OPNsense vs Palo Alto Networks K2-Series comparison

OPNsense and Palo Alto Networks are both solutions in the Firewalls category. OPNsense is ranked #3 with an average rating of 8.3, while Palo Alto Networks is ranked #29 with an average rating of 8.2. OPNsense holds a 11.5% mindshare in Firewalls, compared to Palo Alto Networks’s 0.0% mindshare. Additionally, 97% of OPNsense users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 96% of Palo Alto Networks users who would recommend it.

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Sep 16, 2024

OPNsense and Palo Alto Networks K2-Series are both prominent firewall solutions catering to different user needs. Users appreciate the pricing and support of OPNsense, while many find that despite its higher cost, Palo Alto Networks K2-Series offers superior features justifying the investment.

Features: OPNsense's flexibility and open-source nature allow extensive customization. The active community contributes to its development, ensuring a wide range of plugins. Its ease of integration with other systems is beneficial to users. Palo Alto Networks K2-Series offers advanced threat detection, which many consider state-of-the-art. Its automated security measures ensure proactive protection. Comprehensive compliance features help businesses adhere to industry standards.

Room for Improvement: OPNsense users highlight the need for better documentation. The interface could be more user-friendly, and the learning curve is often steep for beginners. Additionally, enhancing the scalability of the platform would benefit larger enterprises. Palo Alto Networks K2-Series users note a steep learning curve. Simplifying the management processes would improve user experience. They also desire more intuitive reporting tools to better understand security metrics.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: OPNsense is praised for its straightforward deployment process. The active community support is a major advantage. Its deployment is often quicker, requiring less technical expertise. Palo Alto Networks K2-Series, while powerful, requires significant expertise for deployment and configuration. Extensive customer service and support resources provide assistance once it is set up. Users find the initial setup challenging but beneficial in the long run.

Pricing and ROI: OPNsense is often chosen for its cost-effectiveness. Lower setup costs make it accessible for smaller businesses. The open-source model reduces overall expenses. Palo Alto Networks K2-Series involves higher initial expenses. It is viewed as a valuable long-term investment due to its security advantages. The advanced features justify the higher cost for those seeking robust security. The return on investment is significant through reliability and advanced protection.

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

Buyer's Guide

OPNsense vs. Palo Alto Networks K2-Series

April 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 May 2025, in the Firewalls category, the mindshare of Fortinet FortiGate is 21.4%, up from 17.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of OPNsense is 11.5%, down from 17.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Palo Alto Networks K2-Series is 0.0%, up from 0.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Firewalls

Featured Reviews

EhabAli

Sr. Cybersecurity Solutions Architect at BMB

Efficient, user-friendly, and affordable

In the past, NSS Labs was utilized to test files and verify the numbers and datasheets. It would be beneficial to have an organization or testing lab that can verify the numbers in our datasheets since changes are frequently made, which can be inconvenient for review. For instance, when comparing different competitors such as Forcepoint, Palo Alto, and Check Point, the throughput or numbers in the datasheet may be lower than the actual numbers. Conversely, Fortinet typically reports very high numbers, but they cannot be replicated in the real world. Therefore, it would be advantageous for them to partner with a neutral testing organization such as NSS Labs to validate these numbers, thus providing more credibility and comfort to everyone regarding the accuracy of the datasheets. For the migration, everyone has a firewall in use and I am selling Fortinet. Typically, I am replacing another firewall. Previously, there was a tool available to convert configurations from one firewall, such as Palo Alto, to Fortinet, but this tool is no longer free. If it could be made free again, it would be very beneficial. This tool shows a lot of promise and is very good. Making it free would help many companies deliver their products in a more efficient and integrated way. It would also be more valuable to include the tool with the firewall package or license instead of having to pay extra for it. Paying extra puts more pressure on small companies to deliver the firewall and complete the configuration, especially if they have hundreds or thousands of policies. It's very painful to move through these policies line by line. The stability has room for improvement. When it comes to Secure SD-WAN, everything is fine. They are going the right way. SD-WAN is very promising. They can provide the SD-WAN solution separately, but they will not take this approach because even the smallest firewall can support the features, so there is no need to have a separate service or appliance. They are following the right steps, and there is nothing to be improved. Feature-wise, I'm really satisfied with the new release, and the features they have added. For now, it's fine.

