Hillstone CloudEdge vs Palo Alto Networks PA-Series comparison

Hillstone Networks and Palo Alto Networks are both solutions in the Firewalls category. Hillstone Networks is ranked #54, while Palo Alto Networks is ranked #17 with an average rating of 8.6. Hillstone Networks holds a 0.1% mindshare in Firewalls, compared to Palo Alto Networks’s 1.0% mindshare. Additionally, 100% of Hillstone Networks users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of Palo Alto Networks users who would recommend it.

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Hillstone CloudEdge and Palo Alto Networks PA-Series based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out in this report how the two Firewalls solutions compare in terms of features, pricing, service and support, easy of deployment, and ROI.

To learn more, read our detailed Hillstone CloudEdge vs. Palo Alto Networks PA-Series Report (Updated: December 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Hillstone CloudEdge vs. Palo Alto Networks PA-Series

December 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:

Categories and Ranking

Fortinet FortiGate

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the Firewalls category, the mindshare of Fortinet FortiGate is 18.8%, down from 20.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Hillstone CloudEdge is 0.1%, up from 0.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Palo Alto Networks PA-Series is 1.0%, up from 0.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Firewalls Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
Fortinet FortiGate	18.8%
Palo Alto Networks PA-Series	1.0%
Hillstone CloudEdge	0.1%
Other	80.1%

Firewalls

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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Albert-Wang

Technical Consultant at SiS Technologies

Comprehensive cloud security with robust threat protection and VPN capabilities

Hillstone CloudEdge is compatible with all the mainstream public cloud providers, such as AWS, Microsoft Azure, and Alibaba Cloud. This solution has a unified OS system for security products, ensuring that the virtual firewall has similar features to the on-premise solutions. Important features include a VPN, VTech VPN, SSL VPN, QoS, antivirus, threat protection, and sandbox capabilities.

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Kevin Burgess

Global Network Engineering Technical Lead at a healthcare company with 5,001-10,000 employees

Has provided strong edge protection and advanced threat visibility while reducing manual effort

Some of the best features of this firewall are flexibility, overall depth of security analysis, and ease of use. I use application-based traffic classification. It has helped reduce my attack surface considerably; it's much better than simply doing a port-based analysis. The usefulness of machine learning algorithms in identifying threats with Palo Alto Networks PA-Series is mostly behind the scenes; we subscribe to the threat analysis, so we don't see too much. It does perform some in-depth analysis, but most of the machine learning features operate on the back end, more than what we would see. Integrated threat intelligence has empowered my organization to adapt to threats by taking a lot of the burden off us; there's just no way we would see the same breadth of knowledge that a vendor or manufacturer would have. They're gathering data from all over the world, and we're going to see what we get hit with, but now we're seeing what everybody else is getting hit with.

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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

"Fortinet FortiGate has positively impacted our organization by providing stronger network security as it's a next-generation firewall, blocking known threats and vulnerabilities in real-time, detecting and controlling thousands of applications, scanning encrypted traffic, and improving VPN and remote access through automated failover and intelligent routing protocols like BGP over IPsec VPN."

"You have access to CLI in case you have no web access."

"The most valuable feature of Fortinet FortiGate is the simple configuration."

"The product's most valuable features are SD-WAN and the integration of WiFi and switches."

"The centralized management allowed us to manage 50 devices effectively, which I found better than Cisco."

"It's great for capturing the traffic and troubleshooting it."

"The product is easy to configure."

"Fortinet FortiGate has a very simple configuration, is easy to set up, and includes SD-WAN features at no additional cost."

More Fortinet FortiGate pros

"I'd rate the solution nine out of ten."

"The solution is very easy to download and configure. The initial setup was very easy. The technical support is very good."

"Hillstone CloudEdge is compatible with all the mainstream public cloud providers, such as AWS, Microsoft Azure, and Alibaba Cloud."

"It is a scalable solution."

"A valuable feature that we can consider is the deployment time, which is significantly reduced. It is almost 90% faster compared to other solutions."

"The solution provides good customer support."

"I rate the stability as ten out of ten."

"The solution is easy to manage."

"Comprehensive logging is essential for monitoring and analysis purposes. For remote users, the firewall can be configured as a VPN concentrator, with VPN policies defined within the firewall settings."

"It is scalable. But that depends on what model you are using."

