OPNsense vs Stormshield Network Security comparison

Why PeerSpot?

OPNsense and Stormshield are both solutions in the Firewalls category. Additionally, 95% of OPNsense users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 85% of Stormshield users who would recommend it.

OPNsense

Read 47 OPNsense reviews

28,343 Views
26,642 Comparison Views

95% willing to recommend

Stormshield Network Security

Read 18 Stormshield Network Security reviews

4,439 Views
1,909 Comparison Views

85% willing to recommend

OPNsense

Stormshield Network Security

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between OPNsense and Stormshield Network Security based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

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

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Buyer's Guide

Firewalls

October 2026

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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

OPNsense

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

6.6

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Firewalls (7th)

Stormshield Network Security

Average Rating

7.8

Reviews Sentiment

5.4

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Unified Threat Management (UTM) (12th)

Featured Reviews

Peter Muiruri

IT Manager at a comms service provider with 201-500 employees

Open-source firewall has provided affordable real-time protection and secure remote access

In my opinion, OPNsense could improve by incorporating either an open side of wireless management or a way that you can also manage your interconnected devices. You could easily have SNMP, Simple Network Management Protocol, incorporated in it so that you can easily manage the devices and easily get the information about the devices that you are managing. Additionally, the inclusion of Pi-hole would allow you to create an ad-free network instead of adding it on a separate device. I would prefer that incorporated into OPNsense, or if it is there, I would appreciate guidance on how to use it.

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Zsolt Jónás

System Administrator at NaxoNet

Advanced GUI and layered security have supported compliance and simplified intrusion prevention

I haven't had a task that I couldn't solve with Stormshield Network Security. The active-active high availability solution would be beneficial because currently, if you build a high availability solution with Stormshield Network Security, you have a main device and another one is a backup device. The HA can switch between them, but it would be good to have a master-master solution, not just a master-slave one. I could set a URL that I can call to update the DNS record. Currently, Stormshield Network Security devices support DynDNS, which is not a usual feature request from a server environment. I have my own solution instead of DynDNS because I don't prefer it, so I have my own service for that. However, the GUI does not support using a custom service instead of DynDNS. I had to solve it in the console on Stormshield Network Security device, but it would be much better if it was reachable on the GUI. I had to figure out a trick for the IPsec configuration. In the IPsec config, we have to provide the remote side's IP address, but it's always changing. This means that an office, for example a company that has an office but without a fixed IP address, cannot be used with IPsec VPN.

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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 technical support is very good."

"The feature I find most valuable, is that the program helped me to realize all the requested functionality that was needed."

"The initial implementation process is simple."

"It has firewall and VPN capabilities, which are very valuable features."

"OPNsense is a great tool for problem-solving with a VPN."

"The most valuable features of OPNsense are the GUI and frequent updates."

"OPNsense impacts my projects and home network positively because its cost-effectiveness is perfect for lab and enterprise setup without expensive licensing, and the flexibility, easy VLAN and DMZ configuration supports different zones such as web servers, mail servers, and log servers."

"OPNsense is very stable, easy to upgrade, and maintain."

More OPNsense pros

"Stormshield is pretty robust, compared to other products like Fortinet, as you get more security with Stormshield and spend less money."

"Easily manageable in a variety of environments."

"Filters and URL filtering helped us to optimize our bandwidth."

"The scalability of the solution is good."

"The tool's most valuable feature is its dashboard, which helps you manage different aspects of a single page."

"A very robust product."

"The StormShield solution has enabled us to fully implement best practices from Microsoft in the cloud : the hub and spoke architecture."

"The performance of this solution is good."

More Stormshield Network Security pros

Cons

"There are some add-ons that need enhancements to make management easier for users, especially the reporting features. Some reports don't show the level of detail I'm looking for, and I've had trouble installing certain add-ons, especially for Internet bandwidth shaping within my company."

"OPNsense could improve by making the configuration more web-based rather than shell or command-line-based."

"The reporting part could be better."

"OPNsense can be improved by making it more user-friendly, as its current UI is not that user-friendly when compared to paid software such as Sophos."

"Pricing in my opinion is just too expensive. It makes no sense. It moves in the direction of a monopoly."

"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."

"The logging could improve in OPNsense."

"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."

More OPNsense cons

"This is not a next-generation firewall."

"The biggest issue was their support department was not able to help us, then everything stops. This is a no-go area for me."

"The filtering configuration could be better. We have some difficulties with the filtering configuration and the filter extension."

"A more user-friendly interface would be helpful."

"Being more cost effective. I went with a pair of Watchguard M300 recently when buying a new firewall cluster for our own use because it was way cheaper than NetASQ/Stormshield N700 while being faster, and it offers true multi-master firewall clustering if needed."

"Support is always an issue because they're constantly busy."

"Stormshield Network Security is quite expensive."

"It could be better if it were more user-friendly. It's too complicated for us to use it. The price could be better as well."

More Stormshield Network Security cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The price of OPNsense is good."

"We are not paying any licensing fees. OPNsense is completely free for us."

"The solution is not expensive."

"It's a free solution."

"As an appliance, it's in the medium price range."

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

"We are using the paid version."

"It is a free solution, and when you compare it to alternatives like FortiGate, which is quite powerful but also costly, the value becomes evident."

More OPNsense pricing and cost advice

"The SN200 series costs between $500 USD and $600 USD per year, whereas the SN700 series costs approximately $1,000 annually."

"We chose Stormshield for its price, as the Azure firewall was too expensive."

