Fortinet FortiMail vs IRONSCALES comparison

Fortinet and IRONSCALES are both solutions in the Email Security category. Fortinet is ranked #4 with an average rating of 8.7, while IRONSCALES is ranked #12 with an average rating of 9.2. Fortinet holds a 3.2% mindshare in Email Security, compared to IRONSCALES’s 2.2% mindshare. Additionally, 94% of Fortinet users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of IRONSCALES users who would recommend it.

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 3, 2024

Fortinet FortiMail and IRONSCALES are competitors in the email security category. IRONSCALES seems to have the upper hand in incident response and user convenience due to its advanced AI-driven features and responsive mobile app.

Features: Fortinet FortiMail offers robust spam detection via FortiGuard Antispam Service and supports session-based and application-based filtering. It provides inbound and outbound inspections and DNS blacklist scans. FortiMail integrates seamlessly with FortiGuard for updates and offers deployment in gateway, server, or transparent modes. IRONSCALES excels with AI-driven phishing detection, automated incident responses, and employee awareness training. Its mobile app enhances incident management with on-the-go capabilities.

Room for Improvement: Fortinet FortiMail could enhance its web management interface, offer better third-party integration, and simplify the deployment process. Its encryption features need further development. IRONSCALES could improve its user interface and provide better training modules in multiple languages. Users seek improved customization options for phishing awareness campaigns and more integration capabilities.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Fortinet FortiMail primarily operates on-premises with limited cloud options. Its deployment is complex, particularly for large setups, and support response times are inconsistent. IRONSCALES offers deployments in public, private, and hybrid cloud environments. Users find its support responsive, though the user interface requires improvements.

Pricing and ROI: Fortinet FortiMail is cost-effective for larger organizations due to capacity-based pricing rather than per-user fees. It offers considerable ROI through reduced security breaches. IRONSCALES employs a user-based licensing model and provides good ROI by decreasing manual email analysis time, especially beneficial for high-volume email handlers.

To learn more, read our detailed Fortinet FortiMail vs. IRONSCALES Report (Updated: April 2026).

Buyer's Guide

Fortinet FortiMail vs. IRONSCALES

April 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

Cloudflare One

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2026, in the Email Security category, the mindshare of Cloudflare One is 1.7%, up from 1.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Fortinet FortiMail is 3.2%, down from 4.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of IRONSCALES is 2.2%, up from 1.9% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Email Security Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
Fortinet FortiMail	3.2%
IRONSCALES	2.2%
Cloudflare One	1.7%
Other	92.9%

Email Security

Featured Reviews

Cobe Van Coller

Network Architect at IP Dimension

Cloud security has improved remote access and has reduced costs for smaller client sites

I have used Cloudflare One's Identity-Aware Proxy, and it is quite straightforward from what I have seen so far. The app registration on the Azure side integrates fully into Cloudflare, and I am very satisfied with that part because it is easy to set up. The integration of Cloudflare One's Secure Web Gateway and Zero Trust Network Access works without any issues. That part is pretty automatic, and if you complete the rest of the setup, it comes together by itself with no issues from my side. What makes it nice is that we can actually start replacing on-site firewalls at this stage for the smaller clients because it does not matter if they go to a coffee shop or work from home; they are still secured by the same connection. The hops get shorter and you get better latency. We have done testing to see if it is better. One thing that we did notice with our proof of concept with our current client is that they have people connecting from the UK. When they used their previous VPN solution, uploading CAD drawings and other files to the server took a long time. They mentioned that it is much quicker on Cloudflare One's solution. I definitely believe that is part of the improved performance, and I am satisfied with that as well. What is nice about Cloudflare One is that it makes the setup easier and also easier to train technicians to maintain it. Compared to legacy systems, we do not need to get fancy firewalls in place that are costly. That is definitely also a cost-saver with Cloudflare One.

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Abhimanyu Das

Senior Associate at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees

Targeted email filtering has reduced spam and phishing and now saves significant investigation time

The best features of Fortinet FortiMail include its techniques and tactics, which are highly effective compared to other solutions such as Microsoft 365. Although Fortinet FortiMail may not be as advanced in some aspects, it is well recognized for its strong performance in handling spam and phishing. It performs thorough mail scanning and also offers a sandboxing feature that enhances protection. Fortinet FortiMail has had a positive impact on my organization by significantly reducing unwanted email activities such as spam and phishing. It provides accurate detection and generates results that often exceed what can be achieved through manual analysis. Since deploying Fortinet FortiMail, I have observed a reduction in investigation time by at least 20 to 30 percent.

