Fortinet FortiGate vs Zscaler Cloud IPS comparison

Fortinet and Zscaler are both solutions in the Intrusion Detection and Prevention Software (IDPS) category. Fortinet is ranked #1 with an average rating of 8.5, while Zscaler is ranked #20. Fortinet holds a 12.6% mindshare in ID, compared to Zscaler’s 1.7% mindshare. Additionally, 92% of Fortinet users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of Zscaler users who would recommend it.

Fortinet FortiGate

Read 587 Fortinet FortiGate reviews

69,521 Views
5,562 Comparison Views

92% willing to recommend

Zscaler Cloud IPS

Read 5 Zscaler Cloud IPS reviews

760 Views
623 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Fortinet FortiGate

Zscaler Cloud IPS

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 28, 2025

Fortinet FortiGate and Zscaler Cloud IPS are competing solutions in network security. Zscaler Cloud IPS has the upper hand due to its features that justify higher costs for increased value.

Features: Fortinet FortiGate is noted for advanced threat protection, VPN capabilities, and integrated security management. Zscaler Cloud IPS offers in-line traffic inspection, DLP, and seamless cloud integration.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Fortinet FortiGate requires physical appliances, benefiting existing on-premise infrastructures, whereas Zscaler Cloud IPS uses quicker, flexible cloud-based deployment. Fortinet's customer service is dedicated with support channels, and Zscaler provides online resources aligned with its deployment speed.

Pricing and ROI: Fortinet FortiGate has competitive initial pricing with sustainable ROI. Zscaler Cloud IPS has higher initial costs but delivers ROI through operational overhead reduction and increased security agility.

To learn more, read our detailed Fortinet FortiGate vs. Zscaler Cloud IPS Report (Updated: March 2026).

Buyer's Guide

Fortinet FortiGate vs. Zscaler Cloud IPS

March 2026

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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

Fortinet FortiGate

Ranking in Intrusion Detection and Prevention Software (IDPS)

1st

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

6.9

Number of Reviews

587

Ranking in other categories

Secure Web Gateways (SWG) (2nd), Firewalls (1st), Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions (1st), WAN Edge (1st), ZTNA (1st), Unified Threat Management (UTM) (1st)

Zscaler Cloud IPS

Ranking in Intrusion Detection and Prevention Software (IDPS)

20th

Average Rating

9.0

Reviews Sentiment

6.8

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of March 2026, in the Intrusion Detection and Prevention Software (IDPS) category, the mindshare of Fortinet FortiGate is 12.6%, down from 19.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Zscaler Cloud IPS is 1.7%, up from 0.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Intrusion Detection and Prevention Software (IDPS) Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
Fortinet FortiGate	12.6%
Zscaler Cloud IPS	1.7%
Other	85.7%

Intrusion Detection and Prevention Software (IDPS)

Featured Reviews

Vasu Gala

Manager, Information Technology Operation/Presales at TechMonarch

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.

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Utpal Sinha

Sr Network Engineer at Momentive

Stable product with valuable SSL inspection features

We use Zscaler Cloud IPS for threat protection, full SSL inspection, and data center scalability. It integrates with multiple products, including cloud firewalls, cloud sandboxing, Cloud Security Broker (CSB), and Data Loss Prevention (DLP). It helps us allow or block specific TCP or UDP ports…

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Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"It is quite easy to handle."

"It has improved our organization with control data."

"Fortinet FortiGate is a very stable solution."

"From the firewall perspective, the rules and policies are very sufficient and easy to use."

"It enables our organization to become more productive, and it protects our NetWare from viruses and malware."

"Scaling-wise, there have been no problems with Fortinet FortiGate."

"Fortinet FortiGate has positively impacted my client's organization because we have know-how of FortiGate; we could debug problems, we could set up our settings as planned, and I appreciate the easy way of configuration, that we can use parallel GUI and CLI, or CLI and web interface, which we can use in parallel."

"Advanced routing (RIP, OSPF, BGP, PBR). It gives you a seamless and simple integration into a large network."

More Fortinet FortiGate pros

"The initial setup is straightforward and easy in comparison with other solutions."

"The best feature is that Zscaler allows for a separation between cloud applications and URL filtering. For example, under the cloud application segment, I can bypass Microsoft Office 365 without the need to add URLs manually. It's one click, so that's handy."

"The initial setup process is easy."

"Cloud IPS integration is seamless, and it uses a Zero Trust model. It also simplifies overall user access management."

"The product's most valuable feature is complete SSL inspection."

Cons

"There's always something new that can be added or fixed."

"One point against them is that their solution lacks a unified approach."

"The command line is complicated, and the interface could be better."

"There could be more integration between the logging and analytical platforms to make it more seamless and integrated."

"Some features of Fortinet FortiGate are actually fee enabled that are inconvenient for deploying in production. Other issues relate to isolation with Cisco products and your server."

"We would like to see an improvement in the consistency of the product's performance levels."

"The security features could have been more similar to those in the Palo Alto firewall with major data protections and WildFire, and deeper inspection capabilities, which Fortinet FortiGate lacks."

"From my point of view, I think Fortinet has to extend the solution into the cloud and provide all the security features from the cloud and not be dependent on the firewall appliances."

