F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) vs SonicWall SMA comparison

F5 and SonicWall are both solutions in the SSL VPN category. F5 is ranked #5 with an average rating of 8.3, while SonicWall is ranked #6 with an average rating of 9.5. F5 holds a 7.3% mindshare in SV, compared to SonicWall’s 7.0% mindshare. Additionally, 88% of F5 users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 91% of SonicWall users who would recommend it.

F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Man...

Read 18 F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) reviews

2,814 Views
478 Comparison Views

88% willing to recommend

SonicWall SMA

Read 15 SonicWall SMA reviews

1,196 Views
419 Comparison Views

91% willing to recommend

F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Man...

SonicWall SMA

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Executive SummaryUpdated on May 21, 2025

SonicWall SMA and F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) are both aimed at secure remote access and application delivery. F5 BIG-IP APM generally offers more robust features, making it preferable for enterprises that require advanced application control and scalability.

Features: SonicWall SMA offers comprehensive remote access capabilities, integrates with various authentication methods, and emphasizes device protection. F5 BIG-IP APM provides strong application control, detailed policy management, and scalability, allowing it to deliver granular access policies and handle large-scale deployments.

Room for Improvement: SonicWall SMA could enhance its scalability and feature set to match enterprise-grade requirements. Improving integration with third-party applications and providing more granular policy controls would be beneficial. F5 BIG-IP APM may benefit from reducing the complexity of deployment, enhancing user-friendly interfaces, and lowering initial setup costs to appeal to budget-conscious organizations.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: SonicWall SMA is noted for its straightforward setup and responsive customer support, simplifying deployments in various settings. Although F5 BIG-IP APM offers flexible configuration options, its complex deployment process can be challenging without a deep understanding of its features.

Pricing and ROI: SonicWall SMA is more cost-effective, often resulting in a favorable ROI for budget-conscious organizations. In contrast, F5 BIG-IP APM requires a higher initial investment but may provide substantial ROI for businesses that benefit from advanced security and application delivery capabilities. Organizations need to balance upfront costs against long-term benefits when choosing between these solutions.

To learn more, read our detailed F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) vs. SonicWall SMA Report (Updated: December 2025).

Buyer's Guide

F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) vs. SonicWall SMA

December 2025

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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

F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Man...

Ranking in SSL VPN

5th

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

6.8

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Secure Web Gateways (SWG) (15th), Network Access Control (NAC) (7th), Remote Access (10th), Access Management (9th)

SonicWall SMA

Ranking in SSL VPN

6th

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

5.6

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Universal Access Gateways (2nd), Enterprise Infrastructure VPN (15th)

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the SSL VPN category, the mindshare of F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) is 7.3%, down from 14.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SonicWall SMA is 7.0%, up from 4.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

SSL VPN Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM)	7.3%
SonicWall SMA	7.0%
Other	85.7%

SSL VPN

Featured Reviews

SÜ

SalihUcpinar

Senior Cyber Security Consultant at KoçSistem

Has provided reliable policy controls and secure web access for large enterprises

I consider Cloudflare when evaluating centralized access control features; Cloudflare utilizes multi-factor authentication and full API support, while F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) needs to enhance its API support. I recommend F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) for large companies such as Tüpraş and Ford. Tüpraş is one of the biggest companies in Turkey, along with other customers such as Tofaş, Euroko, Koç Holding, and more. For on-premises deployment, I would rate it a 10. For cloud deployment, I would rate it a seven. I primarily use it on-premises. I rate F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) eight out of ten.

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Barry Arendt

Owner at ThinkEzIT

Security enhances through autonomous protection and strong support while multi-factor authentication secures access

I haven't utilized the high availability and scalability features of SonicWall SMA yet because I've never had a need to. I don't know where they can focus their energy on continuous improvements, as I haven't been looking at what they're releasing. We're a small shop, so we drop stuff in and manage it and do what we need to do to maintain it. If we run into an issue, we contact support. There's a learning curve, but it comes down to getting support to train you on the product, and then once you have the training you need, you're able to make the changes and updates that you need to.

