Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN vs Fortinet FortiGate comparison

The compared Cisco and Fortinet solutions aren't in the same category. Cisco is ranked #4 in Wireless LAN , with an average rating of 8.4, and holds a 12.7% mindshare in the category. Fortinet is ranked #2 in Firewalls , with an average rating of 8.4, and holds a 21.4% mindshare. Additionally, 92% of Cisco users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 90% of Fortinet users who would recommend it.

Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN

Read 119 Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN reviews

14,622 Views
11,932 Comparison Views

92% willing to recommend

Fortinet FortiGate

Read 331 Fortinet FortiGate reviews

74,539 Views
56,128 Comparison Views

90% willing to recommend

Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN

Fortinet FortiGate

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Mar 9, 2025

Fortinet FortiGate and Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN compete in the network security category. Fortinet FortiGate seems to have the upper hand in cost-effectiveness, while Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN is preferred for its ease of use and management.

Features: Fortinet FortiGate offers network security features like UTM, SSL VPN, and centralized management. It also includes application control, load balancing, and antivirus. Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN is known for its cloud-based management, remote administration, and seamless integration with Meraki products.

Room for Improvement: Fortinet FortiGate users often face high licensing fees and call for better support and documentation. Meanwhile, Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN users criticize its high costs and limitations in advanced configurations and integration with non-Meraki products.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Fortinet FortiGate provides on-premises and hybrid deployments but needs improvement in support responsiveness. Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN allows for private, public, and hybrid cloud deployment and is praised for its ease of use and supportive customer service, though it could simplify initial setup and reduce costs.

Pricing and ROI: Fortinet FortiGate is perceived as cost-effective with a good price-performance ratio, apart from its high licensing costs. Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN is considered expensive, yet justifies costs with its cloud management benefits. Both have demonstrated ROI through operational efficiencies and support call reduction despite high upfront costs.

To learn more, read our detailed Wireless LAN Report (Updated: April 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Wireless LAN

April 2025

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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

Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

5.1

Number of Reviews

119

Ranking in other categories

Wireless LAN (4th)

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

While both are Enterprise Networking solutions, they serve different purposes. Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN is designed for Wireless LAN and holds a mindshare of 12.7%, up 12.2% compared to last year.
Fortinet FortiGate, on the other hand, focuses on Firewalls, holds 21.4% mindshare, up 17.7% since last year.

Wireless LAN

Firewalls

Q&A Highlights

Ganesh Waghmare

l2 network & secuirty at Invecto

Apr 03, 2023

What are the differences between Cisco Meraki MX67 and FortiGate 60?

Meraki MX series are all cloud-based management with on-premises physical firewall connectivity, so if the Internet goes down you will lose the management options to the firewall. Whereas FortiGate Firewall doesn't need Internet for the first time setup. Also, it is easy to manage the management interface being it is available to local users when the case of internet connection fails. All other security features, policy creation, and VPN related remains the same as you see in any brand firewall.

See all answers

Featured Reviews

RezaPradipta

Sr. Officer Network Managed Service Product Management at PT. Indosat Tbk

Streamline network management with a unified dashboard for seamless device integration

The primary use case for Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN is mostly for enterprise wireless, including guest Wi-Fi and enterprise Wi-Fi. I use it across various industries with a focus on retail Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN offers a single pane of glass management. It only comes with a controller on the…

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EhabAli

Sr. Cybersecurity Solutions Architect at BMB

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.

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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

"The setup phase was very easy and user-friendly for me, not only for initial setup but also for ongoing management."

"Its ability to be cloud-managed is the most valuable feature so if there's a reconfiguration or an issue, we have excellent visibility into the network and we can usually resolve the problem online without having to go onsite."

"What I like best about Meraki is that I can change it from anywhere."

"Provided reliability and a good price."

"Cisco provides 24/7 support"

"The most valuable feature of Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN is that it is fast and does the job."

"The primary value lies in the ease of configuration; these products seamlessly integrate, and work well together."

"The most valuable features of Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN are the ease of use and the ability to manage it from the cloud."

More Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN pros

"Fortinet has a very good solution for Secure SD-WAN. One very good feature is that they have robust and simple FortiOS through which they provide all solutions. That's their strength. There's not much complexity involved with the Secure SD-WAN solution of Fortinet as compared to Cisco's solution, which has a lot of flexibility but complexity also comes with that flexibility."

"A strong point of FortiGate is that the graphical interface is complete and easy to use, especially if we think there is a list of operations that we are able to perform inside."

"The stability of the solution is excellent, as it is with other Fortinet products."

"Customers want to load balance more than eight lines or six internet lines. FortiGate is the only solution that can accomplish this."

"It can expand easily."

"The SD-WAN is the most valuable feature."

"FortiGate is on the cheaper end, and it offers good value."

"There are great templates, so you don't have to customize them if you don't want to. You do have the option to custom create some folders and some reports, however, with what is there, you don't really need to go through extra effort, as they already give you a lot of predefined views of reports and so forth."

More Fortinet FortiGate pros

Cons

"The solution could be cheaper."