"It is a stable solution. Stability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten."

More Palo Alto Networks PA-Series pros

Cons

"The logging details need to be improved."

"We would like to see better pricing."

"FortiGate IPS is somewhat pricey compared to other solutions. There is also room for improvement in terms of the radio signals. The FortiGate WiFi has a relatively short range. I've found there is a lag in its zero-day malware response that could be better, and FortiGate could integrate better with other brands of equipment or identity management solutions."

"I often ask for help from the local provider. I haven't found the required efficient help."

"It is stable, but its stability can be improved."

"Deploying FortiGate is hard."

"We would like to have the ability to disable some of the security functionalities."

"The support package being an additional extra, even with an enterprise package purchase, is pathetic. Though I haven't had direct experience with support, the fact that it doesn't come by default, which is very misleading compared to other brands, warrants a rating of two out of ten."

More Fortinet FortiGate cons

"The solution needs more granular level reporting on system usage."

"There is room for improvement in AI features, particularly for zero-day attacks and providing maintenance guidance."

"Palo Alto can improve the web application firewall (WAF) feature at layer 7."

"The web interface is slow."

"I have found that the tool works well for me, but there are areas where security testing and protection could be improved, especially in virtual or cloud environments. However, in this project, once we deployed it, we haven't encountered any issues. The cost is currently manageable, but as we migrate fully into the cloud, additional features like capacity upgrading and improvements to hardware resources will be necessary, especially since our equipment consists of older generation switches and routers. So, I'm looking for additional capabilities in these areas."

"I had opened a case before with the tool because I could not create a wildcard for the security address. We can create wildcards for security addresses in Fortinet, but this feature doesn't exist in the product."

"The UI definitely needs work. In my opinion, the UI could be simpler and more user-friendly for the average user."

"The solution’s pricing could be improved because it is an expensive solution."

"The product's high prices are an area of concern where improvements are required."

"Currently, they are not protected with any data security when they work from home or outside the network. They surf the Internet directly and should implement a proxy or firewall to monitor the data between the endpoint and the internet."

More Palo Alto Networks PA-Series cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"When comparing the price of Fortinet FortiGate SWG to other solutions it is expensive. The price could be better."

"There is a license to use Fortinet FortiGate."

"When you look at these end security systems and firewalls, these firewalls even five years ago were $50,000 or perhaps $25,000 to implement in some types of customer sites. Now we're talking about tools that are $1,000. In this case, it might have been $500 or something like that."

"I rate the pricing an eight and a half on a scale of one to ten, where one is low, and ten is high."

"Fortinet FortiGate allows you to purchase licenses for hardware and software."

"Fortinet FortiGate has different licensing models, depending on what you're going to do. Services included would depend on the license model. Licenses can be renewed annually."

"The pricing is very reasonable."

"The price of Fortinet FortiGate could improve, it is expensive."

More Fortinet FortiGate pricing and cost advice

Information not available

"It is a very expensive solution."

"The product is expensive."

"Compared to other vendors, Palo Alto Networks PA-Series is expensive."

"The pricing is a bit on the higher side."

"With Palo Alto, even when you enable all the modules, it still provides the exact throughput they advertise."

"The solution's pricing is high compared to that of Cisco and Fortinet."

"The cost varies depending on the device model, with entry-level firewalls priced around $1,300 to $1,500, while higher-end models can reach prices of several hundred thousand dollars."

"The pricing is fair."

More Palo Alto Networks PA-Series pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

12%

Comms Service Provider

Manufacturing Company

Financial Services Firm

No data available

Computer Software Company

10%

Manufacturing Company

Government

Comms Service Provider

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	357
Midsize Enterprise	133
Large Enterprise	188

No data available

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	13
Midsize Enterprise	5
Large Enterprise	15

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...

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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...

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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 ...

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What needs improvement with Hillstone CloudEdge?

There is room for improvement in AI features, particularly for zero-day attacks and providing maintenance guidance. M...

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What is your primary use case for Hillstone CloudEdge?

Our primary use case is to provide cloud-based security solutions for customers using public cloud platforms. We dist...

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What advice do you have for others considering Hillstone CloudEdge?

I'd rate the solution nine out of ten.

See all answers

What do you like most about Palo Alto Networks PA-Series?

The reporting feature and application ID functionality within Palo Alto Networks PA-Series are incredibly valuable to...

