Rapid7 InsightIDR vs WatchGuard Firebox comparison

Rapid7 and WatchGuard are both solutions in the Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) category. Rapid7 is ranked #25 with an average rating of 8.0, while WatchGuard is ranked #20 with an average rating of 7.6. Additionally, 95% of Rapid7 users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 95% of WatchGuard users who would recommend it.

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 5, 2025

Rapid7 InsightIDR and WatchGuard Firebox are competing security products in IT security management. Rapid7 InsightIDR takes the edge in threat detection and response through its advanced data analytics and user behavior analysis compared to WatchGuard Firebox's strength in comprehensive network security features.

Features: Rapid7 InsightIDR offers robust data analytics, user behavior analysis, and integration with SIEM tools, enhancing threat detection and response capabilities. WatchGuard Firebox provides strong firewall features, VPN functionality, and network traffic management, efficiently defending the network perimeter.

Room for Improvement: Rapid7 InsightIDR could enhance integration capabilities and reduce complexity in setting up certain features. It might benefit from improved user interface customizations. WatchGuard Firebox could improve its reporting features, simplify its setup process for first-time users, and enhance its threat detection accuracy.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Rapid7 InsightIDR supports flexible, cloud-based deployment for quick setup and scalability, alongside comprehensive support services. WatchGuard Firebox requires a more hands-on setup due to its appliance-based nature but offers solid remote access options and reliable customer service with device warranties and support contracts.

Pricing and ROI: Rapid7 InsightIDR aligns its pricing with cloud-based scalability, focusing on reducing operational expenditures and improving ROI through faster incident response. WatchGuard Firebox typically features upfront hardware costs, offering enduring network protection and potentially high ROI for businesses prioritizing extensive network security.

To learn more, read our detailed Rapid7 InsightIDR vs. WatchGuard Firebox Report (Updated: September 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Rapid7 InsightIDR vs. WatchGuard Firebox

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

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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Asim Naeem

Principal IT Security & Compliance at IBEX Holdings Ltd

Providing comprehensive insight into alerts while working towards AI enhancement

I definitely recommend Rapid7 InsightIDR. It is becoming better, with improvements being continuously made to the product. Right now, I do not have any advice about Rapid7 for other users because every organization or user has different criteria or multiple use cases, so I refrain from commenting on that. I rate the overall solution seven out of ten.

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ScottEastman

Project Consultant at SEVERN HOSPICE LIMITED

Reduces the risks of sending data where it shouldn't be going

We use the solution to ensure that no data breach, such as credit card details and national insurance numbers, leaves the company. However, we have to allow some information to go through because we send a lot of information to the National Healthcare Service If we don't want specific data sent…

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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 email protection and VPN features are the most valuable."

"The interface is user-friendly, so it's easy to add policies and block traffic."

"It is easy to manage, and it doesn't need much knowledge from the team. It is a stable device, and there are many features that are included out of the box."

"The most valuable features of Fortinet FortiGate are its SD-WAN capabilities, such as dynamic routing, and other features, including security options such as antivirus, IPS, and IDS—all integrated into one device."

"Fortinet FortiGate is scalable for our users. Right now, we have almost 70 users. We do not have any plan to increase our usage of FortiGate. For maintaining the firewall solution, one staff member is enough."

"The SD-WAN feature is the most valuable. This feature evolved from link load balancing. It has helped us in terms of our uptime and privatizing applications whenever we experience an outage. The SD-WAN feature has been a plus for us. Two-factor authentication has allowed us to add more users in terms of remote working. We have two-factor authentication for remote workers to authenticate them before they get on the network."

"The reporting on employee behavior and the prevention of new viruses are essential features."

"Fortinet FortiGate is a scalable solution."

More Fortinet FortiGate pros

"If you were on other solutions, you would notice that they use agents from third-party, from open-source, from a native OS, or from other tools. Here, however, it is an agent from Rapid7 itself. This adds to the solution's overall capabilities."

"Rapid7 is easy to use and deploy. It is a simple solution and has easy data pulling."

"The incident case management is the most valuable feature. Even though there's always something I find I would like to add to that feature, the ability to quickly sort through all the logs, network and endpoint data, etc., and add it to an incident case as part of the investigation, is nice. Having it automatically timeline that additional data into the original incident timeline, and correlate it to other notable events and activities on the network, results in a huge improvement in our overall confidence that we've quickly traced down the right source of an issue."

"The solution's initial setup is easy."

"The solution is easy to use, and the interface is intuitive."

"I have seen that Rapid7 InsightIDR provides security to the networks and endpoints in the company."

"It improved my organization by building a security alerting program."

"InsightIDR has allowed us to find potential security issues that we did not know existed, and get remediation quickly."

More Rapid7 InsightIDR pros

"WatchGuard Firebox's two-factor authentication feature is particularly useful and provides an added layer of protection."

"One of the most valuable features is that when we send emails and it gives a warning, you can configure those email addresses so that they can only send outside the email."

