Sangfor NGAF vs Zscaler Cloud Firewall comparison

Sangfor and Zscaler are both solutions in the Firewalls category. Sangfor is ranked #20 with an average rating of 7.9, while Zscaler is ranked #37 with an average rating of 7.5. Sangfor holds a 1.1% mindshare in Firewalls, compared to Zscaler’s 0.5% mindshare. Additionally, 90% of Sangfor users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 93% of Zscaler users who would recommend it.

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Oct 19, 2025

Sangfor NGAF and Zscaler Cloud Firewall compete in the cybersecurity category. Sangfor appears to have the upper hand in user-friendly management and affordability, whereas Zscaler excels in cloud security integration, appealing to organizations focusing on digital transformation.

Features: Sangfor NGAF offers straightforward management with a strong virus database, scalability, and VPN integration, providing excellent application control and reporting capabilities. Zscaler Cloud Firewall delivers extensive cloud security with advanced tech protection and seamless integration across various devices, making it suitable for organizations utilizing digital transformations.

Room for Improvement: Sangfor NGAF could benefit from improved reporting, interface usability, and expanded SD-WAN capabilities alongside better global support. Zscaler Cloud Firewall might enhance its integration with legacy systems, offer more detailed policy configurations, and expand geographic data center coverage, as well as include more features in standard packages.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Sangfor NGAF's deployment is flexible across on-premises and hybrid environments, supported by responsive local service. Zscaler Cloud Firewall provides easy cloud-based deployment but relies primarily on online support, potentially lacking the personal interaction valued by some users.

Pricing and ROI: Sangfor NGAF is noted for its competitive pricing and flexibility, delivering significant ROI, especially compared to Fortinet and Palo Alto. Zscaler Cloud Firewall, although more expensive, offers scalable packages that save operational costs but might seem less cost-effective for smaller entities.

To learn more, read our detailed Sangfor NGAF vs. Zscaler Cloud Firewall Report (Updated: December 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Sangfor NGAF vs. Zscaler Cloud Firewall

December 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 December 2025, in the Firewalls category, the mindshare of Fortinet FortiGate is 19.1%, down from 20.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Sangfor NGAF is 1.1%, up from 1.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Zscaler Cloud Firewall is 0.5%, up from 0.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Firewalls Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
Fortinet FortiGate	19.1%
Sangfor NGAF	1.1%
Zscaler Cloud Firewall	0.5%
Other	79.3%

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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Zaid Farooqui

CIO at Indus Motor Company

Enhanced threat detection with integrated security features and good support

We are using application firewalling, WAF, and SD-WAN. The capabilities are mostly within the box. For example, you will get web application firewall WAF as part and parcel of this. SD-WAN is also bundled. It integrates with their SIEM and SOAR solutions very nicely. Lastly, the pricing point is very cost-efficient as well.

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Carlos Snel

Director at Aquila ICT Solutions

Has streamlined secure deployments across large enterprises while offering reliable protection and intuitive management

The centralized management console, also referred to as the Zscaler dashboard, impacts the ability of my customers to respond to security incidents significantly. I see it as user-friendly, and clients are really happy with using it, which motivates them to keep using Zscaler Cloud Firewall because they enjoy the GUI. It's very intuitive, making it easy to navigate alerts and incidents. My clients rarely have questions about where to find specific information once Zscaler Cloud Firewall is running. The interface speaks for itself, requiring little to no additional training, which is a major plus. Advanced threat protection features in Zscaler Cloud Firewall are practically the key component that every customer wants. Unfortunately, it is an option and not included in the basic package. Clients need to pay for the next higher bundle to access it, but practically all clients I have dealt with want this feature 100%. Regarding visibility, I can confirm that Zscaler Cloud Firewall indeed includes a feature for application layer visibility embedded in the service. It provides visibility into what you're doing, which is especially interesting nowadays when discussing AI tools, as companies do not want their employees to copy-paste sensitive information into AI systems. We have seen cases such as Samsung's chip design where sensitive info got exposed. The visibility of applications, including cloud applications and AI tools, is significant for compliance with data policies, and you can also run reports and alerts on it.