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reviewer2770017

Email Security Analyst at a computer software company with 51-200 employees

Has improved threat analysis by providing clear email correspondence history and reporting tools

The best features IRONSCALES offers are the investigation tabs, headers, and correspondence history, which stand out the most for me. The investigation tabs are valuable for my work because reporting goes a long way in terms of playbooks and having a full investigation. The investigation tab knows exactly how to put the information in a way that makes it very easy for reports to get done fast. Security awareness training is a big part of IRONSCALES. The platform offers a broad spectrum in terms of what campaigns can be run for security awareness for users as well as reporting back on how users interact with their mails and understanding where the vulnerabilities lie. IRONSCALES has positively impacted my organization by making email security simple in terms of controlling mails, understanding where the threats are, and protecting the organization itself.

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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

"Cloudflare is simple to use."

"Enables me to work from two locations."

"For Cloudflare Access, I am using the free plan...The most valuable feature is their protection."

"The simplicity of the solution is its valuable features as almost no effort was needed to learn the configurations. It is also one of the cheapest firewalls available in this category."

"Cloudflare, in my opinion, was easy to implement."

"We mostly use Cloudflare WAF, and gets basic Cloudflaire DDoS, caching as extra bonus . We like the factor these features are all integrated into 1 console, simple to manage."

"Cloudflare is by far the most effective solution that I have come across."

"Cloudflare One has assisted in securing my remote workforce through a SASE solution with Cloudflare One and the Workers part, although I am not currently using the Workers component."

More Cloudflare One pros

"Fortinet FortiMail's most valuable features are its performance and security."

"Technical support is great. They're available 24/7 and their response time is typically within the hour."

"Fortinet FortiMail is very reliable and stable since the databases are very strong."

"FortiMail effectively filters all emails coming to our mail server, blocking malicious ones automatically."

"The most valuable features of Fortinet FortiMail are its virus outbreak prevention and FortiSandbox integration."

"For now, as per our experience with FortiMail in handling a large number of emails and spams as well, in the past three years, we have been protected and saved from any attacks from the outside."

"The biggest implementation my team has done for Fortinet FortiMail was for more than five thousand people, and the most valuable feature was its anti-spam feature."

"It is a scalable solution."

More Fortinet FortiMail pros

"Their anti-phishing platform is absolutely fantastic. The automated AI piece is amazing, and their technical support is fantastic."

"IRONSCALES has enabled us to spend more time on other activities because it is just install and forget."

"The biggest benefit is that we get fewer phishing and spam emails, so using IRONSCALES has made our environment much safer."

"The most valuable features of the solution are that it is easy to set it up, install, and manage the product."

"IRONSCALES has positively impacted my organization by making email security simple in terms of controlling mails, understanding where the threats are, and protecting the organization itself."

"For me, the mobile app is most valuable. All other features are also very useful, but the mobile app makes it really easy for me to manage on the go. I don't have to be at my desk. I could be at the shops, or it could be in the evening when I am out, and I can get a notification on my phone that there is an incident that has been raised. I can sort it out very quickly without having to be at my work PC."

"The stability is good."

"It has helped immensely because it has gotten rid of malicious links and malicious attachments that have been targeted at our different staff members."

More IRONSCALES pros

Cons

"Our customers no longer use Cloudflare because its service is subpar."

"There are premium tier live service and lower tier live service, so we opted for the lower tier. But there is no medium tier where we pay a little extra and get a bit more service. So if that can be improved."

"Feedback could be enhanced."

"For the topic of improvement, providing some training material is one of my suggestions."

"Lacks a VPN feature to provide a secure connection to the data center."

"The pricing is an area that can be improved. Pricing, as far as I recall, was the source of our problems."

"The free plan has limitations. For example, I can only set up three rules, and the application firewall is unavailable."

"From a logging perspective, it is still a bit difficult to see exactly what users are being blocked with the current views."

More Cloudflare One cons

"The solution is user-friendly to a degree but the dashboard needs improvement."

