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Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) vs WatchGuard Firebox comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jun 15, 2025

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

ROI

Sentiment score
6.8
Fortinet FortiGate offers favorable ROI with cost savings, efficiency, and ease of deployment, enhancing productivity and reducing ownership costs.
Sentiment score
6.5
Check Point Harmony SASE users report fewer security incidents, cost savings, enhanced productivity, and reduced traditional VPN reliance.
Sentiment score
7.4
WatchGuard Firebox enhances security, saves costs and time, improves productivity, and supports efficient remote work for quick returns.
Clients are now comfortable and not wasting productive hours on IT support.
The automation part is giving us a cost benefit and speed; we can react faster.
It's a very useful tool to mitigate and protect your enterprise.
Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) blocked access to those URLs at the network level before users could click through.
We are saving 40% of our time, which is good.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
6.7
Fortinet's support is generally responsive and helpful, though some users experience slow response times and complex issues.
Sentiment score
7.2
Check Point Harmony SASE receives mixed to positive reviews for responsive support, though some users experienced delays in resolution.
Sentiment score
7.2
WatchGuard Firebox customer service is praised for its prompt, expert support and effective issue resolution, despite occasional delays.
They offer very accurate solutions.
The quick resolution of issues with Fortinet FortiGate is due to the support of the company and the fact that the equipment is easy to work with.
I would rate the technical support for Fortinet FortiGate a ten out of ten.
I would rate support 10 out of 10.
After updating firmware, data utilization was visible for a few days before collapsing again.
On a scale of one to 10, I would rate the technical support of the WatchGuard Firebox a 10.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.2
Fortinet FortiGate is praised for scalability, effective in both large and small businesses, but hardware scaling can be challenging.
Sentiment score
8.2
Check Point Harmony SASE is scalable, cloud-based, and adaptable but faces some redundancy limitations compared to competitors.
Sentiment score
8.1
WatchGuard Firebox is praised for scalability and adaptability, though some models struggle with high bandwidth and large demands.
They scale up really well from smaller models like the FortiGate 40 and 50 to bigger sites with the FortiGate 100 for more throughput - up to enterprise datacenters.
The variation comes in terms of the interfaces and throughputs, but from a security perspective, you get the same benefit, irrespective of whether you have an entry-level unit or an enterprise.
We determine sizing based on multiple factors: number of users, available links, traffic types, server count, services in use, and whether services will be published.
The cloud-native model ensures we are not tied to any specific location or hardware, which has been a great game changer in terms of agility.
The scalability of Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) is good, and I can add more users and devices easily as my organization grows.
I would rate it nine out of ten for scalability.
I find the WatchGuard Firebox scalable, as it's easy to change configurations from this product to another one.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.7
Fortinet FortiGate is praised for reliability, with stability enhancements through updates, despite some firmware bugs and performance challenges.
Sentiment score
7.8
Check Point Harmony SASE is stable with 99.9% uptime, despite rare glitches, earning high user reliability ratings.
Sentiment score
8.6
WatchGuard Firebox is highly stable, requiring minimal reboots, often rated 8-10/10 for reliability and efficiency.
We're experiencing 99.999% availability consistently.
I would rate the stability of Fortinet FortiGate a ten out of ten.
Currently, we are experiencing a general outage of one of the main internet service providers of the Dominican Republic, and we have not been impacted in our operations because with SD-WAN, we have another internet service provider and we are working with the second WAN connection without any disruption.
Even the support team does not have a proper solution for this issue.
There are some lags and glitches with connectivity, so I would rate the stability as between seven or eight out of ten.
After the last improvement, I can say it is much more stable now.
 

Room For Improvement

Fortinet FortiGate needs improved stability, intuitive support, cost-effective licensing, and better compatibility with fewer bugs and enhanced reporting.
Check Point Harmony SASE could improve with SD-WAN, alerts, better UI, analytics, integration, support, and documentation enhancements.
WatchGuard Firebox users seek user-friendly design, better integration, enhanced support, improved features, and reduced reliance on Microsoft's OS.
Investing in a solution that can accommodate such growth would be more cost-effective than repeatedly purchasing new hardware.
The constant daily revisions necessitate meticulous identification of the relevant documents to prevent the use of outdated information that could jeopardize our environment.
While Fortinet claims to offer a comprehensive network solution, it falls short in addressing computer application issues, particularly server security.
An example of when the support cycle took longer than expected was when I had a ticket open for nearly six to seven months regarding a simple issue.
A local data center in Turkey would enhance the product, as currently, our Internet traffic goes to another country, which is problematic for us.
One area for improvement is integration with third-party identity providers.
When implementing a rule using a group of IPs, it is not possible to do that directly.
The WatchGuard Firebox has certain features, but the challenge is that we have some clients who don't have a network or are only mobile users, which leads us to think the future is in SASE products, not in the WatchGuard Firebox.
 

