Hillstone E-Series vs SonicWall NSv comparison

Hillstone Networks and SonicWall are both solutions in the Firewalls category. Hillstone Networks is ranked #35 with an average rating of 8.0, while SonicWall is ranked #36 with an average rating of 7.8. Hillstone Networks holds a 0.4% mindshare in Firewalls, compared to SonicWall’s 0.2% mindshare. Additionally, 100% of Hillstone Networks users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 85% of SonicWall users who would recommend it.

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Sep 16, 2024

The Hillstone E-Series and SonicWall NSv are two popular choices in network security. SonicWall NSv seems to have the upper hand due to its superior features.

Features: Hillstone E-Series offers robust performance, stability, and responsive customer service. SonicWall NSv provides advanced threat prevention, comprehensive security features, and a wide array of advanced functionalities. SonicWall NSv has an edge with its extensive feature set.

Room for Improvement: Hillstone E-Series needs improvements in scalability, analytics capabilities, and configuration options. SonicWall NSv users suggest a simplified configuration process, enhanced product documentation, and better scalability options.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Hillstone E-Series is noted for its straightforward deployment and responsive customer service. SonicWall NSv has mixed feedback regarding deployment complexity but high marks for customer service quality.

Pricing and ROI: Hillstone E-Series is cost-effective, offering satisfactory ROI. SonicWall NSv, although more expensive, delivers good ROI due to its advanced features.

To learn more, read our detailed Hillstone E-Series vs. SonicWall NSv Report (Updated: July 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Hillstone E-Series vs. SonicWall NSv

July 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 July 2025, in the Firewalls category, the mindshare of Fortinet FortiGate is 21.2%, up from 17.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Hillstone E-Series is 0.4%, up from 0.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SonicWall NSv is 0.2%, up from 0.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

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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TahirMahmood

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.

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Sileesh Sivadasan

Director at Infosec Infra

Helps small businesses expand branches more easily

The price is a significant factor. Mostly in India, the customer service has many hurdles to get real support. If I want to talk to a customer executive, they ask many trivial questions. Even if I explain that I am asking for a Dell partner, they still ask specific questions, and they will explain many unnecessary questions.

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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

"The ease of setting the solution up is a valuable aspect for us."

"The most valuable feature of Fortinet FortiGate is URL filtering."

"The best features of Fortinet FortiGate include the simple user interface."

"A strong point of FortiGate is that the graphical interface is complete and easy to use, especially if we think there is a list of operations that we are able to perform inside."

"The most valuable features of Fortinet FortiGate are the ability to work in proxy mode, which other solutions, such as Palo Alto cannot. There are some features that are better that come at no extra license or subscriptions cost, such as basic SD-WAN. The DLT is useful, other solutions have the same feature too, such as Palo Alto."

"The initial setup of Fortinet FortiGate was straightforward."

"Scaling-wise, there have been no problems with Fortinet FortiGate."

"The SD-WAN feature is the most valuable. This feature evolved from link load balancing. It has helped us in terms of our uptime and privatizing applications whenever we experience an outage. The SD-WAN feature has been a plus for us. Two-factor authentication has allowed us to add more users in terms of remote working. We have two-factor authentication for remote workers to authenticate them before they get on the network."

More Fortinet FortiGate pros

"Five out of five ROI."

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

"I am impressed with the application filtering feature."

"The most valuable feature of the solution is the ransomware protection that the tool offers."

"Working with the Hillstone E-Series has, from a remote perspective, allowed me to give my clients a secure connectivity."

"The most valuable feature of the Hillstone E-Series is its user-friendliness."

"The installation is easy, we have not had any complaints from our customers."

"The most valuable features of the Hillstone E-Series are its hardware capacity, innovation, and the throughput that the hardware can take."

More Hillstone E-Series pros

"Out of ten, I would rate the solution at an eight."

"The customization of firewall rules provides great value to our customers as it allows them to lock things up in the way that they desire. When it is used for internal access, with a VPN in place for remote workers, the firewalling services provided by Azure, such as the default services that can be turned on, are applied. However, the use of a software-based virtual firewall gives us greater flexibility in introducing security controls for customers who are publishing applications that are publicly accessible from the public cloud. This virtual firewall provides an additional layer of security and more extensive security control options to ensure the protection of our customers' valuable information and assets."

"SonicWall excelled in threat management, evident in how users handled it effectively."

"SonicWall NSV is easy to use, and you can use it to manage the logs easily."

"The product helps improve our security."