"I need a stable update in the product that stays for a long time instead of having to deal with frequent updates."

"ortiMail has some latency issues and sometimes takes time to receive emails."

"My company pays around 28.000 Egyptian Pounds per year for this program. It is rather expensive in my opinion."

"There have been instances when Fortinet FortiMail rejects valid emails because some of the service partners of the customer have not been configured accurately, so the system considered valid mails as attacks to be quarantined, so aside from improving the filters, there should also be an improvement in the categorization of emails in the server."

"I don't know if it is possible, but I would like to see Artificial Intelligence and machine learning introduced."

"Header inspection and containerization, like on-prem premises sandboxing, need enhancement."

"I think the security of the product could improve."

More Fortinet FortiMail cons

"There is a feature called Account Takeover, which isn't what I want it to be able to do. I know that they're working on that, but when they first started the Account Takeover feature in incident management, it didn't have much information. It didn't have any usability to it. I already had tools in place that were better."

"As far as training awareness, I would give it 6.5 to 7 out of 10."

"Even though they have been continuously improving it, it is not 100% there. We have had a few incidents where legitimate emails were getting blocked, and we had to manually remove those emails from quarantine. It is 90% effective or accurate because, on rare occasions, some emails from customers were not getting delivered. In one or two instances, their emails got blocked by IRONSCALES, and we had to manually remove the emails from quarantine. I would like them to improve their algorithm to avoid flagging genuine emails as malicious. I would also like to be able to whitelist certain email addresses. I'd love to be able to whitelist a particular customer."

"In addition to integrated training, they should also have personalized training that you don't have to do as part of a phishing campaign or a simulation."

"IRONSCALES should bundle more features together instead of separating them and charging additional licensing fees."

"The user interface could be more attractive to users. The UI is not brightened or appealing."

"The tool supports 15 to 16 languages, but the content it uses in the training in Spanish has certain limitations."

"Its UI could be improved. My pet peeve with a lot of these cloud-based systems is that a lot of times, the interface for the management is a little clunky. If you live and breathe IRONSCALES all day long, you'll obviously know where everything is just from muscle memory, but the system is not designed for people to be in it all day long. You're only supposed to occasionally look at it. When things get moved around, it is not necessarily that intuitive. I'm an IT guy, and I can pretty much take the worst UI and figure it out, but the menus and the options in the interface could be a little cleaner graphically. If you have a quick problem that you want to resolve, it takes a little bit of digging in the admin console, whereas it should take a few clicks up front."

More IRONSCALES cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The pricing of the solution is cheap. The licensing cost is also very low. I rate the cost and pricing a three out of ten."

"My company has to make yearly payments towards the licensing costs attached to the solution. There are no hidden charges apart from the licensing costs of the solution."

"The pricing is somewhere in the middle. I would rate the pricing a seven out of ten."

"The solution's pricing lacks transparency."

"The price tag is no longer $200,000, but rather $300,000 to $400,000. It's twice."

"The solution is not that expensive."

"Cloudflare Zero Trust Platform's pricing is good."

"The prices are slightly expensive."

"The product's licensing part depends on the number of mailboxes and the hard disk needed by customers. The cost of the license depends on the number of mailboxes and the number of emails."

"Fortinet Fortimail has reasonable pricing."

"We paid approximately $30,000 for the solution. It is less expensive than some other solutions. We have one license that carries all the features that we wanted."

"The annual cost is $55,000."

"Fortinet FortiMail has an annual license agreement."

"I have no information on pricing for the competition because right now, my company is working only with Fortinet, but I can say that in general, the price for Fortinet FortiMail was accepted by the customers easily. The POC is also important when a customer is buying a solution. The customer wants to see how the product runs, and as Fortinet FortiMail is a stable product that runs without big issues, it has a bigger chance of getting chosen by customers over its competitors, even if its price may be a little higher. Pricing for the solution is competitive. Sometimes it's less, sometimes it's a little bit higher, but it isn't far from what other solutions charge."

"The pricing is good."

"Compared to its competitors, Fortinet's products are available at a higher price range."

More Fortinet FortiMail pricing and cost advice

"As compared to everything else we looked at, it was good. It was the best value for the dollars."

"The tool is not very cheap, but it is affordable."

"IRONSCALES is an expensive solution."

