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IT Network Support Officer at The Premier Centre
Real User
The solution's most valuable feature is dashboard but need improvement in accessibility
Pros and Cons
  • "The tool's most valuable feature is the dashboard."
  • "The solution needs to improve its accessibility."

What is most valuable?

The tool's most valuable feature is the dashboard. 

What needs improvement?

The solution needs to improve its accessibility. 

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been working with the solution for four months. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

I rate the tool's stability an eight out of ten. 

Buyer's Guide
WatchGuard Firebox
July 2025
Learn what your peers think about WatchGuard Firebox. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: July 2025.
865,384 professionals have used our research since 2012.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

My company has three users for WatchGuard Firebox. 

What other advice do I have?

I rate WatchGuard Firebox a five out of ten. 

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
PeerSpot user
ümit Yasin Karakurt - PeerSpot reviewer
Company Owner at SCI Bilişim
Real User
Top 10
The tool's antivirus and malware detection systems require improvement
Pros and Cons
  • "If you just plan to use WatchGuard Firebox in your office and not publicly, then it is okay to purchase it. With WatchGuard Firebox, you can manage your users and permissions while also taking care of the basic setup phase in your office."
  • "In WatchGuard Firebox, the antivirus and malware detection systems are areas with shortcomings that require improvement since they are the most important elements of a cybersecurity tool."

What is our primary use case?

My company uses WatchGuard Firebox for the data centers that work in our office. My company has websites and web applications, because of which we use WatchGuard Firebox for system security.

What needs improvement?

In WatchGuard Firebox, the antivirus and malware detection systems are areas with shortcomings that require improvement since they are the most important elements of a cybersecurity tool.

In the future releases of WatchGuard Firebox, I want to see more frequent updates.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using WatchGuard Firebox for two years. I am an end-user of WatchGuard Firebox.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

Stability-wise, I rate the solution a one out of ten.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

It is not a very scalable solution. Scalability-wise, I rate the solution a three out of ten. The scalability structure of the product does not work properly. There are some downtimes in the solution for which we don't get any notifications. In our company, we don't worry whenever there is an upgrade for the solution.

In my company, we are full-time users of WatchGuard Firebox, and we have applications that are not just used inside our office but publicly on the internet. My company faces many cyberattacks from Russia and China, which is really bad.

My company does not plan to increase the use of the solution.

How are customer service and support?

When trying to contact the product's technical support team, it turns out to be a slow process.

I rate the technical support a three out of ten.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Negative

How was the initial setup?

I rate the initial setup phase of the tool a seven on a scale of one to ten, where one is difficult, and ten is easy.

The solution is deployed on an on-premises model.

The solution's deployment process takes just a few hours to be completed.

For the deployment process, you first connect to a serial cable. WatchGuard has management software that you need to install on a computer to manage the firewall software. You need to connect the firewall serial cables to your computers. In my company, we manage just one software for upgrades and deployments.

One person is enough to take care of the product's deployment process.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

WatchGuard Firebox is a cheap solution.

What other advice do I have?

The systems from WatchGuard are not properly working since I have seen that my company faces exploits in security when using WatchGuard Firebox.

If you just plan to use WatchGuard Firebox in your office and not publicly, then it is okay to purchase it. With WatchGuard Firebox, you can manage your users and permissions while also taking care of the basic setup phase in your office. For systems open on the internet, you can use solutions bigger than WatchGuard Firebox that can provide you with more professional services.

Since the tool's performance is not good, I rate the overall tool a two out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
WatchGuard Firebox
July 2025
Learn what your peers think about WatchGuard Firebox. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: July 2025.
865,384 professionals have used our research since 2012.
MUSTAPHAABAHLOUS - PeerSpot reviewer
Security Engineer at Cyber Value
Real User
Very flexible without any licensing limitations

What is our primary use case?

We use this for our network, mainly for the configuration of rules, such as VPN connections, remote access connections, and application web filtering. I'm a security engineer and we are customers of WatchGuard.

