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Cisco Meraki Systems Manager (MDM+EMM) vs Fortinet FortiGate comparison

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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:
 

Categories and Ranking

Microsoft Intune
Sponsored
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
263
Ranking in other categories
Configuration Management (2nd), Remote Access (1st), Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM) (1st), Unified Endpoint Management (UEM) (1st), Microsoft Security Suite (1st)
Cisco Meraki Systems Manage...
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.8
Number of Reviews
31
Ranking in other categories
Mobile Device Management (MDM) (3rd), Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM) (5th)
Fortinet FortiGate
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
331
Ranking in other categories
Firewalls (2nd), Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions (1st), WAN Edge (1st)
 

Mindshare comparison

Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM)
Firewalls
 

Q&A Highlights

CV
Jun 12, 2024
 

Featured Reviews

Joseph Merusi - PeerSpot reviewer
Everything has worked better since we started using it
Sometimes the syncing is inconsistent. I'm confident that the devices are checking in every eight hours, but sometimes the devices aren't picking up the settings as quickly as I would expect. Some features haven't been updated in a while, and Microsoft doesn't seem interested in developing them. Unless you talk to an engineer, you don't know whether there will be an update. There are communication issues, so you might start working with a feature without knowing if it will be deprecated six months from now. Some reporting areas still need development. For example, I noticed that the reporting for driver updates is still confusing.
GaneshKhutwad - PeerSpot reviewer
A central portal where you can add, stack, configure, and maintain your devices
Nearly 35,000 users are connected to Systems from America because their network is configured to cover worldwide areas. I have approximately 450 devices connected, which can scale based on requirements. For instance, if you have around five hundred to six hundred users in one office, the MR14 and MR24 series are suitable. For environments with a larger number of standard device users, the MR24 series is recommended. Cisco Meraki provides various series to meet your requirements, allowing you to manage your users efficiently. I rate the solution's scalability a nine out of ten.
EhabAli - PeerSpot reviewer
Efficient, user-friendly, and affordable
In the past, NSS Labs was utilized to test files and verify the numbers and datasheets. It would be beneficial to have an organization or testing lab that can verify the numbers in our datasheets since changes are frequently made, which can be inconvenient for review. For instance, when comparing different competitors such as Forcepoint, Palo Alto, and Check Point, the throughput or numbers in the datasheet may be lower than the actual numbers. Conversely, Fortinet typically reports very high numbers, but they cannot be replicated in the real world. Therefore, it would be advantageous for them to partner with a neutral testing organization such as NSS Labs to validate these numbers, thus providing more credibility and comfort to everyone regarding the accuracy of the datasheets. For the migration, everyone has a firewall in use and I am selling Fortinet. Typically, I am replacing another firewall. Previously, there was a tool available to convert configurations from one firewall, such as Palo Alto, to Fortinet, but this tool is no longer free. If it could be made free again, it would be very beneficial. This tool shows a lot of promise and is very good. Making it free would help many companies deliver their products in a more efficient and integrated way. It would also be more valuable to include the tool with the firewall package or license instead of having to pay extra for it. Paying extra puts more pressure on small companies to deliver the firewall and complete the configuration, especially if they have hundreds or thousands of policies. It's very painful to move through these policies line by line. The stability has room for improvement. When it comes to Secure SD-WAN, everything is fine. They are going the right way. SD-WAN is very promising. They can provide the SD-WAN solution separately, but they will not take this approach because even the smallest firewall can support the features, so there is no need to have a separate service or appliance. They are following the right steps, and there is nothing to be improved. Feature-wise, I'm really satisfied with the new release, and the features they have added. For now, it's fine.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The Autopilot feature is the most valuable because it saves significant time on managing devices. We can ship devices globally, and users can set them up on their own. It's convenient."
"It is a very stable and scalable cloud-only solution."
"Intune's most valuable features are its device management capabilities, particularly its centralized integration with other Microsoft stack components."
"The feature I like the most is that we can perform remote tasks. If we want to retire or wipe out personal data or corporate data from a device, we can use Microsoft Intune remotely, and with the click of a button, data is removed automatically. Nothing needs to be done from the end-user side."
"I like Intune's ability to install software to a device remotely and push policy through the Azure portal."
"Intune provides a centralized management solution, although its suitability depends on specific needs and comparisons with alternatives like Jamf, Kandji, or ManageEngine."
"The most valuable includes managing everything from a single console."
"The feature that we need occasionally but is really important is the ability to remotely wipe a device, control it, and perform similar functions."
"It's robust, and we like the device availability, ease of purchase, and supplier stock availability."
"Meraki Systems Manager's most valuable features are password management, device tracking, remote resetting and wiping, device management, inventory management, and easy policy deployment."
"The best features of Cisco Meraki Systems Manager include its simplicity and ease of use. It is straightforward to set up and manage devices compared to other products."
"It has facilitated zero-touch authorization events for our employees and their devices. Furthermore, Meraki Systems Manager plays a vital role in securing our notebooks."
"The solution is easy to use and support."
"The UI is easy to learn."
"It’s helped us manage our endpoints."
"The cloud dashboard's analytics data is particularly valuable, giving me insights into user activities and making it easy to track and manage devices."
"Some of the key features of the solution is that it has good reporting, you can receive many details from the connection, for example, clients and website information."
"The performance is good."
"It is useful for protecting and segregating the internal networks from the internet. Most of our customers also use the FortiGate client to connect to their offices by using the VPN client, and of course, they usually activate the antivirus, deep inspection, and intrusion prevention services. They are also using it for web filtering and implementing various policies dealing with forwardings, NAT, etc."
"We use a southern institution that's audited for IT security and the reporting that automatically comes off the unit makes it much easier to meet compliance standards and makes it easier as far as the amount of time that has to be spent to compile that information. If you get your reporting set up correctly when you initially set it up, you just select the one you want and hit print. The auditing trail on it is the best feature."
"Fortinet FortiGate meets all the security demands of my industry. It covers endpoint security, including web interface, DNS security, and ELP. I'm currently using the latest version. The features that have most improved our network security are Web Control, filtering, application control, IDS, IPS policies, and Deep SSL inspection."
"Customers want to load balance more than eight lines or six internet lines. FortiGate is the only solution that can accomplish this."
"Its user interface is good, and it is always working fine."
"The most valuable feature is the web filter."
 