"Considering the value it provides, it is definitely worth the cost. We don't have to do manual analysis and remediation of phishing emails, which saves us a lot of hours. Its licensing is based on the number of users being supported and the number of email addresses being protected. I'm not aware of any additional costs."

"They are pretty much the same as all the other competitors in the market."

"There is an installation cost. Since we have this as a managed service, we pay for licensing and the managed service itself. Other than that, there are no additional costs."

"We pay $3000 plus a little more a year for the number of employees we have, and we're not even that big. The solution is at the higher end in terms of cost. It's not the most expensive product, but I would say it's worth the price if you have a high volume of email traffic. In our case, the solution has inspected over 162,000 emails between three and four months. It saved us a lot of time and money. It's a worthwhile investment because a bad actor only has to succeed once; we must defend against everything in our business. IRONSCALES offers a sense of security and confidence from being well protected."

"The product is available as a middle-priced tool. I think it is not the cheapest solution."

More IRONSCALES pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Construction Company

20%

Comms Service Provider

11%

Financial Services Firm

Manufacturing Company

Computer Software Company

Financial Services Firm

Manufacturing Company

Construction Company

Computer Software Company

16%

Manufacturing Company

Construction Company

Comms Service Provider

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	10
Midsize Enterprise	1
Large Enterprise	12

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	32
Midsize Enterprise	23
Large Enterprise	15

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	7
Midsize Enterprise	4
Large Enterprise	4

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with Cloudflare Access?

Cloudflare Access has strong integration with Microsoft, among other platforms. However, when it comes to Kaspersky, ...

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What is your primary use case for Cloudflare Access?

Cloudflare Access provides secure access to internal applications for employees, external members of the organization...

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What advice do you have for others considering Cloudflare Access?

Cloudflare Access is one of the best integrations available. While about two hundred vendors offer similar services, ...

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Fortinet FortiMail?

The setup cost is a little bit costly.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Fortinet FortiMail?

I think they should improve Fortinet FortiMail on-premises by enhancing its user interface. Additional features they ...

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What is your primary use case for Fortinet FortiMail?

I do have a partnership with Fortinet. I have been both a partner and reseller.

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IRONSCALES?

While I don't specifically oversee the pricing details, I understand that IRONSCALES is in the range of similar solut...

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What needs improvement with IRONSCALES?

I would really prefer to drill down more on correspondence history. It provides detailed background information to ac...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for IRONSCALES?

My main use case for IRONSCALES is the UI and the convenience of having detailed information available to me. A speci...

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Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Cloudflare One

May 2026

Download Cloudflare One product report

Buyer's Guide

Fortinet FortiMail

May 2026

Download Fortinet FortiMail product report

Buyer's Guide

IRONSCALES

May 2026

Download IRONSCALES product report

Also Known As

Cloudflare Area 1 Email Security, Cloudflare Bot Management, Cloudflare Gateway, Cloudflare Zero Trust Platform, Cloudflare DDoS, Cloudflare SASE & SSE Platform

FortiMail

No data available

Overview

Cloudflare One is a comprehensive platform for security, performance, and connectivity. It provides features like rate limiting, DDoS protection, and application access, tailored to enhance user experience while securing internet access and accelerating communications.

Designed to integrate security measures with ease of use and scalability, Cloudflare One offers a secure web gateway and zero trust network access. These features ensure seamless setup and operation, making connectivity reliable and protected. Users appreciate its integrated console, intuitive interface, and the ability to manage risk effectively. It offers straightforward deployment, improves latency, and boasts cost-effectiveness. While its onboarding process and documentation need enhancement, its value in content delivery and application shielding is notable. Despite challenges in integrating Cloudflare Access with existing VPNs and the need for better automation and support, it remains vital for DNS and infrastructure protection.

What features make Cloudflare One stand out?

Rate Limiting: Controls the traffic rate to prevent abuse.
DDoS Protection: Shields applications from distributed denial-of-service attacks.
Secure Web Gateway: Provides secure internet access with seamless operation.
Zero Trust Network Access: Ensures secure, application-based connectivity without relying on traditional VPNs.
Access for Connectivity: Facilitates access to internal applications securely.

What benefits should users look for in reviews?

