Azure Web Application Firewall vs Fastly comparison

Microsoft and Fastly are both solutions in the Web Application Firewall (WAF) category. Microsoft is ranked #11 with an average rating of 8.3, while Fastly is ranked #20 with an average rating of 9.0. Microsoft holds a 2.4% mindshare in WAF, compared to Fastly’s 1.7% mindshare. Additionally, 93% of Microsoft users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of Fastly users who would recommend it.

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Jan 1, 2025

Fastly and Azure Web Application Firewall are competing in the web security space, with Fastly's agile approach often favored for pricing and Azure WAF offering a comprehensive feature set for larger enterprises.

Features: Fastly offers real-time logging, edge cloud computing, and flexible APIs for dynamic protection. Azure WAF integrates with Azure services, providing robust threat intelligence and automated scalability. Its extensive security options make it attractive to enterprises within the Azure environment.

Room for Improvement: Fastly could enhance zero-trust features, user interface customization, and detailed reporting. Azure WAF may improve initial setup processes, offer more competitive pricing models, and expand third-party integration capabilities.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Fastly provides straightforward deployment with a user-friendly API and quick customer service. Azure WAF leverages Microsoft's resources for detailed deployments, with extensive documentation and support for complex needs.

Pricing and ROI: Fastly's competitive pay-as-you-go pricing is cost-effective for smaller organizations. Azure WAF, despite its higher price, offers substantial ROI through deep integration with Azure’s suite, appealing to enterprises seeking comprehensive cloud service use.

To learn more, read our detailed Azure Web Application Firewall vs. Fastly Report (Updated: April 2026).

Buyer's Guide

Azure Web Application Firewall vs. Fastly

April 2026

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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

Cloudflare Web Application ...

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2026, in the Web Application Firewall (WAF) category, the mindshare of Cloudflare Web Application Firewall is 4.7%, down from 7.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Azure Web Application Firewall is 2.4%, down from 4.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Fastly is 1.7%, up from 1.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Web Application Firewall (WAF) Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
Cloudflare Web Application Firewall	4.7%
Azure Web Application Firewall	2.4%
Fastly	1.7%
Other	91.2%

Web Application Firewall (WAF)

Featured Reviews

Dean Barisic

CTO at PlayNirvana

Advanced security reporting has protected high-traffic betting platforms from constant attacks

I don't see room for improvement to Cloudflare Web Application Firewall. One thing I don't know much about because we have a dedicated IT team for that, and I'm not involved with Cloudflare much anymore. But if I were to compare them to F5, I would like to see more features that F5 offers. F5 has an option to bring the whole infrastructure, the whole WAF and all their packages, Bot Management, and everything else on your infrastructure. You need to install certain services from their side, and then you can choose if you would like requests to hit your servers immediately or if requests need to be proxied through F5 backbone. That would be a nice addition because we have 90% of the traffic as legit traffic coming from whitelisted servers. If it comes from whitelisted servers, I don't need to go every request through the backbone; I could easily just IP whitelist everything. Then I could maybe have Bot Management on my infrastructure that drastically reduces the price of Cloudflare. I would like to see Push CDN more improved in the next release of Cloudflare Web Application Firewall. And maybe something similar to Pushpin that Fastly has, which is an option where you can push messages that then can be scaled globally over the network. From our perspective, if we have a listener that listens for stock updates, I would just need to have one processor that pushes those updates to the Cloudflare API, and then Cloudflare would broadcast that message to all listeners. Cloudflare will check the order of the message, and if you, as a customer, are not connected or have some kind of network issue, when you reconnect, you will receive the latest state and missing updates.

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Kevin Rua Jefwa

Global IT Solutions Specialist at RELIEF INTERNATIONAL INC

Offers robust analytics and seamless cloud integration with minor room for user interface improvement

The Microsoft support and the analytics are what I appreciate about Azure Web Application Firewall. It integrates effectively with things such as Sentinel and Defender for Cloud, so mostly it's the analytics and now the AI capabilities that have been introduced with Co-pilot. It helps when looking for threats. It reduces issues significantly because the filtering capabilities are high. Given that it's a cloud solution, we have very minimal downtime, especially because we have Microsoft support. On a scale of one to 10, I would give it an eight.

