Cisco Secure Firewall vs Hillstone E-Series comparison

Cisco and Hillstone Networks are both solutions in the Firewalls category. Cisco is ranked #5 with an average rating of 8.3, while Hillstone Networks is ranked #39 with an average rating of 8.0. Cisco holds a 7.5% mindshare in Firewalls, compared to Hillstone Networks’s 0.6% mindshare. Additionally, 83% of Cisco users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of Hillstone Networks users who would recommend it.

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Apr 5, 2026

Cisco Secure Firewall and Hillstone E-Series compete in the network security domain. While Cisco stands out with strong support and competitive pricing, Hillstone is preferred for its superior features.

Features: Cisco Secure Firewall offers advanced threat detection, unified security management, and network visibility. Hillstone E-Series provides scalable architecture, robust performance, and virtual machine support.

Room for Improvement: Cisco Secure Firewall could enhance feature depth and streamline advanced configurations. Hillstone E-Series may improve deployment simplicity and reduce adaptation time. Both products could increase automation capabilities.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Cisco Secure Firewall is known for easy deployment and effective customer support. Hillstone E-Series, while complex, provides responsive customer service.

Pricing and ROI: Cisco Secure Firewall is competitively priced, offering immediate cost efficiency. Although Hillstone E-Series has higher initial costs, its comprehensive features could yield greater long-term ROI.

To learn more, read our detailed Cisco Secure Firewall vs. Hillstone E-Series Report (Updated: April 2026).

Buyer's Guide

Cisco Secure Firewall vs. Hillstone E-Series

April 2026

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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

Fortinet FortiGate

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2026, in the Firewalls category, the mindshare of Fortinet FortiGate is 17.2%, down from 21.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Cisco Secure Firewall is 7.5%, up from 5.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Hillstone E-Series is 0.6%, up from 0.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Firewalls Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
Fortinet FortiGate	17.2%
Cisco Secure Firewall	7.5%
Hillstone E-Series	0.6%
Other	74.7%

Firewalls

Featured Reviews

Abhinandan Yadav

Network Security Engineer at Arrow PC Network Pvt Ltd

Unified security and sd-wan have improved uptime and cut wan costs for multi-site branches

Users report stability issues in certain versions, which requires regular updates. Real-world attacks have also highlighted the need for urgent patching of vulnerabilities.Fortinet FortiGate, while a powerful and feature-rich web firewall, could improve in areas like firmware stability, documentation, and ease of use. The learning curve can be steep for some users. For beginners, support quality can vary, and frequent updates with occasional vulnerabilities call for careful patch management. However, once Fortinet FortiGate is configured, it remains highly reliable and efficient. Customer support needs improvement, as I find it very slow, with reports from other users reflecting that customer support is inadequate.

Read full review

Phil Shiflett

Senior Manager, Network Engineering at TTi Power Equipment

Unified policies streamline network management but complex licensing requires attention

Cisco Secure Firewall has some growth opportunities in terms of visibility and control capabilities regarding managing encrypted traffic. It has the ability to analyze encrypted traffic, and there is potential for more integration with APIs and AI to enhance these capabilities. Cisco Secure Firewall needs improvement in deployment time and the capability to access the CLI during support calls. I often encounter issues when technical support uses a CLI that is not familiar to me while troubleshooting through the GUI. My ongoing complaint for the last six years has been the lack of CLI functionality, which hinders my ability to work on the firewall, alongside concerns regarding deployment time. For the next release, they should look at the features offered by competitors such as Fortinet, including the ability to perform packet capture directly from the interface. If they enhanced their troubleshooting efficiency related to packet capture for each specific rule, it would simplify the process significantly.

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TahirMahmood

IT Manager at Zubair Feeds

Offers good features like URL filtering, IPS, and IDS to users

We received an update for the tool in July. The update was provided for the tool as there was a problem with the firewall, where too much memory was consumed, and the firewall was hanging a lot. When we updated the tool's features, everything became okay. The tool only had some memory-related problems. It took the tool a month to fix the issues.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Using this product makes the VPN seamless and almost invisible to me in the sense that I don't have to think about it."

