Palo Alto Networks K2-Series vs Sophos XG comparison

Palo Alto Networks and Sophos are both solutions in the Firewalls category. Palo Alto Networks is ranked #34 with an average rating of 8.3, while Sophos is ranked #4 with an average rating of 8.2. Palo Alto Networks holds a 0.1% mindshare in Firewalls, compared to Sophos’s 10.9% mindshare. Additionally, 96% of Palo Alto Networks users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 93% of Sophos users who would recommend it.

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Apr 6, 2025

Sophos XG and Palo Alto Networks K2-Series compete in the network security category. In terms of features, Palo Alto Networks K2-Series seems to have the upper hand due to its advanced application controls and SSL inspection capabilities.

Features: Sophos XG offers features such as extensive web and application filtering, wireless integration, and email protection with a focus on Synchronized Security that integrates with network endpoints. Its customizable dashboard options and intrusion prevention features are appreciated by users. Palo Alto Networks K2-Series distinguishes itself with a strong intrusion prevention system, granular application controls, and SSL inspection capabilities, placing it ahead of many competitors.

Room for Improvement: Sophos XG requires improvements in client software for mobile management, VPN stability, and reporting enhancements. Users call for better technical documentation and improved HTTPS filtering. Palo Alto Networks K2-Series is critiqued for its high costs, with suggestions for more competitive pricing and enhanced endpoint visibility. Users also desire better reporting and automation features.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Sophos XG offers various deployment options including on-premises and hybrid cloud, receiving positive feedback for its ease of use. However, its customer support experiences mixed reviews in terms of responsiveness. Palo Alto Networks K2-Series provides deployment flexibility but faces challenges with on-premises scalability and customer service responsiveness.

Pricing and ROI: Sophos XG is recognized for its competitive pricing and flexible licensing plans suitable for small to medium businesses, perceived as more cost-effective than major competitors. Palo Alto Networks K2-Series, despite its advanced security features justifying its higher cost to some users, still faces criticism over pricing. Both products are acknowledged for providing substantial ROI.

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

Buyer's Guide

Palo Alto Networks K2-Series vs. Sophos XG

July 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 July 2025, in the Firewalls category, the mindshare of Fortinet FortiGate is 21.2%, up from 17.7% 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 Sophos XG is 10.9%, up from 9.4% 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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TarunPanchal

IT Manager , SAP HANA Administrator at Tara Paints & Chemicals

Decades of expertise lead to seamless installations and robust security

I typically use the Sophos XG Firewall to enhance my cybersecurity by using all layers. The intrusion prevention system impacts my security posture effectively, as we have not faced any ransomware or cyber threats. I have more than 800 servers live from Sophos. The synchronized security feature has proven to be very beneficial, and I have not encountered any issues. Sophos XG Firewall has contributed to reducing overall costs because it helps save money. We purchased endpoint security for the first time last year, and even without endpoint security, it provides comprehensive security. Sophos XG uses AI effectively to enhance threat detection and response, securing from AI at the packet level.

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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's inexpensive compared to some of the other technology out there."

"The most valuable feature of this solution is Quota."

"A strong point of FortiGate is the graphical interface is complete and easy to use."

"The most valuable features of Fortinet FortiGate are the different types of profiling. It has been the most effective for me. The WAF and the antivirus profile are the most effective in network protection."

"Initial setup is easy to configure."

"The reporting and monitoring are very good."

"I'm looking forward to FortiGate's dashboard features, insights, application oversight, and monitoring, which could help us significantly."

"Fortinet FortiGate is stable. It's used across all the countries, this is the way most multinationals run their system."

More Fortinet FortiGate pros

"As long as the solution is kept updated, it's pretty stable."

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

"K2-Series' best features include its scalability, which is the best on the market."

"The most valuable feature is availability."

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

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

"We've found the solution offers us good stability."

