McAfee Firewall Enterprise MFE [EOL] vs Netgate pfSense comparison

Why PeerSpot?

McAfee and Netgate are both solutions in the Firewalls category. Additionally, 75% of McAfee users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 94% of Netgate users who would recommend it.

McAfee Firewall Enterprise ...

Read 5 McAfee Firewall Enterprise MFE [EOL] reviews

75% willing to recommend

Netgate pfSense

Read 221 Netgate pfSense reviews

33,789 Views
31,762 Comparison Views

94% willing to recommend

McAfee Firewall Enterprise ...

Netgate pfSense

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Download the report

Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between McAfee Firewall Enterprise MFE [EOL] and Netgate pfSense based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out what your peers are saying about Fortinet, Netgate, Cisco and others in Firewalls.

To learn more, read our detailed Firewalls Report (Updated: September 2026).

Buyer's Guide

Firewalls

September 2026

Download the complete report

Helped 913,683 peers since 2012

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

McAfee Firewall Enterprise ...

Average Rating

7.0

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Netgate pfSense

Average Rating

8.6

Reviews Sentiment

7.2

Number of Reviews

221

Ranking in other categories

Firewalls (2nd)

Featured Reviews

reviewer999975

Computer Technician at a leisure / travel company with 1,001-5,000 employees

We cannot find resources to help us configure it, so most of the time the virus still goes on our computer and McAfee doesn't detect it

It's pretty easy to use on a daily basis, but there are no other features because it's hard to configure on the server. On the endpoint it's really easy to push. It's hard to configure on the server, though. It's hard to find resources to help us configure it, and there is not much online help that you can find. Most of the time, we were looking at the forums, and we needed to go very deep to find what we were looking for. It was hard, and McAfee was not really helpful when we were trying to get the product to work perfectly. This is why are changing it.

Read full review

Juan-Arias

Principal Cloud Architect - Software Engineer at a consultancy with 11-50 employees

Rapid VPN setup has connected offices in minutes and brings live insights for proactive issue control

What I appreciate the most about Netgate pfSense is the ease and straightforward nature of the platform. I can set up a new office in less than 10 minutes. The benefits of using Netgate pfSense are that I can set up VPNs in less than two to three minutes, and then just deploy the file across my networks, where everybody would be connected in less than an hour. The dashboards of Netgate pfSense bring all the necessary information that I need at a glance, and it is actually a live update every three to five seconds. It is spotless, and I have been able to catch issues before they hit operations.

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

"It does give certain protection for everything that is well configured on our McAfee server. We have good protection with it. If we could find a feature and make it work, it would work perfectly, there would be no bugs, and it would be really good."

"For managing multiple MFE firewalls it is incredibly handy, convenient, and it is easy to use the product with McAfee Control Centre."

"We have 10 offices throughout Brazil, and now they are all connected by using the VPN feature of the firewall."

"ROI: It's good."

"It's a very functional and stable product if you're looking for a Layer 7 firewall with reputation filtering and encrypted traffic inspection."

"The documentation is very good."

"PfSense is relatively easy to set up and just runs. It's easy to use."

"The most valuable features are the alerting and local monitoring."

"For those who want to implement this solution I would advise it is great for a small enterprise, it is best to get started without having any harm getting to their networks."

"I like pfSense and I have deployed a number of them."

"Support is very good."

"The most valuable feature of pfSense is that it's a stateful firewall. I also like the way the rules are implemented on the firewall. It makes things much easier to see at a glance."

"The scalability is very good, where you can do an HA configuration and then bring in another box, if necessary."

More Netgate pfSense pros

Cons

"The hardware is not stable and we have faced many stability issues."

"Administration of the firewall is a little confusing for end users."

"Customer support and AV are both lacking and are really hard to come to you when the product is installed. Those are the two major points that they need to work on."

"HA configuration is a bit difficult for the first time."

"Migrating from v7 to v8 of McAfee Firewall Enterprise, in many cases, involves you having to completely re-write all of your previous McAfee Firewall Enterprise v7 policies due to the difference in the way the interfaces are named in the product going from v7 to v8."