"The Fortinet FortiGate IPS has a good interface and integration."

"The most useful features of Fortinet FortiGate IPS are you can create a virtual firewall within it, most other firewalls do not have this feature. You are able to manage your network and have network segmentation within your firewall. Additionally, you can create virtual switches within the firewall and have policy management, such as firewall and access policy."

"The features I found most valuable in Fortinet FortiGate include their SD-WAN features and their VPN; they are good and very useful, and my remote user and I are using them all the time."

"The most valuable features are simplicity, management, and that it's constantly evolving."

"The multi-threat protection feature helps us secure our organization."

"The main benefit is the grouping of our security monitoring."

"It's great for capturing the traffic and troubleshooting it."

More Fortinet FortiGate pros

"I like the way Firepower presents the data. It gives you two classifications for the evidence, something based on the priority of the evidence and another classification based on the impact of the evidence in your environment. This makes it very easy to spot the evidence that is most impactful to my environment. Instead of having to go through all the evidence based on that priority, I can focus on the evidence that has the most impact on my environment."

"It is easy to create interfaces and routing, which all can be done at the GUI level."

"It helped us a lot with our VPNs for the home office during COVID. There has been more security and flexibility for VPNs and other applications."

"All the specific features you find within the NextGen firewall are quite useful."

"The feature set is fine and is rarely a problem."

"Cisco Secure Firewall is a good solution. In some ways, it is a reactive solution and we have it sitting in a whitelist mode rather than a blacklist mode. It seems to work fairly well for us."

"Network segmentation is the most valuable feature."

"The feature of Cisco Secure Firewall that I prefer the most is IPS; I appreciate the IPS feature because it's built in and I can control it using the FMC and push out the policy company-wide, making it centrally managed."

More Cisco Secure Firewall pros

"With Hillstone, TCO and ROI are very good, it's an easy sale."

"This solution has two main features that we find very valuable; a threat-intelligence option, and a web/application filtering option. The technical support team are very good and very quick."

"Working with the Hillstone E-Series has, from a remote perspective, allowed me to give my clients a secure connectivity."

"The most valuable feature of the Hillstone E-Series is its user-friendliness."

"I am impressed with the application filtering feature."

"Working with the Hillstone E-Series has, from a remote perspective, allowed me to give my clients secure connectivity from a remote location to their offices or their servers."

"This solution has two main features that we find very valuable; a threat-intelligence option, and a web/application filtering option."

"The most valuable feature of the solution is the ransomware protection that the tool offers."

More Hillstone E-Series pros

Cons

"There are SD-WAN network monitoring, SD-WAN features, Industrial Databases, Internet of Things, Detection, etc., however, we do have not licenses for those features. We thought that if you bought a product, you should have all of the features it offers. Why should you need to make so many extra purchases to enable features? They should have one price for the entire offering."

"What could be improved in Fortinet FortiGate SWG is its pricing because it's a bit higher."

"The setup is pretty complex and not easy to implement."

"I would like the deployment and integration of this product to be easier. We should be able to deploy the features more easily and have different types of access. It should be easier to integrate. Currently, we need to develop APIs to use this interface."

"Fortinet technical support is lacking, as OEM support is slightly better."

"Sometimes I experience stability issues, but sometimes they are related to hardware not functioning properly or related to a software bug."

"Fortinet already improved FortiGate, but in the current market, many brands of security devices have improved together. Fortinet still needs to catch up with market standards and is lacking in features in comparison to competitors."

"Their software support needs improvement. I would prefer to have better support for bug fixes. Sometimes, we open a ticket, and it is very difficult to get a solution. Specifically, we are not at all happy with their support for load balancing."

More Fortinet FortiGate cons

"It would be great to have all the data correlated to have an overview and one point of administration."

