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Palo Alto Networks CN-Series vs SonicWall NSSP comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

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)
Palo Alto Networks CN-Series
Ranking in Firewalls
33rd
Average Rating
9.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
2
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
SonicWall NSSP
Ranking in Firewalls
29th
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
10
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 Palo Alto Networks CN-Series is 0.4%, up from 0.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SonicWall NSSP is 0.4%, up from 0.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Firewalls Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Fortinet FortiGate15.1%
SonicWall NSSP0.4%
Palo Alto Networks CN-Series0.4%
Other84.1%
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.
Ahmed_Shalaby - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Cyber Security Engineer at Beta Information Technology
Application control excels and integration with monitoring system boosts efficiency
I am an integrator working with Palo Alto Networks CN-Series and Panorama. I have been involved with the implementation of Palo Alto Networks CN-Series The stability of Palo Alto Networks CN-Series is excellent. Application control is one of the most valuable features. Its monitoring capability…
SyedTaha - PeerSpot reviewer
Head of IT and Information Security at GLEEDS USA INC
Support has resolved concerns promptly and security tools have strengthened intrusion prevention and access control
The service we received from SonicWall NSSP and their distributors has been excellent. Every time I have had a concern, they have resolved it in a single call. The interface of SonicWall NSSP console is user-friendly with comprehensive features. The web filtering and access control policy are top priorities for me. It is very effective because it prevents any indecent behaviors in the network or from outside the network. Half of the task is completed by the intelligence based on the behavior. Installation was easy because our infrastructure has minimal requirements. For expanded infrastructure, support from a SonicWall NSSP technical team may be required. We have implemented it on our own.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"I would rate the scalability of this product a nine out of ten because it is highly scalable. We have not had problems with customers in terms of scalability."
"Onboarded three times more customers without adding firewall hardware, cut network expansion capital expenses by roughly 40 percent through VDOM consolidation, reduced vulnerability remediation costs by about 60 percent thanks to automated FortiGuard updates, shortened policy-deployment time by over 50 percent, freeing up 10 plus hours of engineering effort weekly, and achieved payback on the initial FortiGate investment within 9 months via increased tenancy revenue and lower OPEX."
"Fortigate is very scalable to serve our customers' needs. We have scaled already from fifty to more than a hundred instances of Fortinet FortiGate. Around 20 staff are required for deployment and maintenance, mostly engineers."
"Overall, we're very happy with their firewalls, but when we have issues or bugs, there are some difficulties in finding the resolution."
"The best features of Fortinet FortiGate include everything about networking, such as routing and VPNs."
"It is quite easy to handle."
"The product is easy to implement, easy to manage, and easy to develop and grow."
"This version is stable. I don't have any issues with this solution, in our environment, it works well."
"The app inspection is very helpful for network security."
"The stability of Palo Alto Networks CN-Series is excellent."
"SonicWall NSSP is stable and scalable too."
"If I had to pick between the top three firewalls with all things being equal, I would go with SonicWall just for the support and ease of management."
"The VPN functionality is really good. Overall, the whole device is very easy to manage. The software that comes with it is also good."
"The sandbox and the DPI-SSL are two main key features that I find valuable."
"SonicWall NSSP offers features such as stateful firewall, deep packet inspections, IPS, application intelligence, user-based policies, centralized visibility from the management console, advanced protection with RFDPI, high-speed scanning, RTDMI technology, Capture ATP, cloud sandboxing, and encrypted traffic inspection with DPI-SSL and TLS."
"I like the filtering feature, which provides easy access. The SSL certification feature is also nice. The solution enhanced our security posture."
"SonicWall has helped us deliver security solutions effectively, particularly in threat prevention and content filtering."
"The solution's pricing is good."
 