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Eddy Ramirez

IT Security Director at a financial services firm with 1,001-5,000 employees

Good interface and firewall capabilities and overall easy to use

The security has improved as we can isolate the network. We can do attrition prevention via a tool that comes with the solution. We can have a VPN solution in place for those that work from home, outside the network, in a secure manner. We also like that it offers good authentication. It offers radius-based authentication, which has been useful for the company. The main platform is under the Open VPN firewall. The solution has high availability. When we have different ISPs, we can actually load balance those links or actually put some priority or even classify the traffic that might go into one ISP or another.

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Krishnakumar M

enterprise architect at a tech services company with 1-10 employees

One of the best tools for the prevention of evasive threats

There is a feature called granular application controls, which I liked. Instead of relying on ports and IP addresses, they use AMP ID. This kind of solution is very good. Another valuable feature is the prevention of evasive threats, which is one of the best tools I've encountered. SSL decryption and app ID-based SSL decryption are also impressive, along with the integration with user ID. Identity-based policies ensuring only authorized users can access specific resources are excellent features. Normally, there is something called SIM or SCIM in IDA IDM, but this feature is provided on the box, which is exemplary.

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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

"It is a good source for firewall protection."

"The virtual firewall feature is the most valuable. We have around 1,500 firewalls. We did not buy individual hardware, and the virtual firewalls made sense because we don't have to keep on buying the hardware. FortiGate is easier to use as compared to Checkpoint devices. It is user friendly and has a good UI. You don't need much expertise to work on this firewall. You don't need to worry much about DCLA, commands, and things like that."

"The most important features with FortiGate are the web filter and application controls. We can control our internet usage and use the web filter for application purposes."

"With FortiClient, you can easily connect when you are home, check out what you want to do, and connect to your network when you are not at work. You can switch on servers and you can check what is wrong."

"User-friendly and affordable security solution that's recommended for SMB customers. This solution has good technical support."

"In terms of security, we have not experienced any security flaws or loopholes, and it has proven to be quite stable."

"We were looking for the VPN feature and controlling the inflow and outflow of all the traffic within the site and across the sites. We are also using it for the VPN and VLANs."

"The performance is good."

More Fortinet FortiGate pros

"OPNsense is easy to use and open source."

"The interface and the dashboard are the most valuable features of this solution."

"The tool's integration is more like a button press."

"OPNsense is easy to scale when running on the hardware."

"One of the most valuable features is the network checking. Additionally, the firewall and web filtering functionalities are highly useful."

"I feel that its valuable features are that it is simple and free."

"It is a very good solution. I like the dashboard. I can see what is going on and manage it as I like it."

"The technical support is very good."

More OPNsense pros

"Overall product rating: Nine out of ten."

"Palo Alto's App-ID is what differentiates it from other competitors."

"The most valuable feature of Palo Alto Networks K2-Series is the configuration, it is very clear."

"The application ID on the Palo Alto Networks K2-Series is able to understand the application traffic, and WildFire is also good."

"Overall, this is a very simple and very effective firewall, and I am satisfied with it."

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

"Palo Alto has a unique solution for DNS security, which is very good."

"This is a very reliable firewall and we have never had problems with it."

More Palo Alto Networks K2-Series pros

Cons

"Some of the features in the graphical user interface do not work, which requires that we used the command-line-interface."

"Its pricing can be better."

"Some of the filtering is not robust, you can escape it with a VPN. Some of the users bypass some of the filters. It catches some but it also misses some, that area could be improved. It's functioning reasonably but there's room for improvement in that area."

"It is very expensive, and their support is not very good. I hope that their technical support will be better in the future."

"The main aspect of FortiGate that could be improved is load balancing. Our management team does not want to buy another appliance for only load balancing."

"There's always something new that can be added or fixed."

"A sandbox would be good in order to be able to inspect the emails containing spam and be able to validate the emails that contain malware, prior to delivering to the customer."

