000+ expert users

Citrix Gateway vs Fortinet FortiClient comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 6, 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
6.1
Citrix Gateway enhances security and offers cost savings, with benefits depending on business models and infrastructure implementation.
Sentiment score
5.7
Fortinet FortiClient improved productivity, enabled better remote work, reduced costs, and enhanced security despite some unused features.
Citrix Gateway secures our environment from potential threats, which can save substantial financial resources, especially in preventing data breaches or ransomware attacks.
Co-Founder at Virajo
The VPN performance has a substantial impact on our remote workforce.
Technology Consultant at 1ware
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
6.1
Citrix Gateway support is mixed; users value documentation but note varying responsiveness and seek proactive communication and training.
Sentiment score
6.7
Fortinet FortiClient's support is praised for responsiveness but criticized for inconsistency and delayed responses compared to competitors.
Very experienced engineers contact you in order to troubleshoot the problem.
Citrix VDI & Windows Virtualization Specialist at ATOS
While there are multiple support tiers with priority response times of around 30 minutes, there appears to be a limitation in the number of technical teams who can immediately understand and resolve issues.
Enterprise Architect at Wipro Limited
They initiate the troubleshooting process quickly and resolve issues in a timely manner.
Medical Coder at a tech services company with 1,001-5,000 employees
In 99% of cases, we do not have to do configurations on our own as they are normally handled by their service providers.
Director at a manufacturing company with 11-50 employees
They provide very good support, and an issue I had was resolved quickly over the phone.
Head IT at Burraq Cyber Security Solutions
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.5
Citrix Gateway offers high scalability and flexibility, supporting thousands of users across different environments with tri-scaler capabilities.
Sentiment score
7.2
Fortinet FortiClient is scalable, suitable for small to large enterprises, but reviews on ease of scaling are mixed.
The solution features high availability, supporting both active-passive and active-active deployments to ensure constant product availability.
Enterprise Architect at Wipro Limited
I believe that the scalability of Citrix Gateway depends on the project's requirements, as it can vary from simple load balancing to extensive Web Application Firewall implementations.
Co-Founder at Virajo
Citrix Gateway is not for small companies; it's for medium companies because the pricing is better for more users.
Citrix VDI & Windows Virtualization Specialist at ATOS
We normally take into consideration while installing the product that it can scale up to approximately 20%, but not more than that.
Director at a manufacturing company with 11-50 employees
Most of our clients are using the free version rather than the paid version due to the high range of maximum users available for the free version.
Senior Technical Manager at Flexaccel
I hope Fortinet will start an insider developer program where professionals can provide feedback on new releases to ensure improvements.
Head IT at Burraq Cyber Security Solutions
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.9
Citrix Gateway provides stable, reliable performance with high user ratings, despite occasional minor challenges with updates and certificates.
Sentiment score
7.9
Fortinet FortiClient is highly stable, with minor issues mostly network-related, and users frequently rate it nine or ten.
I find Citrix products to be very stable.
Co-Founder at Virajo
Its stability level is excellent.
IT Manager at CNE
I normally get a call within 15-20 minutes after logging a complaint.
Director at a manufacturing company with 11-50 employees
Fortinet FortiClient is a stable product with no glitches or latency issues.
Senior Technical Manager at Flexaccel
 

Room For Improvement

Citrix Gateway needs user-friendliness, integration, and cloud improvements, addressing costs, stability, speed, security, and support issues.
Fortinet FortiClient needs improved management, simplicity, features, compatibility, pricing, connectivity, scalability, authentication, and better support across OS.
At this time it costs 35% more than other solutions.
Docente De Planta- Programa Ingeniería Física at Universidad del Cauca
The main purpose of Citrix Gateway is to enforce the appropriate level of access to the correct user on the proper device under the correct conditions.
Enterprise Architect at Wipro Limited
FortiClient needs improvement in restricting user information and ensuring more secure customer data to better protect source code and reduce the risk of security breaches.
Head IT at Burraq Cyber Security Solutions
There are advanced features like Zero Trust that I currently do not use but could be beneficial for security.
Senior Manager Tech Compliance at Qenta Inc.
Fortinet frequently releases updates without thorough testing.
Medical Coder at a tech services company with 1,001-5,000 employees
 

Setup Cost

Citrix Gateway's varied pricing models require strategic planning, with costs ranging from $4,000 to $15,000 plus additional support fees.
Fortinet FortiClient is cost-effective for basic VPNs, with competitive licensing for advanced features despite recent price increases.
I consider Citrix Gateway to be an expensive solution, generally ranging from $5,000 to $15,000 yearly, depending on the model.
Co-Founder at Virajo
The price is one aspect, but technically it is complete.
Citrix VDI & Windows Virtualization Specialist at ATOS
FortiClient is a value-for-money product and is not considered expensive compared to similar products on the market.
Global Head of IT Infrastructure at EPL Americas
Justifying the price to clients can be difficult.
Head IT at Burraq Cyber Security Solutions
FortiClient is included in a package with the UTM features, so there is no separate cost for it.
Senior Manager Tech Compliance at Qenta Inc.
 