"It does the job of what it says it does. We set it to what we want it to block and then it blocks it."

"WatchGuard Threat Detection and Response is a reliable solution."

"Simple to move settings between WatchGuard boxes."

"The solution has a useful traffic monitor."

"It's user-friendly. And if you are using a WatchGuard device and you want to test that side of the software, it's quite easy to get the license to test it."

"We have received a good return on investment."

More WatchGuard Firebox pros

Cons

"There are some problems that support cannot give you a logical reason as to why it happened. For example, I had a case where I was dealing with a WhatsApp application that was giving issues. Technical support gave more than one reason it could be giving issues, but none of them solved the problem. Eventually I solved the problem, but it was far from the solutions that support had given."

"There is a need for enhancement with the signature management, improving the datasheet numbers, and scalability issues."

"The vendors offer models with different levels of productivity of the product to its users, which is not possible in FortiGate Next Generation Firewall (NGFW). It lacks integration options."

"The solution’s stability could be improved."

"While the security is good, we'd always prefer if it was even better to ensure protection."

"Some features of Fortinet FortiGate are actually fee enabled that are inconvenient for deploying in production. Other issues relate to isolation with Cisco products and your server."

"There could be more modifications."

"At the moment, the main concern is the pricing and the type of licensing. Fortinet offers different types of licensing, and my idea is that the best approach is to have only one, two, or a maximum of three types of licensing."

More Fortinet FortiGate cons

"The dashboard is an area that could be simplified."

"It would be useful to import threat intelligence in YARA format along with known incorrect email addresses."

"One of the things that could be better is digital forensics. It is there, but it can be better. They could provide more on the endpoint detection level."

"The product allows us to make only 30 custom rules."

"Needs a better ability to customize the check within the console."

"Lacks a mobile application."

"The reporting is the weakest aspect. There needs to be multi-level grouping for events (for example, group by user and destination). Right now, we can do a group by user and a separate table or group by destination. But I'd be more interested in where a person was logging into instead of who was logging in or where he was logging in."

"I feel it would greatly benefit from more supported log sources."

More Rapid7 InsightIDR cons

"An area for improvement is that when we use a web administration link, there is no security."

"When implementing a rule using a group of IPs, it is not possible to do that directly."

"Websense is an application that monitors and filters internet traffic. Websense was derived from WatchGuard. But when you go to WatchGuard to actually implement that particular feature, you have to use some type of additional feature and you have to pay for it, unfortunately. I think it should be free or free in the WatchGuard box itself, as an option. It would be nice if they didn't charge us for that."

"It's sometimes not easy to understand and can require specialist assistance."

"The next release should have better software and configuration systems that can also be used on Linux."

"It's very difficult to find a reseller of WatchGuard Firebox to purchase a license"

"The area where I think this product can be improved is the user interface and the reporting. It can be quite difficult to find the correct logs and to actually find out what is going on. The digging can be time-consuming."

"Due to their lack of investment in marketing, channel development, and certifications, WatchGuard faces challenges in gaining visibility and market share, especially in regions like Pakistan."

More WatchGuard Firebox cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"You need to pay a license for this solution. Our licensing is now done in our subsidiary."

"If we have an older version, the support costs get quite high."

"The price of FortiGate support is too expensive."

"While slightly more affordable than competitors, it remains relatively expensive due to its inclusive subscription."

"It is a good product from a price perspective versus functionality."

"We are currently evaluating a Palo Alto solution, and the pricing could be a reason for going for Palo Alto."

"Pricing and licensing is a little bit complicated in FortiGate. They are always on the higher side. This is one issue that we always raise with the company that they should reduce the price according to Indian market requirements. There are no costs in addition to the standard licensing fees."

"We are on an annual license to use Fortinet FortiGate."

More Fortinet FortiGate pricing and cost advice

"Licensing is straightforward. If, for some reason, you don’t meet the minimum licensing requirements, there is a third-party managed service that can help."

"I rate Rapid7 InsightIDR's price a four on a scale of one to ten, where one is cheap, and ten is expensive."

"The team is very willing to work with companies. My suggestion is to call the Rapid7 sales department and see how they can help."

"The pricing and licensing are competitive."

"It is more reasonably priced than other vendors."

"Rapid7 InsightIDR is a cheaply priced product. On a scale of one to ten, where one is very expensive, and ten is very cheap, I rate the product's price at seven or eight."

"The solution has a mid-range price point in the market"

"The pricing is good, and it is not very expensive."

More Rapid7 InsightIDR pricing and cost advice

"I spent $600 or $800 on this product and I'm paying a couple of hundred dollars a year in a subscription service to keep the lights on, on it... It works out to $100 or $200 a year if you buy several years at once. It's fair."

"Despite the fact that there is always room for improvement, the current pricing of the solution is still lower compared to its competitors."

"The pricing was in line with everyone else; maybe slightly higher."

"It's in the medium range. Its price is pretty good considering the functions and add-ons that are used."

"It has a very good price. It is not the most expensive one, and it is also not the cheapest one. It is just spot-on in terms of price."