Cons

"FortGate's IPS reporting could be made better by giving more details regarding the source and destination of network traffic when it comes to the overview section. This would allow me to more easily follow the flow of traffic based on IP addresses, without having to integrate the IPS with other products that perform more sophisticated traffic analysis."
"Some time ago we upgraded to the Fortinet solution of our previous partner and there was a memory leak which created problems."
"They have recently acquired a CNAP solution which should be integrated into FortiGate boxes natively for protection at any application layer. Since Fortinet FortiGate has Layer 7 protection, they should integrate that as soon as they can for threat detection and network detection."
"Fortinet FortiGate could improve the user interface. There should be more functionality and options through the GUI."
"There are some issues with security features and aspects like logs not being up to the mark."
"Fortinet FortiGate is a stable solution. However, my issue is the performance only. When I use all the profiles, this affects the performance. From the beginning, I should have had a better sizing of the box."
"The scalability could be better."
"Improvement is needed in the Web Filter quotas to restrict users with allocated quotas."
"I'd like to see more IOPs features."
"Palo Alto Networks CN-Series could improve on its pricing as it is quite expensive."
"The platform could benefit from an improved marketing strategy."
"Its reporting functions can be improved. It has decent reporting, but you got to pay a lot more money for it. That's where it begins to fall apart. It comes with minimal zero reporting unless you buy some extra modules. With those extra modules, you can get all the data, but it takes a while to put together what you need for your customer. It is for technical people, but there is no executive summary of the reporting."
"The solution's stability and scalability also need improvement."
"For improvement, they should have events specifically focused on firmware or patch updates released for the firewalls."
"The initial setup is quite complex because we have to get a lot of policies."
"The user interface, the GUI, could be improved."
"Its reporting functions can be improved. It has decent reporting, but you got to pay a lot more money for it."
"In my opinion, SonicWall NSSP needs improvements, particularly in Gen 7 devices, where I face high data plane and management plane issues, especially when enabling User Level Authentication."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Pricing for this product is comparatively lower than other products. It's an affordable solution, but when expanding the number of users, they'll ask you to replace the model, so that's an added cost."
"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."
"I rate the product's pricing a seven out of ten. The additional cost depends on the extra feature requirements."
"Fortinet FortiGate has different licensing models, depending on what you're going to do. Services included would depend on the license model. Licenses can be renewed annually."
"There is a licensing fee; it is on a yearly basis."
"It is a good product from a price perspective versus functionality."
"It is a cost-effective solution that meets the user's needs."
"Currently, we are paying about $1,500 a month for three sites."
Information not available
"The setup costs and licensing are reasonable, and the solution provides good value for its features."
"I rate the solution's pricing a six out of ten."
"You got to buy some VPN licenses, and there might be a $40 to $50 one-time license fee per current user. There are different layers. They have several different levels of event security software and depending on the model, it seems to come out to be $1 to $2 a day. So, if you bought a three-year license, it is going to be anywhere from $900 to $1800 depending on the bundle and model that you buy."
"The pricing is cheap, and that's where, you know, the some of the organization goes for the SonicWall."
"For SonicWall NSSP high availability, active/passive, you need to buy one license, and so you get much more value for money."
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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%
No data available
Construction Company
18%
Comms Service Provider
17%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Computer Software Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business370
Midsize Enterprise138
Large Enterprise195
No data available
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business7
Large Enterprise3
 

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 is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Palo Alto Networks CN-Series?
The pricing of Palo Alto Networks CN-Series is quite expensive, rating around eight on a scale of one to ten for cost.
What needs improvement with Palo Alto Networks CN-Series?
Palo Alto Networks CN-Series could improve on its pricing as it is quite expensive. The SD-WAN implementation using P...
What is your primary use case for Palo Alto Networks CN-Series?
I am an integrator working with Palo Alto Networks CN-Series ( /products/palo-alto-networks-cn-series-reviews ) and P...
What needs improvement with SonicWall NSSP?
In my opinion, SonicWall NSSP needs improvements, particularly in Gen 7 devices, where I face high data plane and man...
What is your primary use case for SonicWall NSSP?
I recommend SonicWall NSSP for multiple clients, including manufacturers and pharmaceutical clients, and based on the...
 

Also Known As

Fortinet FortiGate Next-Generation Firewall
No data available
SonicWall Network Security Services Platform
 

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
Information Not Available
Comlogic, Depaul, Hutt City Council
Find out what your peers are saying about Palo Alto Networks CN-Series vs. SonicWall NSSP and other solutions. Updated: June 2026.
899,258 professionals have used our research since 2012.