More Fortinet FortiGate cons

"We recently had a significant issue with Zscaler. I think they have too many customers and some of their connection edge nodes went down because there were too many requests. I think they aren't scaling enough to keep up with the demand in some areas. That's one thing they should improve."

"There is always room for improvement."

"When it comes to scalability, the IPsec could be improved."

"They have given limited free access for a year. Instead, they should increase the file size and give limited free access for around two months. It will allow engineers to evaluate the product."

"We encounter issues sharing IP addresses with other companies using the software."

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Its licenses cost the same for different subscription plans."

"FortiGate SWG is a cost-effective solution well-suited for organisations of all sizes."

"The value is the capability of having multiple services with one unique license, not having the limitation per user licensing schema, like other vendors."

"It's very competitive."

"FortiGate Next-Generation Firewall is cheaper than Cisco or CheckPoint."

"The product is expensive. I rate its pricing a six out of ten."

"Setup cost may be not so low, as you expect, because it depends on different factors, but TCO for 5 years may pleasantly surprise you."

"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."

More Fortinet FortiGate pricing and cost advice

"The software has become more expensive at present."

"The product is not affordable for small and medium enterprises."

"Zscaler has so far been solely responsible for all the sales we have done with it, so it would be more suited than us to address any issues concerning the pricing."

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Comparison Review

it_user216600

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…

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

11%

Comms Service Provider

10%

Manufacturing Company

Financial Services Firm

Healthcare Company

11%

Manufacturing Company

10%

University

10%

Real Estate/Law Firm

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	360
Midsize Enterprise	135
Large Enterprise	190

No data available

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 at large. In my opinion, Fortinet would be the best option and l use Fortinet too...

See all answers

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 the firewalls change every 5 to 7 years as stated but you really do need to upg...

See all answers

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 good. The most valuable features for me are their web and email filtering. I wou...

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Comparisons

Sophos Firewall vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 19% of the time

Cisco Secure Firewall vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 13% of the time

Netgate pfSense vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 4% of the time

Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 4% of the time

OPNsense vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 3% of the time

More Fortinet FortiGate Competitors

Splunk User Behavior Analytics vs Zscaler Cloud IPS

Compared 16% of the time

Claroty Platform vs Zscaler Cloud IPS

Compared 16% of the time

Palo Alto Networks URL Filtering with PAN-DB vs Zscaler Cloud IPS

Compared 15% of the time

Darktrace vs Zscaler Cloud IPS

Compared 12% of the time

Cisco Sourcefire SNORT vs Zscaler Cloud IPS

Compared 10% of the time

More Zscaler Cloud IPS Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Fortinet FortiGate

March 2026

Download Fortinet FortiGate product report

Buyer's Guide

Intrusion Detection and Prevention Software (IDPS)

February 2026

Download Zscaler Cloud IPS product report

Also Known As

Fortinet FortiGate Next-Generation Firewall

No data available

Overview

Fortinet FortiGate is a versatile network security tool offering features like VPN, firewall, web filtering, intrusion prevention, and scalability. It is known for its performance and integration with other Fortinet products, making it a preferred choice for robust cybersecurity.

Fortinet FortiGate stands out as a comprehensive cybersecurity solution with strong performance and ease of configuration. It delivers unified threat management, integrating features such as dynamic routing, SD-WAN support, and centralized management. Despite its strengths, improvements in the web interface's stability, pricing structures, and reporting capabilities are needed. Users seek better integration with third-party tools and automation advancements to enhance the experience further. These enhancements, alongside improvements in bandwidth management and the reduction of licensing costs, are points of interest for users looking to capitalize on FortiGate's extensive capabilities.

What are Fortinet FortiGate's key features?

VPN: Ensures secure remote connections.
Firewall: Protects against unauthorized access.
Web Filtering: Blocks malicious sites and content.
Application Control: Manages and controls applications.
Intrusion Prevention: Detects and prevents vulnerabilities.
SSL Inspection: Enhances security by inspecting encrypted traffic.

What benefits should be considered when evaluating Fortinet FortiGate?

Affordability: Offers cost-effective security solutions.
Reliability: Known for consistent and stable performance.
Integration: Seamlessly integrates with other Fortinet products.
Comprehensive Protection: Provides broad threat protection capabilities.

Fortinet FortiGate is widely implemented across industries as a primary firewall system for securing internet gateways and safeguarding data centers. It supports businesses in achieving SD-WAN integration and enhances cybersecurity by providing essential features like antivirus, web filtering, and application control. Enterprises utilize FortiGate for securing remote connections and ensuring compliance with security standards, making it adaptable for different network sizes and industries.

Fortinet

Zscaler Cloud IPS enables you to have all threat and alert data in one place. Full user, file and app context is available. Streaming to a SIEM allows further integration into the SOC ecosystem.

The Zscaler Threat Library allows administrators and SOC personnel to drill down on IPS alerts to perform in-depth analysis of threat data within their installation. Search by vulnerability, category or keyword

For more details: https://www.zscaler.com/produc...

Zscaler

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

Zenith Live, Azure, Carlsberg Group

Buyer's Guide

Fortinet FortiGate vs. Zscaler Cloud IPS

March 2026

Free Report: Fortinet FortiGate vs. Zscaler Cloud IPS

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