"I think we might be subscribed to one or two of the premium features."

"It's fair pricing, but it could always be reduced."

"I buy a three-year renewal on the main device, which is usually around $3,000 to $4,000. They usually upgrade the device when I do it. You get a big discount when you do three years."

More WatchGuard Firebox pricing and cost advice

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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

14%

Financial Services Firm

Manufacturing Company

Government

Computer Software Company

14%

Comms Service Provider

11%

Manufacturing Company

Retailer

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	20
Midsize Enterprise	5
Large Enterprise	6

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	91
Midsize Enterprise	25
Large Enterprise	15

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 ...

See all answers

What SOC product do you recommend?

For tools I’d recommend: -SIEM- LogRhythm -SOAR- Palo Alto XSOAR Doing commercial w/o both (or at least an XDR) is a...

See all answers

What do you like most about Rapid7 InsightIDR?

During simulations or demonstrations, the tool generates alerts, providing details such as the specific application, ...

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Rapid7 InsightIDR?

The product pricing is very cheap.

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What is your primary use case for WatchGuard Firebox?

We are providing our services to all WatchGuard customers in the region.

See all answers

What is your primary use case for WatchGuard Firebox?

We just use it as a secondary WiFi device. We're a small office and we needed to set up a WiFi device for a few of ou...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for WatchGuard Firebox?

We're a hospital and we use it for developing our incoming and outgoing policies, and we also use it for VPN.

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

SonicWall TZ vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 4% of the time

More Fortinet FortiGate Competitors

Rapid7 InsightVM vs Rapid7 InsightIDR

Compared 8% of the time

Darktrace vs Rapid7 InsightIDR

Compared 7% of the time

Microsoft Sentinel vs Rapid7 InsightIDR

Compared 7% of the time

CrowdStrike Falcon vs Rapid7 InsightIDR

Compared 6% of the time

Splunk Enterprise Security vs Rapid7 InsightIDR

Compared 6% of the time

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OPNsense vs WatchGuard Firebox

Compared 7% of the time

SonicWall TZ vs WatchGuard Firebox

Compared 5% of the time

Netgate pfSense vs WatchGuard Firebox

Compared 5% of the time

Sophos XGS vs WatchGuard Firebox

Compared 4% of the time

SonicWall NSa vs WatchGuard Firebox

Compared 4% of the time

More WatchGuard Firebox Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Fortinet FortiGate

October 2025

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Buyer's Guide

Rapid7 InsightIDR

September 2025

Download Rapid7 InsightIDR product report

Buyer's Guide

WatchGuard Firebox

September 2025

Download WatchGuard Firebox product report

Also Known As

No data available

InsightIDR

WatchGuard Threat Detection and Response, WatchGuard Application Control, WatchGuard Data Loss Prevention, WatchGuard Gateway AntiVirus, WatchGuard Intrusion Prevention Service

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

Parsing hundreds of trivial alerts. Managing a mountain of data. Manually forwarding info from your endpoints. Forget that. InsightIDR instantly arms you with the insight you need to make better decisions across the incident detection and response lifecycle, faster.

Rapid7

WatchGuard Firebox is a high-performance firewall known for its ease of setup, offering robust security with layered protection and centralized management capabilities.

WatchGuard Firebox stands out for its intuitive management and high throughput, addressing security needs with features like VPN, web filtering, and threat detection. Its centralized control and reporting abilities, along with Active Directory integration, make it popular among varied organizations. Its user-friendly interface and ongoing updates enhance usability and reliability. However, there's a call for better cloud-based administration, scalability, and improved integration with third-party vendors.

What are the key features of WatchGuard Firebox?

Ease of Setup: Quick and straightforward installation process.
GUI: User-friendly graphical interface for simplified navigation.
VPN Features: Secure and efficient virtual private network management.
Web Filtering: Advanced filtering for safer browsing experiences.
Threat Detection: Proactive monitoring and detection of cyber threats.

What benefits or ROI should be evaluated?

Centralized Control: Streamlined management from a single point.
High Throughput: Efficient data handling and processing capacity.
Stable Performance: Consistent and reliable operational functionality.
Active Directory Integration: Seamless connection with user directories.
Customer Service: Strong support service for customer inquiries.

WatchGuard Firebox is implemented across industries to secure internet gateways and protect data in multi-site businesses. Its applications span from Unified Threat Management (UTM) and intrusion prevention to compliance support in business environments requiring secure connectivity through VPNs.

WatchGuard

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

Liberty Wines, Pioneer Telephone, Visier

Ellips, Diecutstickers.com, Clarke Energy, NCR, Wrest Park, Homeslice Pizza, Fortessa Tableware Solutions, The Phoenix Residence

Buyer's Guide

Rapid7 InsightIDR vs. WatchGuard Firebox

September 2025

Free Report: Rapid7 InsightIDR vs. WatchGuard Firebox

Find out what your peers are saying about Rapid7 InsightIDR vs. WatchGuard Firebox and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.

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