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Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) vs Fortinet FortiToken comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

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
6.6
Cisco Identity Services Engine boosts security, simplifies IT, reduces costs, mitigates risks, and enhances efficiency with long-term support.
Sentiment score
3.8
Fortinet FortiToken offers investment returns through enhanced security, integration with firewalls, and flexible non-subscription token renewal.
Direct comparisons with Forescout reveal up to 30% to 40% difference in cost savings.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
6.2
Cisco ISE customer service is praised, but tech support varies, with fast resolutions or delays and inconsistent expertise.
Sentiment score
6.7
Fortinet's customer service is generally good, with excellent technical support but some slow responses in certain regions.
I rate the technical support as one out of ten.
Cisco support has pretty good teams for support and every time we had good answers and we could somehow solve the issues we had.
Sometimes it's challenging to identify which support team is responsible for certain issues, which is a significant concern.
Their resolution time is timely, and they provide solutions efficiently.
I am satisfied with their service.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.3
Cisco Identity Services Engine scales flexibly for various environments, though virtual deployments and licensing necessitate careful planning and hardware selection.
Sentiment score
8.2
Fortinet FortiToken is adaptable, scalable, and suited for mid-sized businesses, with high ratings in scalability across sectors.
Factors like architecture, business nature, and legal limitations such as GDPR affect it.
However, you can have some latency issues depending on where your devices are.
There is a need to scale more effectively to accommodate a larger number of users and bulk users.
Regarding Fortinet FortiToken's scalability, we can purchase licenses according to our needs.
I would rate scalability for Fortinet FortiToken as nine and a half or ten.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.6
Cisco ISE is stable and reliable, though occasional bugs occur, but technical support and proper management ensure performance.
Sentiment score
8.0
Fortinet FortiToken is highly reliable and stable, with minor occasional syncing and SMS issues reported by users.
Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) is considered very reliable and stable.
The stability of Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) is poor for certain use cases, like authentication.
Sometimes when we have upgrades or failovers with Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE), we had some minor issues.
I would rate stability for Fortinet FortiToken as the best solution.
FortiToken is stable, but there are some restrictions when it comes to supporting two-factor authentication in multi-factor environments.
 

Room For Improvement

Users seek simplified Cisco ISE setup, improved integration and UI, refined stability, transparent licensing, and enhanced logging and analytics.
Fortinet FortiToken requires enhancements in usability, integration, reporting, multi-device support, pricing flexibility, and centralized management.
The whole setup works well with Cisco access points and Cisco switches, but when you have multiple vendors in the environment, such as HP switches or access points like Aruba, you'll find they will not work well with Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE).
Pricing can be more expensive compared to other vendors, and there is a significant price gap observed, which doesn't seem justified by some specific features.
They are very poor in asset classification and should focus on improving the preauthentication profiling, especially for NAC use cases.
Any Fortinet FortiToken cannot be removed; if a box expires or loses support, it cannot be removed, and customers must purchase it from scratch.
This would allow for broader distribution among a larger number of system admins and software engineers, which is currently not feasible with the existing hardware-only approach.
If I can receive it on email, it would be more flexible.
 

Setup Cost

Cisco ISE provides three tiers; complex, costly pricing is offset by comprehensive features and potential discounts through partnerships.
Fortinet FortiToken is competitively priced and integrates well with Fortinet products, appealing to budget-conscious enterprises.
Compared to other solutions like HPE ClearPass, Cisco is more costly, and the conversation suggests a possible forty percent price gap compared to competitors.
The license costs can range between $50,000 to $100,000 per year for enterprises.
Cloud solutions are expensive, while on-prem setups with shared environments are cheaper but not effective.
Discounts are often provided to close deals, making it a cost-effective solution.
The pricing for FortiToken is not low; I regard it as medium-priced.
 

Valuable Features

Cisco Identity Services Engine enhances security via dynamic policy enforcement, seamless integration, and robust authentication for a zero-trust environment.
Fortinet FortiToken offers flexible, cost-effective two-factor authentication with easy installation, strong security, and user convenience via a mobile app.
Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) offers authentication using RADIUS, enhancing network security by separating and segregating networks.
There is value because it helps us secure the network and prevents certain things from happening which could cause financial loss.
The adaptability of Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) policy enforcement can fit to the site we have depending on which kind of devices we have on site and then the needs for authentication, granting access and then assigning each device into its correct network for segmentation.
The main use case of FortiToken is that it is a hardware-based solution, providing secure two-factor authentication for administrators.
Fortinet FortiToken provides very important security benefits because it is used to manage FortiGate from outside, exclusively with Fortinet FortiToken.
It is very user-friendly and easily integrates with various firewalls, making it convenient to use within diverse environments.
 