Read full review

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 feature is the virtual IP creation. It's our most frequently used feature."

"The solution is stable and reliable."

"The product allows us to create customized portals for your users."

"The tool is reliable and easy to configure."

"We have seen a return on investment from F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager. It provided access at a time when we didn't have it."

"The load balancing features are valuable."

"On a scale from one to ten for stability, I would rate F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) a ten."

"I rate the overall solution nine out of ten."

More F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) pros

"I like the load balancing capability."

"Secure Mobile Access (SMA) is easy to configure and the deployment is straightforward. However, this is mostly because of the AWS setup."

"SonicWall SMA allows us to provide CML-based access to any user."

"The solution is reliable and has good overall performance."

"I think they ask for a fair price."

"This solution has many options for remote desktop and access."

"It is faster than other security options when using remote connections."

"The most valuable feature of this solution is they have IT consultants that know SonicWall."

More SonicWall SMA pros

Cons

"Cloud services are something that F5 Access Policy Manager could do better"

"I have had a lot of issues in the past few months with the agents, which was disappointing."

"Integrating identity providers and single sign-on solutions can simplify user authentication and access control."

"F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) does not have a direction for SaaS."

"I'd suggest improved documentation integration directly within the GUI. Right now, finding comprehensive documentation often requires going to external websites like the community portal."

"The solution’s GUI looks very old."

"The initial setup was complex."

"Regarding price, I'm not directly involved in purchasing, but our CIO thinks the product is very expensive. He's considering moving from the tool to Citrix NetScaler WAF because it's cheaper, and we already have Citrix for VDI. We got NetScaler almost free as part of our VDI deal. Three years ago, I convinced him to use the solution because it's better, but now, with budget constraints, he may want to switch."

More F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) cons

"The solution has 2FA, it will generate a token and send it to an email, but multifactor authentication is not available. I would suggest that there should be MFA integration and provided with the appliance."

"The solution could integrate better with other platforms."

"This is an expensive solution and I think that the price could be improved."

"The timed synchronization between the network appliance needs improvement."

"SonicWall's reporting isn't good. Reports should be part of a data plan. The login mechanism should be improved. It would be helpful if the client could use an agent to log in. An agent-server model would improve the performance of the RDB, which consumes a lot of bandwidth."

"I'd like to see the product maybe polish keyboards in Bookmark."

"The product's technical support services could be improved."

"User interface could be improved."

More SonicWall SMA cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The product is very expensive."

"The tool is a little bit expensive."

"Recently, they have simplified the licensing"

"I rate the tool's pricing an eight out of ten."

"The platform has medium pricing."

"The cost of the licensing is based on the maximum number of concurrent users, and it costs a lot to add them."

"Our licenses are stackable and can be anywhere from five users to a million users."

"This solution is priced well and we currently have the maximum number of licenses allowed."

"I don't know about the pricing of the SSL-VPN box. I know the SSL-VPN software is free. Global VPN client, by comparison, is licensed for around $150 or something like that. But the SSL-VPN software is free. It is already built-in with the box."

"All the costs are included in a bundled license."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

14%

Manufacturing Company

12%

Government

Computer Software Company

Manufacturing Company

12%

Computer Software Company

11%

Comms Service Provider

Retailer

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	9
Midsize Enterprise	1
Large Enterprise	9

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	11
Midsize Enterprise	3
Large Enterprise	2

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM)?

In my opinion, the GUI is perfect with the configuration options provided. F5 BIG-IP has given customization options and policy configuration tools in the GUI. It's good and good enough to work.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM)?

F5 products are more expensive than other solutions but are valued for their quality and reliability, akin to purchasing a Bentley as opposed to an Audi.

See all answers

What needs improvement with F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM)?

F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) is not user-friendly and operates slowly. Additional features for architecture such as Anycast would be beneficial. The ability to run the Anycast feature woul...

See all answers

What do you like most about SonicWall SMA?

