Hillstone T-Series vs Palo Alto Networks K2-Series comparison

Hillstone Networks and Palo Alto Networks are both solutions in the Firewalls category. Hillstone Networks is ranked #45, while Palo Alto Networks is ranked #36 with an average rating of 8.7. Hillstone Networks holds a 0.2% mindshare in Firewalls, compared to Palo Alto Networks’s 0.1% mindshare. Additionally, 66% of Hillstone Networks users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 96% of Palo Alto Networks users who would recommend it.

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Sep 16, 2024

Hillstone T-Series and Palo Alto Networks K2-Series are both prominent options in the network security landscape. Palo Alto Networks K2-Series often emerges as a more feature-rich, albeit pricier, option based on user reviews.

Features: Hillstone T-Series is recognized for its robust threat detection, streamlined management capabilities, and ease of use. Palo Alto Networks K2-Series is praised for advanced security features, integration flexibility, and comprehensive security tools.

Room for Improvement: Hillstone T-Series could improve its reporting functionalities, VPN performance, and user interface design. Palo Alto Networks K2-Series users suggest enhancements in their subscription model, complexity of initial setup, and customer support response time.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Hillstone T-Series is often highlighted for its straightforward deployment process and responsive customer support. Palo Alto Networks K2-Series, while offering detailed deployment guidance, can be complex and time-consuming. Customer service for Palo Alto is professional but sometimes slower in response.

Pricing and ROI: Hillstone T-Series is generally seen as cost-effective, providing good ROI for its price. Palo Alto Networks K2-Series users acknowledge the higher cost but justify it with superior feature sets and long-term reliability benefits, indicating a strong ROI despite the higher initial expenditure.

To learn more, read our detailed Hillstone T-Series vs. Palo Alto Networks K2-Series Report (Updated: November 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Hillstone T-Series vs. Palo Alto Networks K2-Series

November 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 November 2025, in the Firewalls category, the mindshare of Fortinet FortiGate is 19.9%, up from 19.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Hillstone T-Series is 0.2%, up from 0.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Palo Alto Networks K2-Series is 0.1%, up from 0.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Firewalls Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
Fortinet FortiGate	19.9%
Palo Alto Networks K2-Series	0.1%
Hillstone T-Series	0.2%
Other	79.8%

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

Is stable and has a user-friendly dashboard and a good interface

We installed Hillstone T-Series after a ransomware attack. The dashboard and user interface are very good We cannot secure a specific IP class with this firewall. Another loophole with Hillstone T-Series is that when we connect through WiFi and turn our hot spot on, all who connect through the…

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Tejas Jain

Head of Security Engineering - Principle Architect at a tech services company with 11-50 employees

Has provided strong traffic visibility and efficient policy management for advanced network environments

Palo Alto Networks K2-Series could be improved, though I don't think of much. I'm unsure how widespread the adoption for K2-Series alone is. Looking at the base Palo Alto capabilities, they are going in the right direction. K2 specifically about its efficacy with all these 5G protocols, the GPRS tunneling protocol performed without many hiccups during testing. With AI, if there is a Precision AI bundle that you're planning on exploring, then that definitely needs a significant uplift because currently it doesn't work for all the known models. There are many false positives that need to be addressed. While it's still ahead of its competitors, on the AI security side, there is quite a room for improvement.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Fortinet FortiGate is stable; I am told that Fortinet FortiGate is one of the best solutions available, and I believe it."

"I've never had a problem with Fortinet FortiGate support, so I'd rate it ten out of ten."

"Our project needs to link two sides through the internet. One of these was in Cairo and the other in another city. We used FortiGate as the integrating solution between the two locations, i.e. the Fortinet 30E & 100E."

"The application control features, such as Facebook blocking and Spotify blocking, are the most valuable."

"Fortinet FortiGate has SD-WAN, FortiView, antivirus, sandbox, and IPS, which are generally well-known features."

"The most valuable aspects of FortiGate NGFW are its top-notch reputation in peer reviews, user-friendly interface, and excellent support."

"FortiGate is a great solution, although initially, it faced challenges in the Brazilian market due to lower brand recognition than Cisco. However, explaining and demonstrating its product format and offerings has proven easy. The cost-effectiveness and better features of FortiGate have made some clients skeptical. We set up a trial period, and they eventually opted for it. Many clients were convinced it was great after experiencing the solution's capabilities firsthand."

"Run Script is the best tool to use in Fortinet FortiGate with multiple environments."

More Fortinet FortiGate pros

"It has been stable so far."

"The only firewall able to monitor traffic from a CCTV network. Can detect unauthorized devices plugged into the network, which standard firewalls can't do."