What is most valuable?

This is a very flexible product without licensing limitations. They offer good classes through Gartner. 

What needs improvement?

Although this solution is better than others on the market, I'd like to see improvement in the visibility of network traffic. It feels that the web interface is missing some parts, particularly access and configuration. 

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using this solution for two years. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The solution is stable. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution is scalable.

How are customer service and support?

We've never had to use the technical support. 

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is straightforward. 

What other advice do I have?

I rate this solution eight out of 10. 

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer. Integrator
PeerSpot user
Gianluca Vinci - PeerSpot reviewer
Owner at SharkTech Systems Engineering
Reseller
Helps us protect published resources with a valuable alarm system
Pros and Cons
  • "The alarm system is valuable."
  • "The user interface and configuration can be improved."

What is our primary use case?

Our primary use case for the solution is to protect published resources.

What is most valuable?

The alarm system is valuable because it alerts us if an external intruder tries to attack published resources.

What needs improvement?

The user interface can be improved because it is sometimes difficult to manage functionality. For example, the site interface is challenging to customize, and it isn't easy to retrieve information.

For how long have I used the solution?

We have been using this solution for approximately 15 years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

I rate the stability a nine out of ten.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution is scalable. I rate it as a seven out of ten, and it is better suited for small and medium enterprises.

How are customer service and support?

We have had a good experience with customer service and support. I rate them a nine out of ten because they are very responsive and prompt.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

How was the initial setup?

For good implementation, one week is sufficient to reach an acceptable configuration.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The solution is not expensive. 

What other advice do I have?

I rate the product an eight out of ten. The solution is good, but the user interface and configuration can be improved.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer. Reseller
PeerSpot user
reviewer1483701 - PeerSpot reviewer
System Administrator at a retailer with 11-50 employees
Real User
Advanced defence tools that stop known and unknown malware threats
Pros and Cons
  • "WatchGuard is very user-friendly. It provides us with all of the security services we need."
  • "When it comes to live-monitoring, the user-interface could be improved to make things easier."

What is our primary use case?

We use WatchGuard for security services mostly.

How has it helped my organization?

WatchGuard has made a few improvements to its user interface which have improved the user experience. 

They also made a few improvements to their cloud platform which are good.

What is most valuable?

WatchGuard is very user-friendly. It provides us with all of the security services we need. 

What needs improvement?

When it comes to live monitoring, the user interface could be improved to make things easier.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using WatchGuard for more than 10 years. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

WatchGuard is very stable. I would compare it to other top solutions. We have never experienced any bugs or glitches.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

I cannot speak about large deployments, but documentation-wise, WatchGuard is pretty scalable. It is easily scalable, you just have to choose the proper hardware — that's it. 

How are customer service and support?

The technical support is very fast and reliable. They are very professional. We have never had any issues with the technical support team.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

I used to use FortiGate. The main difference between FortiGate and WatchGuard is their interfaces. FortiGate uses a web-based interface for configuration, whereas WatchGuard has a special application for management. WatchGuard also has a web-based interface but centralized management is done specially. Otherwise, they're pretty much the same product when it comes to functionality, user-friendliness, cost-effectiveness, etc.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup was very easy, we experience no issues. It comes with very good documentation.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The price of WatchGuard is very good.

What other advice do I have?

Overall, on a scale from one to ten, I would give WatchGuard a rating of nine.

I would recommend WatchGuard or something from FortiGate. These two solutions are pretty similar and are very good in terms of quality and functionality. I have personally used both of them and they're great.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Hybrid Cloud
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
PeerSpot user
reviewer1082562 - PeerSpot reviewer
Information Systems Administrator at a logistics company with 51-200 employees
Real User
Highly stable, easy to use, and excellent support
Pros and Cons
  • "The most valuable feature of WatchGuard Firebox is its ease of use."
  • "WatchGuard Firebox could improve the speed of updates, such as new features or improvements. However, they are frequently improving the solution in many areas, such as geo-locations, definitions, and web blocking."