Cons

"There is room for improvement, particularly in terms of compatibility, extending beyond the well-known major brands."
"The solution can have some compliance problems in general and the end-point user can bypass easily the company policies in Intune."
"An issue we have run into with Microsoft Endpoint Manager is that we cannot patch third-party products like Adobe and Chrome with it."
"I would like Intune to natively support easier report generation. This improvement would enable less experienced staff to run reports more efficiently without relying on additional tools or functions."
"I wanted to check if there is any provision at the Intune level to restrict certain things, such as a website, but unfortunately, that feature is available only in Microsoft Defender. Intune has web filtering capabilities, but they are only useful for protection from malicious websites, whereas we would like to be able to restrict a website. For example, YouTube is a clean website. No one would identify it as a malicious website, but if we want to stop the end-users from going to that website, we have to go for another product, such as Microsoft Defender or another third-party proxy solution. It would be great if this capability is included in Intune."
"The configuration and pricing can be improved."
"It should be easier to define policies and comply with those policies."
"Technical support is not that great."
"The cost of installing this solution can be more expensive depending on who is doing the installation. Cisco is very expensive, and I'd like to see a reduction in cost."
"The solution's integration with other products could be improved."
"I've participated in numerous product launches primarily focused on HP and Dell. Consequently, there should be a vested interest in local gatherings to showcase product advantages and performance. Particularly in Singapore, it only has so limited integrators to engage in IP product sales. There's room for improvement through dedicated workshops and training. The European and Western markets differ significantly from the context here. The physical location holds more importance. Thus, they should have a survey to evaluate demand, supply, and sales points, tailoring strategies accordingly."
"The price could be better."
"If Cisco Meraki Systems Manager integrates with other solutions or models, such as ACA's radio solution, on the same equipment or within the same cloud environment, it will offer significant benefits.""
"The solution can be expensive."
"There is room for improvement in terms of pricing."
"Integration with other tools, such as, ConnectWise Automate."
"The web-cache feature which was previously on the FortiGate device, but was deleted with the recent upgrade should be returned. It was a very valuable feature for us."
"I would like to have logs, monitoring, and reporting for a month without extra fees."
"FortiLink is the interface on the firewall that allows you to extend switch management across all of your switches in the network. The problem with it is that you can't use multiple interfaces unless you set them up in a lag. Only then you can run them. So, it forces you to use a core type of switch to propagate that management out to the rest of the switches, and then it is running the case at 200. It leaves you with 18 ports on the firewall because it is also a layer-three router that could also be used as a switch, but as soon as you do that, you can't really use them. They could do a little bit more clean up in the way the stacking interface works. Some use cases and the documentation on the FortiLink checking interface are a little outdated. I can find stuff on version 5 or more, but it is hard to find information on some of the newer firmware. The biggest thing I would like to see is some improvement in the switch management feature. I would like to be able to relegate some of the ports, which are on the firewall itself, to act as a switch to take advantage of those ports. Some of these firewalls have clarity ports on them. If I can use those, it would mean that I need to buy two less switches, which saves time. I get why they don't, but I would still like to see it because it would save a little bit of space in the server rack."
"I need user-behavior analytics, to find threat scenarios from inside the organization, insider attacks. That would be very helpful for us. In addition, I would like next-generation features for small and medium businesses. These businesses require UTM, all in one product. Fortinet must include it."
"It would be nice if FortiGate incorporated some built-in endpoint protection features. I would also like a built-in SOC dashboard for managing multiple Fortinet firewalls."
"Security is a continuous process. In every product, there is a requirement for improvement. Its pricing should also be improved according to Indian market requirements. They must also improve on the reporting part. Its reporting can be more precise. If we can get a real-time report in a specific format, it will be helpful for customers to know about the current status of their security."
"They should improve the interface to make it more user-friendly."
"I think the only issue that needs improvement is the interface."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It comes as a bundle, so you do not really know what the prices are. Microsoft does not break it down to the user cost for us. It is just bundled with our E5 license."
"While Microsoft charges for actual usage, it lacks discount options."
"Intune is available as an individual product, but it also comes with Office 365 Premium or an Enterprise license, and the price varies for each version."
"Microsoft Intune is moderately priced. There is a monthly license required to use the solution and it is approximately eight dollars per month."
"Microsoft Intune is a cost effective choice. It is less expensive than other products on the market."
"There are licenses required for this solution. We enable licenses on the devices we need to manage."
"The purchase of the product was handled by someone else."
"We work with the subscription rather than a server license. I think it's economical this way because we don't have to have a server license for that, and I think that works in our favor."
"Cisco Meraki Systems Manager is an expensive solution."
"The cost of installing this solution can be more expensive depending on who is doing the installation. Cisco is very expensive."
"This product is reasonably priced."
"It's extremely competitive and very good for a product in this sphere."
"My customers at times have issues with the price of the solution. It is expensive, but overall it is worth it. The licensing model cost is based on how many devices you require."
"The price is high for the market."
"My clients find it a bit expensive compared to other systems."
"Meraki MDM is the cheapest solution we have used."
"The license is yearly. We pay for the top end. It's called 360."
"Its price could be better."
"The price of Fortinet FortiGate when compared to other solutions is high. However, my knowledge of the price is from third parties and I am not sure how accurate it is. I typically work in the technical area of my organization."
"It is an inexpensive solution."
"The price of the license and warranty can be better because it is very expensive."
"Compared to Palo Alto, which we have used in the past, pricing and licensing are okay."
"Setup cost may be not so low, as you expect, because it depends on different factors, but TCO for 5 years may pleasantly surprise you."
"I do not have first-hand experience with the rice of Fortinet FortiGate, but I have heard the price was reasonable."
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Comparison Review

