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Hillstone CloudEdge vs WatchGuard Firebox comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Feb 15, 2026

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
Sponsored
Ranking in Firewalls
1st
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
592
Ranking in other categories
Secure Web Gateways (SWG) (2nd), Intrusion Detection and Prevention Software (IDPS) (1st), Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions (1st), WAN Edge (1st), ZTNA (1st), Unified Threat Management (UTM) (1st)
Hillstone CloudEdge
Ranking in Firewalls
49th
Average Rating
10.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.8
Number of Reviews
2
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
WatchGuard Firebox
Ranking in Firewalls
9th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
135
Ranking in other categories
Data Loss Prevention (DLP) (11th), Intrusion Detection and Prevention Software (IDPS) (4th), Anti-Malware Tools (6th), Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) (13th), Application Control (3rd), Unified Threat Management (UTM) (3rd)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2026, in the Firewalls category, the mindshare of Fortinet FortiGate is 15.1%, down from 21.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Hillstone CloudEdge is 0.4%, up from 0.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of WatchGuard Firebox is 2.1%, down from 3.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Firewalls Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Fortinet FortiGate15.1%
WatchGuard Firebox2.1%
Hillstone CloudEdge0.4%
Other82.4%
Firewalls
 

Featured Reviews

Vasu Gala - PeerSpot reviewer
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.
Albert-Wang - PeerSpot reviewer
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.
Abhishek Saini - PeerSpot reviewer
Professional Services Engineer at Nex7 IT
Centralized security management has improved VPN reliability and simplified daily operations
WatchGuard Firebox is a strong and reliable platform overall, but there are a few areas where improvements could make the experience even better. One area is the user interface and navigation in some management tools. While the platform is powerful, certain configurations and troubleshooting workflows can feel less intuitive compared to some newer cloud-native firewall platforms. Another point is reporting and log analysis. Although the logging features are very useful, deeper analytics and more customizable reporting dashboards would make security monitoring much more effective. Firmware upgrades and policy synchronization can sometimes require careful planning to avoid security interruptions. Overall, the core security and VPN functionality are very solid, but improving usability, reporting, and automation would make the platform even stronger. One area that could be improved is the learning curve for new administrators. While experienced engineers can work with the platform effectively, some advanced networking and security configurations can be a bit complex for junior technicians. More guided configuration workflows, smarter recommendations, and simplified troubleshooting tools would make onboarding easier. Another improvement would be more flexible reporting customization for executive-level and client-facing reports.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Our clients definitely get a return on investment; it is a really good product, and the stability of the product is a very important factor for our clients."
"The performance is very good and the solution is simple to manage."
"The setup is easy."
"Fortinet FortiGate is a firewall that protects all network data."
"The most valuable features of Fortinet FortiGate are the rules and quality of service."
"The solution is stable."
"Because of the flexibility, the advanced user features, the high level of security controls, and the tweaks that are available for the user, I would rate this solution an eight out of ten."
"The secure web gateway module and the application control module are valuable. HA operations are very easy."
"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."
"I would recommend this product to any business that wants to protect its cloud environment, cloud server, or on-premises virtual servers."
"I'd rate the solution nine out of ten."
"I like the High Availability features of the newest ones I'm using because they allow a firewall to fail and still be up and running."
"It's very easy to use and provides good security."
"The reporting aspect of the solution is what is most valuable to us."
"WatchGuard Firebox has improved our organization one hundred percent from before we started using it."
"Management and visibility are the most valuable features."
"One of my favorite features is the Geolocation service, where you can actually block specific activity or IP addresses registered to certain countries. For example, I don't want any web traffic from Russia or North Korea. I may even lock down certain policies down to 'I only want U.S. IP addresses.' I find that very useful."
"After conducting several tests I found the antivirus is working very well. Additionally, they have a very interesting feature, DNS WatchGuard, which is checking DNS requests for phishing, among other things, and it has caught a lot of unwanted attempts and attacks."
"The most valuable feature of WatchGuard Firebox is the VPN. It's easy to connect to the VPN."
 