"The most valuable feature of Palo Alto Networks K2-Series is the performance which is above their competitors. The throughput they have delivered is good. When we used other solutions they failed the deployment when we were using different rules. They have a theory perform performance light and performance degradation. However, Palo Alto Networks K2-Series never fails in that scenario."

More Palo Alto Networks K2-Series pros

"The performance is good."

"It is stable, flexible, and easy to use. It has got a web management portal that can be accessed from anywhere."

"Web publishing is important, as well as the importance of the antivirus patch."

"It is feature-rich, I like the server authentication, and the reports are good."

"We've had good experiences with technical support."

"A valuable feature involves the solution's manageability."

"I like how you can integrate with other endpoints and Intercept X in one central management platform. I think it's a perfect solution. Sophos will manage everything in one container. You can manage many firewalls or endpoints within one panel."

"Content blocking for websites is the most valuable aspect of the solution."

More Sophos XG pros

Cons

"I believe there is room for improvement in machine learning and AI in Fortinet FortiGate. I would like to see more automation regarding AI and machine learning in Fortinet FortiGate."

"FortiGate should have a better way of detecting and managing the system memory because otherwise if the memory is too low, a system restart is required."

"The SD-WAN functionality is a bit overly complicated and not fully documented."

"This product could be improved with Active directory integration and better handling in IPsec and GRE Tunnels."

"Some of the web policy reports could be improved."

"With the addition of some features, it is possible that FortiGate can be used in all verticals."

"At first glance, the interface for the device is very confusing."

"In most cases, the IPS engine uses too many resources, which makes Fortinet FortiGate devices unstable."

More Fortinet FortiGate cons

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

"Threat prevention could use improvement. Not just in malware exploits and C2 traffic; enhancing web traffic protection would be a great upgrade."

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

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

"Palo Alto has many other products. It would be nice for these products to be centralized under one tool"

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

"Palo Alto releases a lot of bug fixes for their firewalls, which means it's necessary to do frequent upgrades. They should work on decreasing their bugs so that upgrades aren't needed so often."

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

More Palo Alto Networks K2-Series cons

"The cloud support needs to be improved."

"Their updates can be faster and more regular."

"They need to allow their solution to integrate with other products and not just other Sophos solutions."

"Areas for improvement would be the access points and the on-premise version, which is very bad."

"I am struggling with the licensing model of Sophos XG because we don't have a license. Our licenses expired and we're not supposed to renew the licenses at this time."

"I would like to have remote access to clients using a static IP for a certain period of time."

"Sometimes when you roll out a new firmware, you find that the rules you already have in place are broken, so it's difficult to migrate to a new firmware. That's the only downside I've experienced in Sophos."

"There's an IP address delivery for our VPN client and a limited range of IP addresses. So this is a problem in the latest firmware release, but rather than using homework scenarios, we need a lot of VPN clients."

More Sophos XG cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Its pricing is fine. It is on a yearly basis. Other than the licensing fee, there is no extra fee."

"For our organization, the licensing costs are approximately $7,000 per year."

"Licensing is usually on a three-year period."

"Fortinet FortiGate is cheaper than Palo Alto. It is about 20% cheaper."

"The cost of Fortinet FortiGate is competitive and not expensive compared to other enterprise- grade solutions. On average, the license cost per year is around seventy percent of the firewall's purchase price."

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

"It was pretty affordable. We did go a little bit above MSRP, but the service pack that was included was quite worth the additional costs. It is competitively priced compared to other major players in the market. It is significantly cheaper than Check Point, which is a primary competitor. Additionally, its pricing is comparable to that of Cisco's ASA and a few other vendors."

"The cost is too high... They have to focus on more features with less cost for the customer. If you see the market, where it's going, there are a lot of players offering more features for less cost."

More Fortinet FortiGate pricing and cost advice

"The price of the solution is expensive."

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

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

"If you compare K2-Series' quality with its price, I think it is reasonable."

"The pricing is expensive."