Categories and Ranking

Cisco Identity Services Eng...
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.5
Number of Reviews
144
Ranking in other categories
Network Access Control (NAC) (1st), Cisco Security Portfolio (2nd)
Fortinet FortiToken
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
31
Ranking in other categories
Authentication Systems (4th)
 

Mindshare comparison

Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) and Fortinet FortiToken aren’t in the same category and serve different purposes. Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) is designed for Network Access Control (NAC) and holds a mindshare of 24.2%, down 29.5% compared to last year.
Fortinet FortiToken, on the other hand, focuses on Authentication Systems, holds 5.1% mindshare, down 7.0% since last year.
Network Access Control (NAC) Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE)24.2%
Aruba ClearPass23.6%
Fortinet FortiNAC17.9%
Other34.30000000000001%
Network Access Control (NAC)
Authentication Systems Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Fortinet FortiToken5.1%
Microsoft Entra ID12.9%
Cisco Duo8.1%
Other73.9%
Authentication Systems
 

Featured Reviews

SunilkumarNaganuri - PeerSpot reviewer
Enhanced device administration hindered by complex deployment and security limitations
Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) needs to improve the profiling preauthentication. They are very poor in asset classification and should focus on improving the preauthentication profiling, especially for NAC use cases. This will give them a roadmap for software-defined access (SDA) use cases and network segmentation. Threat detection capabilities are very weak. Additionally, the product is vulnerable and has many bugs.
Ahmed Auf - PeerSpot reviewer
Has strengthened user authentication and remains reliable despite recent license transfer limitations
I love to work with Fortinet FortiToken because it's easy to configure with any user and with FortiAuthenticator. We uploaded it and use it for any authentication with any user, with integration with any device. With FortiAuthenticator, we integrated it with any server, such as Active Directory, and use the token for VPN and other purposes. In the future, we ask customers to use it with FortiAuthenticator, not just the token, as it provides better integration capabilities. When we buy a specific Fortinet FortiToken, we use it on FortiGate only. Fortinet FortiToken provides very important security benefits because it is used to manage FortiGate from outside, exclusively with Fortinet FortiToken. Without Fortinet FortiToken, administrators cannot use or add admin privileges or manage it from outside, as this could lead to attacks or malicious activity.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
14%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Government
9%
Computer Software Company
14%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Government
7%
Manufacturing Company
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business44
Midsize Enterprise31
Large Enterprise91
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business17
Midsize Enterprise5
Large Enterprise9
 

Questions from the Community

Which is better - Aruba Clearpass or Cisco ISE?
Aruba ClearPass is a Network Access Control tool that gives secure network access to multiple device types. You can adapt the policies to VPN access, wired, or wireless access. You can securely ...
What are the main differences between Cisco ISE and Forescout Platform?
OK, so Cisco ISE uses 802.1X to secure switchports against unauthorized access. The drawback of this is that ISE cannot secure the port if a device does not support 802.1x. Cameras, badge readers, ...
How does Cisco ISE compare with Fortinet FortiNAC?
Cisco ISE uses AI endpoint analytics to identify new devices based on their behavior. It will also notify you if someone plugs in with a device that is not allowed and will block it. The user exper...
What do you like most about Fortinet FortiToken?
The solution is simple and similar to Google Authenticator. It follows time-based authentication. We use it for hardware and software in one environment. The tool offers simple and fast authenticat...
What needs improvement with Fortinet FortiToken?
In my opinion, Fortinet FortiToken can be improved based on specific requirements. We will suggest solutions based on customer requirements and price availability.
What is your primary use case for Fortinet FortiToken?
I use Fortinet FortiToken for authentication and multi-factor authentication (MFA). I utilize Fortinet FortiToken's ability to integrate seamlessly with Fortinet platforms such as Fortinet FortiGat...
 

Also Known As

Cisco ISE
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Aegean Motorway, BC Hydro, Beachbody, Bucks County Intermediate Unit , Cisco IT, Derby City Council, Global Banking Customer, Gobierno de Castilla-La Mancha, Houston Methodist, Linz AG, London Hydro, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Molina Healthcare, MST Systems, New South Wales Rural Fire Service, Reykjavik University, Wildau University
Black Gold Regional Schools, Amadeus Hospitality, Jefferson County, Chunghwa Telecom, City of Boroondara, Dimension Data
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Fortinet and others in Network Access Control (NAC). Updated: October 2025.
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