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Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) vs SonicWall SMA comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on May 21, 2025

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 Secure Client (includ...
Ranking in SSL VPN
3rd
Ranking in Enterprise Infrastructure VPN
6th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
79
Ranking in other categories
ZTNA as a Service (13th), Cisco Security Portfolio (5th)
SonicWall SMA
Ranking in SSL VPN
6th
Ranking in Enterprise Infrastructure VPN
16th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
5.6
Number of Reviews
15
Ranking in other categories
Universal Access Gateways (2nd)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of September 2026, in the SSL VPN category, the mindshare of Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) is 8.5%, down from 16.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SonicWall SMA is 6.9%, up from 5.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
SSL VPN Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect)8.5%
SonicWall SMA6.9%
Other84.6%
SSL VPN
 

Featured Reviews

AS
Manager - Projects at airtel
Offers work-from-anywhere flexibility but navigates occasional proxy confusion
The analytics I downloaded from your site as a free download did not carry the information that was actually required. I was looking at the market segmentation and market share, along with some USPs which differentiated them from each other. The free download had two issues: many things were repetitive, and it was designed to not release any relevant information. Only headers were present, so I was not able to determine whether the final report would be worthwhile. I have not worked with enterprise tools that I could share feedback on for website publication. I see benefits from using Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect). However, I would not recommend it because future adoptions will be towards Zscaler, as SSC is a better model than VPN. On a scale of 1-10, I rate this solution a 7.
BA
Owner at ThinkEzIT
Security enhances through autonomous protection and strong support while multi-factor authentication secures access
I haven't utilized the high availability and scalability features of SonicWall SMA yet because I've never had a need to. I don't know where they can focus their energy on continuous improvements, as I haven't been looking at what they're releasing. We're a small shop, so we drop stuff in and manage it and do what we need to do to maintain it. If we run into an issue, we contact support. There's a learning curve, but it comes down to getting support to train you on the product, and then once you have the training you need, you're able to make the changes and updates that you need to.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Based on my experience, I would recommend Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) to other people without any doubt."
"The solution is stable and secure, with no bugs or glitches, no crashes or freezes, reliable performance, and very strong security."
"The most useful feature of Cisco Secure Client is the capability for any kind of VPN, facilitating remote connections in the network."
"The solution is very good and easy to configure, but the price could be reduced."
"The solution is quite stable."
"I like the ability to share the connections or simply to be able to pass the credentials for a connection to other colleagues without bothering too much about the connection being tracked or about security, because each and every user will require a secret password, so I don't really care about sending the details; it is very secure."
"The solution is stable and reliable; there are no bugs or glitches, and it doesn't crash or freeze."
"It works for millions of people, so it will work for you."
"Secure Mobile Access (SMA) is easy to configure and the deployment is straightforward. However, this is mostly because of the AWS setup."
"The performance is good."
"The SonicWall SSL-VPN solution offers the best protection with the least effect on services."
"My advice to others is this solution is reliable, feature-rich, and reasonable-priced."
"I am very satisfied with the technical support."
"It is faster than other security options when using remote connections."
"This solution has many options for remote desktop and access."
"Blocklisting and allowlisting are the most beneficial features for network security."
 