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

"FortiGate Secure SD-WAN includes best-of-breed next-generation firewall (NGFW) security, SD-WAN, advanced routing, and WAN optimization capabilities, delivering a security-driven networking WAN edge transformation in a unified offering."

"Whenever I need something, Fortinet improves and updates the software for me."

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

"The most valuable features are the enterprise modeling and the simple interface."

"The solution effectively controls browsing traffic."

"The main benefit I have seen from using Fortinet FortiGate is the protection it offers because I can see threats that come through in real-time, and if they are blocked, I can see that."

"The most valuable features of Fortinet FortiGate that I found are its next-generation firewall capabilities with stateful inspection and antivirus, along with features such as a reverse proxy that are missed by some other firewall products such as Palo Alto or Check Point."

"This product is definitely scalable."

More Fortinet FortiGate pros

"In terms of the most valuable features, the IPS report is quick and updated. Performance is also valuable."

"Sangfor NGAF's standout feature is its powerful application control, enabling precise restrictions on mobile user access to approved applications."

"It is a stable solution."

"The price versus value is good because the solution is less expensive than Sophos, Fortinet, or SonicWall."

"We can utilize our own network rather than paying for a private one."

"The most valuable feature of Sangfor NGAF is its integration."

"Sangfor's tech features and technologies are more powerful than those of the other solution providers in terms of security. They also have big solutions in terms of cybersecurity."

"While the features are not dissimilar to other brands, configuration is much more simple, which works out great for Indonesian people."

More Sangfor NGAF pros

"Zscaler Cloud Firewall understands the applications in the current generation and adapts to the present generation cloud applications."

"The visibility and log availability offered are highly valued for troubleshooting purposes, and this is a key factor driving customer interest in the firewall module."

"It helps a lot of companies to reduce their downtime. Also, It helps businesses in terms of being secured and protected from any threats."

"Since it is really customizable, I can use it and avoid enabling access to the full network."

"The solution offers good sandboxing."

"Includes advanced tech protection."

"The solution is scalable."

"It provides in-depth visibility into your network, ensuring that traffic flowing into your organization, be it from offices or individual users, is effectively filtered and secured through multiple layers of protection."

More Zscaler Cloud Firewall pros

Cons

"There's a limitation wherein you can only have about 30 virtual or secondary IPs on a particular interface."

"Performance and technical support are the main issues with this solution."

"The solution could improve the configuration, there are times the configuration is missing."

"We would like to have the ability to disable some of the security functionalities."

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

"The price of FortiGate should be reduced because there are some other leading products that are cheaper."

"The learning curve is a bit higher."

"The solution could be more secure and stable."

More Fortinet FortiGate cons

"The cost of licensing is very high compared to other firewalls available here. There should be improvements in hardware scalability, allowing for more storage and memory capacity."

"An area for improvement would be the number of ports defined on the box. In the next release, I would like them to develop their provisioning stage of enrolling end devices."

"The web interface needs to be improved, making it more user-friendly."

"Sangfor NGAF could improve the policies and default criteria. They could be much better."

"I feel Sangfor should follow the hierarchy and close deals via resellers instead of closing it all with their own team."

"The support offered by the product has certain shortcomings where improvements are required. The knowledge levels and response time of the support team need improvement."

"The product must provide more IPS features."

"They need to improve their research team and they need to study their data to analyze it and build the product."

More Sangfor NGAF cons

"Instead of the standard license, they should certainly provide customers with the visibility to access and view the logs."

"They do not provide a few components that are fundamental to differentiate the products"

"Data Leak Prevention is only for web filtering and there is no protection for email."

"If I can get rid of Jetscaler, I will use Twingate for sure."

"There are some areas it could improve when it comes to blocking, we have to block some things manually. For example, if we block a top-level domain we have seen that the new IPs come through, the IPs are not blocked. There should be some more granular way of doing it. My only request is if you're blocking something at a top level, the sub-level sub-domains and all those other IPs should be blocked too automatically."

"Zscaler Cloud Firewall should have a better understanding of all dynamic cloud applications."

"There are several areas for improvement. Firstly, the GUI is outdated, with noticeable lags and delays, especially when generating reports for past transactions."

"Apart from the issues associated with the product in areas like the DC performance issues and DC failover, Zscaler Cloud Firewall's IP should not have a proxy IP."