What is our primary use case?

We're using WatchGuard Firebox for multi-factor authentication (MFA), layer three switching, and to segregate our industrial network from our corporate network.

What is most valuable?

The most valuable feature of WatchGuard Firebox is its ease of use.

What needs improvement?

WatchGuard Firebox could improve the speed of updates, such as new features or improvements. However, they are frequently improving the solution in many areas, such as geo-locations, definitions, and web blocking.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using WatchGuard Firebox for approximately six years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The stability of WatchGuard Firebox is very stable.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

WatchGuard Firebox is very scalable. We're using it in a redundant system with two stacked together. It has good redundancy and is good for failover.

Our whole company of approximately 100 users is using the solution.

How are customer service and support?

The support from WatchGuard Firebox is very good.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

What about the implementation team?

We have one system administrator doing the support and maintenance of the WatchGuard Firebox.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

We license the WatchGuard Firebox annually. There are different types of subscriptions available. We are paying approximately $15,000 annually. The cost can increase if you purchase different subscriptions.

What other advice do I have?

You can purchase the solution without support, but I would strongly recommend the support. The support is great.

I rate WatchGuard Firebox an eight out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
PeerSpot user
Andrew Keywood - PeerSpot reviewer
CEO at Specifix Limited
Reseller
A lower-end product that does the job, but doesn't do it very well
Pros and Cons
  • "The set up was quite straightforward and we handled it in-house. It took a few hours to deploy the product."
  • "There is room for improvement in the threat protection, data packet inspection, and performance of the solution. Generally, it's just a lower-end product. It does the job but doesn't do it very well."

What is our primary use case?

It's mainly an internet gateway that is used for internet gateway protection and remote access.

What needs improvement?

There is room for improvement in the threat protection, data packet inspection, and performance of the solution. Generally, it's just a lower-end product. It does the job but doesn't do it very well.

Compared to Palo Alto, for example, some of the main differences are zero-day protection, performance, deep packet inspection, and App-ID. I'm not really a fan of WatchGuard. We only use it with one client and we're trying to get them to get rid of it. I prefer to use Palo Alto instead. Industry analysts have voted Palo Alto the number one firewall for the last eight consecutive years, so if you want good protection, it's a no-brainer.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been working with this solution for 18 months.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The solution is reasonably stable. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

I do not think the product is scalable.

How was the initial setup?

The set up was quite straightforward and we handled it in-house. It took a few hours to deploy the product. One a scale of one to five, one being very hard and five being very easy, I would rate the set up as a five.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

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

What other advice do I have?

The program requires maintenance, including updates, patching, and subscriptions. 

My advice to someone considering this project would be to look into Palo Alto instead. 

I would rate this solution as a one out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer. Reseller
PeerSpot user
Project Consultant at SysGroup PLC
MSP
Reasonably priced, secure, and simple setup
Pros and Cons
  • "The most valuable features of the WatchGuard Firebox are all the security and updated features. You are able to configure the solution from the cloud platform and the application and web interface are very nice."
  • "They are working on cloud-based options. However, they do not have the options fully functional in their solution at this time."

What is most valuable?

The most valuable features of the WatchGuard Firebox are all the security and updated features. You are able to configure the solution from the cloud platform and the application and web interface are very nice.

Since I have been using this solution I have not been hacked or had any problems.

What needs improvement?

They are working on cloud-based options. However, they do not have the options fully functional in their solution at this time.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using WatchGuard Firebox for approximately five years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

WatchGuard Firebox is stable.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The scalability of the WatchGuard Firebox is good.

How are customer service and support?

The technical support is good from WatchGuard Firebox.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup was easy, and the time it took was a couple of hours.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The price of the WatchGuard Firebox is reasonable.

What other advice do I have?

I rate WatchGuard Firebox an eight out of ten.

Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
Download our free WatchGuard Firebox Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.
Updated: July 2025
Buyer's Guide
Download our free WatchGuard Firebox Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.