"We bought a three-year license, and we renew it whenever it expires. The price could be better. It's always very expensive."

"The pricing could be better."

"I think the price is good."

"For mid-sized companies, they sell their appliances for good prices."

"The price of this solution and the price of support are ok."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Comms Service Provider

18%

Manufacturing Company

Outsourcing Company

Computer Software Company

Comms Service Provider

17%

Manufacturing Company

12%

Construction Company

Outsourcing Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	32
Midsize Enterprise	6
Large Enterprise	8

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	11
Midsize Enterprise	5
Large Enterprise	2

Questions from the Community

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...

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for OPNsense?

Setup cost is almost zero as one can simulate the whole environment using open source version. Pricing seems fair enough. Open source license allows a beginner to have a complete firewall solution ...

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What needs improvement with OPNsense?

When I talk about VPN, I am not completely satisfied with the VPN functions of OPNsense. What I have received so far is that sometimes the VPN route caches for some time and sometimes I want to cha...

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What needs improvement with Stormshield Network Security?

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Stormshield Network Security?

I already use Stormshield Network Security, and I am now looking for a new solution. I am already working with Stormshield Network Security, and the official reseller of Stormshield.

See all answers

What advice do you have for others considering Stormshield Network Security?

The pricing is increasing, and I would say it is a bit expensive. Palo Alto and others are much more expensive, but Stormshield Network Security is also not inexpensive. My overall review rating fo...

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Comparisons

Netgate pfSense vs OPNsense

Compared 48% of the time

Fortinet FortiGate vs OPNsense

Compared 6% of the time

IPFire vs OPNsense

Compared 5% of the time

Sophos Firewall vs OPNsense

Compared 4% of the time

Cisco Secure Firewall vs OPNsense

Compared 4% of the time

More OPNsense Competitors

Fortinet FortiGate vs Stormshield Network Security

Compared 14% of the time

Netgate pfSense vs Stormshield Network Security

Compared 11% of the time

Sophos UTM vs Stormshield Network Security

Compared 8% of the time

Sophos Firewall vs Stormshield Network Security

Compared 4% of the time

Palo Alto Networks WildFire vs Stormshield Network Security

Compared 4% of the time

More Stormshield Network Security Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

OPNsense

October 2026

Download OPNsense product report

Buyer's Guide

Stormshield Network Security

October 2026

Download Stormshield Network Security product report

Also Known As

No data available

NETASQ Firewalls

Overview

OPNsense is a robust open-source platform known for its intuitive GUI, firewall capabilities, and seamless network management. It provides essential security features such as VPN and IDS/IPS, catering to organizations looking for reliable and custom-configurable solutions.

Renowned for its user-centric approach, OPNsense integrates functionality with scalability, making it a preferred choice for both on-premises and cloud deployments. Employing regular updates, OPNsense enhances security and offers modular configurations, DNS-level filtering, content control, and load balancing. Users value the platform's resilience and its ability to support features like WireGuard and Zenarmor for improved security management, especially appreciated by budget-conscious entities. However, complexity in its interface and reporting, along with challenges in cloud integration and API, require attention. Users also suggest improvements in VPN and firewall customization and seek better documentation and tools, considering the current pricing structure.

What are the key features of OPNsense?

GUI: Simplifies navigation and configuration tasks.
Firewall: Provides strong protection against network threats.
VPN: Ensures secure remote connectivity.
IDS/IPS: Detects and prevents intrusions effectively.
Modular Design: Allows for tailored configuration.
WireGuard: Enhances VPN speed and security.
Zenarmor: Offers advanced traffic analysis.

Why should users consider OPNsense?

Security: Frequent updates ensure robust protection.
Scalability: Adaptable for both small and large networks.
Cost-Effectiveness: Balances features with budget constraints.
Integration: Supports various third-party applications.
Flexibility: Suitable for diverse business environments.

In industries ranging from corporate enterprises to home offices, OPNsense is implemented for securing server data, managing VPN links, and enforcing firewall policies. It is particularly favored for providing secure remote access, efficient network management, and the flexibility needed for specific business requirements, whether deployed in cloud environments or traditional setups.

OPNsense

Stormshield Network Security offers comprehensive protection with features like backup inspection, scalable interface, and load balancing, suitable for network security management.

Stormshield Network Security is designed for organizations requiring reliable IT infrastructure protection, providing firewall capabilities, intrusion detection, and application control. Users find VPN support, URL filtering, and UTM functions beneficial for network management. Models like SN200 and SN910 are used globally in clustered configurations, addressing different demands. Challenges include pricing, interface friendliness, filtering configurations, and technical support.

What are the key features of Stormshield Network Security?

Backup Inspection: Enhances reliability and recovery options.
Antivirus Controls: Provides robust virus protection.
Intrusion Detection: Alerts on potential threats.
Load Balancing: Distributes network traffic efficiently.
URL Filtering: Blocks malicious websites for safe browsing.

What benefits should users seek in reviews?

Scalability: Adapts to each organization's growing needs.
Reliability: Supports clustered configurations for uptime.
Management Ease: Intuitive dashboard aids network oversight.
Performance: High throughput with efficient clustering.

Stormshield Network Security is widely implemented in industries needing IT infrastructure protection, like finance or healthcare. Organizations deploy it in data centers or branch offices, benefiting from features ensuring safety and performance. The tool supports environments that demand high security levels and robust network monitoring.

Stormshield

Sample Customers

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.

ACESUR group, Ministry of Education Oman, Anios Laboratories, Zain, DLM Location

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