Palo Alto Networks PA-Series vs SonicWall NSv comparison

Palo Alto Networks and SonicWall are both solutions in the Firewalls category. Palo Alto Networks is ranked #14 with an average rating of 8.6, while SonicWall is ranked #39 with an average rating of 7.8. Palo Alto Networks holds a 0.8% mindshare in Firewalls, compared to SonicWall’s 0.2% mindshare. Additionally, 100% of Palo Alto Networks users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 85% of SonicWall users who would recommend it.

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Sep 16, 2024

SonicWall NSv and Palo Alto Networks PA-Series are competing in the firewall solutions market. Users seem more satisfied with the robust features of Palo Alto Networks PA-Series, despite SonicWall NSv being praised for pricing and support.

Features: SonicWall NSv offers comprehensive security options, secure SD-WAN, and integration capabilities. Palo Alto Networks PA-Series provides advanced threat detection, scalability, and performance efficiency.

Room for Improvement: SonicWall NSv needs better documentation, simpler configuration, and enhanced user experience. Palo Alto Networks PA-Series could improve affordability, user-friendly management tools, and reduce complexity.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: SonicWall NSv is known for a straightforward deployment model and supportive customer service. Palo Alto Networks PA-Series, though more complex to deploy, offers extensive customer support and guidance.

Pricing and ROI: SonicWall NSv is liked for competitive pricing and faster ROI. Palo Alto Networks PA-Series, while more expensive, is considered worth the cost due to superior security features and long-term performance.

To learn more, read our detailed Palo Alto Networks PA-Series vs. SonicWall NSv Report (Updated: September 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Palo Alto Networks PA-Series vs. SonicWall NSv

September 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 October 2025, in the Firewalls category, the mindshare of Fortinet FortiGate is 20.4%, up from 19.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Palo Alto Networks PA-Series is 0.8%, up from 0.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SonicWall NSv is 0.2%, up from 0.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Firewalls Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
Fortinet FortiGate	20.4%
Palo Alto Networks PA-Series	0.8%
SonicWall NSv	0.2%
Other	78.6%

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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Bilal Mustafa

Operations Specialist - MX Operations at Bank Alfalah Limited

Manage security with leading firewall features while navigating AWS cloud challenges

The most effective features of the solution are its Magic Quadrant positioning, making it a leading firewall on perimeter areas and internet edges. It functions very well in data centers. Its effectiveness is highly dependent on budget and approach. Moreover, the return on investment is calculated according to my organization’s sizing and has never been an issue.

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Sileesh Sivadasan

Director at Infosec Infra

Helps small businesses expand branches more easily

The price is a significant factor. Mostly in India, the customer service has many hurdles to get real support. If I want to talk to a customer executive, they ask many trivial questions. Even if I explain that I am asking for a Dell partner, they still ask specific questions, and they will explain many unnecessary questions.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"It is stable and easy to use. There are a lot of good resources available on the web."

"The most valuable features are security and vision, and all of the UTM functionality."

"It has the same functionalities throughout the range of products."

"Fortinet FortiGate offers several valuable features, particularly as an interface-based solution. Its design makes it easy to understand both incoming and outgoing network traffic through its interface."

"Customers want to load balance more than eight lines or six internet lines. FortiGate is the only solution that can accomplish this."

"The technical support in our region is excellent."

"The solution is very user-friendly."

"We like FortiGate's website change feature."

More Fortinet FortiGate pros

"The product's most valuable feature is web filtering."

"The product's initial setup process was simple."

"I like the tool's security and web filtering features."

"It is a stable solution. Stability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten."

"The solution is robust."

"The solution has a three-layer architecture, and it helps customers to deploy the solution quickly."

"It offers a seamless transition from one option to another, making it exceptionally versatile and user-friendly in an enterprise setting."

"I rate the stability as ten out of ten."

More Palo Alto Networks PA-Series pros

"The security of this system is fantastic, including the IPS and IDS."

"One of the standout features of SonicWall is its simplicity in creating and managing rules."

"SonicWall excelled in threat management, evident in how users handled it effectively."

"We are very impressed with it."

"The solution has no additional charges and no restrictions on the number of users."

"Out of ten, I would rate the solution at an eight."

