Fortinet FortiManager vs Zabbix comparison

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Fortinet FortiManager

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Fortinet FortiManager and Zabbix based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Fortinet and others in Network Management Applications.

To learn more, read our detailed Network Management Applications Report (Updated: October 2025).

Network Management Applications

October 2025

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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:

ROI

Sentiment score

6.5

Fortinet FortiManager offers cost savings, enhanced visibility, and strong ROI, despite potential delays with new project deployments.

Sentiment score

7.3

Zabbix, free and open-source, reduces downtime and costs, improving network stability and significant enterprise savings.

Fortinet provides a strong ROI for organizations focused on comprehensive security.

Apaar Bhola

Network Security Engineer/ Firewall Engineer at Charter Communications

The cost has been reduced for us by 24%.

For more quotes and insights, download the Fortinet FortiManager report

Global Head of IT Infrastructure at EPL Americas

No quotes available

For more quotes and insights, download the Zabbix report

Customer Service

Sentiment score

6.8

Fortinet FortiManager support is responsive and helpful but lacks consistency and promptness, with regional differences in expertise noted.

Sentiment score

6.8

Zabbix users praise supportive documentation, community forums, and responsive technical support despite occasional time zone challenges and free version reliance.

Fortinet's support has proven to be reliable, particularly as we've been engaged with them since the project's initiation.

Dhanang K. Wardhana

ICT Project Management Office Manager at PINS

They are responsive and resolve issues quickly when I raise a ticket.

DINESHKUMAR9

Senior Associate at City Union Bank Ltd

Fortinet support is responsive and helpful.

For more quotes and insights, download the Fortinet FortiManager report

Global Head of IT Infrastructure at EPL Americas

It is so straightforward that I have never had to use the support.

For more quotes and insights, download the Zabbix report

CTO at Oic

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score

7.3

Fortinet FortiManager offers scalable, centralized management for diverse devices, excelling in virtual environments and large enterprise networks.

Sentiment score

6.9

Zabbix is highly scalable, excels in diverse environments, but large deployments may require database optimization for efficient performance.

Whenever you are monitoring or managing more than 10 or 20 firewalls, it is evident that you need a single pane of glass, which Fortinet FortiManager is offering.

Global Head of IT Infrastructure at EPL Americas

You can raise the capacity as you go, and there is no limit for hardware.

For more quotes and insights, download the Fortinet FortiManager report

Security Architect at Bouygues Telecom Mobile

The problem is cloud connectivity and roaming profiles are not working, as there is no option for them.

LIJIL PY

Network engineer at JOYALUKKAS

Zabbix is very scalable and lightweight.

For more quotes and insights, download the Zabbix report

CTO at Oic

Zabbix has high scalability.

IgorKabish

CTO at Four Nine Agency

I would rate its scalability ten out of ten.

B Ahmed

Manager, Information Technology Zara & Inditex at Cenomi

Stability Issues

Sentiment score

7.9

Fortinet FortiManager is reliable with occasional minor bugs, requiring updates and good internet or hardware for optimal performance.

Sentiment score

7.5

Zabbix is reliable and resource-efficient, performing well with database tuning and handling heavy workloads without crashing.

I rate the solution's stability ten out of ten.

Juan Frias

CISO at a financial services firm with 1,001-5,000 employees

95% of the time, there are no problems interacting with other devices.

Security Architect at Bouygues Telecom Mobile

It is an absolutely very stable product, and we have not encountered any kind of disruption as far as the product is concerned.

For more quotes and insights, download the Fortinet FortiManager report

Global Head of IT Infrastructure at EPL Americas

Zabbix is very scalable and lightweight.

For more quotes and insights, download the Zabbix report

CTO at Oic

Zabbix is quite stable, and we haven't had any problems with Zabbix itself.

IgorKabish

CTO at Four Nine Agency

Room For Improvement

Fortinet FortiManager needs better support, documentation, integration, user interface, pricing, scalability, traffic monitoring, bug fixes, and feature improvements.

Zabbix users seek improved UI, automation, integration, and customization with enhanced reporting, security, and scalability for non-technical users.

FortiManager is a good tool, but there is a lack of really advanced documentation.

For more quotes and insights, download the Fortinet FortiManager report

Security Architect at Bouygues Telecom Mobile

In such cases, their CPE or other devices on-site may become unreliable, leading to occasional configuration discrepancies.

Dhanang K. Wardhana

ICT Project Management Office Manager at PINS

The graphical user interface could use improvement as it appears complex and not user-friendly.

Anil Gujja

Senior Network Engineer at SP SYSNET PTE. LTD.

The only issue I can note is that it's Linux-based, and Linux documentation is not the best.