Cons

"I see benefits from using Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect). However, I would not recommend it because future adoptions will be towards Zscaler, as SSC is a better model than VPN."
"I would like to see improvements in regards to the connectivity speed."
"When using Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client when my laptop goes into sleep mode the VPN wants me to enter the password again. I should not have to enter the information again. If the laptop is on and it is not switched off, the password should be in the VPN saved and secured."
"All I care about is being connected and I know that we've run into versioning issues in the past."
"We don't have the correct visibility to see the quantity of licenses we are consuming or not consuming."
"Every time you need to key in the credentials, it'll generate an OTP, and you need to check the OTP and need to key in the OTP."
"There are times the WiFi connectivity has disruptions and you have disconnections. It doesn't work with two connections. I have two switches back and forth sometimes. It doesn't have a failback scenario feature. However, on the gateway side, it does, but on the user device, it doesn't have that kind of option. It would be nice to have this feature."
"I think, in general, most of the applications are slow, but this is everyday stuff. I think this is more related to the link speed — the links, the lossage, etc."
"The product itself is very good, but Dell needs to work on product visibility in their advertising."
"The problem is that when combined with what the client already has, there are two different logins and two different management systems, and these should be consolidated into a single interface."
"SonicWall's reporting isn't good. Reports should be part of a data plan. The login mechanism should be improved. It would be helpful if the client could use an agent to log in. An agent-server model would improve the performance of the RDB, which consumes a lot of bandwidth."
"The only thing that they could try to improve is the support for enterprise customers."
"Enhancing live tracking capabilities could improve the product, particularly in monitoring user activity and request statuses in real-time on the web interface."
"SonicWall's reporting isn't good. Reports should be part of a data plan."
"The overall menu is not very user-friendly and it could be easier."
"The pricing for the solution could be a lot less."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is not a free solution and the user needs to buy license."
"The solution is reasonably priced and costs $600 for a five-year license in our scenario."
"The licensing costs are reasonable."
"The price is okay."
"My company has a three-year or a four-year license. In scenarios attached to a solution where the product may be reaching an end-of-support or end-of-life phase, Cisco provides OS support in such environments."
"There is a license needed to use this solution. There are different licensing models available, such as a three-year license."
"The pricing depends on the requirement, so proper planning and an RF analysis help to properly size the solution and get the best pricing."
"We pay for an annual subscription. Additionally to the subscription, we thought in order to connect this solution to the Active Directory we had to purchase a Cisco ACS, Access Control System. It turns out we did not actually need it."
"The platform has medium pricing."
"The cost of the licensing is based on the maximum number of concurrent users, and it costs a lot to add them."
"This solution is priced well and we currently have the maximum number of licenses allowed."
"All the costs are included in a bundled license."
"I don't know about the pricing of the SSL-VPN box. I know the SSL-VPN software is free. Global VPN client, by comparison, is licensed for around $150 or something like that. But the SSL-VPN software is free. It is already built-in with the box."
"Our licenses are stackable and can be anywhere from five users to a million users."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
13%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Outsourcing Company
8%
Government
7%
Manufacturing Company
13%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Construction Company
10%
Comms Service Provider
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business28
Midsize Enterprise10
Large Enterprise49
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business12
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise2
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client?
Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) is somewhat expensive compared to others such as Fortinet or Palo Alto, which provide free VPN when the firewall is purchased. Palo Alto and Fortinet prov...
What needs improvement with Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client?
There are no features that I wish Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) had that it does not currently provide. If I could change one thing about it, I would have no changes to suggest.
What is your primary use case for Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client?
I primarily use Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) for VPN connections and network-related activities. We have Cisco APIs and Cisco VPN that serve as the foundation for our operations. As a...
What needs improvement with SonicWall SMA?
I haven't utilized the high availability and scalability features of SonicWall SMA yet because I've never had a need to. I don't know where they can focus their energy on continuous improvements, a...
What is your primary use case for SonicWall SMA?
I have experience with the SonicWall SMA; we have rolled it back into our stack. We use SonicWall SMA for all of our clients that need VPNs, including doctor's offices and lawyer offices. Our clien...
 

Also Known As

Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client
SonicWall Aventail, SonicWall SMA SSL-VPN, SonicWall Secure Mobile Access
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

MST, Molina Healthcare, Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers, Arup, New South Wales Rural FireService
UnitedStack, Newport City Homes, Faith Lutheran College Redlands, PRIME aerostructures GmbH, Celtic Manor Resort
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) vs. SonicWall SMA and other solutions. Updated: August 2026.
911,952 professionals have used our research since 2012.