it_user216600 - PeerSpot reviewer
Jan 3, 2016
Sophos UTM vs. Fortinet FortiGate
I have used both Sophos and Fortinet products in production and I have found the Sophos UTM appliances (hardware and virtual) to be a better fit most of the time -- with a few caveats which I will touch on below. In both instances, the transition from TMG will be mostly straightforward. The main…
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Educational Organization
19%
Computer Software Company
12%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Educational Organization
43%
Computer Software Company
13%
Manufacturing Company
6%
Financial Services Firm
4%
Educational Organization
20%
Computer Software Company
14%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Manufacturing Company
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

How does Microsoft Intune compare with VMware Workspace One?
Microsoft Intune is a great tool for managing a mobile device fleet while keeping access control. The solution makes ...
What are the pros and cons of Microsoft Intune?
Microsoft Intune is a great configuration management tool and has a lot of good things going for it. Here are some of...
How does Google Cloud Identity compare with Microsoft Intune?
Microsoft Intune offers not only an easy-to-deploy data protection and productivity management solution, but also ...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco Meraki Systems Manager (MDM+EMM)?
The pricing sits at a mid-level range, around five or six. There are cheaper and more expensive tools available, but ...
What needs improvement with Cisco Meraki Systems Manager (MDM+EMM)?
While the graphical user interface is user-friendly and easy to configure, I see room for improvement in integration ...
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 ...
 

Also Known As

Intune, MS Intune, Microsoft Endpoint Manager
Meraki MDM
FortiGate 60b, FortiGate 60c, FortiGate 80c, FortiGate 50b, FortiGate 200b, FortiGate 110c, FortiGate, Fortinet Firewall
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Mitchells and Buzzers, Callaway
Hafen Hamburg & Empire Riverside Hotel, Eastview Church, Tourism Holdings, Colegio Sagrada Familia Hijas de Jesús, Tommy Bahama's, Canadian School Mexico, Rosebank College
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
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft, JAMF, Omnissa and others in Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM). Updated: May 2025.
850,671 professionals have used our research since 2012.