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

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

"It is an expensive solution."

More Palo Alto Networks K2-Series pricing and cost advice

"Sophos XG is expenses."

"The licensing for Sophos XG is based on the number of users, so I get the module from the sizing of the customer."

"It's a suitable price and license."

"The price is less expensive compared to others."

"Its price should be better. Initially, the clients have to pay for the appliance. Then, they have to pay for the software that is installed on the appliance. Depending on whether they have a one-year, two-year, or three-year license, they just have to renew the license of the software after it expires. They don't have to renew the appliance license. So, they have to pay for the appliance only once, and after that, they just renew the software license. That's all."

"The pricing is economical."

"I've had schools running different firewalls with subscriptions and different web filters with subscriptions, and I've found that it is less expensive for smaller schools to run the Sophos XG with its unified threat management instead of multiple appliances."

"Licensing fees are paid monthly."

More Sophos XG pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

15%

Educational Organization

11%

Comms Service Provider

Manufacturing Company

Computer Software Company

18%

Performing Arts

14%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Comms Service Provider

Computer Software Company

16%

Comms Service Provider

Manufacturing Company

Financial Services Firm

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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Which is better - Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls or Sophos XG?

Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls have both great features and performance. I like that Palo Alto has regular threat si...

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What are the main differences in features between Sophos XG and FortiGate 80F?

Hi Arvind P , The Sophos XG firewall has a number of models right from XG86 to XG135w under the 1U Desktop Form Fact...

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What do you like most about Sophos XG?

IPS works smoothly.

See all answers

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Cisco Secure Firewall vs Palo Alto Networks K2-Series

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Netgate pfSense vs Sophos XG

Compared 10% of the time

OPNsense vs Sophos XG

Compared 9% of the time

SonicWall TZ vs Sophos XG

Compared 5% of the time

Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls vs Sophos XG

Compared 4% of the time

Sophos XGS vs Sophos XG

Compared 4% of the time

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Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Fortinet FortiGate

July 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

Sophos XG

June 2025

Download Sophos XG 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

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

Sophos XG is a versatile network security solution that offers network protection, firewall management, VPN access, web filtering, and intrusion prevention, providing comprehensive security for businesses from small offices to large enterprises.

Sophos XG stands out for its Synchronized Security, easy setup, and robust templates. It manages VPN access, protects against threats, and handles load balancing and traffic monitoring. The cloud-based management, centralized dashboard, and detailed logging make it user-friendly and reliable. Integration of features like email protection, SD-WAN, and unified threat management ensures a broad spectrum of security needs are covered. However, it could benefit from improvements in network security, user portals, technical support, and more scalable SD-WAN features.

What are the key features of Sophos XG?

Synchronized Security: Orchestrates threat intelligence sharing between endpoints and firewall.
Unlimited SSL VPN Clients: Provides extensive VPN client support for secure remote access.
Cloud-Based Management: Facilitates remote administration with a cloud-hosted platform.
Intrusion Prevention: Detects and blocks potential threats in real-time.
Centralized Dashboard: Offers a comprehensive view of network security status.

What benefits and ROI should users look for in reviews?

Scalability: Easily adapts to growing business needs.
User-Friendliness: Simplified setup and intuitive management.
Effective Threat Protection: Provides robust security against a wide range of threats.
Comprehensive Reporting: Delivers detailed insights and analytics.
Cost-Effectiveness: Competitive in pricing with flexible deployment options.

Sophos XG is implemented across industries such as healthcare, education, and finance to secure sensitive data and ensure regulatory compliance. It aids in endpoint protection, application control, load balancing, and traffic monitoring essential for these industries. Enhancing network security, simplifying VPN setup, and integrating adaptive security features remain focal points for businesses.

Sophos

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

Information Not Available

Buyer's Guide

Palo Alto Networks K2-Series vs. Sophos XG

July 2025

Free Report: Palo Alto Networks K2-Series vs. Sophos XG

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