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Fortinet FortiGate vs SonicWall TZ vs Untangle NG Firewall 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:
 

ROI

Sentiment score
5.8
Fortinet FortiGate boosts ROI by reducing WAN costs, minimizing downtime, and enhancing productivity with centralized management and security.
Sentiment score
4.2
SonicWall TZ offers quick ROI with low costs, boosts productivity, enhances security, and provides cost-effective benefits for small businesses.
Sentiment score
6.5
Untangle NG Firewall saves users time and money, simplifies management, enhances security, and offers substantial ROI through scalable solutions.
Clients are now comfortable and not wasting productive hours on IT support.
Managing Director at a manufacturing company with 10,001+ employees
The automation part is giving us a cost benefit and speed; we can react faster.
BDM Fortinet & BDM Teamlead at Exclusive Networks
It's a very useful tool to mitigate and protect your enterprise.
Staff Infrastructure & Security Engineer at Mozn Systems
That is a reason to buy a firewall, and it is challenging to put a monetary value on security.
Administration IT at a engineering company with 11-50 employees
My ability to monetize it as a gateway security appliance to offer enhanced service offerings allows me to increase our price point.
Service Delivery Manager at CasCom
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
6.6
Fortinet FortiGate's support is prompt but has delays and gaps; users prefer integrators and rate it 6-9 out of 10.
Sentiment score
5.0
SonicWall TZ customer service has mixed reviews, praised for availability but criticized for wait times and problem resolution.
Sentiment score
5.6
Untangle NG Firewall's support is responsive but faces challenges with time zones, expertise, resources, and documentation improvements.
The quick resolution of issues with Fortinet FortiGate is due to the support of the company and the fact that the equipment is easy to work with.
IT Manager at a consultancy with 10,001+ employees
I would rate the technical support for Fortinet FortiGate a ten out of ten.
NAC Support at Rah Infotech Pvt Ltd
As a solution provider, when I encounter problems, I connect directly with Fortinet support, and they provide solutions within a very short time.
Manager, Information Technology Operation/Presales at TechMonarch
Customer service is excellent.
Administration IT at a engineering company with 11-50 employees
SonicWall Sentry team will manage our firewall.
Project Engineer at IT Solution
I would rate SonicWall TZ's technical support as good but not at the level of other enterprise-level firewall vendors out there.
Senior Pre-sales and Solutions Engineer - Cyber Security at Enterprise Technology (Pvt) Ltd
They're able to remotely manage the devices if necessary for support.
Service Delivery Manager at CasCom
I use official documentation, guides, or manuals for Untangle NG Firewall.
Information Technology System Administrator at Ίδρυμα Ευγενίδου / Eugenides Foundation
They got back to me pretty quickly, the response time was fast, and they're knowledgeable.
Director of Information Technology at a consultancy with 11-50 employees
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.1
Fortinet FortiGate offers scalable, adaptable solutions for businesses, ensuring performance and compatibility with management tools during network expansion.
Sentiment score
6.6
SonicWall TZ is scalable for small to medium environments, but accurate sizing and cost concerns are crucial for larger needs.
Sentiment score
6.3
Untangle NG Firewall is versatile, scalable, and suitable for both large enterprises and small businesses, supporting varied user demands.
They scale up really well from smaller models like the FortiGate 40 and 50 to bigger sites with the FortiGate 100 for more throughput - up to enterprise datacenters.
IT Manager at Daltons Limited
The variation comes in terms of the interfaces and throughputs, but from a security perspective, you get the same benefit, irrespective of whether you have an entry-level unit or an enterprise.
Cewa Solutions Architect at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
We determine sizing based on multiple factors: number of users, available links, traffic types, server count, services in use, and whether services will be published.
General Surgery Specialist at Helwan University Cairo
Whenever we want to change the licensing, we can do it at any time.
Project Engineer at IT Solution
There are some problems with the scalability of SonicWall TZ with the firmware.
Senior Pre-sales and Solutions Engineer - Cyber Security at Enterprise Technology (Pvt) Ltd
Since it can be put on any box, the scalability is fantastic.
Service Delivery Manager at CasCom
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.7
Fortinet FortiGate is praised for stability and reliability, though some issues with updates and high-traffic conditions are noted.
Sentiment score
6.5
SonicWall TZ is stable with minor issues; performance improves with updates, though updates can sometimes temporarily affect stability.
Sentiment score
8.4
Untangle NG Firewall is praised for stability and reliability, experiencing minor issues but no major disruptions, suitable for large-scale administration.
We're experiencing 99.999% availability consistently.
Manager, Information Technology at a consumer goods company with 11-50 employees
I would rate the stability of Fortinet FortiGate a ten out of ten.
NAC Support at Rah Infotech Pvt Ltd
Currently, we are experiencing a general outage of one of the main internet service providers of the Dominican Republic, and we have not been impacted in our operations because with SD-WAN, we have another internet service provider and we are working with the second WAN connection without any disruption.
CISO at a financial services firm with 1,001-5,000 employees
In terms of stability, SonicWall doesn't have performance issues.
CTO at Exceed NetSec LLC
SonicWall TZ rates 10 out of 10 for stability.
CEO at Kapstone Technological Services LLP
SonicWall TZ is definitely stable and offers a good value for money.
Administration IT at a engineering company with 11-50 employees
I would rate the stability and reliability of Untangle NG Firewall as a ten.
Information Technology System Administrator at Ίδρυμα Ευγενίδου / Eugenides Foundation
I haven't had to mess with it too much; it's pretty stable.
Director of Information Technology at a consultancy with 11-50 employees
 