"There's nothing that special about it."

"The solution's mobile application and management of dashboards are areas with shortcomings that need improvement."

"The product's coverage area could be expanded. It would help ensure better connectivity."

"If there are advanced features that you can have enabled, they should allow users access to that in an easier manner."

"There could be more functionality."

"The cost of the devices and the solution itself could be more competitive."

"The product doesn't effectively do its job anymore since some issues crop up in it once you run out of your subscription licensing...Improvements are needed in the licensing part of the tool."

More Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN cons

"Fortinet FortiGate can be integrated with different platforms. They have integrations in place, but I can't say they're 100%."

"There is one big configuration file with no separations for the unique VDOMs. Maybe they could separate individual VDOM configuration files with the root VDOM configuration file referencing the individual VDOM config files."

"They should improve high CPU and memory usage that occurs."

"FortiGate is really good. We have been using it for quite some time. Initially, when we started off, we had around 70 plus devices of FortiGate, but then Check Point and Palo Alto took over the place. From the product perspective, there are no issues, but from the account perspective, we have had issues. Fortinet's presence in our company is very less. I don't see any Fortinet account managers talking to us, and that presence has diluted in the last two and a half or three years. We have close to 1,500 firewalls. Out of these, 60% of firewalls are from Palo Alto, and a few firewalls are from Check Point. FortiGate firewalls are very less now. It is not because of the product; it is because of the relationship. I don't think they had a good relationship with us, and there was some kind of disconnect for a very long time. The relationship between their accounts team and my leadership team seems to be the reason for phasing out FortiGate."

"The license renewal process, annual renewal price, and the web application firewall features should be improved."

"The performance could be a bit better. Right now, I find it to be lacking. Having good performance is very important for our work."

"Sometimes you do need to know some CLI commands, so it's a bit harder for technicians or new people that don't know it."

"Fortinet FortiGate could improve the user interface. There should be more functionality and options through the GUI."

More Fortinet FortiGate cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Negotiate the deal put in front of you!"

"It is super expensive for what you get. You also have to buy a license every year. Otherwise, it stops working."

"I haven't conducted a price comparison yet, but based on information, it appears to be more affordable than the current environment. Therefore, I consider the price to be reasonable."

"We pay a yearly license fee for the solution."

"My client has made comments on the price, indicating it is expensive, however you do receive a lot for the money that you did spend on the solution. The price of the annual renewal of the licensing of Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN is a little high. We wish the price would drop."

"The solution's pricing is a little higher."

"On a scale from one to ten, where one is cheap and ten is expensive, I rate the solution's pricing a seven out of ten."

"Having a good price is important when we are providing quotations for projects."

More Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN pricing and cost advice

"It is affordable. Palo Alto is much more expensive than Fortinet."

"It is more expensive than Sophos. Fortinet is overall more expensive than Sophos. The small range of Fortinet, such as 60F and 80F, is more expensive than the small range of Sophos. Sophos is cheaper. In addition, if you jump from 80F Series to 100F Series, the price doubles."

"A year or two years back, its price was competitive and reasonable. That was one of the reasons that people easily switched to Fortinet. Over the last two years, the prices have increased drastically. However, the prices of others have also increased. An advantage is there from the price point but not as much as it was previously."

"Pricing is lower than Cisco."

"Price-wise, it's at a good price point for our market."

"The Indian market is different than the European and American markets. When you compare they need to be a bit more aggressive on pricing."

"There is a license to use Fortinet FortiGate."

"Its price is normal. If I compare it with other vendors, such as Palo Alto, it's normal. Palo Alto is expensive."

More Fortinet FortiGate pricing and cost advice

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Comparison Review

it_user216600

Senior Technical Consultant with 51-200 employees

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…

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Answers from the Community

Ganesh Waghmare

l2 network & secuirty at Invecto

Apr 3, 2023

What are the differences between Cisco Meraki MX67 and FortiGate 60?

See 2 answers

MURALI NIDAMANURI

Managing Director at VIPUN COGNITIVE SOLUTIONS PVT LTD.

Apr 3, 2023

Read full answer

Aymen FHOULA

Senior Network Administrator at Banque de l'Habitat Tunisie

Apr 3, 2023

The Cisco Meraki MX67 and FortiGate 60 are both firewall devices, but there are some differences between them: Deployment: The Cisco Meraki MX67 is a cloud-managed firewall, meaning that it can be managed and configured through the cloud, whereas the FortiGate 60 is typically deployed as an on-premises appliance. Security features: Both devices offer a range of security features, such as firewalling, VPN, and intrusion prevention, but they may differ in the specific features and capabilities they offer. For example, FortiGate 60 offers advanced threat protection, while the Cisco Meraki MX67 offers content filtering. Throughput: The FortiGate 60 offers higher throughput than the Cisco Meraki MX67. The FortiGate 60 can handle up to 1 Gbps of traffic, while the Cisco Meraki MX67 can handle up to 450 Mbps. The cost of the devices may also differ. The Cisco Meraki MX67 tends to be more expensive than the FortiGate 60. Scalability: The Cisco Meraki MX67 is designed for small to medium-sized businesses, while the FortiGate 60 can scale to meet the needs of larger organizations.