"We installed Hillstone T-Series after a ransomware attack. The dashboard and user interface are very good."

"The IPS system is the best in the field."

"Regarding traffic visibility features and Advanced Threat Prevention aspects, I would assess these functions as awesome; it's unparalleled, not just for K2-Series, but in general for Palo Alto."

"The most valuable feature is availability."

"Palo Alto firewalls are scalable enough. We have about 110 employees in our company, and we are about to expand to 130."

"This firewall is very good for our customers because they don't have to write their own rules for adding an application."

"The solution is reliable and scales well."

"Regarding traffic visibility features and Advanced Threat Prevention aspects, I would assess these functions as awesome; it's unparalleled, not just for K2-Series, but in general for Palo Alto."

"I like the tool's WildFire feature."

More Palo Alto Networks K2-Series pros

Cons

"We faced difficulties with the configuration because there are many features we could optimize using Fortinet FortiGate, but our reseller didn't have a good understanding of it. So, we just use it on a basic level, not with the best practice for using FortiGate."

"The solution could improve by having some additional features, such as IBS and better cloud administration."

"In an incident, after a restart, Fortinet FortiGate did not connect to FortiGuard servers. Due to that reason, on the customer end, all websites got blocked."

"I would rate Fortinet support a six out of ten. The immediate response is not that good, particularly when raising a critical or P1 ticket; they lag in the immediate response."

"Tunnel flapping was one of the major things I had seen wherein your internet link remains but your VPN tunnel is down. However, since I got a fix from the TAC team, I have not noticed it, but the customer complained a few times that they couldn't access the internet because of this problem."

"One area for improvement for Fortinet FortiGate could be the price, as my clients here are small companies, and they might not have the resources or money to always buy a Fortinet FortiGate solution or FortiGate products."

"The software is a bit expensive to renew."

"The performance and speed are aspects of the solution that could always be improved upon."

More Fortinet FortiGate cons

"They have a very good technical support team, but I think there are some communication issues due to language differences."

"Another loophole with Hillstone T-Series is that when we connect through WiFi and turn our hot spot on, all who connect through the hotspot get all the functions, and the security does not work."

"Licensing is not cheap."

"The solution needs a series of OS changes."

"They could improve by providing more features in the solution."

"The solution's commitment time could be reduced as it often takes a lot of time to execute."

"The graphical user interface is a little complex and difficult to manage. L1 engineers cannot work on the Palo Alto Networks K2-Series because it's too complex, which requires L2 and above level of engineers."

"It is recommended that the Palo Alto Networks K2-Series be implemented step by step for the Panorama. Sometimes we can't overwrite the configurations because it fails."

"The password function of the solution could be improved. Additionally, some of the processes take too long to complete."

"I cannot think of anything specific to improve at the moment."

"The ease of management and configuration should be improved."

More Palo Alto Networks K2-Series cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It scales well if you know what to buy from a physical box standpoint. They seem to offer something for every level."

"When I look around at other products, such as Sophos, Fortinet FortiGate is 20% to 30% more expensive with our current cost."

"By default, they give SD-WAN along with the firewall. They don't have separate licensing for the SD-WAN functionality. However, they have security licenses that are sold separately on a subscription basis. Customers can consume these security features to protect their users from internet traffic."

"The pricing is very reasonable."

"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."

"Cost-wise, there is not much difference from Sophos, but feature-wise, we get more features."

"Pricing for Fortinet FortiGate SWG is more suitable for enterprise or large-sized organizations because they are the ones who can afford it versus small and medium-sized organizations."

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

More Fortinet FortiGate pricing and cost advice

"We got a much cheaper price than that provided by Fortinet right now."

"On a scale from one to ten, with one being low and ten being high price, I would rate the price of Hillstone T-Series at three. There are no additional costs other than renewal costs."

"The overall price of Palo Alto Networks K2-Series could be reduced."

"The price of this solution is too high."

"If you compare K2-Series' quality with its price, I think it is reasonable."

"The pricing is expensive."

"Pricing is a sensitive issue because the cost is high in this market."

"The price of the solution is expensive."

"Products by the leader in the field are justifiably a bit more expensive compared to other vendors."

"Palo Alto firewalls are very expensive."

More Palo Alto Networks K2-Series pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

14%

Comms Service Provider

Manufacturing Company

Financial Services Firm

No data available

Performing Arts

24%

Computer Software Company

15%

Manufacturing Company

Media Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	350
Midsize Enterprise	130
Large Enterprise	187

No data available

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	14
Midsize Enterprise	8
Large Enterprise	13

Questions from the Community

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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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Features comparison between Palo Alto and Fortinet firewalls

In the best tradition of these questions, Feature-wise both are quite similar, but each has things it's better at, it...

