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Citrix Gateway vs Symantec VIP Access Manager 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

Citrix Gateway
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.4
Number of Reviews
40
Ranking in other categories
Universal Access Gateways (1st), SSL VPN (2nd), Enterprise Infrastructure VPN (9th)
Symantec VIP Access Manager
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
15
Ranking in other categories
Authentication Systems (12th), Access Management (19th)
 

Mindshare comparison

Citrix Gateway and Symantec VIP Access Manager aren’t in the same category and serve different purposes. Citrix Gateway is designed for Universal Access Gateways and holds a mindshare of 41.9%, down 47.2% compared to last year.
Symantec VIP Access Manager, on the other hand, focuses on Authentication Systems, holds 2.4% mindshare, up 1.7% since last year.
Universal Access Gateways Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Citrix Gateway41.9%
SonicWall SMA42.6%
Other15.5%
Universal Access Gateways
Authentication Systems Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Symantec VIP Access Manager2.4%
Microsoft Entra ID7.8%
Okta Platform5.0%
Other84.8%
Authentication Systems
 

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.
Berk Onur - PeerSpot reviewer
Presales Consultant at Cyberwise
With its mobile application, this tool offers a convenient and user-friendly experience to its users
To improve the tool, I think that the solution should consider integrations with other cybersecurity and IT technologies, such as Privileged Access Management and Site Integration. Additionally, the implementation of second-factor authentication via Symantec VIP Access Manager, CyberArk, and Delinea, among other technologies, could be best for the product. While the existing technology is okay, improving the integration capabilities for Symantec VIP Access Manager would benefit the product. I would like to see the solution meet the integration needs at our company. While many cybersecurity solutions can function independently, they often lack integration with our systems due to missed integration points. Improving the solution's integration feature would be beneficial.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The solution is very stable. If I were to rate it out of ten, I would give stability a nine."
"It adds great security to your outfacing information."
"Most of our customers are using the load balancing feature and also the verification feature is good as well, in my experience."
"What I find most valuable about this solution is that it runs seamlessly."
"Most of our customers are using the load balancing feature and the verification feature is good as well, in my experience."
"It performs quite well."
"The solution is scalable and can go from a very small deployment to handling 10,000 transactions a second."
"The product enables us to collect logs from the systems."
"Cloud-based service and management."
"It offers more platform support, like Apple, Android, and Microsoft."
"The ease of integrating into an existing authentication system."
"It's a good tool. It's pretty straightforward."
"Mostly from a product expert's point of view, it provides solutions for my clients."
"VIP is a strong, cloud-based authentication service that enables organizations to secure access to networks and applications to prevent unauthorized logins to company resources, even when passwords have been compromised or shared."
"The product is useful for providing user access from an in-built office server as we follow the work-from-home model."
"Integration with Citrix Access Gateway, Microsoft Office 365 and Single Sign-On (through Symantec Validation and ID Protection Access Manager) has increased the productivity of the employees for accessing resources."
 

Cons

"Usually, with Citrix the issue is the pricing, especially for the African region. We believe it's really expensive."
"Tech support is not that great. Whenever an issue arises, it takes them time to respond and they do so via email."
"As Citrix Gateway is a third party solution, we wish to have one which is more integrated and involves less administration."
"Stability and security could be enhanced."
"Their VAS product should be more productive because right now, we are using other VAS solutions but not using this one."
"Technical support could be improved."
"Technical support is not great. There is no proactive support for patches that have been released."
"I'd like to see support for reverse proxy and more security features."
"The User Store synchronization part needs to improve. Also, the logs, reports, and dashboard can be improved."
"The gateway server is a RADIUS server, but it lacks the functionality of returning RADIUS attributes other than those that are required for the gateway to authenticate the users."
"In the next release, I would like the ability to work offline with remote access."
"Geofencing needs improvement."
"Geofencing needs improvement."
"Our only issue was with user training. The additional challenge was not well received."
"In my opinion, for this solution, the technical support is not so expert when we talk about integration using the API."
"Maybe Symantec could consider providing a step-by-step guide for first-time users."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is expensive and requires proper planning with strategy."
"Citrix is quite expensive."
"Pricing is very high if you do a comparison with what is available in the market."
"There is a need to make yearly payments for licensing purposes. Also, it is not an expensive one."
"It costs about 4,000 a year."
"There are two or three different models, but you can actually have a CapEx where you purchase the unit outright and then there's a yearly maintenance cost on top for years two and three, and four, or you can actually do a subscription purchase through Citrix cloud and you pay on a monthly basis, or you can have a three-year subscription contract as well. I give the solution a six out of ten for its cost."
"I consider Citrix Gateway to be an expensive solution, generally ranging from $5,000 to $15,000 yearly, depending on the model."
"I believe the pricing is comparable to SaaS"
"Licensing and pricing seems very fair."
"There are additional costs for maintenance."
"I can say that the solution is worth the money."
"There is a one-time setup fee plus the licenses are provided as per the number of users. For SMS and voice calls, the costs are separate."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
13%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Computer Software Company
9%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Comms Service Provider
10%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Healthcare Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business15
Midsize Enterprise9
Large Enterprise17
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business4
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise10
 

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?
I see room for improvement in several areas. The monitoring site could be much better because monitoring NetScaler and Citrix Gateway is too difficult with just SNMP traps available. Improving the ...
What is your primary use case for Citrix Gateway?
I am on the customer side using Citrix products, specifically Citrix CVAD for Virtual and Desktop virtualization. I am using Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service. We are using Citrix Gateway an...
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Also Known As

Citrix NetScaler Unified Gateway
Symantec VIP
 

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
Maine Medical Center, Aria S.p.A
Find out what your peers are saying about Citrix, SonicWall and others in Universal Access Gateways. Updated: March 2026.
885,376 professionals have used our research since 2012.