Room For Improvement

Fortinet FortiGate needs better interface readability, customer support, integration, usability, documentation, and pricing, with improved automation and stability.
SonicWall TZ needs user interface improvements, better threat intelligence, enhanced support, bundled VPN licenses, and stability and performance updates.
Untangle NG Firewall needs improved support, a streamlined console, and enhanced features like web filtering, mobile access, and reporting.
These sessions should be around five to ten minutes long, allowing users and partners to quickly grasp the information without disrupting their daily tasks.
Managing Director at a manufacturing company with 10,001+ employees
The solution should be able to implement machine learning and analytics of all the logs for threat detection and protection.
Senior Systems Engineer at Caribbean Development Company
It would be better for customers to get immediate replacements even with a standard subscription.
Director at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
Integration with other vendors, especially with VPNs, can be challenging and requires more effort when configuring.
CTO at Exceed NetSec LLC
What could be improved about SonicWall TZ is the threat intelligence, which by far is not at the level of vendors such as Fortinet, Palo Alto Networks, and Check Point.
Senior Pre-sales and Solutions Engineer - Cyber Security at Enterprise Technology (Pvt) Ltd
SonicWall TZ could benefit from newer technology.
Administration IT at a engineering company with 11-50 employees
The user interface, training, and general product innovation need improvement.
Service Delivery Manager at CasCom
I haven't dug into the advanced features, but I think some of the advanced capabilities are probably where it lacks a little bit, with the filtering and firewall rules.
Director of Information Technology at a consultancy with 11-50 employees
I would like to improve the ad blocker and SSL Inspector by having more settings in the filters, cookie filters, and pass lists.
Information Technology System Administrator at Ίδρυμα Ευγενίδου / Eugenides Foundation
 