For more quotes and insights, download the Zabbix report

CTO at Oic

Setup Cost

Fortinet FortiManager offers competitive and reasonable pricing, with negotiable discounts, making it appealing for scalable network management.

Zabbix is cost-effective and flexible, offering open-source monitoring with no licensing fees, low expenses, and optional support costs.

I hope that the prices will become more competitive in subsequent releases, as the current pricing is perceived as somewhat elevated.

Dhanang K. Wardhana

ICT Project Management Office Manager at PINS

I would rate the price 8 out of 10 with 10 being the most expensive.

Fernando-Navarrete

General Manager/ Owner at Security Parameter

Some competing solutions in the market, like Sophos and SonicWALL, offer lower costs of up to 40 percent.

Azharudheen Parangodath

Network administrator at PISystems

For more quotes and insights, download the Fortinet FortiManager report

It is literally free.

For more quotes and insights, download the Zabbix report

CTO at Oic

Valuable Features

Fortinet FortiManager offers centralized management, automation, scalability, and comprehensive logging, enhancing efficiency and reducing manual effort in network operations.

Zabbix is valued for open-source customization, scalability, comprehensive monitoring, alerting systems, and cost-effective enterprise IT management.

I can automate the installation of configurations using different programming languages like Python or HPE, and it's a GUI solution, so it's pretty easy to use, even for basic users.

For more quotes and insights, download the Fortinet FortiManager report

Security Architect at Bouygues Telecom Mobile

Being able to push consistent firewall rules and configuration changes across multiple FortiGates saves a ton of time and reduces errors compared to managing each device individually.

Apaar Bhola

Network Security Engineer/ Firewall Engineer at Charter Communications

FortiManager captures all devices and provides reports for security analysis.

Anil Gujja

Senior Network Engineer at SP SYSNET PTE. LTD.

If disk usage surpasses a threshold, say 70%, I receive alerts and can take proactive action.

For more quotes and insights, download the Zabbix report

CTO at Oic

Zabbix has a lot of features, including monitoring, status updates, and collecting information telemetry from storages and servers as well.

IgorKabish

CTO at Four Nine Agency

Zabbix is Linux-based open-source software, and the main use case is to reduce costs.

SaurabhYadav5

Network Engineer at Ogma Consulting

Categories and Ranking

Fortinet FortiManager

Average Rating

8.0

Reviews Sentiment

7.0

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Network Management Applications (4th)

Zabbix

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

7.1

Number of Reviews

107

Ranking in other categories

Application Performance Monitoring (APM) and Observability (9th), Network Monitoring Software (1st), Server Monitoring (1st), IT Infrastructure Monitoring (1st), Cloud Monitoring Software (1st)

Mindshare comparison

While both are Network Management solutions, they serve different purposes. Fortinet FortiManager is designed for Network Management Applications and holds a mindshare of 5.0%, up 4.6% compared to last year.
Zabbix, on the other hand, focuses on Network Monitoring Software, holds 11.4% mindshare, up 11.4% since last year.

Network Management Applications Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
Fortinet FortiManager	5.0%
Cisco DNA Center	21.8%
Cisco Catalyst Center	9.9%
Other	63.3%

Network Management Applications

Network Monitoring Software Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
Zabbix	11.4%
SolarWinds NPM	4.4%
LibreNMS	4.4%
Other	79.8%

Network Monitoring Software

Featured Reviews

Ensures seamless integration and centralized visibility for network security operations

Global Head of IT Infrastructure at EPL Americas

The version upgrade from a single dashboard for all the firewalls in one click is the beauty of Fortinet FortiManager as the most impactful feature in managing our network security. Fortinet FortiManager's policy management enhances our security protocols by enabling us and giving integrated centralized visibility, which has proven to be very healthy. Because of this, we have identified some of the vulnerabilities in our systems, and we mitigated them through Fortinet FortiManager. The central dashboards and the visibility are what appealed to us to go with Fortinet FortiManager. Fortinet FortiManager has adapted to changes in our network scale and complexity as we have geographically 18 international locations, all equipped with firewalls and some cybersecurity initiatives and IT infrastructure initiatives.

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B Ahmed

Manager, Information Technology Zara & Inditex at Cenomi

Enables seamless global client monitoring with reliable remote connectivity

I use the solution to provide a perfect environment for remote connectivity with my clients. Many tools that I require for system maintenance are included. I can easily monitor all of my clients throughout the world I did not give much thought to it, however, improvements could be made to Zabbix.…

Read full review

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Comparison Review

it_user174738

IT Developer at a tech services company with 51-200 employees

May 31, 2015

Nagios vs. Zabbix vs. PRTG vs. Spiceworks vs. Solarwinds Network Performance Monitor

I have researched a quite a few network monitoring tools which can be used for various monitoring purposes of not only the servers, but the intermediate routers as well. There are majorly three types of these softwares. Ones which are completely open-source, you can do almost anything you want…

Read full review

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

14%

Financial Services Firm

Manufacturing Company

Comms Service Provider

Computer Software Company

14%

Financial Services Firm

10%

Comms Service Provider

Manufacturing Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	34
Midsize Enterprise	15
Large Enterprise	19

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	53
Midsize Enterprise	23
Large Enterprise	34

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Fortinet FortiManager?