More Zscaler Cloud Firewall cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The licensing costs are very competitive."

"A year or two years back, its price was competitive and reasonable. That was one of the reasons that people easily switched to Fortinet. Over the last two years, the prices have increased drastically. However, the prices of others have also increased. An advantage is there from the price point but not as much as it was previously."

"The solution could be better priced."

"The product is expensive."

"If you compare Fortinet FortiGate with Sophos and other firewall products available in the market, this solution is affordable."

"The pricing is comprehensive and clear. You can easily understand what you are purchasing, including which features correspond to each license and maintenance contract. Overall, the information is straightforward. Additionally, compared to other vendors, their prices are competitive."

"The pricing is reasonable."

"I do not have first-hand experience with the rice of Fortinet FortiGate, but I have heard the price was reasonable."

More Fortinet FortiGate pricing and cost advice

"Sangfor is cheaper than competing vendors."

"For four to five physical appliances for a licensed firewall, it costs approximately $4,000."

"The price is unmatcheable."

"The price falls in the mid-range, neither exceptionally low nor high."

"We purchased one year technical support and return to factory support, and we also purchased one-year technical support services. So those were additional."

"If one is very cheap and ten is very expensive, I rate the tool's price as three out of ten."

"In my opinion, the price of the tool is good in the Pakistani market. We can easily get discounts if needed."

"The price could be more competitive."

More Sangfor NGAF pricing and cost advice

"Zscaler is priced too high compared to the cost of Fortinet."

"There are different subscription models available."

"It is expensive for small businesses."

"On a scale from one to ten, where one is cheap, and ten is expensive, I rate the solution's pricing an eight out of ten."

"It is not the most budget-friendly solution, but it's important to consider its overall value."

"The licensing is on a yearly basis. It is somewhere around 30 or 40 pounds per user for our organization."

"It comes at a significantly reduced cost while ensuring control and effectiveness."

"There is an annual license required for the use of the Zscaler Cloud Firewall."

More Zscaler Cloud Firewall pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

14%

Comms Service Provider

Manufacturing Company

Financial Services Firm

Manufacturing Company

11%

Financial Services Firm

10%

Computer Software Company

Comms Service Provider

Manufacturing Company

12%

Computer Software Company

11%

Financial Services Firm

Transportation Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	357
Midsize Enterprise	132
Large Enterprise	188

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	15
Midsize Enterprise	10
Large Enterprise	10

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	5
Midsize Enterprise	2
Large Enterprise	12

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 Sangfor NGAF?

I think Sangfor NGAF is more valuable than Cisco products because of its simplicity and ease of management. If I comp...

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Sangfor NGAF?

The licensing cost is quite high compared to other available firewalls in the market.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Sangfor NGAF?

The cost of licensing is very high compared to other firewalls available here. There should be improvements in hardwa...

See all answers

Which lesser known firewall product has the best chance at unseating the market leaders?

Netscope, Zscaler if they continue route they are on now. FIrewalls needs great deal of automation on each end, datac...

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Zscaler Cloud Firewall?

Zscaler Cloud Firewall is quite expensive compared to competitors. However, it offered moderate value for money.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Zscaler Cloud Firewall?

In terms of improvements for Zscaler Cloud Firewall, I think every product has needed enhancements over time, and cur...

See all answers

Comparisons

Sophos XG vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 19% of the time

Cisco Secure Firewall vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 12% of the time

Netgate pfSense vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 7% of the time

OPNsense vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 4% of the time

Cisco Meraki MX vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 3% of the time

More Fortinet FortiGate Competitors

Sophos XG vs Sangfor NGAF

Compared 14% of the time

Sophos XGS vs Sangfor NGAF

Compared 6% of the time

Cisco Secure Firewall vs Sangfor NGAF

Compared 5% of the time

Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls vs Sangfor NGAF

Compared 5% of the time

H3C SecPath Firewalls vs Sangfor NGAF

Compared 5% of the time

More Sangfor NGAF Competitors

Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls vs Zscaler Cloud Firewall

