VMRay vs WatchGuard Firebox comparison

VMRay and WatchGuard are both solutions in the Anti-Malware Tools category. VMRay is ranked #34 with an average rating of 5.0, while WatchGuard is ranked #10 with an average rating of 7.6. Additionally, 95% of WatchGuard users are willing to recommend the solution.

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 5, 2025

WatchGuard Firebox and VMRay operate in the cybersecurity space, providing unique solutions tailored to different needs. VMRay appears to have an advantage due to its advanced capabilities, although WatchGuard Firebox is favored for its cost-effectiveness and support options.

Features: WatchGuard Firebox is known for its robust firewall capabilities, versatile network protection, and comprehensive threat detection. VMRay excels in malware analysis and detection technologies, providing deep threat analysis unmatched by traditional methods. VMRay's advanced threat detection is significantly ahead, offering more detailed analysis.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: WatchGuard Firebox is easy to deploy with extensive support resources, ensuring a smooth installation. VMRay, while providing solid technical support, presents a more complex setup process due to its specialized features, affecting the ease of initial deployment, where WatchGuard holds a clear advantage.

Pricing and ROI: WatchGuard Firebox offers competitive pricing, delivering good short-term ROI, attractive to budget-focused businesses. VMRay requires a higher initial investment, but the advanced threat detection capabilities deliver substantial long-term benefits. While WatchGuard is more cost-effective upfront, VMRay ensures better security efficiency over time.

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January 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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Gaurav-Chawla

Pre-Sales at Frux

Has a valuable IP tracing feature, but is an expensive solution

We use this solution for authorization and more on the false positive verification IP tracing is the most valuable feature. The technical support needs improvement. I have been using VMRay for two and a half years. The technical support team is not good. Negative The initial setup is…

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Syed Pasha

Senior Network Consultant at NETOPS

Makes defining policies simpler but lacks performance and modern features

WatchGuard Firebox is only deployed in one location within my customer's organization, and at the other locations, we are using Meraki and FortiGate. We plan to replace WatchGuard Firebox soon. My impression of the spam blocking capabilities of WatchGuard is not very favorable, as I don't think it is very capable. I haven't noticed effective web ratings or IPS signatures, which may be due to managing an older OS; I'm not certain about the performance of the newer versions. I am not aware of whether the transition to faster ports on WatchGuard Firebox supports maintaining productivity levels during peak usage times. Based on my experience, I would rate WatchGuard Firebox as five out of ten overall.

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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 features that I have found most valuable are the SD-WAN and their IP4 policy."

"The solution is very stable."

"The dynamic segmentation feature in Fortinet FortiGate is pretty good."

"It's inexpensive compared to some of the other technology out there."

"The product's most valuable feature is the ease of deploying IoT security with a single click. Additionally, the frequent updates to the online database ensure that our security measures are always up to date, enhancing our protection against emerging threats."

"The flexibility and ease of configuration are the most valuable features."

"Mainly the FortiGate reporting system is very good. It guides us through all the expectations of security. Fortinet provides us all that we need for security. Also, Fortinet FortiGate is a next-generation firewall. It is much more advanced than others."

"FortiGate's ability to perform as expected and fulfil our needs has been the most compelling feature for network security."

More Fortinet FortiGate pros

"IP tracing is the most valuable feature."

"[A] valuable feature would be the branch office. We have five offices throughout the United States, and it coordinates the connections of those offices."

"Intrusion Prevention is my primary focus so that's what I find most useful. The why is straightforward: It's to prevent intrusion."

"The most valuable feature is the ease of use of the interface."

"The security that is used for defending from the attacks is very good."

"Regarding the reporting, I was in the Dimension server earlier today. It's very powerful. I like it. And the management features are easy to use. I like the fact that I can open up the System Manager client or I can just do it through the web if I'm making a quick change."

"The solution has increased productivity with our outside salespeople being able to connect into their computers and use those remotely."

"The interface is very good."

"I like that this product has very few issues."

More WatchGuard Firebox pros

Cons

"In their datasheet, they put the throughput as huge, but once you enable all the features of the box, the performance is impacted dramatically."

