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Fortinet FortiMail vs Sophos Email comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 3, 2024

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
6.4
Fortinet FortiMail enhances email security with cost savings, reduced spam, efficient management, robust features, and improved productivity.
Sentiment score
5.8
Sophos Email delivers cost savings, enhanced security, reduces workload, and is crucial for government contractors, proving valuable and efficient.
It offers cost savings compared to Cisco, which was very expensive.
System admin at Environment Fund
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
6.5
Fortinet FortiMail support is praised for responsiveness and expertise but criticized for variability based on region and tier.
Sentiment score
6.9
Sophos Email support is generally competent with multiple contact options but can be slow for complex issues.
I have direct communication with Kenyan system engineers and local support in Ethiopia, enabling good support.
CTO at Malam Engineering PLC
Mainly, they are focusing on Fortinet FortiMail and FortiAnalyzer, where the support engineers are very good.
Head of the IT Security Division at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
Fortinet's technical support offers high-quality support.
System admin at Environment Fund
When I reported a problem with our firewall, they acted promptly and delivered another piece of equipment.
Network and Infrastructure Manager at Sonysugar
The technical support from Sophos Email deserves a rating of 10 out of 10.
Technical Head at a tech services company with 51-200 employees
After-sales support for Sophos is very good.
Founder at Computech infosysetm
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.1
Fortinet FortiMail is scalable for various environments, suitable for mid-sized to enterprise users with virtual and on-premise options.
Sentiment score
7.5
Sophos Email is scalable for various business sizes, though some encounter technical and licensing challenges despite its strong performance.
The scalability of Fortinet FortiMail depends on whether you are buying a virtualized license, which allows for a scalable pay-as-you-go model, or if you are buying a box.
Head of the IT Security Division at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
Fortinet FortiMail is scalable and can be expanded in large environments.
Senior Cybersecurity Engineer at Kyndryl
It can go up to around fifty thousand users or something that can be accommodated in one tenant.
Director at a tech services company with 1-10 employees
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
8.3
Fortinet FortiMail is highly rated for stability, reliability, effective spam handling, and seamless integration, requiring minimal fine-tuning.
Sentiment score
7.9
Sophos Email is highly stable and reliable, with minimal downtime, though occasional legitimate email quarantines are noted.
This stability is consistent across Fortinet products, including FortiGate firewall.
CTO at Malam Engineering PLC
I've had more than a 99.5% uptime rate.
Director at a tech services company with 1-10 employees
 

Room For Improvement

Fortinet FortiMail requires interface refinement, improved features, better documentation, and enhanced integration with advanced threat detection and Fortinet’s ecosystem.
Sophos Email struggles with usability, security, pricing, and support, with users seeking enhanced features and competitive pricing.
Providing comprehensive documentation on how to deploy and configure would improve the solution.
CTO at Malam Engineering PLC
The transition from on-premises devices to virtual appliances may be necessary as more organizations migrate email services to the cloud.
Head of computer systems at Indian Institute of Space Science & Technology(IIST)
There are also false positives issues, especially with signed PDF attachments.
Senior Cybersecurity Engineer at Kyndryl
Sophos Email does not work with split delivery.
Operations Technical Lead at IT Supporters
The main competitor for Sophos in the market is Palo Alto, which has reduced their price by more than 35 to 40%, making it a very challenging part to sell this product.
Founder at Computech infosysetm
Some existing functionality in the product needs better articulation in how data is displayed.
Director at a tech services company with 1-10 employees
 

Setup Cost

Fortinet FortiMail offers competitive appliance-based pricing, with flexibility and reliability, though higher than open-source alternatives.
Sophos Email provides cost-effective subscription plans with discounts for annual or bulk purchases, though opinions on pricing vary.
Fortinet FortiMail is considered overpriced by Indian rupee standards.
Head of computer systems at Indian Institute of Space Science & Technology(IIST)
The setup cost is a little bit costly.
Senior Cybersecurity Engineer at Kyndryl
Sophos Email pricing is a bit high, especially since I purchase through a partner, and they sell it at a higher price since they also seek to make a profit.
Network and Infrastructure Manager at Sonysugar
 