Security: Robust measures for DNS and browsing protection.
Performance: Enhanced site accessibility and communication speed.
Cost-Effectiveness: Offers competitive pricing for its features.
Ease of Deployment: Straightforward and efficient setup process.

In industries like finance, retail, and technology, Cloudflare One is crucial for enabling secure remote access and protecting web applications against dynamic threats. It supports compliance access policies and enhances content delivery, playing a key role in safeguarding digital infrastructure.

Cloudflare

Fortinet FortiMail is a robust email security platform offering anti-spam, antivirus, and anti-phishing capabilities. It integrates with Fortinet products to ensure seamless protection against email threats in on-premises, cloud, and hybrid environments, enhancing secure communication for businesses.

Fortinet FortiMail is designed to protect against a range of email threats including spam, phishing, and malware, ensuring email safety for organizations. It operates as both a gateway and server, allowing for secure filtering of incoming and outgoing emails. The integration with Fortinet’s suite of security tools provides a comprehensive approach to managing threats effectively, while user-friendly interfaces and detailed reporting systems aid in threat monitoring and management. Frequent updates are implemented, though scalability and web console enhancements are necessary for improved performance.

What are the key features of Fortinet FortiMail?

Anti-Spam: Provides reliable filtering to block unwanted emails.
Antivirus: Ensures protection against harmful viruses.
Anti-Phishing: Prevents phishing attempts through advanced detection.
Sandboxing: Enhances threat detection to manage email security efficiently.
Integration: Seamlessly works with other Fortinet products for unified security.

What benefits should users expect from Fortinet FortiMail?

Comprehensive Security: Offers robust protection against multiple email threats.
Ease of Use: Features a user-friendly interface for better accessibility.
Detailed Reporting: Provides insights into threat management activities.
Reliable Performance: Delivers consistent updates for maintaining email protection.

Fortinet FortiMail is implemented by companies across industries seeking to secure their email communications. In healthcare, it protects sensitive patient information, while in finance, it safeguards transactional data against phishing attacks. Retailers utilize FortiMail to prevent data breaches from fraudulent emails, demonstrating its versatility in diverse sectors.

Fortinet

IRONSCALES delivers cutting-edge AI-driven email phishing detection and prevention, seamlessly integrating with Microsoft 365 for enhanced security.

IRONSCALES, with its advanced AI capabilities, focuses on email security by detecting phishing threats, mitigating business email compromises, and preventing impersonation. Its integration with Microsoft 365 strengthens spam filters, automatically responding to suspicious emails. The platform is used globally for threat inspection, quarantine, and end-user incident reporting. Staff training is enhanced through simulated phishing campaigns, offering an extra layer of protection beyond Microsoft's spam filters. Areas for improvement include better Google Suite integration, pricing adjustments, and enhanced reporting features.

What features make IRONSCALES stand out?

AI Phishing Detection: Advanced algorithms for identifying phishing threats.
Microsoft 365 Integration: Seamless enhancement of email security within Microsoft systems.
Mobile App: Manage email threats on the go.
Anti-Phishing Training: Simulated campaigns for staff education.
Multi-Organization Management: Centralized administration for multiple entities.

What benefits and ROI should you consider?

Time-Saving: Automated detection and response to threats improve efficiency.
Comprehensive Security: Offers an additional protection layer beyond standard spam filters.
Ease of Use: Intuitive integration and user-friendly design streamline operations.
Risk Reduction: Minimizes potential email security breaches through proactive threat management.

In finance, IRONSCALES plays an essential role in safeguarding sensitive data from phishing attacks, ensuring compliance with industry standards. Educational institutions use IRONSCALES for training faculty and students on recognizing phishing attempts, thereby enhancing overall cybersecurity awareness. IT sectors leverage its capabilities for managing complex threat landscapes.

IRONSCALES

Sample Customers

23andMe

Magromer Cueros y Pieles S.A.

Allegheny Millwork, Ayrshire College, Nium, Orris, Paramount School District, Pres Les, PRT Staffing, Recovery Unplugged, Telit, WebHelp

Buyer's Guide

Fortinet FortiMail vs. IRONSCALES

April 2026

Free Report: Fortinet FortiMail vs. IRONSCALES

Find out what your peers are saying about Fortinet FortiMail vs. IRONSCALES and other solutions. Updated: April 2026.

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