"It needs to improve its ISP load balancing."

More Fortinet FortiGate cons

"I would like better documentation concerning the provided packages and their integration."

"The only thing that I would like to see improved is the Insight or the NetFlow analysis part. It would be good to have the possibility to dig down on the Insight platform. Right now, we can easily do only a few analyses. If this page becomes more powerful, it surely will be a well-adopted platform."

"On the customer-side, because I'm a small business, I need a cheaper or free solution option."

"SD-WAN (software-defined wide area network) is integrated into some restricted service providers for OPNSense."

"While they do have paid options that actually gives better features, for most of the clients, if they tend to take a paid option will instead opt for Fortinet."

"They should improve IPEs for security in the future."

"There are issues with stability and reliability."

"There are a few weaknesses. For example, there is a lack of some features that I have in certain commercial products."

More OPNsense cons

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

"The scalability of Palo Alto Networks K2-Series is good. It is good for larger environments over smaller ones."

"The licensing cost is a typical complaint with many clients. The solution is expensive."

"I'd like to see more data protection on the system."

"Higher levels of support are excellent but new users may need additional options."

"The technical support, and how they provide it to the client, needs to be improved."

"The scalability for on-premises version is limited as it depends on the model."

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

More Palo Alto Networks K2-Series cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Fortinet has more device options that are affordable for small businesses than Palo Alto, and its enterprise-level models are also cheaper. Palo Alto also has a separate license for VPN connections and SD-WAN, but FortiGate offers these features standard."

"This is not a cheap solution but it isn't expensive, either. It's a good solution for the right price."

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

"The pricing or licensing of Fortinet FortiGate is quite effective as it offers different bundles that aggregate most required features, while also allowing clients the option to select specific components alone."

"The price of FortiGate is average and I would say that based on the top five products available on the market, it is in the affordable range."

"Go for long term pricing negotiated at the time of purchase."

"The beauty is the price performance ratio is great with FortiGate. It provides all the features we needed and the price is comparable with others' firewalls. The price is quite competitive with the firewalls with similar features."

"We pay for the solution annually."

More Fortinet FortiGate pricing and cost advice

"I would rate the pricing a nine out of ten, especially considering the availability of a free community edition."

"I would rate the pricing three out of ten."

"It's a free solution."

"It costs about $1000."

"The solution is not expensive."

"OPNsense is open source software so at this time it is free for us to use."

"I've used the free version. My computer with two network cards at home allows me to try as many different software options as I want. I did pay for the license, but it was for the Zenarmor license, which is the packet inspection tool. They use AI for packet inspection, which integrates with OPNsense and pfSense."

"There are no licensing costs for OPNsence."

More OPNsense pricing and cost advice

"When comparing Palo Alto Networks K2-Series with other solutions it is on the higher end of the price scale."

"This product is designed for large companies. The price would not be suitable for a small or medium size company."

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

"The pricing is expensive."

"The price of this solution is too high."

"Palo Alto Networks K2-Series is an expensive solution, the price could be reduced. They are more expensive than some of their competitors."

"This solution is expensive compared to other, similar products."

"We are on an annual license to use Palo Alto Networks K2-Series."

More Palo Alto Networks K2-Series pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Educational Organization

20%

Computer Software Company

14%

Comms Service Provider

Manufacturing Company

Computer Software Company

16%

Comms Service Provider

13%

Government

Educational Organization

Computer Software Company

28%

Manufacturing Company

Media Company

Energy/Utilities Company

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...

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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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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 cl...

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What do you like most about OPNsense?

What I like the most about OPNsense is that it offers an easy-to-use dashboard for device management and control.

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for OPNsense?

I consider the pricing of OPNsense to be high when compared with other market products. However, as a free firewall p...

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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 do you like most about Palo Alto Networks K2-Series?

It is a stable solution.

See all answers

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.