Compared 11% of the time

Azure Firewall vs Zscaler Cloud Firewall

Compared 10% of the time

Check Point Quantum Force vs Zscaler Cloud Firewall

Compared 8% of the time

OPNsense vs Zscaler Cloud Firewall

Compared 6% of the time

SonicWall NSv vs Zscaler Cloud Firewall

Compared 4% of the time

More Zscaler Cloud Firewall Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Fortinet FortiGate

December 2025

Download Fortinet FortiGate product report

Buyer's Guide

Sangfor NGAF

December 2025

Download Sangfor NGAF product report

Buyer's Guide

Zscaler Cloud Firewall

December 2025

Download Zscaler Cloud Firewall product report

Also Known As

Fortinet FortiGate Next-Generation Firewall

Sangfor NGAF Firewall Platform

No data available

Overview

Fortinet FortiGate is a versatile network security tool offering features like VPN, firewall, web filtering, intrusion prevention, and scalability. It is known for its performance and integration with other Fortinet products, making it a preferred choice for robust cybersecurity.

Fortinet FortiGate stands out as a comprehensive cybersecurity solution with strong performance and ease of configuration. It delivers unified threat management, integrating features such as dynamic routing, SD-WAN support, and centralized management. Despite its strengths, improvements in the web interface's stability, pricing structures, and reporting capabilities are needed. Users seek better integration with third-party tools and automation advancements to enhance the experience further. These enhancements, alongside improvements in bandwidth management and the reduction of licensing costs, are points of interest for users looking to capitalize on FortiGate's extensive capabilities.

What are Fortinet FortiGate's key features?

VPN: Ensures secure remote connections.
Firewall: Protects against unauthorized access.
Web Filtering: Blocks malicious sites and content.
Application Control: Manages and controls applications.
Intrusion Prevention: Detects and prevents vulnerabilities.
SSL Inspection: Enhances security by inspecting encrypted traffic.

What benefits should be considered when evaluating Fortinet FortiGate?

Affordability: Offers cost-effective security solutions.
Reliability: Known for consistent and stable performance.
Integration: Seamlessly integrates with other Fortinet products.
Comprehensive Protection: Provides broad threat protection capabilities.

Fortinet FortiGate is widely implemented across industries as a primary firewall system for securing internet gateways and safeguarding data centers. It supports businesses in achieving SD-WAN integration and enhances cybersecurity by providing essential features like antivirus, web filtering, and application control. Enterprises utilize FortiGate for securing remote connections and ensuring compliance with security standards, making it adaptable for different network sizes and industries.

Fortinet

Sangfor Next Generation Firewall (also known as NGAF) is a converged security solution providing protection against advanced threat, malware, viruses, ransomware and web-based attacks using integrated security features like firewall, IPS, anti-virus, anti-malware, APT, URL filtering, Cloud Sandbox, and WAF. As the world's first AI-enabled and fully integrated Next Generation Firewall & Web Application Firewall (WAF), NGAF offering the security visibility, real-time detection and response, simplified operation and maintenance and high-performance application layer security needed to operate an enterprise network in total security. Tested and proven to provide cutting-edge network security by ICSA Labs and endorsed by Gartner Inc., NGAF harnesses the power of Sangfor’s Neural-X threat intelligence and analytics platform and Engine Zero’s innovative malware detection to provide next-generation protection for today’s enterprise.

Sangfor

Zscaler enables the world’s leading organizations to securely transform their networks and applications for a mobile and cloud first world. Its flagship services, Zscaler Internet Access and Zscaler Private Access, create fast, secure connections between users and applications, regardless of device, location, or network. Zscaler services are 100% cloud-delivered and offer the simplicity, enhanced security, and improved user experience that traditional appliances or hybrid solutions are unable to match. Used in more than 185 countries, Zscaler operates the world’s largest cloud security platform, protecting thousands of enterprises and government agencies from cyberattacks and data loss.

Check more details: https://www.zscaler.com/produc...

Zscaler

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

The Ministry of Science, Technology, and Innovation (Indonesia), Lawson, Inc. (Philippines), Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin (Indonesia), TEK Automotive (Italy), etc.

Zenith Live, Azure, Carlsberg Group

Buyer's Guide

Sangfor NGAF vs. Zscaler Cloud Firewall

December 2025

Free Report: Sangfor NGAF vs. Zscaler Cloud Firewall

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