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Fortinet FortiAP vs WatchGuard Secure Wi‑Fi comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Oct 31, 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 FortiAP
Ranking in Wireless LAN
8th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.6
Number of Reviews
15
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
WatchGuard Secure Wi‑Fi
Ranking in Wireless LAN
23rd
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.4
Number of Reviews
7
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2025, in the Wireless LAN category, the mindshare of Fortinet FortiAP is 5.8%, up from 1.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of WatchGuard Secure Wi‑Fi is 0.5%, up from 0.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Wireless LAN
 

Featured Reviews

JayPrajapati - PeerSpot reviewer
Room for improvement in customer support as overall satisfaction remains low
We earlier expected that Fortinet FortiAP could be managed through the cloud, which would be very good, but nowadays, FortiNet is providing FortiAPs with cloud management also. That requirement has been covered. Currently, I cannot see any areas for improvement because it fulfills my requirements, and I can do everything I need with it.
WarrenWilliams - PeerSpot reviewer
A solution that offers excellent support and makes it easy to manage networks
To utilize the solution properly, you need some training and guidance on that. Getting it working is easy, but if you're going to use it with feature sets that make WatchGuard worthwhile to use, it's probably not the easiest to set up. I'd rate the initial setup a seven out of ten. The time taken to deploy the solution depends on the project scope you're doing. Do you need ten WiFi access points or one? You could deploy the solution in an hour. We need one person to deploy the solution. But the number of people required for deployment depends on where the access points are deployed. Like, if it's the ceiling or whatever. The way we do it, we usually have an on-site technician who sets up the backend. We usually have two people when deploying the solution, but you can do it with one person. We have a team that manages the solution. But if you have ten people on a site to manage the solution, 15 minutes daily is enough.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"I like FortiAP's performance and stability. The reporting is also quite good."
"The solution supports recent security components like encryption or hashing algorithms. We can control the APs from FortiGate Firewalls and integrate those APs into FortiGate. You don't have to purchase a separate controller for it."
"FortiAP's integration using SSID configuration for the input/output makes deploying permission rules easier."
"Fortinet FortiAP provides value for money, and I can quantify the savings at about 80%."
"I would give FortiAP a rating of ten out of ten so far."
"The product's deployment phase is very easy since its documentation part is available in the public domain."
"The integration is efficient, allowing for management through the firewall."
"We really don't need to call technical support. Any time we have had to call, they've been great."
"The Wi-Fi security features of this solution have been great for our customers who need to strictly control access to their network."
"Cloud analytics that provide all its attributes."
"We like that WatchGuard works and integrates directly with the firewalls we use."
"They're very easy to set up and get running."
"The configuration part of WatchGuard is very flexible."
"It makes it easy to obtain all information about the client experience."
"The solution has been stable."
 

Cons

"The support offered by the solution has certain shortcomings, making it in areas where improvements are required."
"Technical support is a pain. Fortinet has to get its act together. If you don't pay for premium service, you will have issues."
"The product fails to offer default access points to deal with the areas revolving around configurations."
"There could be constraints where a product can't be scaled further without purchasing a new model."
"FortiAP could be a little cheaper."
"I would like to have automation capabilities that would help us reduce the configuration steps."
"The security integration between the network and firewall has room for improvement."
"The wireless functionality is not the best."
"The support response can be time-consuming because sometimes issues are very sensitive and require instant attention."
"Inability to import a user with one click."
"I don't think they're available at the best price."
"One of the things is if you buy it with a certain subscription, you can't easily change the subscription level."
"If a client device had issues with authentication due to out of date browser or similar difficulties, it would be nice to have the ability to migrate the client onto the portal via one click."
"The solution can be scaled but it has limitations from my experience."
"The price of this solution needs to reviewed, as it is currently high enough to deter customers from trying it."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"If I compare it with the other enterprise products, the price is good."
"We purchased perpetual licensing, and additional costs may vary depending on the services acquired from Fortinet."
"FortiAP is more expensive than some other options."
"The product is available at a very comfortable price for my company compared to the other products available in the market. The prices of products from Meraki and Aruba are high compared to those of Fortinet."
"On a scale of one to ten with ten being the most expensive, I would rate FortiAP a six."
"The devices under Fortinet are not expensive. The solution's licensing part is expensive."
"Fortinet FortiAP offers a more cost-effective solution compared to Palo Alto and Check Point."
"The solution is priced high compared to competitors. However, for the features that are included in the solution, the price becomes more reasonable."
"Your licensing and cost, as would be required for many other solutions, being considered for eighty to two hundred and eighty different physical locations, is just about the same amount per access point."
"WatchGuard is on the upper scale for pricing."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
11%
Government
10%
Comms Service Provider
9%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Comms Service Provider
12%
Computer Software Company
12%
Non Profit
11%
Government
9%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about FortiAP?
If we have FortiClient installed on multiple devices, it is seamless to connect with FortiAP. It supports passwordless authentication as well. That is a great thing about it.
What needs improvement with FortiAP?
We earlier expected that Fortinet FortiAP could be managed through the cloud, which would be very good, but nowadays, FortiNet is providing FortiAPs with cloud management also. That requirement has...
What do you like most about WatchGuard Secure Wi‑Fi?
We like that WatchGuard works and integrates directly with the firewalls we use.
What needs improvement with WatchGuard Secure Wi‑Fi?
The support response can be time-consuming because sometimes issues are very sensitive and require instant attention. Also, when an incident occurs, the impact can be significantly huge. A recent p...
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
Portsmouth Grammar School, HILOTEC
Find out what your peers are saying about Fortinet FortiAP vs. WatchGuard Secure Wi‑Fi and other solutions. Updated: June 2025.
860,592 professionals have used our research since 2012.