Setup Cost

Fortinet FortiGate offers cost-effective solutions with competitive pricing, though licensing is complex, making it appealing to enterprises.
SonicWall TZ offers competitive pricing and flexible licensing, but total costs can rise due to subscriptions and feature add-ons.
Untangle NG Firewall's modular pricing varies with setup size, offering cost-effective open-source options and flexible enterprise packages.
Last year, I renewed the support for three years, which can sometimes be expensive but depends on the security benefits and how it helps us.
Network & System Admin at Invoke Studios
It offers cost savings as it is generally cheaper than the competition.
IT Infrastructure Architect at Apotek 1
It is about 20% cheaper.
Network Security Engineer at TD SYNNEX
More licenses are required to purchase the perpetual license for SSL VPN and Global VPN.
Pre Sales at ITCG SOlutions Pvt Ltd
When comparing similar products across vendors, there may be a small difference in cost.
CTO at Exceed NetSec LLC
I would also position its pricing as a three, where one is the lowest price and ten is the highest.
Administration IT at a engineering company with 11-50 employees
It's less expensive, especially because it has a lot of the pieces integrated into the firewall, so you get savings on that front.
Director of Information Technology at a consultancy with 11-50 employees
It is not very expensive, so it is affordable for my budget.
Information Technology System Administrator at Ίδρυμα Ευγενίδου / Eugenides Foundation
 

Valuable Features

Fortinet FortiGate integrates firewall, VPN, and SD-WAN, providing robust security, ease of use, stability, and efficient network performance.
SonicWall TZ provides robust security, user-friendly management, and cost-effective solutions with VPN, filtering, and threat prevention.
Untangle NG Firewall provides versatile security features, easy setup, and centralized management, ideal for small businesses on generic hardware.
We got a firewall and gave an SSL VPN to my client to connect to their servers, after which, such kind of activities involving ransomware attacks stopped.
Owner at Mindware Computer Solutions
They put in a thing called the FortiCookbook, which is very easy to read with real-life scenarios that make networking tasks like joining networks very straightforward.
IT Manager at Daltons Limited
The firewall and VPN features are the most valuable in protecting our customers' networks.
Sales & Support at a tech services company with 1-10 employees
For SMB segments, SonicWall performs well.
CTO at Exceed NetSec LLC
It was beneficial during COVID for remote work through its VPN functionality.
Administration IT at a engineering company with 11-50 employees
The advanced gateway security features such as web filter, application control filter, IPS, ideas, gateway antivirus, anti-spyware, and botnet filter are valuable.
Pre Sales at ITCG SOlutions Pvt Ltd
The ease of use and the built-in and integrated features, including the apps that include OpenVPN, IPsec, and WireGuard VPN, are all built straight into Untangle NG Firewall.
Director of Information Technology at a consultancy with 11-50 employees
The all-in-one gateway security functions and the ability to install it on generic equipment stand out.
Service Delivery Manager at CasCom
The most useful features of Untangle NG Firewall are the firewall and bandwidth control capabilities.
Information Technology System Administrator at Ίδρυμα Ευγενίδου / Eugenides Foundation
 

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2026, in the Firewalls category, the mindshare of Fortinet FortiGate is 17.2%, down from 21.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SonicWall TZ is 2.0%, down from 3.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Untangle NG Firewall is 1.0%, down from 1.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Firewalls Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Fortinet FortiGate17.2%
SonicWall TZ2.0%
Untangle NG Firewall1.0%
Other79.8%
Firewalls
 