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Pranay Jain

Senior software developer at Simplifyvms

Edge caching has transformed response times and delivers faster candidate data globally

Fastly can be improved in certain areas such as VCL, which is powerful but has a steep learning curve for normal users. A more user-friendly, UI-based configuration could simplify the experience, alongside better templates for common use cases and dashboard improvements, as the current dashboard feels complex for beginners, and pricing can be hard to predict for smaller companies. I chose 8 out of 10 because it has excellent performance and low latency delivery, making it suitable for larger applications, with strong Edge Caching and instant purging capabilities. However, VCL complexity and pricing predictability, especially for smaller companies, along with a user-friendly dashboard are areas impacting my score.

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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

"Does a good job preventing web application attacks."

"Some of the most valuable features of Cloudflare Web Application Firewall include its DNS zone setup and the zero trust policy."

"Cloudflare is cheaper compared to Azure WAF, which I have considered before."

"The security features are valuable. The particular feature we use is called OWASP."

"The initial setup process is simple."

"In general, it's a very good product: the solution is very stable, the performance is great, the product offers very good scalability, the pricing is very reasonable, the installation is very straightforward and quite simple, and technical support has a very fast response time and is helpful."

"Very glad the WAF rulesets works out of box, and requires very little tuning or maintenance."

"I'm highly satisfied. It's remarkably user-friendly, enabling me to quickly identify issues, and deploy solutions, and it offers the necessary features."

More Cloudflare Web Application Firewall pros

"It is almost impossible to access these assets from outside, requiring a very skilled attacker to obtain asset tokens of a customer using Azure."

"The best features of Azure Web Application Firewall are that it provides security and protection from poorly designed web applications."

"Configuration is much easier than using different platforms."

"The integration it has with GitHub is great."

"The solution has good dashboards."

"The return on investment is good."

"I can only strongly recommend using the Azure Web Application Firewall."

"It has been a stable product in my experience."

More Azure Web Application Firewall pros

"In summary, this solution is easy to manage, quick to deploy, and all of my customers are happy."

"The product helps our organization to access sites located in different regions quickly."

"Support is good; the product works as advertised. We have a Slack connection with them. So we can basically ask for help, live, engage, and ring when they respond. Very quickly."

"Its initial setup process is straightforward."

"Fastly uses configuration versioning, where you can deploy a new version in less than one minute."

"Rate limiting is a good feature that protects from volumetric attacks."

"Initially, we faced load time issues, but after deploying Fastly and optimizing our queries, we achieved a response time cut to less than 1 millisecond from an initial 3 to 4 seconds."

"The product's initial setup phase is straightforward."

More Fastly pros

Cons

"They need to improve their support because getting a response for basic requests took around 48 hours, which is too long."

"The ModSecurity core rules need to be updated."

"Cloudflare Web Application Firewall should improve visibility for a customer."

"The blocked logs are difficult to read at times."

"It would be ideal if the solution offered better log integration and more integration with different platforms."

"Support can be challenging at times."

"The product can improve by having more multitenancy capability, which is currently not available."

"The user interface is very simple and straightforward, but users need knowledge about DNS to accomplish tasks."

More Cloudflare Web Application Firewall cons

"I think deployment should be simplified so that a non-techie can handle it."

"In Brazil, we have some problems with the phone service that affect our connection with the cloud. However, it isn't common."

"The documentation needs to be improved."

"We would like to see additional site services using AI to provide information about blocking requests and offer analytics on the origin of calls."

"From a reporting perspective, they could do more there."

"The management can be improved."

"Upgrading the platform regularly is necessary for security, however, frequent updates every six months or year from Azure can be a maintenance overhead."

"Some Azure applications, like the web application firewall, require a certain level of SKU for hosting setup. The basic setup does not allow me to use the web application firewall and other additional services."

More Azure Web Application Firewall cons

"Fastly's customer service area needs improvement."

"The product should provide improved bot detection and management."

"Support is not that great."

"Stronger analytics would be helpful, like showing configurations that haven't served a certain amount of traffic in a while. With many properties, things can get lost track of - duplicates or unused configurations not properly decommissioned."

"The solution's pricing could be better."

"What I don't like about Fastly is that they charge a heavy price."

"It is missing a "staging" platform to deploy a test configuration with all of the real settings, which would allow us to properly test before putting it into production."

"It's not easy to start with Fastly if you don't have VCL knowledge, so it appears very complex at the beginning."

More Fastly cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing? I believe the pricing is not the best, but it's reasonable and acceptable. We also use the McAfee system in parallel. In terms of pricing, its okay - not great, but not bad either. It falls in the middle, which is acceptable. In terms of support licensing, last time, we were searching for a solution, and we considered products from resellers rather than directly from the cloud provider. However, the pricing we encountered was exceptionally high. As a result, we are inclined to select support from the reseller."