"The web is evolving every day, so the product should be constantly improved with more regular updates."

"It needs to be more secure."

"It would be nice if the solution had a wizard for some of the complex functions."

"One area where Netgate could improve is communication with its user base."

"The usage reports can be better."

"As per my understanding VPN, Captive Portal user-level and MAC-level filtering need to be improved."

"We had a stability issue. A handful of times the firewall box froze and needed a power cycle."

"The first time we deployed it, it was kind of tricky."

More Netgate pfSense cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available

"For what they charge for it, which is maybe $100 a year, it's still good. If you wanted to build your own router, pfSense is more than worth $100 a year to have all that flexibility and maybe your own piece of custom hardware that you want to run it on."

"pfSense's pricing or licensing model is very affordable."

"Netgate pfSense stands out as a cost-effective option that delivers excellent value."

"We are using the open-source version which is free. We are testing the solution to see if we are going to go to the enterprise version which requires a license and is not free."

"I use the product's free version."

"It is a free solution."

"From Sonic Wall, their price is much higher, because for every feature that you want to add, you have to pay. I can do the same things with pfSense, but everything is included in one price."

"It has almost zero cost, and it is open to us. It runs on a small appliance just for a couple of 100 bucks, and I've never had an appliance burn out on me yet."

More Netgate pfSense pricing and cost advice

See which vendors are best for you

Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Firewalls solutions are best for your needs.

See recommendations

913,683 professionals have used our research since 2012.

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

No data available

Comms Service Provider

12%

Computer Software Company

10%

Manufacturing Company

Outsourcing Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

No data available

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	171
Midsize Enterprise	33
Large Enterprise	29

Questions from the Community

Ask a question

Earn 20 points

Help me find the best open source router

You don't really specify what type of router you are looking for but if you are talking about a gateway router I recommend PFSense. This software solutions can be installed on youf own hardware or ...

See all answers

How do I choose between Fortinet FortiGate and pfSense?

Fortinet’s Fortigate is a firewall solution we use and are very much satisfied with its performance. We find Fortigate both cost-effective and efficient. One of the features we like most is that Fo...

See all answers

What is the difference between PfSense and OPNsense?

Two of the most common and well recognized firewalls, PfSense and OPNsense both support site-to-site IPsec VPN and client, Open VPN and client, and PPTP client. Both also have intrusion detection a...

See all answers

Comparisons

SonicWall NSa vs McAfee Firewall Enterprise MFE [EOL]

Compared 39% of the time

Fortinet FortiGate-VM vs McAfee Firewall Enterprise MFE [EOL]

Compared 13% of the time

Cisco Secure Firewall vs McAfee Firewall Enterprise MFE [EOL]

Compared 11% of the time

Trellix Network Detection and Response vs McAfee Firewall Enterprise MFE [EOL]

Compared 10% of the time

Fortinet FortiGate vs McAfee Firewall Enterprise MFE [EOL]

Compared 8% of the time

More McAfee Firewall Enterprise MFE [EOL] Competitors

OPNsense vs Netgate pfSense

Compared 51% of the time

Fortinet FortiGate vs Netgate pfSense

Compared 8% of the time

Cisco Secure Firewall vs Netgate pfSense

Compared 4% of the time

Sophos Firewall vs Netgate pfSense

Compared 3% of the time

Sophos UTM vs Netgate pfSense

Compared 3% of the time

More Netgate pfSense Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Firewalls

September 2026

McAfee Firewall Enterprise MFE [EOL] report

Download McAfee Firewall Enterprise MFE [EOL] product report

Buyer's Guide

Netgate pfSense

September 2026

Download Netgate pfSense product report

Also Known As

Firewall Enterprise MFE, Intel Security Firewall Enterprise MFE

No data available

Overview

McAfee Firewall Enterprise defends critical assets, such as regulated data repositories (customer, financial, and healthcare data), email and web servers, extranets, and data centers. This proxy-based firewall also offers application visibility and deep application controls for defense, delivers strong policy-based controls, blocks the latest threats, and eliminates unwanted traffic.

