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FortiGate Next Generation Firewall (NGFW) vs SonicWall NSv comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Sep 16, 2024

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

Fortinet FortiGate
Sponsored
Ranking in Firewalls
2nd
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
357
Ranking in other categories
Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions (1st), WAN Edge (1st)
FortiGate Next Generation F...
Ranking in Firewalls
10th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
53
Ranking in other categories
ZTNA (3rd), Unified Threat Management (UTM) (8th)
SonicWall NSv
Ranking in Firewalls
28th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
10
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2025, in the Firewalls category, the mindshare of Fortinet FortiGate is 21.4%, up from 17.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of FortiGate Next Generation Firewall (NGFW) is 0.4%, up from 0.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SonicWall NSv is 0.2%, up from 0.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Firewalls
 

Featured Reviews

Vasu Gala - PeerSpot reviewer
A stable solution with an intuitive interface and quick customer service
I have been working with Fortinet FortiGate, WatchGuard, Sophos, and SonicWall. I'm not as comfortable with SonicWall because of their UI and limitations. I prefer Fortinet above all other options. When it comes to configuration, I am confident in my ability to handle various tasks, including creating policies such as firewall rules, web policies, and application policies. Additionally, I can configure VPNs and implement load balancing, among other tasks. Overall, I feel much more comfortable working with Fortinet. Fortinet has made significant improvements by integrating AI with firewalls for threat analysis and prevention. In the past 2-3 years, they have launched FortiSASE and SIEM, and they also provide SOC services. Both Palo Alto and Fortinet FortiGate are excellent. While Fortinet FortiGate comes at higher prices, the functionality and support justify the cost. They promptly resolve firmware issues and inform all support providers about configuration changes.
Juan Solano - PeerSpot reviewer
Implementation improves efficiency and provides greater visibility over issues
One of the most valuable features of FortiGate Next Generation Firewall (NGFW) ( /products/fortigate-next-generation-firewall-ngfw-reviews ) is the ease of usability it offers. It is quite easy for me to learn to use. Additionally, FortiGate Next Generation Firewall (NGFW) has improved our efficiency in setting up security and provided us with more visibility over some issues and incidents we previously faced.
Sileesh Sivadasan - PeerSpot reviewer
Helps small businesses expand branches more easily
The price is a significant factor. Mostly in India, the customer service has many hurdles to get real support. If I want to talk to a customer executive, they ask many trivial questions. Even if I explain that I am asking for a Dell partner, they still ask specific questions, and they will explain many unnecessary questions.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Fortinet FortiGate is one of the most solid and secure firewalls as long as you keep it up to date. The price is right; it's not very expensive."
"The SD-WAN feature of Fortinet FortiGate has been most impactful in maintaining our network's integrity."
"Layer-3 firewall and routing are the most valuable features."
"We use a lot of function on the IPS and it works well for us."
"The security features are about the best that I've seen anywhere."
"It is easy to use. We chose this product for the possibility to have virtual domains (VDOMs). We are building another company in the group, and we would like to split the firewalling rules and policies between these two companies. Each company would be able to manage its own policies and security rules, which is an advantage of Fortinet FortiGate. We can define VDOMs, and every company can manage its own VDOM as if it has its own physical firewall, but in fact, we would be using the same physical appliance because we are also using the same internet lines. So, it allows us to reuse the existing resources without the disadvantage of having to compromise on policies and security. Each company can choose its own way of working."
"The main benefit is the grouping of our security monitoring."
"The reporting and monitoring are very good."
"FortiGate Next Generation Firewall has a stateless balance proposition"
"The solution is secure."
"I found the upgrades valuable."
"The IPS and the application control feature are the most valuable."
"The solution's application control is very powerful."
"When I survey FortiGate products, I see that they have a good performance, especially in terms of next generation firewalls."
"It is a very user-friendly solution. Moreover, Foritgate offers good performance."
"The common valuable feature for FortiGate is its UTM functionality, which includes various features under a license that is commonly implemented."
"For my small NFB banking services, when they are expanding their branches, I could incorporate a little bit easier."
"The solution has no additional charges and no restrictions on the number of users."
"SonicWall excelled in threat management, evident in how users handled it effectively."
"SonicWall NSV is easy to use, and you can use it to manage the logs easily."
"The product helps improve our security."
"The security of this system is fantastic, including the IPS and IDS."
"I would rate the overall product a nine out of ten."
"The customization of firewall rules provides great value to our customers as it allows them to lock things up in the way that they desire. When it is used for internal access, with a VPN in place for remote workers, the firewalling services provided by Azure, such as the default services that can be turned on, are applied. However, the use of a software-based virtual firewall gives us greater flexibility in introducing security controls for customers who are publishing applications that are publicly accessible from the public cloud. This virtual firewall provides an additional layer of security and more extensive security control options to ensure the protection of our customers' valuable information and assets."
 