Featured Reviews

Abhinandan Yadav - PeerSpot reviewer
Network Security Engineer at Arrow PC Network Pvt Ltd
Unified security and sd-wan have improved uptime and cut wan costs for multi-site branches
Users report stability issues in certain versions, which requires regular updates. Real-world attacks have also highlighted the need for urgent patching of vulnerabilities.Fortinet FortiGate, while a powerful and feature-rich web firewall, could improve in areas like firmware stability, documentation, and ease of use. The learning curve can be steep for some users. For beginners, support quality can vary, and frequent updates with occasional vulnerabilities call for careful patch management. However, once Fortinet FortiGate is configured, it remains highly reliable and efficient. Customer support needs improvement, as I find it very slow, with reports from other users reflecting that customer support is inadequate.
Fernando Kavindra Fernando - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Pre-sales and Solutions Engineer - Cyber Security at Enterprise Technology (Pvt) Ltd
Web filtering and traffic balancing have improved security for SMBs but threat insight still needs work
I assess the machine learning capabilities of SonicWall TZ in proactive threat detection to not be at the level of other vendors such as Palo Alto Networks, Fortinet, and Check Point. It is somewhere in between, so I would not recommend it for a large enterprise-level organization to rely on because it is not at that level. SonicWall TZ's content filtering service is reliable. We have used it, but it is not very reliable compared to brands such as Fortinet, Palo Alto Networks, or Check Point. What could be improved about SonicWall TZ is the threat intelligence, which by far is not at the level of vendors such as Fortinet, Palo Alto Networks, and Check Point. Their threat intelligence needs to be improved, as does the GUI, which is not as user-friendly compared to devices such as Fortinet. They could learn from their competitors by making the product more user-friendly. The product interface is not that user-friendly. By adopting a more user-friendly GUI, improving threat intelligence, and enhancing the available guides would be beneficial. In my understanding, in some cases, the KB articles and knowledge articles were not that efficient. They were useful, but they could have been more precise with the knowledge base articles. They need to provide more information about SonicWall TZ, specifically more documentation and more troubleshooting articles. Other than the threat intelligence and the user-friendly GUI, there are no other additional features that I can think of for SonicWall TZ in the future or at least in the next release to make it more competitive.
Gary-Downey - PeerSpot reviewer
Director of Information Technology at a consultancy with 11-50 employees
Has provided built-in VPN tools and reporting features that streamline remote access and monitoring tasks
We do an outside-sourced threat prevention regarding the Threat Prevention features. I haven't run into areas that could be improved or cons versus pros for Untangle NG Firewall. I haven't done anything too advanced when it comes to the filtering, so I'm not sure what can be improved or added. I haven't dug into the advanced features, but I think some of the advanced capabilities are probably where it lacks a little bit, with the filtering and firewall rules. These areas could be improved to make it a nine out of 10 or a 10 out of 10 for overall rating.
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Comparison Review

it_user216600 - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Technical Consultant with 51-200 employees
Jan 3, 2016
Sophos UTM vs. Fortinet FortiGate
I have used both Sophos and Fortinet products in production and I have found the Sophos UTM appliances (hardware and virtual) to be a better fit most of the time -- with a few caveats which I will touch on below. In both instances, the transition from TMG will be mostly straightforward. The main…
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
11%
Comms Service Provider
10%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Computer Software Company
12%
Comms Service Provider
9%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Comms Service Provider
16%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Construction Company
8%
University
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business365
Midsize Enterprise135
Large Enterprise191
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business63
Midsize Enterprise16
Large Enterprise14
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business26
Midsize Enterprise1
 

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 ...
Would you choose Fortinet Fortigate or Sonicwall TZ?
I’ll say it depends on your needs. Fortinet FortiGate and SonicWall TZ are both next-gen firewalls (NGFW) with simila...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SonicWall TZ?
The price is normal. It is a nominal cost for an SMB TZ used for SMB businesses. However, more licenses are required ...
What needs improvement with SonicWall TZ?
I assess the machine learning capabilities of SonicWall TZ in proactive threat detection to not be at the level of ot...
What needs improvement with Untangle NG Firewall?
I would appreciate improvements to the ad blocker and SSL Inspector of Untangle NG Firewall.
What is your primary use case for Untangle NG Firewall?
My usual use cases for Untangle NG Firewall are just like a firewall and router. The main purpose is for firewall fun...
 

Also Known As

Fortinet FortiGate Next-Generation Firewall
Dell SonicWALL TZ
No data available
 

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
AeroM_xico Delta TechOps, Unimat
North American Stamping Group, Cerebral Palsy of North Jersey (CPNJ), Brown County Schools, IN, City of Bridgeton, MO, Lancaster County, SC, Vision Charter School, Clay County Sheriff’s Department, NC, Breakwater School, Boys & Girls Club of Manchester, NH, Admiral Farragut Academy, Flow Companies, No Ordinary Hotel, KECdesign,
Find out what your peers are saying about Fortinet, Netgate, Sophos and others in Firewalls. Updated: March 2026.
886,468 professionals have used our research since 2012.