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Palo Alto Networks K2-Series?

The pricing for the Palo Alto Networks K2-Series solution is affordable and there are no complaints about the licensing.

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What needs improvement with Palo Alto Networks K2-Series?

The graphical user interface is a little complex and difficult to manage. L1 engineers cannot work on the Palo Alto N...

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Comparisons

Sophos XG vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 18% of the time

Cisco Secure Firewall vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 11% of the time

Netgate pfSense vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 8% of the time

OPNsense vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 4% of the time

Cisco Meraki MX vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 4% of the time

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Cisco Secure Firewall vs Hillstone T-Series

Compared 41% of the time

Cisco Meraki MX vs Hillstone T-Series

Compared 26% of the time

WatchGuard Firebox vs Hillstone T-Series

Compared 14% of the time

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Cisco Secure Firewall vs Palo Alto Networks K2-Series

Compared 52% of the time

Juniper SRX Series Firewall vs Palo Alto Networks K2-Series

Compared 48% of the time

More Palo Alto Networks K2-Series Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Fortinet FortiGate

November 2025

Download Fortinet FortiGate product report

Buyer's Guide

Firewalls

November 2025

Download Hillstone T-Series product report

Buyer's Guide

Palo Alto Networks K2-Series

October 2025

Download Palo Alto Networks K2-Series product report

Also Known As

No data available

Hillstone T-Series Intelligent Next-Generation Firewalls, Hillstone iNGFW

No data available

Overview

Fortinet FortiGate excels in providing integrated VPN, firewalling, and Unified Threat Management (UTM) with centralized management and high availability. It supports remote access and comprehensive threat protection, making it a preferred choice for securing networks.

Fortinet FortiGate offers a robust security platform with features such as strong intrusion prevention, application control, and web filtering. Its integration with Active Directory and SD-WAN functionality provides scalable solutions for large networks. Users appreciate its ease of use through centralized management interfaces, ensuring robust security with flexible configurations. However, FortiGate could enhance its graphical interface and technical support responsiveness, address firmware bugs and costly licensing, improve logging, integrate better with third-party tools, and strengthen scalability and memory for log storage. Complexity in configuration and the need for intuitive features are noted challenges, and there's a demand for advanced security, zero-trust capabilities, and AI integration.

What are the key features of Fortinet FortiGate?

VPN: Secure remote access and connectivity.
Firewalling: Protects networks from unauthorized access and attacks.
UTM: Offers a comprehensive approach to threat management.
SD-WAN: Optimizes traffic routing for efficient network performance.
Web Filtering: Controls and monitors web access and ensures Internet security.

What benefits or ROI should be considered?

Centralized Management: Simplifies administration and monitoring.
High Availability: Ensures consistent security and network availability.
Scalability: Adapts to the needs of growing networks.
Comprehensive Threat Protection: Provides robust security measures.
Ease of Use: Minimizes the complexity of security management.

Fortinet FortiGate is widely implemented across industries like education, finance, and government. Companies use it for firewall protection, VPN, and SD-WAN capabilities, ensuring secure perimeter and data center security. It facilitates remote access management and traffic routing optimization, offering reliable security and connectivity solutions.

Fortinet

Hillstone’s T-Series intelligent Next-Generation Firewall (iNGFW) uses three key technologies to detect advanced attacks and provide continuous threat defense for today’s networks. First, it uses statistical clustering to detect unknown malware, leveraging the patented Hillstone Advanced Threat Detection engine (ATD). Second, it uses behavioral analytics to detect anomalous network behavior, which is based on the Hillstone Abnormal Behavior Detection engine (ABD). Finally, it leverages the Hillstone threat correlation analysis engine to correlate threat events detected by disparate engines – including ATD, ABD, Sandbox and other traditional signature-based threat detection technologies – along with context information to identify advanced threats.

Hillstone Networks

Designed to handle growing throughput needs due to increasing amounts of application-, user-, and device-generated data, the K2-Series offers amazing performance and threat prevention capabilities to stop advanced cyberattacks and secure mobile network infrastructure, subscribers, and services.

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

University of Córdoba

State of North Dakota, SEGA, Alameda County Office of Education, Temple University, VERGE, CAME

Buyer's Guide

Hillstone T-Series vs. Palo Alto Networks K2-Series

November 2025

Free Report: Hillstone T-Series vs. Palo Alto Networks K2-Series

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