Valuable Features

Fortinet FortiMail provides strong security, usability, scalability, and performance for email threat detection and content control in diverse environments.
Sophos Email delivers robust email security with AI integration, intuitive spam detection, and seamless integration with Office 365 and Google Workspace.
Its threat detection capabilities have been beneficial.
System admin at Environment Fund
The most valuable features are Fortinet FortiMail's ability to protect from advanced features of email-based attacks, including protection against ransomware and malware attacks.
CTO at Malam Engineering PLC
Fortinet FortiMail offers capabilities like settings for mail delivery, mail filtering, spam controls, and email bursting prevention.
Head of computer systems at Indian Institute of Space Science & Technology(IIST)
It provides a defense layer for email protection, scanning every incoming and outbound email for malware and spam.
Operations Technical Lead at IT Supporters
Sophos already has Sandbox, and if any issues are identified, Sophos blocks that particular mail and site instantly, which is why customers are very happy and safe from other attacks.
Founder at Computech infosysetm
XDR stands for extended detection and response, and it's a technology where the system automatically exchanges security signals between the endpoint, the email, and other similar products of the same brand.
Director at a tech services company with 1-10 employees
 

Categories and Ranking

Fortinet FortiMail
Ranking in Email Security
5th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
68
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Sophos Email
Ranking in Email Security
14th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
35
Ranking in other categories
Office 365 Protection (3rd)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2026, in the Email Security category, the mindshare of Fortinet FortiMail is 2.7%, down from 4.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Sophos Email is 1.6%, down from 1.9% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Email Security Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Fortinet FortiMail2.7%
Sophos Email1.6%
Other95.7%
Email Security
 

Featured Reviews

Abhimanyu Das - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Cybersecurity Engineer at Kyndryl
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.
ManojNair2 - PeerSpot reviewer
Director at a tech services company with 1-10 employees
Comprehensive detection has protected email traffic and now simplifies endpoint security work
Sophos Email security is the primary product I use. It scans all your inbound and outbound email for malware. It also has a capability for looking for phishing and spear phishing content and blocking it. Email has an extended capability that includes what's called a secure web gateway. All user traffic gets managed through that, making it a combination product. The version of the product you run determines which features are available. Reporting is competent. There is scope for more improvements, which they will do as they do every year regularly. They keep updating the product. Reporting gives you the relevant details of what is happening, so it's mature on that front. The main benefit is security for your email. The beauty of the Sophos system is that the XDR functionality runs across the system. Sophos, Trend Micro, and Microsoft are the only three that have a very strong system with this concept. XDR stands for extended detection and response, and it's a technology where the system automatically exchanges security signals between the endpoint, the email, and other similar products of the same brand. If you have Sophos Endpoint and Sophos Email, you have very good connectivity from the endpoint to the cloud at the email level and to some extent onto the browsing traffic. You have a very rounded security aspect.
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909,725 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Construction Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Computer Software Company
8%
Outsourcing Company
12%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Construction Company
8%
Manufacturing Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business32
Midsize Enterprise23
Large Enterprise15
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business27
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise5
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with Fortinet FortiMail?
I think they should improve Fortinet FortiMail on-premises by enhancing its user interface. Additional features they could have in the future would include advanced analytics capabilities. I do thi...
What is your primary use case for Fortinet FortiMail?
I do have a partnership with Fortinet. I have been both a partner and reseller.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Sophos Email?
Regarding Sophos Email pricing, I would rate it between six or seven out of ten.
What needs improvement with Sophos Email?
Some existing functionality in the product needs better articulation in how data is displayed. In one place there is data, but the way the data should be shown is not being shown right now. I have ...
What is your primary use case for Sophos Email?
I work on the endpoints. I work on endpoint, email, and firewall. Email, I use it on my personal domain, so I know what it does.
 

Also Known As

FortiMail
Sophos Email Security
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Magromer Cueros y Pieles S.A.
Del Monte Foods, Terra Verde, spicerhaart, RIVERLITE, Dataprise, SureBridge, Reed's School, Sayfol International School
Find out what your peers are saying about Fortinet FortiMail vs. Sophos Email and other solutions. Updated: August 2026.
909,725 professionals have used our research since 2012.