"The product helps improve our security."

"For my small NFB banking services, when they are expanding their branches, I could incorporate a little bit easier."

More SonicWall NSv pros

Cons

"Currently, without the additional reporting module, we only have access to basic reporting."

"I would like to see improvements in the product's application rules."

"The solution could improve the integration."

"Fortinet FortiGate SWG could improve the price, it is expensive."

"Improvements could be made when companies expand and need better equipment and more licenses."

"Due to its higher cost, Fortinet FortiGate can lead to increased operational expenses."

"We also have FortiAnalyzer deployed here, so we want to enable the soft functionality of FortiGate and built-in compression for a firewall VPN use case. We want the ability to deploy a gateway for HTTPS enabled on this firewall. It is currently only for use in our headquarters."

"The price of the solution could be cheaper."

More Fortinet FortiGate cons

"The support provided by the solution is not that good."

"With Palo Alto Networks PA-Series, I find that the support team takes a long time to resolve the issues that a user may face during the use of the product."

"There are constant updates for the operating system. It is a nice thing also, but it has its own disadvantages. Continuous updates are there. The users face issues like, how often do I need to update that? Within a period of five months, I'm updating it two or three times. It gives them a feeling that they are not confident about their product and have to update it so frequently."

"There seem to be some issues with TAC (Technical Assistance Center) or Palo Alto support. Anytime you open a case, a level one engineer joins, and then you have to escalate it to level two or three. The support system has changed in the past few years, and that's something they need to look into."

"Palo Alto Networks PA-Series should improve its price. It should also include a feature similar to Sophos' Security Heartbeat."

"Compared to other vendors, the solution's community should be strong enough to solve the problems engineers face."

"Palo Alto can improve the web application firewall (WAF) feature at layer 7."

"The product's high prices are an area of concern where improvements are required."

More Palo Alto Networks PA-Series cons

"SonicWall NSV's SSL VPN could increase its number of users to 100-plus users."

"The price is a significant factor. Mostly in India, the customer service has many hurdles to get real support."

"It has been brought to our attention by a few customers that they are dissatisfied with the fact that our virtualized service is only offered as a subscription option on the cloud. However, it is worth noting that many other similar services are also offered through a subscription model on the cloud and not through perpetual licensing. It is unclear why these customers would have an issue with this subscription service when so many others are utilizing similar methods."

"The engine provided initially was quite heavy, creating a trade-off between software and hardware-based threat management."

"Currently, we are getting challenges with user-wise reports and other reporting details. At present, they do not provide detailed reports compared to other products."

"The engine provided initially was quite heavy, creating a trade-off between software and hardware-based threat management."

"SonicWall NSV's initial setup is complicated and requires good knowledge."

"The price is a significant factor."

More SonicWall NSv 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."

"Fortinet is reasonable in pricing and licensing. Overall, FortiGate is affordable. The licensing fee can be a little high, depending on the budget for your project."

"It was probably about $2,500 per firewall. It was all included. It included support, services, threat management software, and 24/7 FortiCare on it. Cisco products are more expensive."

"It is expensive. You need to pay for the subscription every year, which is very expensive. The subscription includes technical support and hardware exchange in case of failure."

"When I look around at other products, such as Sophos, Fortinet FortiGate is 20% to 30% more expensive with our current cost."

"Its price is affordable and lesser than Cisco. Cisco is expensive. In terms of licensing, there is only one issue. If a customer's license has expired a month ago and they do the renewal after one month, Fortinet renews the license from the start of the previous month. The activation of the product is done from the previous month, not from the date of renewal. The customers usually shout and complain that because they are paying today, the renewal should start from today. The support contract renewals or licensing should be renewed from the date of renewal, but Fortinet starts from the day it had expired. It is a loss for customers. They might have had some problems because of which they did not take the license one month before. Fortinet should work on this. Cisco doesn't do this. Cisco always starts from the day they apply for the license."

"On a scale of one being cheap and ten being expensive, I rate the tool's price as an eight."

"FortiGate Next-Generation Firewall is cheaper than Cisco or CheckPoint."

More Fortinet FortiGate pricing and cost advice

"It is a very expensive solution."

"With Palo Alto, even when you enable all the modules, it still provides the exact throughput they advertise."