McAfee

Netgate pfSense is an open-source firewall and router software known for scalability, cost-effectiveness, and community support. It includes customizable packages for varied network management needs, offering solid performance and straightforward management for diverse setups.

Netgate pfSense provides an impressive range of functionalities including firewall capabilities, VPN options, and extensive customization through packages. Its low resource usage and high availability make it viable for businesses of all sizes, especially when dealing with tailored network demands. Despite its strengths, users suggest improvements in ease of use, mobile compatibility, and support for plug-ins. Enhanced centralized management, better documentation, and additional security features are frequent requests.

What are the key features of Netgate pfSense?

Scalability: Suits any network size from small home setups to large enterprises.
Open-source: Offers transparency and flexibility, allowing for community-driven development.
Firewall Capabilities: Provides robust protection against unauthorized access.
VPN Options: Supports secure remote connectivity with various VPN protocols.
Customizable Packages: Allows users to personalize functionalities to fit network needs.
High Availability: Ensures continuous network operations with redundancy features.
Load Balancing: Distributes traffic efficiently across multiple paths or connections.
Traffic Shaping: Manages bandwidth allocation to optimize network performance.

What benefits should users consider in reviews?

Cost-effectiveness: Significant savings due to low operational costs and open-source nature.
Performance: Reliable service delivery with minimal hardware demands.
User-friendly Interface: Intuitive design that simplifies complex network management.
Community Support: Access to extensive community resources for troubleshooting and advice.
Comprehensive Documentation: Detailed guides and tutorials to facilitate installation and configuration.

In education and healthcare, Netgate pfSense is employed for secure connectivity and efficient traffic management, accommodating distinct demands of remote access and content filtering. Organizations in these sectors often utilize features such as load balancing and VPNs to maintain secure and reliable network operations while integrating with services like Active Directory for streamlined identity management. Small to medium-sized enterprises benefit from its affordability and robust functionality, making it a go-to choice for managed service environments requiring effective network security and control.

Netgate

Sample Customers

French Ministry of Education, RWTH Aachen, Avency, Cegedim, Cobweb, Intel Security, Cemex Mauser, R_sler Oberfl_chentechnik

Nerds On Site Inc., RKC Development Inc., Expertech, Fisher's Technology, Ncisive, Consulting, CPURX, Vaughn's Computer House Calls, Imeretech LLC, Digital Crisis, Carolina Digital Phone, Technigogo Technology Services, The Simple Solution, SwiftecITInc, Rocky Mountain Tech Team, Free Range Geeks, Alaska Computer Geeks, Lark Information Technology, Renaissance Systems Inc., Cutting Edge Computers, Caretech LLC, GoVanguard, Network Touch Ltd, P.C. Solutions.Net, Vision Voice and Data Systems LLC, Montgomery Technologies, Techforce, Concero Networks, ASONInc, CPS Electronics and Consulting, Darkwire.net LLC, IT Specialists, MBS-Net Inc., VOICE1 LLC, Advantage Networking Inc., Powerhouse Systems, Doxa Multimedia Inc., Pro Computer Service, Virtual IT Services, A&J Computers Inc., Envision IT LLC, CommunicaONE Inc., Bone Computer Inc., Amax Engineering Corporation, QPG Ltd. Co., IT 101 Inc., Perfect Cloud Solutions, Applied Technology Group Inc., The Digital Sun Group LLC, Firespring

Find out what your peers are saying about Fortinet, Netgate, Cisco and others in Firewalls. Updated: September 2026.

DOWNLOAD NOW

913,683 professionals have used our research since 2012.

See our list of best Firewalls vendors.

We monitor all Firewalls reviews to prevent fraudulent reviews and keep review quality high. We do not post reviews by company employees or direct competitors. We validate each review for authenticity via cross-reference with LinkedIn, and personal follow-up with the reviewer when necessary.