Cons

"Technical support for this solution can be improved."
"They have to just improve its performance when we enable all UTM features. When you enable all the features, the performance of FortiGate, as well as of Sophos and SonicWall, goes down."
"The initial setup is complex."
"I would like to see improvements in the support from Fortinet. Here in the Philippines, whenever we have problems with a Fortinet product, we mostly ask for support from distributors and resellers and not directly from Fortinet."
"Some of the software stability could improve."
"The pricing could be a bit better, especially when you consider how they have the most basic offering priced."
"There were quite a few problems with the stability of the system."
"I wish that they could integrate zero-trust technology into Fortinet FortiGate. I am not sure whether it has been done already, but if they could implement that, it would help significantly."
"The licensing model and pricing need improvement."
"The product's data guard feature should support a USB port when the internet connection is unavailable."
"Improvements could be made when companies expand and need better equipment and more licenses."
"I would like to see improvements in the IPS/IDS feature to enhance protection against attacks from attackers, including ransomware protection."
"There should be better customization in the IPS."
"FortiGate may include AI capabilities and integrate external threat intelligence. However, version management and backup/restore operations could be improved."
"FortiGate NGFW can improve technical support. The engineer who answers the technical support call, email, or phone call, whatever the medium may be. The response time is very bad."
"The product has to be upgraded every few weeks."
"It has been brought to our attention by a few customers that they are dissatisfied with the fact that our virtualized service is only offered as a subscription option on the cloud. However, it is worth noting that many other similar services are also offered through a subscription model on the cloud and not through perpetual licensing. It is unclear why these customers would have an issue with this subscription service when so many others are utilizing similar methods."
"The price is a significant factor. Mostly in India, the customer service has many hurdles to get real support."
"An area that could be improved is the export and import settings functionality."
"We face some challenges when we upgrade the solution."
"There are limitations to bandwidth management."
"SonicWall NSV's SSL VPN could increase its number of users to 100-plus users."
"I would like to see the reporting opened up and have several more opportunities for automatic reports."
"SonicWall NSV's initial setup is complicated and requires good knowledge."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"They are very competitive, but we like to have the factory warranty taken care of."
"The price is high compared to some of the other solutions."
"The price for the Fortinet FortiGate is reasonable. Secure SD-WAN is free of charge. If you have their firewall, it's free of charge. It's very tempting."
"There is a subscription-based model to use Fortinet FortiGate. We pay annually for the solution along with the support. If you want to have all the updates, and security patches you will need to renew your support."
"It's an expensive solution."
"Fortinet's pricing is more straightforward than other solutions. If Fortinet doesn't stick out when you're searching for a solution, you are a glutton for punishment. You only need to know two things when purchasing a Fortinet solution: your total bandwidth and bandwidth at the site. You need to estimate the future bandwidth with other solutions if your customer plans to upgrade."
"If you are looking for a quality product, it will come at a higher price. Expecting them to be significantly cheaper is unrealistic. In terms of pricing, it is a bit costly. However, the functionality and support offered are worth it."
"By default, they give SD-WAN along with the firewall. They don't have separate licensing for the SD-WAN functionality. However, they have security licenses that are sold separately on a subscription basis. Customers can consume these security features to protect their users from internet traffic."
"I rate FortiGate Next Generation Firewall a five out of ten for pricing."
"It is an expensive solution."
"I'll rate FortiGate's pricing a five out of ten since it is moderately priced."
"We pay $500 per year for the license."
"The solution is more expensive than Sophos. It could be cheaper. The licensing is on a yearly basis. We have had it for about three years. We must only pay extra for the license, additional requirements, and the hardware box."
"The product is not very expensive."
"Although the solution's pricing is high, compared with other products, it may be cheap."
"I would rate pricing to be about four or five out of ten, it is reasonable."
"We are currently using the trial version."
"The solution’s pricing is less compared to other products."
"Our initial purchase, which included a three-year term of support, was about $25,000 USD."
"The solution's pricing is good for the technology it offers."
"The tool is moderately priced."
"SonicWall NSV is not very costly."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Educational Organization
15%
Computer Software Company
15%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Computer Software Company
17%
Comms Service Provider
10%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Computer Software Company
27%
Real Estate/Law Firm
7%
Retailer
7%
Educational Organization
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

Which is the better NGFW: Fortinet Fortigate or Cisco Firepower?
When you compare these firewalls you can identify them with different features, advantages, practices and usage a...
What is the biggest difference between Sophos XG and FortiGate?
From my experience regarding both the Sophos and FortiGate firewalls, I personally would rather use FortiGate. I know...
What are the biggest technical differences between Sophos UTM and Fortinet FortiGate?
As a solution, Sophos UTM offers a lot of functionality, it scales well, and the stability and performance are quite ...
What do you like most about FortiGate Next Generation Firewall (NGFW)?
The tool's most valuable feature is IPS. In my experience, I haven't encountered any issues with integration. It easi...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for FortiGate Next Generation Firewall (NGFW)?
From a cost perspective, I think it's quite reasonable, not so cheap, but I think it's quite similar compared to others.
What needs improvement with FortiGate Next Generation Firewall (NGFW)?
In FortiGate Next Generation Firewall (NGFW), my concern regarding improvements is the licensing model. In the latest...
What do you like most about SonicWall NSV?
The product helps improve our security.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SonicWall NSV?
I am somewhat satisfied with the price for SonicWall NSv, rating it as eight because, compared to other products, the...
What needs improvement with SonicWall NSV?
Currently, we are getting challenges with user-wise reports and other reporting details. At present, they do not prov...
 

Also Known As

FortiGate 60b, FortiGate 60c, FortiGate 80c, FortiGate 50b, FortiGate 200b, FortiGate 110c, FortiGate, Fortinet Firewall
No data available
SonicWall Network Security Virtual
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Amazon Web Services, Microsoft, IBM, Cisco, Dell, HP, Oracle, Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint, Vodafone, Orange, BT Group, Telstra, Deutsche Telekom, Comcast, Time Warner Cable, CenturyLink, NTT Communications, Tata Communications, SoftBank, China Mobile, Singtel, Telus, Rogers Communications, Bell Canada, Telkom Indonesia, Telkom South Africa, Telmex, Telia Company, Telkom Kenya
Information Not Available
Comlogic, Depaul, Hutt City Council
Find out what your peers are saying about FortiGate Next Generation Firewall (NGFW) vs. SonicWall NSv and other solutions. Updated: June 2025.
857,162 professionals have used our research since 2012.