"From my perspective, managing the price is important, especially because we're a small business. For larger organizations like Barclays, we provide our requirements to the client, and they place the order on BigFix. It's their responsibility to consider their budget and make decisions accordingly. We appreciate the features we get, but the cost-sharing still depends on the client."

"The solution's pricing is high compared to that of Cisco and Fortinet."

"The cost varies depending on the device model, with entry-level firewalls priced around $1,300 to $1,500, while higher-end models can reach prices of several hundred thousand dollars."

"The product is offered to users at high prices compared to the pricing model of the other vendors in the market."

"Compared to other vendors, Palo Alto Networks PA-Series is expensive."

"Palo Alto’s pricing is way higher than any other solution provider."

More Palo Alto Networks PA-Series pricing and cost advice

"We are currently using the trial version."

"SonicWall NSV is not very costly."

"Our initial purchase, which included a three-year term of support, was about $25,000 USD."

"The tool is moderately priced."

"The solution's pricing is good for the technology it offers."

"The solution’s pricing is less compared to other products."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

15%

Comms Service Provider

Manufacturing Company

Financial Services Firm

Computer Software Company

12%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Comms Service Provider

Government

Computer Software Company

26%

Educational Organization

Performing Arts

Comms Service Provider

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	350
Midsize Enterprise	130
Large Enterprise	187

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	13
Midsize Enterprise	5
Large Enterprise	14

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	5
Midsize Enterprise	2
Large Enterprise	3

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

The reporting feature and application ID functionality within Palo Alto Networks PA-Series are incredibly valuable to...

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Palo Alto Networks PA-Series?

Regarding value for money, we brought this Palo Alto Networks PA-Series firewall last month, and we have taken up to ...

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What needs improvement with Palo Alto Networks PA-Series?

I do not have any challenges or areas for improvement with Palo Alto Networks PA-Series. There are no AI integrations...

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What do you like most about SonicWall NSV?

The product helps improve our security.

See all answers

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

I am somewhat satisfied with the price for SonicWall NSv, rating it as eight because, compared to other products, the...

See all answers

What needs improvement with SonicWall NSV?

Currently, we are getting challenges with user-wise reports and other reporting details. At present, they do not prov...

See all answers

Comparisons

Sophos XG vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 17% of the time

Cisco Secure Firewall vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 11% of the time

Netgate pfSense vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 9% of the time

OPNsense vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 4% of the time

Cisco Meraki MX vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 4% of the time

More Fortinet FortiGate Competitors

OPNsense vs Palo Alto Networks PA-Series

Compared 17% of the time

Juniper SRX Series Firewall vs Palo Alto Networks PA-Series

Compared 13% of the time

Sophos XG vs Palo Alto Networks PA-Series

Compared 10% of the time

Sophos XGS vs Palo Alto Networks PA-Series

Compared 7% of the time

Cisco Meraki MX vs Palo Alto Networks PA-Series

Compared 6% of the time

More Palo Alto Networks PA-Series Competitors

SonicWall NSa vs SonicWall NSv

Compared 24% of the time

Azure Firewall vs SonicWall NSv

Compared 22% of the time

Stormshield Network Security vs SonicWall NSv

Compared 21% of the time

Fortinet FortiGate-VM vs SonicWall NSv

Compared 12% of the time

SonicWall TZ vs SonicWall NSv

Compared 10% of the time

More SonicWall NSv Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Fortinet FortiGate

October 2025

Download Fortinet FortiGate product report

Buyer's Guide

Palo Alto Networks PA-Series

September 2025

Download Palo Alto Networks PA-Series product report

Buyer's Guide

Firewalls

September 2025

Download SonicWall NSv product report

Also Known As

No data available

SonicWall Network Security Virtual

Overview

Fortinet FortiGate excels in providing integrated VPN, firewalling, and Unified Threat Management (UTM) with centralized management and high availability. It supports remote access and comprehensive threat protection, making it a preferred choice for securing networks.