"Cloudflare offers different types of subscriptions for businesses, enterprises, and personal users, and the pricing is negotiable."

"Cloudflare Web Application Firewall is more affordable than other solutions."

"The solution is expensive."

"It starts at $20 and can easily go up to $200 monthly"

"The solution's pricing option needs to be more transparent for enterprise clients."

"The annual licensing fee is $10,000 USD."

"The pricing model is very straightforward compared to the competition. You just pay per month for the product and usage."

More Cloudflare Web Application Firewall pricing and cost advice

"The price is for this solution is fair and there is a license needed."

"The price of the solution depends on your architecture and how you manage it. You can control the cost in Azure quite well. The costs do not directly correlate to expenses in the features we are using."

"I give the pricing a nine out of ten."

"We have an enterprise agreement with Microsoft and the pricing is good."

"The price is reasonable. It is approximately $2,000 US per month."

"Azure WAF has price advantages over other WAF solutions. The pricing model is flexible because you pay on a scale based on the level of protection you need."

"I've generally found Fastly to be very competitive in pricing, especially around Compute@Edge."

"In my opinion, Fastly is priced competitively."

"The pricing has been very competitive."

"You need to pay a premium price for the tool."

"Fastly is less expensive than one of its competitors."

"The solution is cheaper than other products in the market."

"It is an expensive solution."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Construction Company

17%

Comms Service Provider

Financial Services Firm

Computer Software Company

Manufacturing Company

12%

Financial Services Firm

11%

Computer Software Company

Comms Service Provider

12%

Financial Services Firm

11%

Computer Software Company

Healthcare Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	16
Midsize Enterprise	6
Large Enterprise	6

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	6
Large Enterprise	12

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	6
Large Enterprise	5

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cloudflare Web Application Firewall?

The price of Cloudflare Web Application Firewall is reasonable.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Cloudflare Web Application Firewall?

I don't see room for improvement to Cloudflare Web Application Firewall. One thing I don't know much about because we...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Cloudflare Web Application Firewall?

We are using Cloudflare Web Application Firewall's advanced reporting and analytics tools with their Zero Trust, so e...

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Azure Web Application Firewall?

I would place Azure Web Application Firewall at an eight on a scale from one to 10, with one being cheap and 10 being...

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What needs improvement with Azure Web Application Firewall?

The pricing needs improvement, and I think for beginners it will be a little bit complicated, so the ease of use coul...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Azure Web Application Firewall?

Because we mostly operate in the cloud and because we're a Microsoft environment, it was the best option in the scena...

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Fastly?

You need to pay a premium price for the tool.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Fastly?

I believe that Fastly should provide guidelines for their WAF blocking rules. It should be public what the rules are ...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Fastly?

I am using Fastly in the Adobe Commerce Cloud project. In this project, it is working as a reverse proxy for CDN and ...

See all answers

Comparisons

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F5 Advanced WAF vs Cloudflare Web Application Firewall

Compared 4% of the time

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Compared 10% of the time

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Compared 9% of the time

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Compared 8% of the time

Akamai App and API Protector vs Azure Web Application Firewall

Compared 5% of the time

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Compared 3% of the time

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Cloudflare vs Fastly

Compared 19% of the time

Akamai vs Fastly

Compared 17% of the time

Imperva Application Security Platform vs Fastly

Compared 9% of the time

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Compared 5% of the time

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Compared 2% of the time

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Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Cloudflare Web Application Firewall

May 2026

Cloudflare Web Application Firewall report

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Buyer's Guide

Azure Web Application Firewall

May 2026

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Buyer's Guide

Fastly

May 2026

Download Fastly product report

Also Known As

Cloudflare WAF

No data available

Overview

Cloudflare Web Application Firewall integrates DDoS protection, load balancing, and firewall capabilities. Its ease of use, configurability, and robust security measures make it a versatile choice for protecting web applications.

Cloudflare Web Application Firewall provides a comprehensive defense against threats with advanced reporting and robust security measures. It includes DNS integration, rate limiting, and extensive rule sets, all within a SaaS model that allows API configurability. Users value its caching, scalability, and pricing, although enhancements are needed in rate-limiting and third-party integration. Improvements in customer support, especially in India, real-time controls, and user documentation are also desired. Users seek a more intuitive dashboard, better log management, and improved alert systems, along with multitenancy capabilities and enhanced reporting.

What are the key features of Cloudflare Web Application Firewall?