Valuable Features

Citrix Gateway enhances network efficiency and security with features like VPN, load balancing, and seamless integration with other platforms.
Fortinet FortiClient provides cost-effective, comprehensive security with seamless integration, advanced features, and ease of deployment and management.
The product effectively helps me protect the organization's network from potential threats, thereby securing our environment from hackers and ransomware attacks.
Co-Founder at Virajo
It's easy to scale and easy to implement.
Docente De Planta- Programa Ingeniería Física at Universidad del Cauca
Secure SaaS access is particularly valuable as it ensures that SaaS-based applications are delivered securely.
Enterprise Architect at Wipro Limited
The most valuable feature of FortiClient is its high security level.
Head IT at Burraq Cyber Security Solutions
We appreciate its VPN capabilities and the features that offer extra security functionalities like antivirus and malware scanning.
Infrastructure Manager at a retailer with 501-1,000 employees
I strongly recommend this solution, especially for Fortinet customers who use FortiGate or other Fortinet products, as they can easily integrate these features and exchange information seamlessly.
Technology Consultant at 1ware
 

Categories and Ranking

Citrix Gateway
Ranking in Enterprise Infrastructure VPN
11th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.5
Number of Reviews
39
Ranking in other categories
Universal Access Gateways (1st), SSL VPN (4th)
Fortinet FortiClient
Ranking in Enterprise Infrastructure VPN
1st
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.7
Number of Reviews
102
Ranking in other categories
Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP) (12th), Endpoint Compliance (1st)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the Enterprise Infrastructure VPN category, the mindshare of Citrix Gateway is 3.3%, up from 3.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Fortinet FortiClient is 7.8%, down from 14.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Enterprise Infrastructure VPN Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Fortinet FortiClient7.8%
Citrix Gateway3.3%
Other88.9%
Enterprise Infrastructure VPN
 

Featured Reviews

SK
Enterprise Architect at Wipro Limited
Strong security and versatile features drive positive experience, but support responsiveness can improve
The main purpose of Citrix Gateway is to enforce the appropriate level of access to the correct user on the proper device under the correct conditions. This is enabled through Citrix Gateway combined with endpoint analysis and optional Citrix analytics for security. Regarding improvements, implementing adaptive access policies on Citrix Gateway could be enhanced, particularly in security posture. Although it enforces real-time contextual access control based on device, user network risk, certain aspects can be improved. Other areas for improvement include BYOD access control and risk-based decision-making. Additionally, there is potential for reducing administrative overhead by applying policies dynamically based on context rather than static rules. Incident response speed is another area that could be enhanced.
KL
Senior Technical Manager at Flexaccel
Remote access has become seamless and secure while deployment remains simple for our users
Performance could be improved today. People are now moving toward SASE, which stands for Secure Access, Secure Edge Solution. Fortinet also has that offering, which would be easier since it operates through the cloud, acting as a first line of defense. When the user connects to the internet, they connect to the cloud first for posture assessment and monitoring before connecting to the outside world. The impact is significant because nowadays people are adopting SASE. During COVID time, many users were trying to connect back to their office, causing the performance or CPU utilization of the firewall to increase tremendously, which slowed down performance. I have not worked with endpoint telemetry in Fortinet FortiClient that could have been helpful for threat mitigation.
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Enterprise Infrastructure VPN solutions are best for your needs.
880,511 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
14%
Computer Software Company
10%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Computer Software Company
11%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Financial Services Firm
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business15
Midsize Enterprise9
Large Enterprise16
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business59
Midsize Enterprise23
Large Enterprise25
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Citrix Gateway?
The price is one aspect, but technically it is complete. Technically, it is really complete.
What needs improvement with Citrix Gateway?
It's difficult to say that because Citrix Gateway is changing all the time. It is improving all the time, and I think that it is periodically giving us patches. Anything that I can think to be impr...
What is your primary use case for Citrix Gateway?
I participate in integrator projects over the last year or two. Citrix Gateway is used in both my company and my customer's companies.
How does Fortinet FortiClient compare with Open VPN Access Server?
Fortinet FortiClient is a feature-rich solution that is easy to use and deploy without sacrificing safety and security. It has a very fast connection rate and has a built-in VPN. With this solution...
What's the difference between Fortinet's FortiEDR and FortiClient?
I suggest Fortinet’s FortiEDR over FortiClient for several reasons. For starters, FortiEDR guarantees solid protection because it continually scans servers for emerging vulnerabilities, which gives...
 

Also Known As

Citrix NetScaler Unified Gateway
FortiClient
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Aeronamic, Avianca, Bechtel Corporation, Betfair UK, Catholic University Leuven (K.U. Leuven), Centene Corporation, Cerner, Charityshare, City of High Point, Clark Builders
Black Gold Regional Schools, Amadeus Hospitality, Jefferson County, Chunghwa Telecom, City of Boroondara, Dimension Data
Find out what your peers are saying about Citrix Gateway vs. Fortinet FortiClient and other solutions. Updated: December 2025.
880,511 professionals have used our research since 2012.