Palo Alto Networks K2-Series vs SonicWall TZ comparison

Palo Alto Networks and SonicWall are both solutions in the Firewalls category. Palo Alto Networks is ranked #29 with an average rating of 8.2, while SonicWall is ranked #18 with an average rating of 9.3. Palo Alto Networks holds a 0.1% mindshare in Firewalls, compared to SonicWall’s 3.0% mindshare. Additionally, 96% of Palo Alto Networks users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 88% of SonicWall users who would recommend it.

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Apr 6, 2025

SonicWall TZ and Palo Alto Networks K2-Series compete in the network security solutions category. Palo Alto K2-Series has the upper hand due to its robust security features and advanced threat prevention capabilities, which appeal to users prioritizing top-tier security.

Features: SonicWall TZ is known for its intuitive management interface, ease of configuration, and efficient VPN capabilities. Users appreciate its competitive pricing for high availability. In contrast, Palo Alto Networks K2-Series is recognized for its superior security features, such as a strong Intrusion Prevention System (IPS) and decryption capabilities, along with advanced application control and comprehensive threat prevention.

Room for Improvement: SonicWall TZ users note the need for better reporting, enhanced application detection, and improved support. The interface could be more intuitive, and customers desire better pricing for content filtering and VPN licenses. Palo Alto K2-Series faces criticism primarily for its high cost and complex user interface, with users requesting better system integration and expanded reporting features to make it more accessible to smaller enterprises.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Both SonicWall TZ and Palo Alto Networks K2-Series are primarily available as on-premises solutions. SonicWall TZ is often praised for its straightforward setup and ease of management post-deployment, though tech support has mixed reviews with noted delays. Palo Alto is seen as more complex during deployment but offers comprehensive documentation and knowledgeable support, gaining generally favorable customer service ratings despite high demand and occasional wait times.

Pricing and ROI: SonicWall TZ is regarded as budget-friendly for small to medium-sized businesses, offering a la carte pricing with substantial features and a high ROI for cybersecurity investments. Palo Alto Networks K2-Series is seen as a premium solution with high costs, deterring smaller businesses. However, it is favored by those prioritizing advanced security capabilities, often delivering excellent ROI through its robust protection features.

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

Buyer's Guide

Palo Alto Networks K2-Series vs. SonicWall TZ

June 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 June 2025, in the Firewalls category, the mindshare of Fortinet FortiGate is 21.4%, up from 17.8% 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. The mindshare of SonicWall TZ is 3.0%, up from 2.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

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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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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Rias Majeed

CTO at Exceed NetSec LLC

Robust VPN integration stands out despite needing enhanced vendor compatibility

The integrated VPN functionality is working well with the global VPN client, which is a fast client, though it comes at a cost. SonicWall TZ is functional depending on the service level taken by the user. For SMB segments, SonicWall performs well. Despite lacking certain features, it is still considered a good product. The appliance itself is functional and stable, offering integrated solutions.

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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

"Some of the valuable features are the firewall, IPS, web filter, and gateway capabilities. Additionally, it is easy to use and flexible."

"With Fortinet FortiGate, we improved security significantly."

"The most valuable feature of this solution is the analytics."

"FortiOS is quite good in my experience with Fortinet FortiGate, and it works very effectively and is stable for companies. The customers have given feedback that FortiOS has been very stable for a long time."

"We've found the solution to be pretty stable."

"The interface is very good."

"Good load balancing feature."

"The best features of Fortinet FortiGate include its easy configuration and user interface."

More Fortinet FortiGate pros

"One of the most valuable features is Palo Alto's firewall management. We find it easier to manage the firewall centrally."

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

"Overall product rating: Nine out of ten."

"The scalability of the product is quite high."

"The solution is reliable and scales well."

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

"The most valuable feature is availability."

"The company is inventive and always adds a lot of great features."

More Palo Alto Networks K2-Series pros

"It's been very easy to implement and deploy."

"The product is easy to deploy."

"Its user interface and simplicity are the most favorite parts for our clients. They find it stable and easy to use. Its performance is also good."

"The most common feature in the firewall, apart from that traditional firewall, would be the security services, like application control, URL filtering, Gateway Anti-Virus, and IPS protection. These are the essential features in the firewalls which I think, has to be enabled and properly used at every network infrastructure."

"User-friendly firewall solution which scales well, is stable, and has high availability."

"I like the firewall product, the security server, and the content filter."

"It's a very cost-effective solution."

"It is very stable with no issues. The firewall's been up for the past 35 days non-stop. It's performed great. It has performed as it should perform."

More SonicWall TZ pros

Cons

"Usually, we sell the bundle with the UTM or threat management piece with IPS, IDS. Other providers, such as Palo Alto, are ahead in terms of safe functionality. So, for me, delivering truly safe service is probably something that still needs to be improved."

"Compared to some other products, the DLP is not at par for the moment."

"Its reporting and pricing need improvement."

"The setup is pretty complex and not easy to implement."

"I would like to have logs, monitoring, and reporting for a month without extra fees."