"In NGFW, Cisco should be aligned with the new technology and inspection intelligence because Cisco is far behind in this pipeline."

"The scalability is a bit limiting, to be honest. In terms of when you look to changing landscape in terms of threats, I think to me, my personal it's a bit limiting."

"Over the last two years, getting a response from the support engineers has been challenging."

"They should develop a web interface that is actually useful."

"I would like it to be easier to work with and have a better user interface. It is not straightforward. You need to know the Cisco command-line interface."

"We've had some issues with stability."

"Cisco makes horrible UIs, so the interface is something that should be improved. Usability is poor and it doesn't matter how good the feature set is."

More Cisco Secure Firewall cons

"The room for improvement would be the SSL VPN license cost."

"SSL VPN license cost is not cheap."

"The solution doesn't have a web proxy built into the system like Sophos. This is something they should work to change."

"I am not sure if this solution offers active directory integration. Adding that feature will definitely be an advantage."

"The tool provides just a general report. It does not provide a granular report. Hence, the tool should work on its reporting feature."

"The tool needs to improve its price."

"The current usage reporting is very basic."

"The tool only had some memory-related problems."

More Hillstone E-Series cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The pricing of Fortinet FortiGate is average, not cheap or overly expensive compared to other firewall solutions in the market. It's effective and affordable for customers."

"Other firewalls are more expensive than Fortinet FortiGate, such as the Azure firewall."

"The price is fine."

"The Fortinet FortiGate security features cost approximately $1,500 a year. The firewall itself doesn't have a recurring cost. It's the security features on top of that that you pay for."

"There is no challenge in Fortinet FortiGate pricing."

"The tool is a bit pricey for small businesses, but it is still bearable in terms of cost."

"If you purchase a one-year subscription with the hardware and then you want to renew for the second year, it is very costly."

"I give the pricing of the solution a six out of ten."

More Fortinet FortiGate pricing and cost advice

"Purchasing from the AWS Marketplace was easy. It was just point and click."

"Their pricing is very aggressive and good. Even a small company can afford it. I am happy with its pricing. Its licensing is on a yearly basis."

"Cisco is considered to be an expensive solution."

"With AnyConnect, it depends on your license. It depends on the number of concurrent users you want to connect."

"All our requirements which we need performed by the firewall (e.g. VPN, URL white-listing, or IP based white-listing, etc.) have separate licenses and costs."

"Cisco smart licensing is a hassle for a disconnected environment."

"The solution’s pricing could be lower."

"The product is very expensive."

More Cisco Secure Firewall pricing and cost advice

"The cost per year for licensing, and hardware, is approximately $850 for the basic plan."

"Hillstone's pricing is economical and neither very high nor very low."

"The tool's pricing is reasonable. It depends on the model. The product's pricing is around 600 USD. You need to buy a software license to activate the features. You need to pay around 150 USD for that."

"The licensing model is very complex with many subcategories of licenses you can purchase. They could make it more simplified for customers to understand."

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Comparison Review

it_user206346

Security Consultant at Webernetz.net - Network Security Consulting

Mar 11, 2015

Cisco ASA vs. Palo Alto Networks

Cisco ASA vs. Palo Alto: Management Goodies You often have comparisons of both firewalls concerning security components. Of course, a firewall must block attacks, scan for viruses, build VPNs, etc. However, in this post I am discussing the advantages and disadvantages from both vendors concerning…

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

11%

Comms Service Provider

10%

Manufacturing Company

Financial Services Firm

Computer Software Company

11%

Manufacturing Company

Financial Services Firm

Comms Service Provider

13%

Construction Company

12%

Financial Services Firm

10%

Manufacturing Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	366
Midsize Enterprise	135
Large Enterprise	192

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	186
Midsize Enterprise	129
Large Enterprise	231

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	9
Midsize Enterprise	1

Questions from the Community

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...

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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...

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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 ...

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Which is better - Fortinet FortiGate or Cisco ASA Firewall?

