We performed a comparison between Fortinet FortiGate-VM and Meraki MX based on real PeerSpot user reviews.
Find out in this report how the two Firewalls solutions compare in terms of features, pricing, service and support, easy of deployment, and ROI."It is easy to use. We chose this product for the possibility to have virtual domains (VDOMs). We are building another company in the group, and we would like to split the firewalling rules and policies between these two companies. Each company would be able to manage its own policies and security rules, which is an advantage of Fortinet FortiGate. We can define VDOMs, and every company can manage its own VDOM as if it has its own physical firewall, but in fact, we would be using the same physical appliance because we are also using the same internet lines. So, it allows us to reuse the existing resources without the disadvantage of having to compromise on policies and security. Each company can choose its own way of working."
"It increases security posture and is helpful for firewall reporting, intrusion protection, web filtering, and SD-WAN implementation."
"SSL-VPN is very useful for us and has been very reliable."
"It's very fast and easy to configure."
"The solution is extremely reliable."
"This is a quality product with ok support, and it is better than the competition we've tried."
"The most valuable features of Fortinet FortiGate are the ease of use and the UI. It has always provided me with what I needed. I have no need for additional costs that other solutions have, such as Sophos."
"The most valuable feature is the FortiManager for centralized management."
"It is a complete package, and it has complete offerings. It fit the needs, and our customer is happy with it."
"It's a relatively simple product that is easy to use. It's not overly complex."
"We work in the archiving domain where a secure environment is very important. We have some special requirements regarding the security of infrastructure."
"The most valuable features are the SD-WAN and the web filtering applications control."
"Operations have been flawless."
"The most valuable features of Fortinet FortiGate-VM are the ease of use, IPS system, application filter, web filtering, and email security. Additionally, there is a migration tool that other vendors do not provide. We only need to upload the configuration file to the tool, and it converts everything, except the passwords, and gives us the new configuration, which we can directly upload on the firewall. This migration process takes a maximum of 15 minutes."
"The most valuable feature is the WAN optimization."
"The platform has a good user interface."
"The solution's most valuable feature is the Meraki dashboard, which is a single pane of glass."
"The features we have found most valuable are the firewall and the monitoring tools."
"I like the automatic firmware updates. We use the Active Directory to authenticate VPN users."
"It has a helpful feature for database troubleshooting issues."
"The product is quite secure, easy to manage, and well-connected with other devices."
"Meraki MX offers advanced filtration options, plus it behaves like a router and a firewall at the same time."
"MX is easy to manage, configure and install."
"Meraki makes it easy to be secure and know where the holes are to fix them. We have been fixing anything that we have ever found for 20 years. We keep up-to-date with firmware upgrades. We just try to stay on top of everything for security, like maintaining updates and getting rid of old systems. I feel like we're on top of it."
"The non-error conserve mode has room for improvement."
"The support we receive when we need to upgrade is not satisfactory and has room for improvement."
"It can be a little bit more user-friendly in terms of policy definition and implementation. It seems a little bit complicated, and it could be simplified."
"To some degree, it's almost a question as to why some of this stuff isn't simpler. For example, for an AP deployment, while it's integrated, the number of steps that you have to go through in order to get the AP up, seems like a lot."
"The reports are very basic."
"The support team for Fortinet FortiGate needs to be more customer friendly."
"The search tool needs improvement. It's very difficult to search for policies right now."
"The solution is very expensive."
"The reporting is not as good as it is with other firewalls and it should be improved."
"The log settings and filters could use some improvement."
"Sizing can be challenging for customers interested in using Fortinet FortiGate-VM."
"When new versions are deployed they tend to be a little buggy, so they should be more fully tested before release."
"The stability of the product is an area of concern where improvements are required."
"Areas for improvement would be application control and web filtering."
"Fortinet could improve the availability and delivery of its products. It takes four to six weeks for every purchase to arrive."
"The solution can improve by adding separate interfaces for proxy and flow-based usage."
"Meraki tech support staff have a lot more visibility into your network than you do, which is frustrating at times. I understand the approach is to keep the dashboard easier to understand. This will frustrate more advanced users at times."
"You cannot use switching behaviors as you see on the Meraki switch."
"Meraki MX can come across as an expensive solution."
"MX can only be managed via a web interface, but I'm accustomed to using a CLI or a graphical interface. I would also like to see more reporting features. It doesn't provide enough information for me to know precisely about some clients."
"It would be nice to get detailed logging information without third-party software."
"As far as what needs to be improved — nothing really comes to mind. It does what we need it to do."
"Expensive licensing and firewall stops immediately working if the license is not renewed at expiration date."
"It is very expensive."
Fortinet FortiGate-VM is ranked 9th in Firewalls with 113 reviews while Meraki MX is ranked 2nd in Unified Threat Management (UTM) with 58 reviews. Fortinet FortiGate-VM is rated 8.4, while Meraki MX is rated 8.2. The top reviewer of Fortinet FortiGate-VM writes "An easy-to-manage and configure tool that provides ample documentation to help with the setup phase". On the other hand, the top reviewer of Meraki MX writes "Cost-effective, simplified, easy to manage, and reliable with advanced security features and granular visibility". Fortinet FortiGate-VM is most compared with Azure Firewall, Palo Alto Networks VM-Series, Fortinet FortiOS, OPNsense and Sangfor NGAF, whereas Meraki MX is most compared with Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls, Cisco Secure Firewall, Sophos XG, SonicWall TZ and Netgate pfSense. See our Fortinet FortiGate-VM vs. Meraki MX report.
See our list of best Firewalls vendors.
We monitor all Firewalls reviews to prevent fraudulent reviews and keep review quality high. We do not post reviews by company employees or direct competitors. We validate each review for authenticity via cross-reference with LinkedIn, and personal follow-up with the reviewer when necessary.