"One of the standout features of SonicWall is its simplicity in creating and managing rules."

"The solution has no additional charges and no restrictions on the number of users."

"The security of this system is fantastic, including the IPS and IDS."

More SonicWall NSv pros

Cons

"The AI with Fortinet FortiGate is not very well integrated on their devices, and their cloud infrastructure is not as good as Cisco's."

"Fortinet FortiGate is not very easy to use. The navigation could be improved to make it easier to use."

"Monitoring and reporting could be better."

"Fortinet FortiGate can improve the integration with Active Directory. Additionally, I would like to have a Cloud Controller, such as they do in the Cisco Meraki solution."

"This product could be improved with Active directory integration and better handling in IPsec and GRE Tunnels."

"I would like to see improvements in the product's application rules."

"I wish that they could integrate zero-trust technology into Fortinet FortiGate. I am not sure whether it has been done already, but if they could implement that, it would help significantly."

"I would like to see more advanced developments of a wireless controller in the future."

More Fortinet FortiGate cons

"The tool needs to improve its price."

"The tool only had some memory-related problems."

"The current usage reporting is very basic."

"SSL VPN license cost is not cheap."

"The solution doesn't have a web proxy built into the system like Sophos. This is something they should work to change."

"Having frequent live webinars on a monthly basis would really help."

"The tool provides just a general report. It does not provide a granular report. Hence, the tool should work on its reporting feature."

"Support from Hillstone E-Series has a shortcoming that needs improvement."

More Hillstone E-Series cons

"SonicWall NSV's initial setup is complicated and requires good knowledge."

"I would like to see the reporting opened up and have several more opportunities for automatic reports."

"An area that could be improved is the export and import settings functionality."

"The price is a significant factor. Mostly in India, the customer service has many hurdles to get real support."

"The engine provided initially was quite heavy, creating a trade-off between software and hardware-based threat management."

"SonicWall NSV's SSL VPN could increase its number of users to 100-plus users."

"We face some challenges when we upgrade the solution."

"Currently, we are getting challenges with user-wise reports and other reporting details. At present, they do not provide detailed reports compared to other products."

More SonicWall NSv cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The pricing is justified. It's a little pricey, but what you pay for is what you get."

"Fortinet FortiGate gives you most of the features in one license."

"I do not have first-hand experience with the rice of Fortinet FortiGate, but I have heard the price was reasonable."

"Their licensing costs are annual. The UTM feature license along with their support is called FortiCare. We include that as a part of the annual maintenance cost. Palo Alto or Juniper also have an annual subscription charge for UTM. Price, of course, can always be more competitive, but it is not the most expensive product. The price-performance ratio is quite high for FortiGate."

"The licensing costs are very low."

"The price is high compared to some of the other solutions."

"The price of Fortinet FortiGate is reasonable for an SME."

"We have the full version of Fortinet FortiGate and we are on a three-year contract with a commitment of five years."

More Fortinet FortiGate pricing and cost advice

"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 cost per year for licensing, and hardware, is approximately $850 for the basic plan."

"The licensing model is very complex with many subcategories of licenses you can purchase. They could make it more simplified for customers to understand."

"Hillstone's pricing is economical and neither very high nor very low."

"SonicWall NSV is not very costly."

"The solution’s pricing is less compared to other products."

"The tool is moderately priced."

"Our initial purchase, which included a three-year term of support, was about $25,000 USD."

"The solution's pricing is good for the technology it offers."

"We are currently using the trial version."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

16%

Comms Service Provider

Manufacturing Company

Educational Organization

Financial Services Firm

18%

Computer Software Company

14%

Comms Service Provider

12%

Real Estate/Law Firm

Computer Software Company

27%

Retailer

Educational Organization

Financial Services Firm

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

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...

See all answers

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...

See all answers

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 do you like most about Hillstone E-Series?

The most valuable feature of the Hillstone E-Series is its user-friendliness.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Hillstone E-Series?

Hillstone's pricing is economical and neither very high nor very low.

See all answers

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 fire...

See all answers

What do you like most about SonicWall NSV?

The product helps improve our security.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SonicWall NSV?

I am somewhat satisfied with the price for SonicWall NSv, rating it as eight because, compared to other products, the...

See all answers

What needs improvement with SonicWall NSV?

Currently, we are getting challenges with user-wise reports and other reporting details. At present, they do not prov...