"In my case, the 101F is not scalable. I faced problems with scalability related to memory. When we hit 100% memory usage, it stops the internet connection, so we need to control the traffic. We cannot increase the memory."

"I think there could be more QoS features"

"One of the most important areas for improvement for Fortinet FortiGate is the limited resources for tests."

More Fortinet FortiGate cons

"The tool needs to improve integration with more products from other vendors. I would like the product to add threat intelligence features as well."

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

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

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

"Sometimes there are interactions with support or the provider that are not ideal."

"The reporting functionality in GlobalProtect needs to be improved."

"It would be nice if it could easily be integrated with Elasticsearch or Nagios."

"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."

More Palo Alto Networks K2-Series cons

"We have experienced some issues with SonicWall TZ and they are lacking some advanced features other vendors have."

"In an upcoming release, SonicWall could improve by adding cloud management for all devices for free or at a nominal cost. Currently, they have a cloud management platform but is not free. We have the MySonicWall portal for purchasing from them for software updates and renewals."

"The user support could be improved because you have to go outside to get that kind of support."

"Getting support can be slow."

"The price could be better for us in Bolivia."

"Although the pricing is good, it could always be lower. If we get to pay less, we're happier."

"Its reporting can be improved. Currently, we cannot directly get the user names. It only shows the IP, which makes it a bit confusing because we need to use the IP to find the user. If we could directly get the name of the user, it would be better."

"SonicWall TZ can improve the UI application and when you create any net policies or any new policy, it will not sync or work properly."

More SonicWall TZ cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The Fortinet FortiGate security features cost approximately $1,500 a year. The firewall itself doesn't have a recurring cost. It's the security features on top of that that you pay for."

"It has a competitive price."

"Its price is normal. If I compare it with other vendors, such as Palo Alto, it's normal. Palo Alto is expensive."

"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."

"Fortinet Secure SD-WAN delivered the lowest total cost of ownership (TCO) per Mbps among all other vendors."

"We just pay a flat monthly fee to the vendor for the support."

"It is an inexpensive solution."

"If you purchase a one-year subscription with the hardware and then you want to renew for the second year, it is very costly."

More Fortinet FortiGate pricing and cost advice

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

"The pricing is expensive."

"Palo Alto firewalls are very expensive."

"It is an expensive solution."

"It would be nice if they lowered their prices for small businesses."

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

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

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

More Palo Alto Networks K2-Series pricing and cost advice

"License renewals come in around $35,000 to $45,000."

"The license that we purchased is good for three years."

"It is highly priced and has a slow performance compared to other firewalls."

"It has a yearly subscription."

"The solution is moderately priced, where it's neither cheap nor expensive."

"The pricing was a factor for us, and we felt that the price was good."

"It is an expensive solution compared to one of its competitors."

"Its price is very high, which makes it difficult to convince the clients to buy this solution."

More SonicWall TZ pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

15%

Educational Organization

14%

Comms Service Provider

Manufacturing Company

Computer Software Company

21%

Performing Arts

11%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Financial Services Firm

Computer Software Company

17%

Comms Service Provider

Manufacturing Company

Construction 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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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.

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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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Would you choose Fortinet Fortigate or Sonicwall TZ?

I’ll say it depends on your needs. Fortinet FortiGate and SonicWall TZ are both next-gen firewalls (NGFW) with simila...

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What do you like most about SonicWall TZ?

The most valuable feature of SonicWall TZ is the double authentication, where it asks for one password and again asks...

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SonicWall TZ?

The price is normal. It is a nominal cost for an SMB TZ used for SMB businesses. However, more licenses are required ...

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Comparisons

Sophos XG vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 20% of the time

Netgate pfSense vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 12% of the time

Cisco Secure Firewall vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 11% of the time

WatchGuard Firebox vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 5% of the time

Meraki MX vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 4% of the time

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Cisco Secure Firewall vs Palo Alto Networks K2-Series

Compared 100% of the time

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Sophos XG vs SonicWall TZ

Compared 17% of the time

Netgate pfSense vs SonicWall TZ

Compared 9% of the time

WatchGuard Firebox vs SonicWall TZ

Compared 6% of the time

Meraki MX vs SonicWall TZ

Compared 6% of the time

SonicWall NSa vs SonicWall TZ

Compared 6% of the time

More SonicWall TZ Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Fortinet FortiGate

June 2025

Download Fortinet FortiGate product report

Buyer's Guide

Palo Alto Networks K2-Series

June 2025

Download Palo Alto Networks K2-Series product report

Buyer's Guide

SonicWall TZ

May 2025

Download SonicWall TZ product report

Also Known As

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

No data available

Dell SonicWALL TZ

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

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

The secure, sophisticated SonicWALL TZ is widely deployed at small businesses, retail, government, remote sites and branch offices. It combines high-performance intrusion prevention, malware blocking, content/URL filtering and application control.

SonicWall

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

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

AeroM_xico Delta TechOps, Unimat

Buyer's Guide

Palo Alto Networks K2-Series vs. SonicWall TZ

June 2025

Free Report: Palo Alto Networks K2-Series vs. SonicWall TZ

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