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Hillstone E-Series vs SonicWall TZ comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jan 25, 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 E-Series
Ranking in Firewalls
38th
Average Rating
9.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.7
Number of Reviews
10
Ranking in other categories
SSL VPN (10th), Enterprise Infrastructure VPN (22nd)
SonicWall TZ
Ranking in Firewalls
26th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.5
Number of Reviews
86
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

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 E-Series is 0.7%, up from 0.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SonicWall TZ is 1.8%, 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%
SonicWall TZ1.8%
Hillstone E-Series0.7%
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.
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.
Fernando Kavindra Fernando - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Pre-sales and Solutions Engineer - Cyber Security at Enterprise Technology (Pvt) Ltd
Web filtering and traffic balancing have improved security for SMBs but threat insight still needs work
I assess the machine learning capabilities of SonicWall TZ in proactive threat detection to not be at the level of other vendors such as Palo Alto Networks, Fortinet, and Check Point. It is somewhere in between, so I would not recommend it for a large enterprise-level organization to rely on because it is not at that level. SonicWall TZ's content filtering service is reliable. We have used it, but it is not very reliable compared to brands such as Fortinet, Palo Alto Networks, or Check Point. What could be improved about SonicWall TZ is the threat intelligence, which by far is not at the level of vendors such as Fortinet, Palo Alto Networks, and Check Point. Their threat intelligence needs to be improved, as does the GUI, which is not as user-friendly compared to devices such as Fortinet. They could learn from their competitors by making the product more user-friendly. The product interface is not that user-friendly. By adopting a more user-friendly GUI, improving threat intelligence, and enhancing the available guides would be beneficial. In my understanding, in some cases, the KB articles and knowledge articles were not that efficient. They were useful, but they could have been more precise with the knowledge base articles. They need to provide more information about SonicWall TZ, specifically more documentation and more troubleshooting articles. Other than the threat intelligence and the user-friendly GUI, there are no other additional features that I can think of for SonicWall TZ in the future or at least in the next release to make it more competitive.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"I like how we can achieve total integration."
"FortiGate Next Generation Firewall (NGFW) 's most valuable features are reporting and filtering."
"The most valuable features are the policies, filtering, and configuration."
"It is complemented by other equipment, such as the Fortinet switch, and it is integrated with other tools that help to prevent cyberattacks, including a web filter, IPS, and application control."
"My clients appreciate it for its features. It is easy to install and manage, and it offers all-around protection, including web filtering, content filtering, IPS, and IDS."
"The performance is very good and the solution is simple to manage."
"Fortinet scores very high against security threats when you compare it with Check Point and Palo Alto."
"Fortinet Secure SD-WAN delivered the lowest total cost of ownership (TCO) per Mbps among all other vendors."
"The installation is easy, we have not had any complaints from our customers."
"I am impressed with the application filtering feature."
"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."
"Very reliable solution with good scalability and straightforward implementation."
"This solution has two main features that we find very valuable; a threat-intelligence option, and a web/application filtering option. The technical support team are very good and very quick."
"Stability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten."
"Always saves time for any implementation."
"With the new version, you also have more facilities and more features to protect your infrastructure."
"SonicWall provides each location with its own security and provides our company with the ability to centralize our servers so they can provide applications to all the locations and users."
"The most valuable features are security and technical support."
"We like the unified threat management for defense-in-depth. We can terminate our site-to-site and remote access VPNs with it."
"Access restriction and IP whitelisting are the most valuable features."
"The administration of our network is very efficient."
"The feature we found most valuable in SonicWall TZ is that it is user-friendly for an administrator."
 

Cons

"The advanced models are expensive."
"The solution lacks sufficient filtering."
"They have not yet extended to the cloud."
"The speed of the detection could be improved. The prevention mechanisms and implementation are not easy and could be better."
"Its pricing can be better."
"Fortinet FortiGate could improve by having more capabilities for troubleshooting VPN connections."
"We sometimes have issues with FortiGate's routing table in the latest firmware update. We had to downgrade the device because our customers complained about bugs."
"The performance and speed are aspects of the solution that could always be improved upon."
"The tool provides just a general report. It does not provide a granular report. Hence, the tool should work on its reporting feature."
"I am not sure if this solution offers active directory integration. Adding that feature will definitely be an advantage."
"The solution doesn't have a web proxy built into the system like Sophos. This is something they should work to change."
"The tool only had some memory-related problems."
"Having frequent live webinars on a monthly basis would really help."
"The current usage reporting is very basic. I would like to be able to access more granular data."
"The room for improvement would be the SSL VPN license cost."
"The licensing model is very complex with many subcategories of licenses you can purchase. They could make it more simplified for customers to understand."
"It could probably be more user-friendly, and it could be more scalable with releases and subscriptions."
"We have been facing issues with reporting."
"The death for SonicWall for us unfortunately is the Dell acquisition."
"The marketing of SonicWall has to be increased. Currently, when it comes to firewalls, most people go for Cisco and Palo Alto. SonicWall should improve its marketing and branding policies to increase sales. Other than that, it is good."
"FortiGate has a client DNS in the firewall, but SonicWall doesn't have that."
"The log analyzer in SonicWall TZ is something that they need to improve upon."
"The solution should provide some additional ports."
"Another thing which I don't like about SonicWall is that it tries to bypass the resellers. That is not good."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The solution is very expensive so pricing is rated a one out of ten."
"The price range is quite acceptable and normal."
"If you compare Fortinet FortiGate with Sophos and other firewall products available in the market, this solution is affordable."
"If you are looking for a quality product, it will come at a higher price. Expecting them to be significantly cheaper is unrealistic. In terms of pricing, it is a bit costly. However, the functionality and support offered are worth it."
"We have the full license that included all of the features and support."
"In the Asian economy in which we operate, FortiGate is expensive."
"Cost-wise, there is not much difference from Sophos, but feature-wise, we get more features."
"The product pricing is reasonable."
"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 cost per year for licensing, and hardware, is approximately $850 for the basic plan."
"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."
"Hillstone's pricing is economical and neither very high nor very low."
"The pricing was a factor for us, and we felt that the price was good."
"The license that we purchased is good for three years."
"The product pricing is justified for the features provided."
"Its price is very high, which makes it difficult to convince the clients to buy this solution."
"The product pricing is relatively good, compared to other products, including the licenses."
"It is highly priced and has a slow performance compared to other firewalls."
"License renewals come in around $35,000 to $45,000."
"The price is fair for the solution for the quality you receive."
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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%
Construction Company
13%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Comms Service Provider
11%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Computer Software Company
10%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Manufacturing 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
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business9
Midsize Enterprise1
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business64
Midsize Enterprise15
Large Enterprise14
 

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 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...
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 w...
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 ha...
Would you choose Fortinet Fortigate or Sonicwall TZ?
I’ll say it depends on your needs. Fortinet FortiGate and SonicWall TZ are both next-gen firewalls (NGFW) with simila...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SonicWall TZ?
The price is normal. It is a nominal cost for an SMB TZ used for SMB businesses. However, more licenses are required ...
What needs improvement with SonicWall TZ?
I assess the machine learning capabilities of SonicWall TZ in proactive threat detection to not be at the level of ot...
 

Also Known As

Fortinet FortiGate Next-Generation Firewall
No data available
Dell SonicWALL TZ
 

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
Bank of China Macao, Instituto Tecnológico Bolivariano, Ministry of Labor in San Salvador, FEDCO
AeroM_xico Delta TechOps, Unimat
Find out what your peers are saying about Hillstone E-Series vs. SonicWall TZ and other solutions. Updated: June 2026.
899,258 professionals have used our research since 2012.