WatchGuard Firebox vs Zyxel Unified Security Gateway comparison

WatchGuard and Zyxel are both solutions in the Unified Threat Management (UTM) category. WatchGuard is ranked #4 with an average rating of 7.6, while Zyxel is ranked #14 with an average rating of 7.0. WatchGuard holds a 10.6% mindshare in UTMU, compared to Zyxel’s 4.3% mindshare. Additionally, 95% of WatchGuard users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 50% of Zyxel users who would recommend it.

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 5, 2025

WatchGuard Firebox and Zyxel Unified Security Gateway compete in the network security sector. WatchGuard Firebox appears to have the upper hand due to its user-friendly setup, broad feature range, and strong customer support, though both have areas needing improvement.

Features: WatchGuard Firebox is noted for its VPN setup ease, web content filtering, and integration capabilities with notable features like the real-time bandwidth report and layered security. Zyxel Unified Security Gateway offers stability, effective malware protection, and antivirus features with strong web filtering.

Room for Improvement: WatchGuard Firebox needs better third-party application integration and simpler educational resources for configuration. Zyxel Unified Security Gateway requires enhanced scalability, a more intuitive interface, and innovation in its design.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: WatchGuard Firebox supports versatile deployment options including on-premises, cloud, and hybrid solutions, and it has a reputation for excellent customer support. Zyxel Unified Security Gateway is limited to on-premises environments, and technical support could be improved based on user feedback.

Pricing and ROI: WatchGuard Firebox, while slightly more expensive, offers flexible licensing and a strong ROI with its comprehensive feature set. Zyxel Unified Security Gateway is more affordable, appealing to smaller installations, though this is reflected in its simpler feature offerings.

To learn more, read our detailed WatchGuard Firebox vs. Zyxel Unified Security Gateway Report (Updated: November 2025).

Buyer's Guide

WatchGuard Firebox vs. Zyxel Unified Security Gateway

November 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 November 2025, in the Unified Threat Management (UTM) category, the mindshare of Fortinet FortiGate is 34.1%, down from 39.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of WatchGuard Firebox is 10.6%, down from 12.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Zyxel Unified Security Gateway is 4.3%, up from 2.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Unified Threat Management (UTM) Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
Fortinet FortiGate	34.1%
WatchGuard Firebox	10.6%
Zyxel Unified Security Gateway	4.3%
Other	51.0%

Unified Threat Management (UTM)

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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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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Alexander Azikov

It Manager at Diamond Braces

A robust appliance that is reasonably priced and straightforward to set up

Although manageable, the user interface is a little bit slow and could be improved. There are two user interface options available, namely the basic and the advanced. The basic UI is not very good and doesn't have a lot of features, although it is fast. The advanced UI allows me to do whatever I want, but this is where the issue of speed exists. At one of our sites, the CPU utilization was very high, and for no reason. Technical support needs to be more responsive to requests.

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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

"Web filters, particularly web application controls, grant us the ability to regulate user access effectively."

"Fortinet FortiGate is a scalable solution."

"We like FortiGate's website change feature."

"Centralized monitoring, policy management, and virtualized appliances allow us to take control over our public and private infrastructure."

"I'm looking forward to FortiGate's dashboard features, insights, application oversight, and monitoring, which could help us significantly."

"Stateful packet inspection is valuable. It also does SSL packet inspection. It is able to provide a VPN for remote users with secure connectivity."

"The SD-WAN feature of Fortinet FortiGate has been most impactful in maintaining our network's integrity."

"This solution made it very easy to manage our bandwidth."

More Fortinet FortiGate pros

"The solution is very easy to use."

"I have found the DNS Watch feature for intrusion and prevention response and APT Locker most valuable to me."

"Firebox operates effectively in the background, blocking potential threats without a need for constant monitoring."

"The solution simplifies my business. Normally, for administration, we are using NetApp System Manager on Window since it's easy to create new policies. In a short amount of time, you can create new policies based on new requirements. For example, in the last few months, many requirements changed due to the coronavirus, adding the use of new services, like Office 365, and eLearning tools, like Zoom."

"The most valuable feature, in my opinion, is the dimension logging platform and the network traffic filtering."

"I find this solution very easy to manage. The web manager and Firebox key features are particularly impressive for cloud applications. That's why I often recommend this solution to our clients. It has good threat management capabilities and works against different types of threats."

"Firebox's best feature is the access portal."

"The most valuable features include the ability to raise alarms when there are issues, easier configuration compared to other vendors, centralized update management, and keeping the product updated efficiently."

More WatchGuard Firebox pros

"The most valuable features of the solution stem from web filtering, malware protection, and antivirus."

"This is a capable appliance and the standard features work well for us."

"The solution can scale well."

Cons

"The support structure needs to be improved because every time we contact them, there is a delay in the response."

"The pricing of the solution should be more affordable"

"The reporting in Fortinet FortiGate could improve. Customers are having to purchase additional reporting components. When I have used the Sophos solution it is a complete solution, in Fortinet FortiGate you have to use additional tools to have the features needed."

"Maybe they can offer a smaller scope for a cheaper price for smaller organizations."

"Deploying FortiGate is hard."

"It needs to improve its ISP load balancing."

"In most cases, the IPS engine uses too many resources, which makes Fortinet FortiGate devices unstable."

"More advanced AI capabilities would be beneficial in future updates."

More Fortinet FortiGate cons

"The licensing can be a bit expensive."

"There should be more reports available on different subjects."

"The solution can improve by adding a feature to tag a MAC address of a computer system in the policy and more IP configuration settings."

