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Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center vs Fortinet FortiGate Cloud comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 4, 2024

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
3.3
Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center delivers notable ROI for many, though initial costs and varied financial impacts are acknowledged.
Sentiment score
8.6
Fortinet FortiGate Cloud boosts efficiency and ROI through cost savings, reduced configuration time, and minimal personnel requirements.
There are a lot of solutions which can provide the same features.
Fortinet FortiGate Cloud has improved our clients' cost savings and efficiency.
The cloud aspect provides flexibility in disaster recovery and cost management.
In terms of cost savings or efficiency in our company's IT network management, I would say that the tool is very efficient because we have no problems with it at all.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
6.7
Cisco support is mixed; helpful in some regions but inconsistent, with complex documentation and access issues due to sanctions.
Sentiment score
8.5
Fortinet FortiGate Cloud support is skilled and effective but faces delays, language barriers, and needs better follow-up.
I have received good support from FortiGate, and I would rate it a ten out of ten.
Technically, the support team is good, and they have very good relations with users and even partners.
The team is responsive, and most cases are handled promptly.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
8.5
Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center is highly scalable and adaptable, efficiently supporting organizations of various sizes and user numbers.
Sentiment score
8.1
Fortinet FortiGate Cloud is praised for its scalability, easily adapting to organizational growth, though on-premises versions may have limitations.
I would rate scalability capabilities as ten out of ten.
I would rate the tool's scalability a nine out of ten.
Scalability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten.
We plan to deploy VoIP in the future and aim to leverage more VoIP capabilities for our remote operations.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.3
Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center is stable and reliable, with minor issues, improved newer versions, and effective technical support.
Sentiment score
8.2
Fortinet FortiGate Cloud is stable and reliable, with minimal bugs, hardware issues, or downtime, effectively meeting security needs.
We weren't bothered even by a single incident for the past three years.
But in three or four years, I only had problems logging in three times.
It is a very stable solution.
 

Room For Improvement

Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center needs improvements in performance, user interface, integration, and training to compete effectively and ease regional restrictions.
Fortinet FortiGate Cloud needs usability, integration, security, and support enhancements, alongside improved pricing, interface, and onboarding processes.
I remember version 6.4 had an integration with Eddie, allowing me to define a policy according to my users, however, the latest version, lacks this integration.
There's a need to improve or invest more in an application that can follow users wherever they go.
The product is not recommended on the basis of technical parameters.
We have grouped some objects under one class, and we use it in ACL, but it still doesn't work correctly.
 

Setup Cost

Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center is considered expensive but flexible, with varied opinions on cost and competitive pricing.
Fortinet FortiGate Cloud is mid-range priced, with annual costs over $1,000, comparable to competitors but could improve flexibility.
On a scale from one to ten, where one is cheap, and ten is expensive, I rate Fortinet FortiGate Cloud's pricing an eight out of ten.
There are no additional costs.
Therefore, the cost-benefit is quite significant.
 

Valuable Features

Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center excels in user-friendly interface, integration, scalability, and robust security features for comprehensive network protection.
Fortinet FortiGate Cloud offers robust security, centralized management, and user-friendly features with competitive pricing to enhance network efficiency.
It provides full visibility of my devices, whether I have six or ten devices.
The solution's most valuable feature is log reporting.
The solution's most valuable feature is its ease of use.
The most valuable feature is its user-friendly interface - even those unfamiliar with firewalls can easily manage it.
 

Categories and Ranking

Cisco Secure Firewall Manag...
Ranking in Firewall Security Management
6th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.7
Number of Reviews
26
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Fortinet FortiGate Cloud
Ranking in Firewall Security Management
5th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.7
Number of Reviews
77
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2025, in the Firewall Security Management category, the mindshare of Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center is 0.9%, up from 0.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Fortinet FortiGate Cloud is 5.1%, down from 5.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Firewall Security Management
 

Featured Reviews

Yonas Abebe - PeerSpot reviewer
Great dashboard with extensive visibility and good support
I expect more integration with AI. I expect Cisco to be easier for users in India, especially for junior users. For a junior one, it may somehow be complex, especially when configuring something. I remember version 6.4 had an integration with Eddie, allowing me to define a policy according to my users, however, the latest version, lacks this integration. The logging of FMC should be improved as it does not offer real-time solutions like DazaSodo.
IgnitiusMolepo - PeerSpot reviewer
The hub-and-spoke setup is useful because I can manage security from where I am, while the IT engineers in branch offices can handle it on their end.
When we're upgrading, it's sometimes quite challenging, especially firmware. We usually don't upgrade unless we have a bug, and we still feel it's not safe to react instead of being proactive. We often have some delays when updating FortiGuard, too. Nevertheless, I believe that it's okay most of the time with proper management. We also run into some problems using FortiGate as a UTM solution. I feel like maybe they're not giving me a full view of the other components that they have in that box. Their box has some DDoS defense, but I need complete DDoS protection. I must not have light DDoS protection on other UTM boxes because if I'm uncertain about the security posture, it will compromise me. We like having everything in one box because running multiple boxes eats up more resources on the computing level. We need a total solution, not half-half.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Government
21%
Computer Software Company
16%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Engineering Company
8%
Computer Software Company
20%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Financial Services Firm
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center?
The platform has significantly enhanced our organization's operations by providing secure communication channels between different office locations.
What needs improvement with Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center?
I expect more integration with AI. I expect Cisco to be easier for users in India, especially for junior users. For a junior one, it may somehow be complex, especially when configuring something. I...
What do you like most about Fortinet FortiGate Cloud?
Fortinet FortiGate Cloud has valuable firewall, SSL VPN, and web filtering features.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Fortinet FortiGate Cloud?
I am very satisfied with the price and licensing cost of Fortinet FortiGate Cloud, rating it an eight out of ten.
What needs improvement with Fortinet FortiGate Cloud?
Some reports generated from Fortinet FortiGate Cloud are very organizational. It would be beneficial to allow the customers customization of reports. This customization would enable organizations t...
 

Also Known As

No data available
FortiCloud, FortiGate Cloud
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
Black Gold Regional Schools, Amadeus Hospitality, Jefferson County, Chunghwa Telecom, City of Boroondara, Dimension Data
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center vs. Fortinet FortiGate Cloud and other solutions. Updated: March 2025.
846,617 professionals have used our research since 2012.