One of our favorite things about Fortinet Fortigate is that you can deploy on the cloud or on premises. Fortinet Fort...

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How does Cisco's ASA firewall compare with the Firepower NGFW?

It is easy to integrate Cisco ASA with other Cisco products and also other NAC solutions. When you understand the Cis...

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Which is better - Meraki MX or Cisco ASA Firewall?

Cisco Adaptive Security Appliance (ASA) software is the operating software for the Cisco ASA suite. It supports netw...

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What needs improvement with Hillstone E-Series?

We received an update for the tool in July. The update was provided for the tool as there was a problem with the fire...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Hillstone E-Series?

I use the solution in my company for site-to-site VPN, SSL VPNs, URL filtering, IPS, IDS and all the other features w...

See all answers

What advice do you have for others considering Hillstone E-Series?

Our company did not use the tool's micro-segmentation features. There were no issues while integrating the tool. I ha...

See all answers

Comparisons

Sophos Firewall vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 18% of the time

Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 4% of the time

Netgate pfSense vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 4% of the time

OPNsense vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 3% of the time

Check Point Quantum Force (NGFW) vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 3% of the time

More Fortinet FortiGate Competitors

Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls vs Cisco Secure Firewall

Compared 10% of the time

Palo Alto Networks WildFire vs Cisco Secure Firewall

Compared 10% of the time

Check Point Quantum Force (NGFW) vs Cisco Secure Firewall

Compared 4% of the time

Netgate pfSense vs Cisco Secure Firewall

Compared 3% of the time

Palo Alto Networks VM-Series vs Cisco Secure Firewall

Compared 2% of the time

More Cisco Secure Firewall Competitors

OpenVPN Access Server vs Hillstone E-Series

Compared 16% of the time

Sangfor SSL VPN vs Hillstone E-Series

Compared 8% of the time

Hillstone A-Series vs Hillstone E-Series

Compared 6% of the time

Sophos Firewall vs Hillstone E-Series

Compared 6% of the time

Huawei NGFW vs Hillstone E-Series

Compared 4% of the time

More Hillstone E-Series Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Fortinet FortiGate

April 2026

Download Fortinet FortiGate product report

Buyer's Guide

Cisco Secure Firewall

April 2026

Download Cisco Secure Firewall product report

Buyer's Guide

Firewalls

March 2026

Download Hillstone E-Series product report

Also Known As

Fortinet FortiGate Next-Generation Firewall

Cisco Adaptive Security Appliance (ASA) Firewall, Cisco ASA NGFW, Adaptive Security Appliance, Cisco Sourcefire Firewalls, Cisco ASAv, Cisco Firepower NGFW Firewall, Cisco Secure Firewall ASA Virtual - BYOL

No data available

Overview

Fortinet FortiGate is a versatile network security tool offering features like VPN, firewall, web filtering, intrusion prevention, and scalability. It is known for its performance and integration with other Fortinet products, making it a preferred choice for robust cybersecurity.

Fortinet FortiGate stands out as a comprehensive cybersecurity solution with strong performance and ease of configuration. It delivers unified threat management, integrating features such as dynamic routing, SD-WAN support, and centralized management. Despite its strengths, improvements in the web interface's stability, pricing structures, and reporting capabilities are needed. Users seek better integration with third-party tools and automation advancements to enhance the experience further. These enhancements, alongside improvements in bandwidth management and the reduction of licensing costs, are points of interest for users looking to capitalize on FortiGate's extensive capabilities.

What are Fortinet FortiGate's key features?

VPN: Ensures secure remote connections.
Firewall: Protects against unauthorized access.
Web Filtering: Blocks malicious sites and content.
Application Control: Manages and controls applications.
Intrusion Prevention: Detects and prevents vulnerabilities.
SSL Inspection: Enhances security by inspecting encrypted traffic.

What benefits should be considered when evaluating Fortinet FortiGate?