Cons

"I have faced challenges related to support, as I have encountered issues where support engineers are not aligned within the time frame, and sometimes they request multiple logs unnecessarily, causing delays and leaving a bad impression on my end users."
"The FortiGate series does not have that much troubleshooting and network testing features in its GUI, hence we’ll definitely be looking for some add-on features in near future."
"Deploying FortiGate is hard."
"The solution could be more evenly structured and I'd like to see orchestration in the calls included."
"In their IPS Web Security Gateway, the reporting functions need to be a little bit more user-friendly for how to get the reports from it."
"It would be good if they had fewer updates."
"Though the tool's GUI is user-friendly, it can be considered as an area with certain shortcomings where improvements are required."
"It does not have key authentication for admin access."
"There is room for improvement in AI features, particularly for zero-day attacks and providing maintenance guidance."
"The solution needs more granular level reporting on system usage."
"WatchGuard Firebox could improve the speed of updates, such as new features or improvements. However, they are frequently improving the solution in many areas, such as geo-locations, definitions, and web blocking."
"Like any other firewall, if it goes down, it's going to cause problems but these don't go down."
"Make WatchGuard Firebox capable of integrating with third-party vendors like FireMon, Splunk, Tenable, etc."
"The product can improve in terms of layout to provide easier access and viewing to users, especially for the reports."
"When working with WatchGuard, specifically in configuring Panda Security on the portal for the first time, it was challenging for me."
"Its documentation could be improved. Sometimes, you need to search a bit longer to find what you are looking for."
"The level of support from WatchGuard is not as good."
"In WatchGuard Firebox, the antivirus and malware detection systems are areas with shortcomings that require improvement since they are the most important elements of a cybersecurity tool."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"At the time we bought them, I was satisfied with their pricing; I don't know how the new pricing will be."
"It is more affordable than Check Point and Palo Alto. Another thing is that all the features and the OS remain the same irrespective of the size of the device. Pricing-wise, Fortinet typically provides one-year support with the firewall appliance. There is also an option for three years which is how their licensing works."
"Work through partners for the best pricing."
"My experience with the pricing, setup cost, and licensing for Fortinet FortiGate is quite good. I don't have a public site, such as in Azure, where I can see the pricing. I always have to go through the distributor, and that could take some time to get the real price for each appliance."
"The price of Fortinet FortiGate is reasonable for an SME."
"The price of the license and warranty can be better because it is very expensive."
"Its pricing is fine. It is on a yearly basis. Other than the licensing fee, there is no extra fee."
"The price is highly competitive when compared to other brands that offer similar functionality."
Information not available
"The pricing was in line with everyone else; maybe slightly higher."
"The cost was somewhere in the vicinity of $2,000 to $3,000 for each one..."
"The price of WatchGuard is very good."
"It's an affordable tool"
"For what we use, the tool's price has been reasonable, but it is not the cheapest. The tool has been quite reasonable."
"Its cost is okay. It is not too expensive, not too low. I would rate it a nine out of ten in terms of pricing."
"Over the years, the costs have increased, especially since I cater to very small businesses."
"It's in the medium range. Its price is pretty good considering the functions and add-ons that are used."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
10%
Comms Service Provider
10%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
7%
No data available
Comms Service Provider
12%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Computer Software Company
8%
Construction Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business370
Midsize Enterprise138
Large Enterprise195
No data available
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business101
Midsize Enterprise28
Large Enterprise16
 

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...
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...
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 ...
What needs improvement with Hillstone CloudEdge?
There is room for improvement in AI features, particularly for zero-day attacks and providing maintenance guidance. M...
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...
What is your primary use case for WatchGuard Firebox?
We are providing our services to all WatchGuard customers in the region.
What is your primary use case for WatchGuard Firebox?
We just use it as a secondary WiFi device. We're a small office and we needed to set up a WiFi device for a few of ou...
What is your primary use case for WatchGuard Firebox?
We're a hospital and we use it for developing our incoming and outgoing policies, and we also use it for VPN.
 

Also Known As

Fortinet FortiGate Next-Generation Firewall
No data available
WatchGuard Threat Detection and Response, WatchGuard Application Control, WatchGuard Data Loss Prevention, WatchGuard Gateway AntiVirus, WatchGuard Intrusion Prevention Service
 

Overview

 

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
Ellips, Diecutstickers.com, Clarke Energy, NCR, Wrest Park, Homeslice Pizza, Fortessa Tableware Solutions, The Phoenix Residence
Find out what your peers are saying about Hillstone CloudEdge vs. WatchGuard Firebox and other solutions. Updated: June 2026.
899,324 professionals have used our research since 2012.