Fortinet FortiGate offers a robust security platform with features such as strong intrusion prevention, application control, and web filtering. Its integration with Active Directory and SD-WAN functionality provides scalable solutions for large networks. Users appreciate its ease of use through centralized management interfaces, ensuring robust security with flexible configurations. However, FortiGate could enhance its graphical interface and technical support responsiveness, address firmware bugs and costly licensing, improve logging, integrate better with third-party tools, and strengthen scalability and memory for log storage. Complexity in configuration and the need for intuitive features are noted challenges, and there's a demand for advanced security, zero-trust capabilities, and AI integration.

What are the key features of Fortinet FortiGate?

VPN: Secure remote access and connectivity.
Firewalling: Protects networks from unauthorized access and attacks.
UTM: Offers a comprehensive approach to threat management.
SD-WAN: Optimizes traffic routing for efficient network performance.
Web Filtering: Controls and monitors web access and ensures Internet security.

What benefits or ROI should be considered?

Centralized Management: Simplifies administration and monitoring.
High Availability: Ensures consistent security and network availability.
Scalability: Adapts to the needs of growing networks.
Comprehensive Threat Protection: Provides robust security measures.
Ease of Use: Minimizes the complexity of security management.

Fortinet FortiGate is widely implemented across industries like education, finance, and government. Companies use it for firewall protection, VPN, and SD-WAN capabilities, ensuring secure perimeter and data center security. It facilitates remote access management and traffic routing optimization, offering reliable security and connectivity solutions.

Fortinet

Palo Alto Networks PA-Series is essential for firewall implementation, perimeter defense, securing infrastructure boundaries, web filtering, VPN, and threat prevention. Organizations deploy it for secure cloud connections, internet security, and managing network devices.

Companies trust Palo Alto Networks PA-Series to protect corporate networks from external threats, control traffic between networks, and meet regulatory compliance. Integrating well with applications, it offers centralized management and advanced security features such as IDS, IPS, and GlobalProtect. It ensures stable performance, application-based policy enforcement, and decryption of SSL traffic while providing efficient resource usage and comprehensive logging.

What are the key features?

Stability: Reliable performance for continuous protection.
App-ID: Application-based policy enforcement.
URL Filtering: Prevents access to malicious websites.
Security Controls: Comprehensive threat prevention mechanisms.
User-Friendly Interface: Simplifies management and operations.
Efficient Resource Usage: Optimized for minimal resource consumption.
Reporting: Detailed logs and analytics for better insights.
Antivirus: Protects against malware and viruses.
WildFire: Advanced threat prevention with machine learning AI.
Protocol Anomaly Detection: Identifies unusual network behavior.
SSL Decryption: Ensures secure traffic inspection.
Encryption: Safeguards sensitive data.
VPN Capabilities: Secure remote access for users.
Active Directory Integration: Streamlines user authentication.
Quality of Service (QoS): Manages network traffic efficiently.

What benefits should be evaluated?

Enhanced Security: Superior threat prevention and detection.
Centralized Management: Streamlined control of network devices.
Regulatory Compliance: Assists in meeting legal requirements.
Operational Efficiency: Reduced resource usage and downtime.
Comprehensive Reporting: Complete visibility into network activities.
Scalability: Adapts to growing network demands.
User Accessibility: Simplifies secure access for remote employees.

Palo Alto Networks PA-Series is implemented across industries like healthcare, finance, retail, and manufacturing. In healthcare, it ensures patient data protection and compliance with HIPAA. Financial institutions utilize it to secure transactions and meet regulatory standards. Retailers benefit from protecting customer information and securing online payments. Manufacturing companies deploy it to safeguard intellectual property and control plant floor operations.

Palo Alto Networks

SonicWall NSV is a software-based virtual firewall that provides additional security for customers with public-facing servers or services on Microsoft Azure. The AGSS Bundle is considered the most valuable feature, providing security services such as antivirus, intrusion prevention system, and anti-spyware botnet GUI.

Additionally, customization of firewall rules provides great value to customers, allowing them to lock things up in the way they desire. SonicWall NSV offers extensive security control options to protect customers' valuable information and assets.

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

Information Not Available

Comlogic, Depaul, Hutt City Council

Buyer's Guide

Palo Alto Networks PA-Series vs. SonicWall NSv

September 2025

Free Report: Palo Alto Networks PA-Series vs. SonicWall NSv

Find out what your peers are saying about Palo Alto Networks PA-Series vs. SonicWall NSv and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.

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