Affordability: Offers cost-effective security solutions.
Reliability: Known for consistent and stable performance.
Integration: Seamlessly integrates with other Fortinet products.
Comprehensive Protection: Provides broad threat protection capabilities.

Fortinet FortiGate is widely implemented across industries as a primary firewall system for securing internet gateways and safeguarding data centers. It supports businesses in achieving SD-WAN integration and enhances cybersecurity by providing essential features like antivirus, web filtering, and application control. Enterprises utilize FortiGate for securing remote connections and ensuring compliance with security standards, making it adaptable for different network sizes and industries.

Fortinet

Cisco Secure Firewall provides comprehensive network security with advanced features such as application visibility, URL filtering, and malware protection. It combines a user-friendly interface with robust VPN capabilities, making it a reliable choice for varying network environments and industry applications.

Cisco Secure Firewall offers exceptional protection with its integration into Cisco's broader ecosystem, ensuring enhanced threat detection and policy unification. Despite its complexity in command-line interfaces and management, Cisco Secure Firewall remains a potent tool for safeguarding data. It is widely adopted for edge security, VPN services, perimeter defense, and traffic segmentation, especially in hybrid settings. Essential sectors like banking and telecom benefit from its stable connectivity and centralized security management. Though there are challenges with costs and support for third-party APIs, the firewall's scalability and high availability provide comprehensive support for protecting network assets.

What are the key features of Cisco Secure Firewall?

Application Visibility: Offers in-depth visibility of application traffic to monitor and protect against threats.
Advanced Malware Protection: Protects against known and emerging malware threats with powerful detection capabilities.
URL Filtering: Manages and restricts access to websites, enhancing organizational data security.
VPN Capabilities: Ensures secure remote access and encrypted communication through strong VPN features.
Integration with Cisco Ecosystem: Enhances security measures with seamless integration with Cisco's suite of security tools.

What benefits and ROI should be expected from Cisco Secure Firewall?

Comprehensive Protection: Offers multi-layered security for diverse network environments, increasing overall data protection.
Performance Efficiency: High availability and scalability lead to improved network performance and resource management.
Management Simplification: Centralized security management streamlines policy deployment across networks.
Enhanced Threat Detection: Integration capabilities improve threat detection and mitigation for better security posture.

Cisco Secure Firewall is widely implemented across sectors like banking, education, ISPs, and telecoms. It fortifies data centers and network edge security, delivering strong protection for client access, hybrid environments, and intrusion prevention. In these industries, firewall solutions ensure secure connectivity and manage RTU traffic effectively, leveraging centralized management and integration with Cisco's security tools.

Cisco

Hillstone E-Series is a comprehensive network security solution designed to protect organizations from advanced threats. It offers a range of features including a firewall, intrusion prevention system (IPS), virtual private network (VPN), and application control.

With its advanced threat intelligence capabilities, E-Series can detect and prevent sophisticated attacks, ensuring the security of critical data and systems. It also provides granular control over applications, allowing organizations to enforce policies and optimize network performance.

E-Series is easy to deploy and manage, with a user-friendly interface and centralized management console. It offers high-performance throughput and scalability, making it suitable for small businesses to large enterprises. With its robust security features and ease of use, Hillstone E-Series is an ideal choice for organizations looking to enhance their network security posture.

Hillstone Networks

Sample Customers

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

There are more than one million Adaptive Security Appliances deployed globally. Top customers include First American Financial Corp., Genzyme, Frankfurt Airport, Hansgrohe SE, Rio Olympics, The French Laundry, Rackspace, and City of Tomorrow.

Bank of China Macao, Instituto Tecnológico Bolivariano, Ministry of Labor in San Salvador, FEDCO

Buyer's Guide

Cisco Secure Firewall vs. Hillstone E-Series

April 2026

Free Report: Cisco Secure Firewall vs. Hillstone E-Series

Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco Secure Firewall vs. Hillstone E-Series and other solutions. Updated: April 2026.

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