"The solution could have licensing fees reduced in the future."

"Technical support could be better. You don't always get the level of help you need right away."

"At the moment, if you don't integrate any third-party solution with a simple Fortinet FortiGate box, the box would not function as expected for superb protection."

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

"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."

"The web-cache feature which was previously on the FortiGate device, but was deleted with the recent upgrade should be returned. It was a very valuable feature for us."

"We would like to see an improvement in the consistency of the product's performance levels."

More Fortinet FortiGate cons

"The technical support needs improvement."

"The product's technical support services need improvement."

"Sometimes I would like to copy a rule set from one box to another box in a direct way. This is a feature that is not present at the moment in WatchGuard."

"The solution is lacking a professional website, they should be updated more often."

"Make WatchGuard Firebox capable of integrating with third-party vendors like FireMon, Splunk, Tenable, etc."

"The major problem is pricing and licensing loss. In India, the cost for renewal after three years is 75% of the hardware cost, which is a significant problem."

"In terms of what could be improved, I would say their web blocker feature. It is still quite a confusing setup, especially when you want to filter out a particular category for granularity. For example, you do not want to filter Facebook but you do want to filter Facebook games only. It can be done, but the process to do it is very confusing."

"The ease of detecting where an issue is should be improved."

"The solution needs to improve the interface. I'm not able to easily find things using it."

More WatchGuard Firebox cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"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 seven out of ten"

"Setup costs and pricing depends on many variables, but it's mostly affordable."

"The licensing costs are very low."

"The licensing cost is at the intermediate level."

"The solution is very expensive so pricing is rated a one out of ten."

"There is a subscription-based model to use Fortinet FortiGate. We pay annually for the solution along with the support. If you want to have all the updates, and security patches you will need to renew your support."

"It is affordable. Palo Alto is much more expensive than Fortinet."

More Fortinet FortiGate pricing and cost advice

"The solution is overly priced."

"As per my knowledge, the product is more affordable than alternatives."

"The price of the WatchGuard Firebox is reasonable."

"I usually tell people that it's really affordable as well, particularly compared to Cisco."

"It is kind of expensive. I buy it on the appliance. I always buy three-year total security."

"It's an affordable tool"

"The pricing is competitive."

"WatchGuard offers competitive pricing with attractive margins, benefiting both the company and its partners."

"I would rate the pricing at seven out of ten. As for the licensing costs, we typically have yearly licenses for our clients, but there are no additional costs beyond the standard licensing fees."

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

17%

Government

Computer Software Company

Manufacturing Company

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

No data available

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	92
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 ...

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for VMRay?

The solution is overly priced.

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What needs improvement with VMRay?

The technical support needs improvement.

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What is your primary use case for VMRay?

We use this solution for authorization and more on the false positive verification.

See all answers

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...

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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 18% of the time

Cisco Secure Firewall vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 11% of the time

Netgate pfSense vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 8% 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

ANY.RUN vs VMRay

Compared 33% of the time

Joe Sandbox Ultimate vs VMRay

Compared 26% of the time

VirusTotal vs VMRay

Compared 11% of the time

Cuckoo Sandbox vs VMRay

Compared 10% of the time

CrowdStrike Falcon vs VMRay

Compared 7% of the time

More VMRay Competitors

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

Anti-Malware Tools

January 2025

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Buyer's Guide

WatchGuard Firebox

September 2025

Download WatchGuard Firebox product report

Also Known As

No data available

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

VMRay is focused on a single mission: to help enterprises protect themselves against the growing global malware threat. The company’s automated malware analysis and detection solutions help enterprises around the world minimize business risk, protect their valuable data and safeguard their brand. VMRay’s founders, Dr. Carsten Willems and Dr. Ralf Hund, were early pioneers in malware sandboxing, developing breakthrough technologies that continue to lead the industry. They founded VMRay to transform their research into practical solutions for making the online world a safer place. Learn more: www.vmray.com

VMRay

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

National Bank of Canada, Carbon Black, Cloudmark, Cyberint, Expel, G Data Advanced Analytics, Jisc

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

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