Setup Cost

Fortinet FortiGate offers cost-effective enterprise-level features with competitive long-term pricing, affordable licensing, and valuable support packages.
Check Point Harmony SASE offers clear pricing and flexibility, ideal for large enterprises but costly for small businesses.
WatchGuard Firebox offers cost-effective pricing and comprehensive security features, making it a popular choice over Barracuda and SonicWall.
FortiGate is priced lower than Palo Alto.
Last year, I renewed the support for three years, which can sometimes be expensive but depends on the security benefits and how it helps us.
It is about 20% cheaper.
Cost efficiency is a consideration, as SASE products are not the cheapest security products.
It is a bit expensive.
My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing for Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) is that it is a rental service, but I find it satisfactory.
I have faced challenges with the WatchGuard Firebox regarding price since we work with customers who use the Stormshield product, which is less expensive and French-made.
 

Valuable Features

Fortinet FortiGate is praised for its VPN, firewall, ease of use, cost-effectiveness, and versatile network management features.
Check Point Harmony SASE enhances security with Zero Trust Access, Secure Gateway, and ThreatCloud intelligence, optimizing remote work management.
WatchGuard Firebox offers ease of use, robust security features, and seamless integration, enhancing performance, scalability, and management.
In terms of security, we have not experienced any security flaws or loopholes, and it has proven to be quite stable.
FortiGate has helped reduce the risk of cyberattacks that might disrupt our client's production.
These features help reduce our downtime, manage the ISPs, and deploy SLAs for all the website traffic.
The firewall management is the most valuable feature for me.
The Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA) feature is a major highlight as it gives users seamless and secure access to internal resources without requiring a full-blown VPN, which improves both security and user experience.
The best key features of Harmony are stabilization, private access, and Internet access.
The Firebox offers valuable features such as network security, URL filtering, UTM features, intrusion prevention and detection, and authentication.
I utilize AI within the WatchGuard Firebox, as we use the interconnection with threat syncs, and AI is implemented.
 

Categories and Ranking

Fortinet FortiGate
Sponsored
Ranking in Firewalls
2nd
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
380
Ranking in other categories
Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions (1st), WAN Edge (1st)
Check Point Harmony SASE (f...
Ranking in Firewalls
15th
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
60
Ranking in other categories
Secure Web Gateways (SWG) (7th), Anti-Malware Tools (6th), Enterprise Infrastructure VPN (7th), ZTNA as a Service (4th), ZTNA (2nd), Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) (6th)
WatchGuard Firebox
Ranking in Firewalls
18th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.5
Number of Reviews
87
Ranking in other categories
Unified Threat Management (UTM) (2nd)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2025, in the Firewalls category, the mindshare of Fortinet FortiGate is 21.2%, up from 17.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) is 0.1%, up from 0.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of WatchGuard Firebox is 3.0%, up from 2.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Firewalls
 

Featured Reviews

Vasu Gala - PeerSpot reviewer
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.
Nasseer Qureshi - PeerSpot reviewer
Delivers seamless and secure remote access while enhancing security posture
Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) offers strong features, but there are areas that could be improved. One area for improvement is integration with third-party identity providers. It works with standard SAML and SSO, but we would prefer deeper integrations with solutions such as Ping for more advanced identity-based policies. Additionally, a mobile-specific client or lightweight agent would be helpful for securing access from smartphones, especially in BYOD environments. We would appreciate more granular reporting and analytics, including better drill-down capabilities to investigate specific users or app activity. The logs are comprehensive, but filtering them can sometimes feel messy. The user interface on the management portal could be more intuitive, especially when managing multiple sites or remote offices. Some of the policy configuration steps are nested and could be streamlined.
Rajesh  Makwana - PeerSpot reviewer
Efficient bandwidth management and secure network access with a strong firewall
The primary use case of the Firebox mainly revolves around bandwidth management, unnecessary web blocking, application control, and protection against brute force attacks. It is also implemented for load balancing, SD-WAN, and branch-to-branch connectivity from one location to another. We also use…
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
15%
Educational Organization
9%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Computer Software Company
18%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Manufacturing Company
6%
Comms Service Provider
5%
Computer Software Company
15%
Comms Service Provider
11%
Hospitality Company
6%
Educational Organization
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

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...
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...
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 ...
What do you like most about Perimeter 81?
Even after restarting, it tries to quickly reestablish connection which is very helpful.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Perimeter 81?
It's essential to consider the organization's specific requirements and budget. Here are some general recommendations...
What needs improvement with Perimeter 81?
In terms of improvement, Perimeter 81 could enhance its reporting and analytics capabilities to provide more detailed...
What is your primary use case for WatchGuard Firebox?
We are providing our services to all WatchGuard customers in the region.
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...
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.
 

Also Known As

FortiGate 60b, FortiGate 60c, FortiGate 80c, FortiGate 50b, FortiGate 200b, FortiGate 110c, FortiGate, Fortinet Firewall
Check Point Quantum SASE
No data available
 

Overview

 

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
Aqua Security, Cognito, Multipoint, Kustomer, Postman, Meredith
Ellips, Diecutstickers.com, Clarke Energy, NCR, Wrest Park, Homeslice Pizza, Fortessa Tableware Solutions, The Phoenix Residence
Find out what your peers are saying about Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) vs. WatchGuard Firebox and other solutions. Updated: July 2025.
861,524 professionals have used our research since 2012.