"The only downside is that it is missing an API, that you can use to easily collect information from it."

"The user interface for WatchGuard Firebox has room for improvement. Right now, it's a bit complex to work with and could be easier."

"If they could make the traffic monitoring easier that would be great. I don't use it that frequently, but I would like to see some improvements in the ease of use of that component, so it makes more sense. I know it's a technical component so there's going to be some difficulty trying to make that easier."

"There are a couple of things I wished that it would do, but I can't think of those off the top of my head."

"The time they take to classify an application once they find that it is unknown can be better."

More WatchGuard Firebox cons

"Sometimes it reboots when you least expect it, and that's the main issue."

"Although manageable, the user interface is a little bit slow and could be improved."

"The product has some scalability and data management issues where improvements are required."

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The solution's price is average."

"The main reason we chose Fortinet FortiGate was that the price was better than the competition."

"FortiGate Next Generation Firewall is a very cheap solution."

"The price of FortiGate is comparable to that of most other firewall solutions and is more affordable than Cisco."

"The price is okay, so far so good."

"The cost of Fortinet FortiGate is competitive and not expensive compared to other enterprise- grade solutions. On average, the license cost per year is around seventy percent of the firewall's purchase price."

"It was probably about $2,500 per firewall. It was all included. It included support, services, threat management software, and 24/7 FortiCare on it. Cisco products are more expensive."

"If you compare the price of Fortinet FortiGate IPS to other firewalls, Check Point is priced very high followed by Palo Alto and Sophos. Fortinet FortiGate IPS price is more reasonable."

More Fortinet FortiGate pricing and cost advice

"It is not expensive. Other products like Fortinet and Check Point are of the same price."

"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."

"There is an additional cost for support on top of licensing. When I bought my new unit, I received additional time added to my support."

"The price is so small that I don't pay attention to it anymore. I think we pay a few thousand dollars for two to three years, so about $100 per month. That's for all of our users. There is an additional cost if we want to go with a deeper licensing model, but we just pay for antivirus, IPS, and main product support."

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

"The solution is a bit more expensive than other options."

"The solution is cheap."

"It is an entry-level product, so the price is cheap."

More WatchGuard Firebox pricing and cost advice

"This gateway is pretty cheap."

"The price of Zyxel Unified Security Gateway is good compared to other similar products in the market."

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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%

Comms Service Provider

11%

Manufacturing Company

Retailer

Comms Service Provider

22%

Computer Software Company

15%

Outsourcing Company

Non Profit

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	92
Midsize Enterprise	25
Large Enterprise	15

No data available

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 is your primary use case for WatchGuard Firebox?

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

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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

What do you like most about Zyxel Unified Security Gateway?

The most valuable features of the solution stem from web filtering, malware protection, and antivirus.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Zyxel Unified Security Gateway?

I cannot definitively comment on whether Zyxel Unified Security Gateway is an affordable product as I haven't done co...

See all answers

What needs improvement with Zyxel Unified Security Gateway?

The integration capability is quite challenging. The system is very complicated, and many features are hidden. I'm lo...

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

Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 3% of the time

More Fortinet FortiGate Competitors

OPNsense vs WatchGuard Firebox

Compared 7% of the time

SonicWall TZ 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

CrowdStrike Falcon vs WatchGuard Firebox

Compared 2% of the time

More WatchGuard Firebox Competitors

Netgate pfSense vs Zyxel Unified Security Gateway

Compared 14% of the time

OPNsense vs Zyxel Unified Security Gateway

Compared 11% of the time

Sophos XG vs Zyxel Unified Security Gateway

Compared 6% of the time

Sophos UTM vs Zyxel Unified Security Gateway

Compared 5% of the time

Sophos XGS vs Zyxel Unified Security Gateway

Compared 5% of the time

More Zyxel Unified Security Gateway Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Fortinet FortiGate

November 2025

Download Fortinet FortiGate product report

Buyer's Guide

WatchGuard Firebox

October 2025

Download WatchGuard Firebox product report

Buyer's Guide

Unified Threat Management (UTM)

October 2025

Download Zyxel Unified Security Gateway 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

No data available

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

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

ZyWALL USG Series delivers high-access quality to help businesses satisfy the demand for always-online communications. For internal deployments, the ZyWALL USG Series provides active-passive High-Availability (HA) service to support device or connection failover.

With Device HA Pro service, the ZyWALL USG Series also supports instant failover, so connections are always maintained when a failover event occurs. For external deployments, the ZyWALL USG Series features multi- WAN load balancing/failover and a comprehensive mobile broadband USB modem support list for WAN backup operations. The ZyWALL USG Series also supports IPSec load balancing and failover, providing additional resilience for mission-critical VPN failover with VTI Interface deployments.

ZyWALL USG110/210/310 thoroughly protects networks with industry-leading firewall, Anti-Malware/ Virus, Anti-Spam, Content Filtering, IDP, and Application Patrol functionality. Regulate unauthorized use of Web applications over your network, such as Facebook, Google apps, and Netflix, among others. Zyxel security measures are enhanced with SSL Inspection, blocking threats hidden in SSL-encrypted connections while facilitating deeper policy enforcement. Furthermore, newly improved Content Filtering 2.0 enhances HTTPS Domain Filter, Browser SafeSearch, and Geo IP Blocking for an array of security enhancements to ensure clean Web connections.

Zyxel

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

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

Information Not Available

Buyer's Guide

WatchGuard Firebox vs. Zyxel Unified Security Gateway

November 2025

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