Blocklisting and allowlisting are the most beneficial features for network security.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SonicWall SMA?

The pricing for the solution could be a lot less.

See all answers

What needs improvement with SonicWall SMA?

See all answers

Comparisons

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Compared 6% of the time

CyberArk Privileged Access Manager vs F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM)

Compared 5% of the time

Fortinet FortiGate vs F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM)

Compared 5% of the time

Citrix Gateway vs F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM)

Compared 4% of the time

Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) vs F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM)

Compared 4% of the time

More F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) Competitors

SonicWall Netextender vs SonicWall SMA

Compared 12% of the time

Citrix Gateway vs SonicWall SMA

Compared 11% of the time

Ivanti Connect Secure vs SonicWall SMA

Compared 9% of the time

Sangfor SSL VPN vs SonicWall SMA

Compared 9% of the time

OpenVPN Access Server vs SonicWall SMA

Compared 9% of the time

More SonicWall SMA Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM)

January 2026

F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) report

Download F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) product report

Buyer's Guide

SonicWall SMA

December 2025

Download SonicWall SMA product report

Also Known As

F5 Access Policy Manager

SonicWall Aventail, SonicWall SMA SSL-VPN, SonicWall Secure Mobile Access

Overview

F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) is an access management proxy solution for managing global access to the enterprise networks, cloud providers, applications, and application programming interfaces (APIs). Through a single management interface, BIG-IP APM consolidates remote, mobile, network, virtual, and web access.

BIG-IP APM can also serve as a bridge between modern and classic authentication and authorization protocols and methods. For applications which are unable to support modern authentication and authorization protocols, like SAML and OAuth with OIDC, but which do support classic authentication methods, BIG-IP APM converts user credentials to the appropriate authentication standard supported by the application.

BIG-IP APM Benefits:

Ease of use
Flexibility
Ability to integrate with other systems
Security features
Granular access control
Responsive and helpful support team

BIG-IP APM Features:

Support for Identity Aware Proxy (IAP) enabling Zero Trust application access
Context-based authorization with dynamic L4/L7 ACLs
Integration with third-party MFA solutions
DTLS 2.0 mode for delivering and securing applications
SAML 2.0 identity federation support
Support for OAuth 2.0 authorization protocol
SSO support for classic authentication (Kerberos, header- based, etc.), credential caching, OAuth 2.0, SAML 2.0, and FIDO2 (U2F)
AAA server authentication and high-availability
Integration with leading IAM vendor products (Microsoft, Okta, Ping Identity)
BIG IP Edge Client and F5 Access integrate with VMware Horizon ONE (AirWatch), Microsoft Intune and IBM MaaS360
Risk-based access leveraging third-party UEBA and risk engines (HTTP Connector)

Reviews from Real Users

Below are some reviews and helpful feedback written by BIG-IP APM users.

Mahmmoud Rabie, Senior Site Reliability Engineer, writes that BIG-IP APM is "A highly stable solution for load balancing, but the initial setup is complex."

Clyde Livingston, Senior Process Specialist at Telstra, says that BIG-IP APM is "Easy to use, useful access remotely, but lacking stability."

Chris Lam, Senior Solution Consultant at Macroview Telecom Limited, states that BIG-IP APM is "Useful for remote access VPN and VPI integration with VMware.

SonicWall SMA is a unified secure access gateway that enables organizations to provide anytime, anywhere and any device access to mission critical corporate resources. SMA's granular access control policy engine, context aware device authorization, application level VPN and advanced authentication with single sign-on empowers organizations to embrace BYOD and mobility in a hybrid IT environment.

SonicWall

Sample Customers

City Bank, Ricacorp Properties, Miele, American Systems, Bangladesh Post Office

UnitedStack, Newport City Homes, Faith Lutheran College Redlands, PRIME aerostructures GmbH, Celtic Manor Resort

Buyer's Guide

F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) vs. SonicWall SMA

December 2025

Free Report: F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) vs. SonicWall SMA

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