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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

"Overall security features and performance routing is good."
"The most valuable features of Fortinet FortiGate are it is one of the most mature firewalls in the UTM bundle."
"It can expand easily."
"The solution provides an easy way to filter information and Fortinet lab is a great place to discover new things."
"The ability to set up remote systems is the most valuable feature."
"Run Script is the best tool to use in Fortinet FortiGate with multiple environments."
"I find Fortinet FortiGate to be quite stable, as I have never heard of any issues where they broke or malfunctioned; they are always working."
"The FortiGate Next-Generation Firewall is always updating. For example, if there is a big attack, they fix it in their firmware. They release new firmware with the necessary patches to address the vulnerabilities."
"Sophos XG uses AI effectively to enhance threat detection and response, securing from AI at the packet level."
"The features that I find most effective in enhancing network security include EDR and XDR."
"There are many valuable features."
"The solution is very user-friendly, and the GUI is so good that I don't have to use the CLI. This eliminates the need for typing; clicking allows me to get to what I'm looking for."
"Valuable features include: the ease of setting up the VPN connection; the fact they have the cloud management option, so I can manage the firewall on a cloud platform from anywhere I am; the user interface is very user-friendly, so it's very easy for the administrator to make any policy changes."
"The scalability of Sophos XG is good."
"The installation is easy. There is a wizard that can be used for a single connection making it simple and if you have multiple connections you can configure it manually."
"It's a complete firewall solution that has everything."
"The scalability of the solution is good."
"The tool's most valuable feature is its dashboard, which helps you manage different aspects of a single page."
"The solution has improved my organization because I can see what traffic is happening and I can use it to block and prevent attacks."
"It's an easy, straightforward management platform to use."
"This solution is quick and easy to configure."
"I can see what traffic is going on. I can easily block any programs from attacks."
"A very robust product."
"I like that it works fine. Stormshield is a very good solution."
 

Cons

"I would suggest that Fortinet add sandboxing to their solution."
"From a pricing perspective, I would rate them a six."
"The user interface could be improved to make it less confusing and easier to set up."
"Though the tool's GUI is user-friendly, it can be considered as an area with certain shortcomings where improvements are required."
"There is an area for improvement in vulnerability management."
"The issue lies with features available in GUI versus CLI during configuration. When using GUI, I want to accomplish everything there, but sometimes it requires using CLI to ensure proper configuration."
"We would like to see an upgrade to the VPN feature, we are using the VPN from outside of our office and there is a limitation to 10 connections, more connections would be suitable."
"I would like some automated custom reporting."
"It would be nice to have features like the network access control (NAC) that Cisco has for Identity Services Engine. In the next release, I would also like to see an increase in the performance of the processing units."
"Sophos needs improvements made to the console, such as host entry or defining rules directly from it."
"In version 18 of Sophos XGS, the log details are not very good. However, in version 19 they are more detailed. The Fortinet FortiGate has better detail overall compared to Sophos XGS. They provide updates to the solution frequently, but they do not fix the problems that exist."
"Sophos XGS could improve by having better integration with Active Directory."
"Sophos XG's user interface has some room for improvement."
"The direct proxy or proxy mechanism is missing. Legacy applications should have this option, but Sophos XG has removed it."
"Sophos XG is not easy to navigate and to use, and the integration capabilities are lacking."
"There is an area that is very specific to our setup, where working tools you cannot easily establish a VPN between two internal networks."
"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."
"It could be better if it were more user-friendly. It's too complicated for us to use it. The price could be better as well."
"This is not a next-generation firewall."
"Improvement is needed in terms of the technical support of the manufacturer."
"A more user-friendly interface would be helpful."
"The SD card could be more secure."
"The biggest issue was their support department was not able to help us, then everything stops. This is a no-go area for me."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The price, in comparison to other products is very cheap."
"The product is not very expensive."
"I rate the product's pricing a seven out of ten. The additional cost depends on the extra feature requirements."
"I would rate the pricing a five out of ten"
"The tool is a bit pricey for small businesses, but it is still bearable in terms of cost."
"I give the pricing a nine out of ten."
"The price is okay."
"Fortinet FortiGate's price can be reduced."
"For our company, the price was reasonable."
"Licensing fees are paid on a yearly basis."
"The licensing for Sophos XG is based on the number of users, so I get the module from the sizing of the customer."
"The pricing for Sophos XGS is reasonable."
"The issue of a recurring license is a hassle because every year, we have to subscribe."
"The price of the solution is reasonable when compared to the market."
"The price of Sophos XGS depends on the type of license. However, the licensing cost is approximately 60 percent of the total cost."
"The Sophos pricing, in general, is better than SonicWall, Fortinet, WatchGuard, or anybody else."
"The pricing could be better."
"For mid-sized companies, they sell their appliances for good prices."
"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."
"I think the price is good."
"We chose Stormshield for its price, as the Azure firewall was too expensive."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
12%
Comms Service Provider
9%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
6%
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.
880,844 professionals have used our research since 2012.