Read full answer

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

19%

Manufacturing Company

Financial Services Firm

Comms Service Provider

Educational Organization

20%

Computer Software Company

14%

Comms Service Provider

Manufacturing Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

Questions from the Community

What are pros and cons of Aruba 515 Series AP vs. Cisco Meraki or Extreme Networks?

Depends. I have personally used both Cisco and Aruba so I am familiar with them. Extreme I am not, so unless they have some feature that I need or want, I wouldn't consider them. Do you have expe...

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Which is better - Cisco Wireless or Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN?

Cisco Wireless is very robust, very rugged, and can handle indoor and outdoor coverage extremely well. We found it to be very reliable and to consistently run very efficiently. Cisco Wireless helpe...

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How does Ruckus Wireless compare to Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN?

Cisco’s Meraki Virtual MX is a virtual instance of the Meraki SD-WAN appliance. We liked the Meraki. The Wifi APs are a great feature. The dashboard is a simple interface and easy to learn. It feat...

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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 at large. In my opinion, Fortinet would be the best option and l use Fortinet too...

See all answers

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 the firewalls change every 5 to 7 years as stated but you really do need to upg...

See all answers

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 good. The most valuable features for me are their web and email filtering. I wou...

See all answers

Comparisons

Aruba Wireless vs Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN

Compared 32% of the time

Juniper Mist Wireless Access Points vs Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN

Compared 15% of the time

Ruckus Wireless vs Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN

Compared 11% of the time

Ubiquiti Wireless vs Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN

Compared 7% of the time

Mist AI and Cloud vs Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN

Compared 5% of the time

More Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN Competitors

Sophos XG vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 22% of the time

Netgate pfSense vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 13% of the time

Cisco Secure Firewall vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 11% of the time

WatchGuard Firebox vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 5% of the time

SonicWall TZ vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 5% of the time

More Fortinet FortiGate Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN

May 2025

Download Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN product report

Buyer's Guide

Fortinet FortiGate

May 2025

Download Fortinet FortiGate product report

Also Known As

MR18, MR26, MR32, MR34, MR66, MR72, Meraki Wireless LAN, Meraki WLAN

FortiGate 60b, FortiGate 60c, FortiGate 80c, FortiGate 50b, FortiGate 200b, FortiGate 110c, FortiGate, Fortinet Firewall

Overview

Cisco Meraki access points are built from the highest grade components and carefully optimized for a seamless user experience. The outcome: faster connections, greater user capacity, more coverage, and fewer support calls. The Cisco Meraki dashboard gives visibility into the network users, their devices, and their applications. Armed with rich analytics, administrators can quickly create access control and application usage policies, optimizing both the end-user experience and network security.

Cisco

Fortinet FortiGate offers comprehensive network security and firewall protection across multiple locations. It effectively manages data traffic and secures environments with features like VPN, intrusion prevention, and UTM controls.

Organizations rely on Fortinet FortiGate for its robust integration with advanced security policies, ensuring significant protection for enterprises, cloud environments, and educational sectors. It facilitates network segmentation, application-level security, and authentication management, securing communication within and between locations such as branches and data centers. Its efficient SD-WAN and UTM features enable streamlined data management and enhanced threat protection capabilities. Users appreciate its centralized management, facilitating seamless operations across diverse environments.

What are the key features of Fortinet FortiGate?

VPN Capabilities: Ensure secure remote access for users and seamless site-to-site connections.
Intrusion Prevention System (IPS): Detect and prevent security threats and vulnerabilities.
Advanced Firewall: Offers robust firewalling with application control and web filtering.
SD-WAN: Optimizes application performance and enhances bandwidth management.
SSL VPN: Provides reliable and secure access for remote workers.

What benefits should users expect from Fortinet FortiGate?

High-performance Security: Delivers effective threat mitigation with high availability.
Centralized Management: Simplifies network operations with cloud-based management tools.
Detailed Analytics: Provides comprehensive insights into network activity and security threats.
Load Balancing: Ensures optimal resource distribution and traffic management.

Fortinet FortiGate is crucial in sectors like education, offering robust networks for secure data flow between campuses and facilitating remote learning. In enterprise environments, it allows efficient management of application traffic and security across multiple branches, while in the cloud, it seamlessly integrates with diverse platforms to enhance security infrastructure.

Fortinet

Sample Customers

Advanced Medical Transport, Banco de Guayaquil, Baylor Scott & White Health, BH Telecom, Bowling Green State University, Calligaris, Children's Hospital Colorado, City of Biel, Del Papa Distributing, Department of Justice, Dimension Data, Dualtec Cloud Builders, Electricity Authority of Cyprus, Grupo Industrial Saltillo (GIS), Hertz, K&L Gates , LightEdge, Lone Star College System, Management Science Associates, Mindtree, NBC Olympics, Quest, Sony Corporation, The Department of Education in Western Australia, Valley Proteins

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

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