See all answers

Comparisons

Sophos XG vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 22% of the time

Netgate pfSense vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 13% of the time

Cisco Secure Firewall vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 11% of the time

WatchGuard Firebox vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 5% of the time

Check Point NGFW vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 3% of the time

More Fortinet FortiGate Competitors

Netgate pfSense vs OPNsense

Compared 38% of the time

IPFire vs OPNsense

Compared 13% of the time

Sophos XG vs OPNsense

Compared 8% of the time

Untangle NG Firewall vs OPNsense

Compared 4% of the time

Sophos XGS vs OPNsense

Compared 4% of the time

More OPNsense Competitors

Cisco Secure Firewall vs Palo Alto Networks K2-Series

Compared 100% of the time

More Palo Alto Networks K2-Series Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Fortinet FortiGate

May 2025

Download Fortinet FortiGate product report

Buyer's Guide

OPNsense

April 2025

Download OPNsense product report

Buyer's Guide

Palo Alto Networks K2-Series

April 2025

Download Palo Alto Networks K2-Series product report

Also Known As

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

No data available

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

OPNsense is widely used for firewall functionalities, intrusion detection, VPN and IPSec, content filtering, securing network traffic, and remote access. It protects internal networks and manages servers securely, suitable for small to medium-sized businesses.

OPNsense is a comprehensive firewall solution leveraging open-source technology. It integrates with third-party modules like WireGuard and CrowdSec, enhancing its security capabilities. Offering on-premises and cloud deployment, it features an intuitive graphical interface, advanced reporting, VPN functionality, IDS/IPS features, and high scalability. Users find it ideal for small businesses and home networks due to its stability and ease of use. Frequent updates and an active community support its continuous improvement. However, it needs advancements in VPN selection, scalability, and technical documentation. Enhanced high availability, threat intelligence, and integration with virtualization platforms are required. User feedback suggests improvements in connectivity, alerting, traffic monitoring, and antivirus protection.

What are the key features of OPNsense?

Strong Firewall: Robust firewall capabilities for securing network traffic.
Intrusion Detection and Prevention: Effective IDS/IPS for threat mitigation.
VPN Functionality: Comprehensive VPN support including WireGuard.
Content Filtering: DNS-level filtering for enhanced security.
Advanced Reporting: In-depth traffic analysis and reporting features.
High Scalability: Supports growing network demands.
Integration Capabilities: Works with third-party modules like CrowdSec.
Intuitive GUI: User-friendly graphical interface enhances usability.

What benefits should users look for in OPNsense reviews?

Security: High level of protection for internal networks.
Manageability: Easy management of servers and network traffic.
Cost-Effective: Open-source nature reduces costs.
Reliability: Stable performance suitable for small and medium-sized businesses.
Community Support: Active community and frequent updates.

OPNsense is implemented across various industries to secure network infrastructure and ensure reliable connectivity. In fintech, it safeguards sensitive financial data while maintaining compliance. Educational institutions deploy it to protect student information and enable secure remote learning environments. Healthcare organizations use it to secure patient data and comply with HIPAA regulations. By integrating with tools like WireGuard and CrowdSec, businesses enhance their cybersecurity posture and streamline network management, making OPNsense a versatile choice for diverse operational needs.

OPNsense

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

1. Deciso B.V. 2. iXsystems, Inc. 3. EuroBSDCon 4. Netgate 5. Claranet 6. Voleatech 7. Open Systems AG 8. Securebit AG 9. Proxmox Server Solutions GmbH 10. AVM Computersysteme Vertriebs GmbH Additional customers include: T-Systems International GmbH, Deutsche Telekom AG, Vodafone GmbH, 1&1 IONOS SE, OVHcloud, Hetzner Online GmbH, Strato AG, PlusServer GmbH, Host Europe GmbH, United Internet AG, 1&1 Versatel Deutschland GmbH, QSC AG, Bechtle AG, Cancom SE, Computacenter AG & Co. oHG, T-Systems Multimedia Solutions GmbH, Atos SE, Capgemini SE, Accenture plc, IBM Corporation, Hewlett Packard Enterprise Company, Cisco Systems, Inc.

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

Buyer's Guide

OPNsense vs. Palo Alto Networks K2-Series

April 2025

Free Report: OPNsense vs. Palo Alto Networks K2-Series

Find out what your peers are saying about OPNsense vs. Palo Alto Networks K2-Series and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.

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