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Hillstone E-Series vs Ivanti Connect Secure comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on May 21, 2025

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

Hillstone E-Series
Ranking in SSL VPN
10th
Ranking in Enterprise Infrastructure VPN
22nd
Average Rating
9.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.7
Number of Reviews
10
Ranking in other categories
Firewalls (38th)
Ivanti Connect Secure
Ranking in SSL VPN
2nd
Ranking in Enterprise Infrastructure VPN
10th
Average Rating
7.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
30
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2026, in the SSL VPN category, the mindshare of Hillstone E-Series is 4.5%, up from 3.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Ivanti Connect Secure is 14.4%, down from 22.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
SSL VPN Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Ivanti Connect Secure14.4%
Hillstone E-Series4.5%
Other81.1%
SSL VPN
 

Featured Reviews

TahirMahmood - PeerSpot reviewer
IT Manager at Zubair Feeds
Offers good features like URL filtering, IPS, and IDS to users
We received an update for the tool in July. The update was provided for the tool as there was a problem with the firewall, where too much memory was consumed, and the firewall was hanging a lot. When we updated the tool's features, everything became okay. The tool only had some memory-related problems. It took the tool a month to fix the issues.
Kaushlendra Singh - PeerSpot reviewer
Manager - IT Infrastructure and Network at a manufacturing company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Provides secure and simple remote access but needs improved reporting capabilities
Ivanti Connect Secure is simple and secure, making it valuable for our organization. Ivanti Connect Secure's access control feature provides global protect, which allows country-wise blocking. There are many access controls available, and policies can be created on a host basis and on the MAC address of assets that will connect. Firewall versions and OS versions can be defined, and only devices meeting these criteria can connect to the VPN. These features are effective, along with MFA. Ivanti Connect Secure is a client-based, agent-based solution, so if the agent is installed, users are able to connect to the network. Ivanti Connect Secure utilizes identity-based LDAP authentication. Ivanti Connect Secure is very effective for remote access for remote workers.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The most valuable features of the Hillstone E-Series are its hardware capacity, innovation, and the throughput that the hardware can take."
"Stability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten."
"The installation is easy, we have not had any complaints from our customers."
"Five out of five ROI."
"With Hillstone, TCO and ROI are very good, it's an easy sale."
"If an organization is not looking for a web proxy, it's a very, very good product."
"The initial setup was straightforward. It only took a few hours to deploy."
"The most valuable feature of the solution is the ransomware protection that the tool offers."
"I can safely say this is one of the best solutions I have seen for VPN access."
"I like the host checker, which thoroughly checks the security posture of the machine before allowing access. I also like application-based access and its seamless operations."
"It's a very convenient and user-friendly application."
"Pulse Connect Secure is a stable solution."
"By keeping numbers in mind, I can say we have reduced implementation times, resulting in over 300% ROI, with a payback period of less than six months, alongside a software spend reduction of approximately 25 to 30%."
"The most robust and reliable feature of Ivanti Connect Secure is the VPN tunneling, using both the Pulse and the Ivanti client."
"For us, there was no other product better than that."
"Ivanti Connect Secure is simple and secure, making it valuable for our organization."
 

Cons

"The tool only had some memory-related problems."
"Having frequent live webinars on a monthly basis would really help."
"Support from Hillstone E-Series has a shortcoming that needs improvement."
"The current usage reporting is very basic. I would like to be able to access more granular data."
"The licensing model is very complex with many subcategories of licenses you can purchase. They could make it more simplified for customers to understand."
"The solution doesn't have a web proxy built into the system like Sophos. This is something they should work to change."
"SSL VPN license cost is not cheap."
"I am not sure if this solution offers active directory integration. Adding that feature will definitely be an advantage."
"The product could use additional dashboards."
"The product's price is an area where improvements are required."
"Ivanti Connect Secure needs to have faster connections. It also needs to improve the stability."
"Zero test FDP (Fraud Protection and Prevention) should be improved."
"Ivanti needs improvement in its seamless upgrade and migration procedures, particularly with the browser components, which are fragile and sometimes cause issues depending on the Windows version, the browser version, and the different modules being used."
"We need to know how many live active users there are and we can't. We even updated the server, however, we still can't see the proper level of live connections. Right now, it's showing as 300 users and my customer does not have that many users in his organization."
"Pulse Secure and Juniper are very expensive in their license cost. That's a drawback of this solution."
"Pulse Connect Secure could improve by having better integration with NAC solutions, such as Cisco ClearPass integration with Pulse Connect Secure. Additionally, they need better integration with Microsoft Azure AD and Azure Authenticator."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The cost per year for licensing, and hardware, is approximately $850 for the basic plan."
"Hillstone's pricing is economical and neither very high nor very low."
"The licensing model is very complex with many subcategories of licenses you can purchase. They could make it more simplified for customers to understand."
"The tool's pricing is reasonable. It depends on the model. The product's pricing is around 600 USD. You need to buy a software license to activate the features. You need to pay around 150 USD for that."
"The price of Pulse Connect Secure is expensive."
"Pulse Connect Secure is relatively cost-effective."
"I rate the product price a six to seven on a scale of one to ten, where one is a low price, and ten is a high price."
"The pricing is quite nominal. We pay on a yearly basis."
"The pricing for Pulse Connect Secure is not low and not high, so it's good. It's a six out of ten for me, price-wise."
"The cost of the product is high, but worth it because of the utility and great product support."
"A license is required for you to use Pulse Connect Secure, but I'm not aware of how much it costs."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Construction Company
13%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Comms Service Provider
11%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Computer Software Company
11%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Comms Service Provider
9%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business9
Midsize Enterprise1
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business7
Midsize Enterprise5
Large Enterprise20
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with Hillstone E-Series?
We received an update for the tool in July. The update was provided for the tool as there was a problem with the firewall, where too much memory was consumed, and the firewall was hanging a lot. Wh...
What is your primary use case for Hillstone E-Series?
I use the solution in my company for site-to-site VPN, SSL VPNs, URL filtering, IPS, IDS and all the other features which are available in the firewall.
What advice do you have for others considering Hillstone E-Series?
Our company did not use the tool's micro-segmentation features. There were no issues while integrating the tool. I have not used any AI in the tool. I recommend the tool to others. I rate the tool ...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Pulse Connect Secure?
Ivanti has always been known to be pricey, making it a rather high-cost solution.
What needs improvement with Pulse Connect Secure?
The biggest friction point I have encountered with Ivanti Connect Secure is related to compliance. When the host checker is configured too strictly, it can conflict with ensuring 100% security. If ...
What is your primary use case for Pulse Connect Secure?
My main use case for Ivanti Connect Secure is zero trust connectivity. The main feature I have been using is geolocation and source IP restrictions, ensuring security, advanced proxy support, and e...
 

Also Known As

No data available
Pulse Connect Secure
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Bank of China Macao, Instituto Tecnológico Bolivariano, Ministry of Labor in San Salvador, FEDCO
Axcient, Baloise Group, Cygate, Catholic University of America, Datec Inc, Revlon, Santa Monica Networks, 7-Eleven
Find out what your peers are saying about Hillstone E-Series vs. Ivanti Connect Secure and other solutions. Updated: May 2026.
899,125 professionals have used our research since 2012.