See all answers

Comparisons

Sophos XG vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 20% of the time

Netgate pfSense vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 12% of the time

Cisco Secure Firewall vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 11% of the time

WatchGuard Firebox vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 5% of the time

SonicWall TZ vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 5% of the time

More Fortinet FortiGate Competitors

Hillstone A-Series vs Hillstone E-Series

Compared 14% of the time

OpenVPN Access Server vs Hillstone E-Series

Compared 8% of the time

Sophos XG vs Hillstone E-Series

Compared 8% of the time

Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls vs Hillstone E-Series

Compared 7% of the time

Sangfor SSL VPN vs Hillstone E-Series

Compared 5% of the time

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Azure Firewall vs SonicWall NSv

Compared 27% of the time

SonicWall NSa vs SonicWall NSv

Compared 25% of the time

Stormshield Network Security vs SonicWall NSv

Compared 18% of the time

Fortinet FortiGate-VM vs SonicWall NSv

Compared 12% of the time

Palo Alto Networks VM-Series vs SonicWall NSv

Compared 10% of the time

More SonicWall NSv Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Fortinet FortiGate

July 2025

Download Fortinet FortiGate product report

Buyer's Guide

Firewalls

July 2025

Download Hillstone E-Series product report

Buyer's Guide

Firewalls

July 2025

Download SonicWall NSv product report

Also Known As

FortiGate 60b, FortiGate 60c, FortiGate 80c, FortiGate 50b, FortiGate 200b, FortiGate 110c, FortiGate, Fortinet Firewall

No data available

SonicWall Network Security Virtual

Overview

Fortinet FortiGate offers comprehensive network security and firewall protection across multiple locations. It effectively manages data traffic and secures environments with features like VPN, intrusion prevention, and UTM controls.

Organizations rely on Fortinet FortiGate for its robust integration with advanced security policies, ensuring significant protection for enterprises, cloud environments, and educational sectors. It facilitates network segmentation, application-level security, and authentication management, securing communication within and between locations such as branches and data centers. Its efficient SD-WAN and UTM features enable streamlined data management and enhanced threat protection capabilities. Users appreciate its centralized management, facilitating seamless operations across diverse environments.

What are the key features of Fortinet FortiGate?

VPN Capabilities: Ensure secure remote access for users and seamless site-to-site connections.
Intrusion Prevention System (IPS): Detect and prevent security threats and vulnerabilities.
Advanced Firewall: Offers robust firewalling with application control and web filtering.
SD-WAN: Optimizes application performance and enhances bandwidth management.
SSL VPN: Provides reliable and secure access for remote workers.

What benefits should users expect from Fortinet FortiGate?

High-performance Security: Delivers effective threat mitigation with high availability.
Centralized Management: Simplifies network operations with cloud-based management tools.
Detailed Analytics: Provides comprehensive insights into network activity and security threats.
Load Balancing: Ensures optimal resource distribution and traffic management.

Fortinet FortiGate is crucial in sectors like education, offering robust networks for secure data flow between campuses and facilitating remote learning. In enterprise environments, it allows efficient management of application traffic and security across multiple branches, while in the cloud, it seamlessly integrates with diverse platforms to enhance security infrastructure.

Fortinet

Hillstone E-Series is a comprehensive network security solution designed to protect organizations from advanced threats. It offers a range of features including a firewall, intrusion prevention system (IPS), virtual private network (VPN), and application control.

With its advanced threat intelligence capabilities, E-Series can detect and prevent sophisticated attacks, ensuring the security of critical data and systems. It also provides granular control over applications, allowing organizations to enforce policies and optimize network performance.

E-Series is easy to deploy and manage, with a user-friendly interface and centralized management console. It offers high-performance throughput and scalability, making it suitable for small businesses to large enterprises. With its robust security features and ease of use, Hillstone E-Series is an ideal choice for organizations looking to enhance their network security posture.

Hillstone Networks

SonicWall NSV is a software-based virtual firewall that provides additional security for customers with public-facing servers or services on Microsoft Azure. The AGSS Bundle is considered the most valuable feature, providing security services such as antivirus, intrusion prevention system, and anti-spyware botnet GUI.

Additionally, customization of firewall rules provides great value to customers, allowing them to lock things up in the way they desire. SonicWall NSV offers extensive security control options to protect customers' valuable information and assets.

SonicWall

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

Bank of China Macao, Instituto Tecnológico Bolivariano, Ministry of Labor in San Salvador, FEDCO

Comlogic, Depaul, Hutt City Council

Buyer's Guide

Hillstone E-Series vs. SonicWall NSv

July 2025

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