DDoS Protection: Shields applications from denial-of-service attacks
Load Balancing: Ensures efficient traffic distribution
DNS Integration: Enhances domain name system security
Rate Limiting: Controls traffic flow and reduces abuse
Extensive Rule Sets: Offers customizable security rules

What benefits and ROI can users find in reviews?

Scalability: Easily adapts to growing business needs
Pricing: Offers reasonable pricing structure
Caching: Improves application performance and speed
Configurable Security: Provides customizable defense settings
Efficient Management: Simplifies security and application control

Cloudflare Web Application Firewall finds application in industries like banking and retail by acting as a comprehensive security gateway, managing authentication and authorization while protecting web applications from malicious Layer 7 traffic. It also implements load balancing, CDN, and zero-trust policies, supported by advanced reporting, analytics tools, and threat scoring to meet specific industry needs.

Cloudflare

Azure Web Application Firewall provides strong protection, easy setup, and smooth integration with Microsoft services. It excels in request filtering, custom rule creation, and protection against OWASP Top 10 attacks, ensuring scalable and reliable performance for businesses.

Azure Web Application Firewall offers flexible, affordable, and efficient protection against critical security threats like DDoS and SQL injection, with seamless integration with Azure tools, analytics, and AI capabilities. Users appreciate its ability to handle web requests through role-based access, automation features, and custom policies, especially valuable in cloud environments and ecommerce. Despite the need to improve reporting, management, proxy forwarding, and documentation, it remains a reliable choice for securing front-facing applications.

What are the most important features of Azure Web Application Firewall?

Request Filtering: Blocks undesirable web traffic.
Custom Rule Creation: Enables granular control.
OWASP Protection: Shields against top 10 security vulnerabilities.
Seamless Azure Integration: Enhances security management.

What benefits and ROI should users look for in Azure Web Application Firewall reviews?

Scalability: Supports business growth.
Affordability: Cost-effective for businesses.
Reduced Deployment Time: Quick and efficient setup.
Enhanced Security: Protects against various threats.

Azure Web Application Firewall is widely used in ecommerce for securing transactions against cyber threats like phishing and SQL injection. It also supports reverse proxy setups, provides detailed log analytics, and offers layer 7 protection, making it suitable for businesses needing robust security for both front-facing and branch connectivity applications.

Microsoft

Fastly is a leading provider of content delivery network services that enhances website performance through efficient caching and real-time architecture capabilities.

Fastly integrates CDN technology with advanced web application firewall for comprehensive security. Its global infrastructure supports performance enhancement, rapid deployment, and rollback capabilities. Utilizing the VCL language allows custom caching solutions. Compute@Edge provides extensive architectural flexibility, aiding in HTML manipulation and script execution. Users benefit from its stability and reliability features for seamless network protection, log management, image optimization, and A/B testing. Challenges include limited support in mainland China, inadequate WebSocket protocol implementation, and complex pricing structures.

What are the key features of Fastly?

CDN Integration: Delivers content quickly across global Points of Presence.
Signal Sciences’ WAF: Manages security threats effectively.
VCL Language: Offers customizable caching solutions.
Compute@Edge: Enables flexible architecture for HTML manipulation.
Image Optimization: Enhances performance with dynamic image delivery.

What benefits should users consider in reviews?

Performance Enhancement: Boosts website speed and response time.
Rapid Deployment: Allows for swift implementation and rollback.
Real-Time Visibility: Provides insights into cached content management.
Security and Stability: Ensures reliability against DDoS attacks and other threats.
Flexibility: Offers diverse network protection and infrastructure capabilities.

Fastly is widely implemented in industries needing robust content delivery and security capabilities. Companies use it as a reverse proxy for media delivery, ensuring availability and optimized performance. Its rapid deployment and rollback features are particularly beneficial in technology sectors requiring agile responses to demand shifts.

Fastly

Sample Customers

crunchbase, udacity, marketo, okcupid, zendesk

Information Not Available

Twitter, Airbnb, Alaska Airlines, Pinterest, Vimeo, The Guardian, The New York Times, Ticketmaster, The Drupal Association, Opera, about.com, imgur, Etsy, Foursquare, GitHub, New Relic, shopify, Shazam, Firebase

Buyer's Guide

Azure Web Application Firewall vs. Fastly

April 2026

Free Report: Azure Web Application Firewall vs. Fastly

Find out what your peers are saying about Azure Web Application Firewall vs. Fastly and other solutions. Updated: April 2026.

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