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Palo Alto Networks PA-Series?

Regarding value for money, we brought this Palo Alto Networks PA-Series firewall last month, and we have taken up to ...

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What needs improvement with Palo Alto Networks PA-Series?

The areas that could be improved with Palo Alto Networks PA-Series include price. My experience with the price of the...

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Comparisons

Sophos Firewall vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 20% of the time

Cisco Secure Firewall vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 13% of the time

Netgate pfSense vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 6% of the time

OPNsense vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 3% of the time

Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 3% of the time

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Netgate pfSense vs Hillstone CloudEdge

Compared 100% of the time

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Sophos Firewall vs Palo Alto Networks PA-Series

Compared 12% of the time

OPNsense vs Palo Alto Networks PA-Series

Compared 10% of the time

Juniper SRX Series Firewall vs Palo Alto Networks PA-Series

Compared 9% of the time

Check Point Quantum Force vs Palo Alto Networks PA-Series

Compared 8% of the time

Cisco Meraki MX vs Palo Alto Networks PA-Series

Compared 6% of the time

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Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Fortinet FortiGate

January 2026

Download Fortinet FortiGate product report

Buyer's Guide

Firewalls

January 2026

Download Hillstone CloudEdge product report

Buyer's Guide

Palo Alto Networks PA-Series

January 2026

Download Palo Alto Networks PA-Series 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

Hillstone Virtual Next-Generation Firewall, CloudEdge, embedded with the Hillstone Networks StoneOS operation system, is deployed as a virtual machine, and provides advanced security services for applications and users in any virtualized environment. It provides comprehensive security features including granular application identification and control, VPN, intrusion prevention, anti-virus, attack defense and cloud-sandbox to fully keep a business secure and operational. It provides price- performance solutions for both public and private cloud customers, and can be rapidly provisioned and deployed at scale.

Hillstone Networks

Palo Alto Networks PA-Series is essential for firewall implementation, perimeter defense, securing infrastructure boundaries, web filtering, VPN, and threat prevention. Organizations deploy it for secure cloud connections, internet security, and managing network devices.

Companies trust Palo Alto Networks PA-Series to protect corporate networks from external threats, control traffic between networks, and meet regulatory compliance. Integrating well with applications, it offers centralized management and advanced security features such as IDS, IPS, and GlobalProtect. It ensures stable performance, application-based policy enforcement, and decryption of SSL traffic while providing efficient resource usage and comprehensive logging.

What are the key features?

Stability: Reliable performance for continuous protection.
App-ID: Application-based policy enforcement.
URL Filtering: Prevents access to malicious websites.
Security Controls: Comprehensive threat prevention mechanisms.
User-Friendly Interface: Simplifies management and operations.
Efficient Resource Usage: Optimized for minimal resource consumption.
Reporting: Detailed logs and analytics for better insights.
Antivirus: Protects against malware and viruses.
WildFire: Advanced threat prevention with machine learning AI.
Protocol Anomaly Detection: Identifies unusual network behavior.
SSL Decryption: Ensures secure traffic inspection.
Encryption: Safeguards sensitive data.
VPN Capabilities: Secure remote access for users.
Active Directory Integration: Streamlines user authentication.
Quality of Service (QoS): Manages network traffic efficiently.

What benefits should be evaluated?

Enhanced Security: Superior threat prevention and detection.
Centralized Management: Streamlined control of network devices.
Regulatory Compliance: Assists in meeting legal requirements.
Operational Efficiency: Reduced resource usage and downtime.
Comprehensive Reporting: Complete visibility into network activities.
Scalability: Adapts to growing network demands.
User Accessibility: Simplifies secure access for remote employees.

Palo Alto Networks PA-Series is implemented across industries like healthcare, finance, retail, and manufacturing. In healthcare, it ensures patient data protection and compliance with HIPAA. Financial institutions utilize it to secure transactions and meet regulatory standards. Retailers benefit from protecting customer information and securing online payments. Manufacturing companies deploy it to safeguard intellectual property and control plant floor operations.

Palo Alto Networks

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

LinkTime

Information Not Available

Buyer's Guide

Hillstone CloudEdge vs. Palo Alto Networks PA-Series

December 2025

Free Report: Hillstone CloudEdge vs. Palo Alto Networks PA-Series

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