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Sophos Firewall vs Stormshield Network Security comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

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
Sponsored
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
580
Ranking in other categories
Secure Web Gateways (SWG) (2nd), Firewalls (1st), Intrusion Detection and Prevention Software (IDPS) (1st), Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions (1st), WAN Edge (1st), ZTNA (1st), Unified Threat Management (UTM) (1st)
Sophos Firewall
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
302
Ranking in other categories
Firewalls (3rd)
Stormshield Network Security
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.0
Number of Reviews
17
Ranking in other categories
Unified Threat Management (UTM) (11th)
 

Featured Reviews

Vasu Gala - PeerSpot reviewer
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.
Nassif  Kaleny - PeerSpot reviewer
IT Manager at Bavaria Egypt S.A.E.
Dynamic web and mail filtering contribute to improved security measures
The reporting system is very poor. I cannot trace any traffic to our site if it feels some threats. It just tells me that there is something during a certain time but does not provide information about the type of threats or how to get rid of them. This needs improvement.
Benjamin - PeerSpot reviewer
Network Engineer at ACS2I
The intrusion detection system helps our organization by automatically detecting and responding to potential threats
The tool's most valuable feature is its dashboard, which helps you manage different aspects of a single page. The intrusion detection system helps our organization by automatically detecting and responding to potential threats. It operates similarly to Darktrace, which detects and responds automatically based on the security rules you apply. Initially, you configure everything to block, and then you can whitelist specific items as needed.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The best feature of Fortinet FortiGate is SD-WAN."
"The most valuable feature is the VDOM, which allows the customer to have multiple firewalls in a single campus."
"I value it's IPS and application control solution."
"FortiGate has led to a reduction in our security budget."
"Overall, I am satisfied with the product."
"Its user interface is good, and it is always working fine."
"The threat prevention is the solution's most valuable aspect."
"Fortinet FortiGate is stable. It's used across all the countries, this is the way most multinationals run their system."
"The most valuable feature of Sophos is the VPN solution. I also value their threat management, IPS IDS features and login features with single sign-on."
"Sophos XGS' most valuable features are protection and intrusion prevention detection."
"Content filtering and intrusion prevention are most valuable. Our customers are fully satisfied with the performance of Sophos. It has all the features that they require in a firewall."
"The solution has all the security features you would need for any type of environment."
"The most valuable features in Sophos XGS are identity and VPN. It is a very good solution that is able to detect and prevent a lot of malicious activity."
"Compared to other firewalls that I had looked at, I thought Sophos was the better solution. It just seems to be easier to manage versus Cisco, Fortinet, or one of the other options I was looking at."
"The most valuable features of Sophos XGS for me are XGS IPS, SD-WAN, VPN setup, email protection, and integration with endpoint security."
"Sophos is a comrehensive solution which allows me to configure all the attendant products, such as Sophos' firewall, Endpoint and Encryption features."
"It's an easy, straightforward management platform to use."
"A very robust product."
"This solution is quick and easy to configure."
"Ease of use is the best feature of the product."
"I like that it works fine. Stormshield is a very good solution."
"The scalability of the solution is good."
"Easily manageable in a variety of environments."
"The most valuable features are the IPS, the firewall function, and the price."
 