The most valuable feature is the centralized management console.

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

I am satisfied with the licensing cost, and I would rate it an 8.5.

What needs improvement with Fortinet FortiManager?

In future updates, I would like to see more customization and AI integration. We have not actually validated Fortinet FortiManager with AI per se, but we would like to have AI inbuilt in Fortinet p...

What do you like most about Zabbix?

The template system in Zabbix is very beneficial as it saves time in configuration.

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Zabbix?

If you want to save costs, you can use Zabbix.

What needs improvement with Zabbix?

The reporting is lacking because this is an open-source tool, and nowadays, management's expectation is that the reports should be of high quality and every information should be presented in a con...

Fortinet FortiGate Cloud vs Fortinet FortiManager

Comparisons

Compared 68% of the time

Cisco DNA Center vs Fortinet FortiManager

Compared 7% of the time

Fortinet FortiOS vs Fortinet FortiManager

Compared 6% of the time

AlgoSec vs Fortinet FortiManager

Compared 4% of the time

OpenText Network Node Manager vs Fortinet FortiManager

Compared 2% of the time

More Fortinet FortiManager Competitors

Checkmk vs Zabbix

Compared 9% of the time

LibreNMS vs Zabbix

Compared 8% of the time

Icinga vs Zabbix

Compared 6% of the time

NetXMS vs Zabbix

Compared 4% of the time

Centreon vs Zabbix

Compared 4% of the time

More Zabbix Competitors

Product Reports

Download Fortinet FortiManager product report

Fortinet FortiManager

October 2025

Download Zabbix product report

September 2025

Overview

Fortinet FortiManager is used for centralized management of FortiGate firewalls, utilizing zero-touch deployment techniques to optimize configuration and deployment, reducing installation time and errors while improving network security and efficiency.

By centralizing policy management and monitoring across devices and locations, Fortinet FortiManager enhances security and operational efficiency. Automation tools simplify management, control, and consistent configuration across environments. It offers scalability for managing large numbers of devices, beneficial for organizations seeking unified threat protection and streamlined administration from one console. The platform integrates effortlessly with Fortinet products, supporting zero-touch provisioning, SD-WAN, and traffic analysis. Although intuitive, the graphical interface and overall performance require refinement, alongside enhanced support and documentation for troubleshooting and configuration.

What are the key features of Fortinet FortiManager?

Centralized Management: Streamlines device configuration across multiple systems.
Automation Tools: Simplifies implementation and maintenance of configurations.
Zero-Touch Provisioning: Reduces setup time and minimizes errors.
SD-WAN Support: Enhances wide-area network efficiency and effectiveness.
Traffic Analysis: Monitors network traffic for improved security insights.
Policy Pushing: Facilitates efficient deployment of security rules.

What benefits and ROI should users look for in reviews?

Operational Efficiency: Reduces installation time and configuration errors.
Scalability: Supports management of numerous devices.
Improved Security: Centralized management enhances threat protection.
Time Savings: Automation reduces manual intervention needs.
Cost-Effectiveness: Simplified administration can lower management costs.

Fortinet FortiManager is implemented across diverse industries like telecommunications, finance, and healthcare, where centralized management and enhanced security are crucial. Its ability to streamline processes and integrate with existing Fortinet products makes it ideal for organizations looking to maintain robust network security standards.

Fortinet

Zabbix is an open-source monitoring software that provides real-time monitoring and alerting for servers, networks, applications, and services.

It offers a wide range of features including data collection, visualization, and reporting.

With its user-friendly interface and customizable dashboards, Zabbix helps organizations ensure the availability and performance of their IT infrastructure.

Sample Customers

Black Gold Regional Schools, Amadeus Hospitality, Jefferson County, Chunghwa Telecom, City of Boroondara, Dimension Data

1. IBM 2. Dell 3. Cisco 4. HP 5. Oracle 6. Microsoft 7. Amazon 8. Google 9. Facebook 10. Twitter 11. LinkedIn 12. Netflix 13. Adobe 14. VMware 15. Salesforce 16. SAP 17. Intel 18. AT&T 19. Verizon 20. T-Mobile 21. Vodafone 22. Ericsson 23. Nokia 24. Siemens 25. General Electric 26. Honeywell 27. Philips 28. Sony 29. Samsung 30. LG 31. Panasonic 32. Toshiba