Cons

"The integration with third-party tools may be something that they should work on."
"The main aspect of FortiGate that could be improved is load balancing. Our management team does not want to buy another appliance for only load balancing."
"Fortinet can add some Machine Learning and AI to improve its accuracy and give it an edge on IPS detection and protection."
"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 dashboard is not user friendly so is a bit complicated."
"I would like Fortinet to add more automation to FortiGate."
"In my case, the 101F is not scalable. I faced problems with scalability related to memory. When we hit 100% memory usage, it stops the internet connection, so we need to control the traffic. We cannot increase the memory."
"FortiManager has not been my favorite. I don't use it and cannot say I really care for FortiManager for managing the firewalls."
"They should customers who are facing issues with their product reviews; they found bots in it. If they can do their proper research and use the user analysis and testing, that would greatly help the clients."
"The only issue that Sophos XG now needs to improve is the product's reporting capability."
"One drawback I've noticed with Sophos XG is that sometimes, the platform can become unresponsive. I've observed that it occasionally hangs, causing traffic to get stuck. During these times, users cannot access the internet or any services routed through the Sophos Firewall. This issue happens randomly and isn't something we've encountered with other firewalls like FortiGate, which we used in the past."
"Its price should be improved. Its features are pretty okay, but the price is the area where we have to fight more. They should do something about the price structure."
"Lacking network access control, user profiling and analytics dashboards."
"Integration with Active Directory is not reliable."
"Sophos pricing is very high. The last instance I purchased was for three years, around $3,700 for SDG 125."
"The uploading and downloading of reports should be included."
"Improvement is needed in terms of the technical support of the manufacturer."
"A more user-friendly interface would be helpful."
"The biggest issue was their support department was not able to help us, then everything stops. This is a no-go area for me."
"With Stormshield, there are difficulties joining things, and it can be complex depending on the architecture."
"The product must improve its pricing."
"The filtering configuration could be better. We have some difficulties with the filtering configuration and the filter extension. It's not that easy. It's not that straightforward. In the next release, I would like to see a reporting system. Stormshield doesn't have any tutorials on how to do the configuration and things like that. They just have documentation on the website. If you want to configure, for example, Cisco or Fortinet, you can find tutorials on YouTube. They show you how to configure the features, and so on. In Stormshield, there is nothing on social media or the internet on how to configure different things. The lack of documentation or the lack of material makes it difficult for others to adopt this solution."
"Not all the fields are activated yet and we were informed that it will take at least one month."
"This solution has a big problem with web filtering and it needs to be improved."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"There is only a standard license cost to use the solution."
"The price of FortiGate is comparable to that of most other firewall solutions and is more affordable than Cisco."
"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."
"FortiGate Next-Generation Firewall is cheaper than Cisco or CheckPoint."
"Currently, we are paying about $1,500 a month for three sites."
"The product is expensive."
"Pricing for this product is comparatively lower than other products. It's an affordable solution, but when expanding the number of users, they'll ask you to replace the model, so that's an added cost."
"This is not a cheap solution but it isn't expensive, either. It's a good solution for the right price."
"For licensing the XG 210, we paid approximately $3000 for three years. There are no additional fees on top of this."
"We have a three-year license."
"The issue of a recurring license is a hassle because every year, we have to subscribe."
"The tool's pricing is cheaper compared to other alternative products."
"Currently, we have a contract for three years. It would be good if its price is reduced before we renew the contract. We will buy the equipment if it is cheaper."
"XGS' price could be lower, though it's moderately priced in the market."
"There are additional costs involved apart from the licenses."
"Sophos XGS is a very expensive solution."
"We chose Stormshield for its price, as the Azure firewall was too expensive."
"We bought a three-year license, and we renew it whenever it expires. The price could be better. It's always very expensive."
"The SN200 series costs between $500 USD and $600 USD per year, whereas the SN700 series costs approximately $1,000 annually."
"The price of this solution and the price of support are ok."
"The pricing could be better."
"I think the price is good."
"For mid-sized companies, they sell their appliances for good prices."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
12%
Comms Service Provider
9%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Computer Software Company
12%
Comms Service Provider
10%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Educational Organization
5%
Comms Service Provider
16%
Computer Software Company
15%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Government
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business357
Midsize Enterprise133
Large Enterprise188
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business203
Midsize Enterprise62
Large Enterprise52
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business9
Midsize Enterprise5
Large Enterprise2
 

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...
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...
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 ...
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...
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...
What advice do you have for others considering Stormshield Network Security?
The tool is like a firewall and works well. I don't have any issue with it. I rate it an eight out of ten.
 

Also Known As

Fortinet FortiGate Next-Generation Firewall
Sophos XG, Sophos XGS
NETASQ Firewalls
 

Overview

 

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
ACESUR group, Ministry of Education Oman, Anios Laboratories, Zain, DLM Location
Find out what your peers are saying about Sophos Firewall vs. Stormshield Network Security and other solutions. Updated: December 2025.
881,227 professionals have used our research since 2012.