Cisco Secure Firewall vs SonicWall TZ comparison

Cisco and SonicWall are both solutions in the Firewalls category. Cisco is ranked #5 with an average rating of 8.3, while SonicWall is ranked #11 with an average rating of 8.9. Cisco holds a 5.8% mindshare in Firewalls, compared to SonicWall’s 2.7% mindshare. Additionally, 83% of Cisco users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 88% of SonicWall users who would recommend it.

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Jan 5, 2025

Cisco Secure Firewall and SonicWall TZ both compete in the network security category. Cisco Secure Firewall seems to have the upper hand with its extensive features and stronger enterprise solutions, whereas SonicWall TZ provides a cost-effective option for smaller setups.

Features: Cisco Secure Firewall provides robust firewalling, advanced threat protection, VPN functionality, and high availability. It is known for its extensive security and network options that cater to enterprise-level requirements. SonicWall TZ offers strong intrusion prevention, unified threat management, and effective content filtering, particularly advantageous for small to medium businesses.

Room for Improvement: Cisco Secure Firewall faces challenges with its complex interface and costly licensing, often requiring experienced users to navigate effectively. SonicWall TZ could enhance its graphical user interface, network monitoring capabilities, and increase the responsiveness of its customer support to serve users better.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Both Cisco Secure Firewall and SonicWall TZ offer on-premises and cloud deployment options. Cisco is noted for knowledgeable but sometimes slow support responses, while SonicWall users experience manageable deployments but suggest the need for improvements in the promptness and effectiveness of technical support.

Pricing and ROI: Cisco Secure Firewall is perceived as expensive with intricate licensing but is viewed as a worthwhile investment for advanced features and strong support, ideal for larger enterprises prioritizing advanced capabilities. SonicWall TZ is praised for competitive pricing and cost control, though its attractive affordability can be offset by higher licensing and subscription fees in certain scenarios.

To learn more, read our detailed Cisco Secure Firewall vs. SonicWall TZ Report (Updated: January 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Cisco Secure Firewall vs. SonicWall TZ

January 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

Fortinet FortiGate

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2025, in the Firewalls category, the mindshare of Fortinet FortiGate is 20.3%, up from 17.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Cisco Secure Firewall is 5.8%, up from 5.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SonicWall TZ is 2.7%, up from 2.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Firewalls

Featured Reviews

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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Jordan De Sousa

Network Manager at a computer software company with 501-1,000 employees

Helped with the consolidation of tools and has a great dashboard

We have used different types of solutions. We had Cisco ASA for about 10 years, and then we switched to an on-site firewall to MX from Meraki, Cisco. For our cloud, we have Cisco Services Routers. The migration to the cloud has been a lot of work. Not all of our systems were compliant with being on the cloud so we had to work on some applications and delete some of them. For the old systems, we had to do extra work but for the newer systems, it was fine. The migration took around 18 months to migrate 99%. We had more than 2,000 on-prem firewall sites. Cisco helped with the migration to the cloud with the migration tool. Migrating MX was really easy and the tools helped us to migrate from the old ASA we had to the new MX. The cloud, firewalling, and CSR helped us from the data center on-premise approach to the cloud because at the time we didn't have a lot of experience with the cloud. It was easy to use the Cisco appliances in that space. I think that this solution has saved our IT staff time because of the ease of deployment. When I first started as a network engineer, it took a whole day to configure a firewall because of all the particularities you could potentially have at a site. I think that this solution saved our organization's time because security saves money because. At the end of the day, firewalls block threats. This solution helped with the consolidation of tools as we had all the observability tools in the solutions. Some 10 years ago we all had third-party solutions doing the observability. Now, we have the whole package and not only the firewall. We choose Cisco 10 or 20 years ago mostly because it was a market-leading solution. I also think it's because of MX's user-friendly solution that you can get on board easily. As far as CSA goes, I believe it's because you have a lot of features on the firewalls and it's the stability of course.

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Rias Majeed

CTO at Exceed NetSec LLC

Robust VPN integration stands out despite needing enhanced vendor compatibility

The integrated VPN functionality is working well with the global VPN client, which is a fast client, though it comes at a cost. SonicWall TZ is functional depending on the service level taken by the user. For SMB segments, SonicWall performs well. Despite lacking certain features, it is still considered a good product. The appliance itself is functional and stable, offering integrated solutions.

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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

"FortiGate's web and URL filtering are unlike any other firewall I've used. The functionality of URL filtering in those solutions is problematic because everything is encrypted, and firewalls can't break that encryption protocol. Fortinet has an SSL proxy, so the encryption is done before the packet ever leaves the FortiGate. The URL filter is definitely one of the most helpful features."

"Initial setup is easy to configure."

"Fortinet FortiGate is a security device. It can optimize security on the networks of a company. It actually protects the company from attacks from outside. With FortiGate, you can categorize the users. You can create a group of users that can access all of the websites for their work. You can limit other users' access."

"It is easy to use. We chose this product for the possibility to have virtual domains (VDOMs). We are building another company in the group, and we would like to split the firewalling rules and policies between these two companies. Each company would be able to manage its own policies and security rules, which is an advantage of Fortinet FortiGate. We can define VDOMs, and every company can manage its own VDOM as if it has its own physical firewall, but in fact, we would be using the same physical appliance because we are also using the same internet lines. So, it allows us to reuse the existing resources without the disadvantage of having to compromise on policies and security. Each company can choose its own way of working."

"The next-generation firewall is great."

"I am "headache free" that I don't have to categorize all the websites and that security has been pre categorized by the people, and that the services are getting updated. At least one part of my problem is over."

"Unified Threat Management (UTM) features."

"It has a good UI and overall integration, including FortiGate Manager for controlling all firewalls from a single place."

More Fortinet FortiGate pros

"Since the product is stable, we do not have to spend additional money to buy other firewalls. Once deployed, we can use the product for a long time. Thus, it is cost effective."

"Even in very big environments, Cisco comes in handy with configuration and offers reliability when it comes to managing multiple items on one platform."

"Easy to deploy in a working environment between servers and users."

"The high-availability and remote VPN features are most valuable."

"The most valuable feature of this solution is its ability to integrate vertically."

"It is a highly stable product. We rarely receive any serious outdates, so it works quite well."

"It protects our network."

"Integration with all the other Cisco tools is valuable."

More Cisco Secure Firewall pros

"From our point of view, the most valuable feature was the ease of deployment."

"Content filtering and application rules are the most valuable features. It is also easy to configure."

"It is very stable with no issues. The firewall's been up for the past 35 days non-stop. It's performed great. It has performed as it should perform."

"Ease of management and the VPN integration."

"The feature with SonicWall that I have found most valuable is that all the models have the same interface. We don't need to learn different interfaces in the smaller or bigger models."

"The feature we found most valuable in SonicWall TZ is that it is user-friendly for an administrator."

"The stability is very nice."

"We like their interface very much. It's pretty easy to use."

More SonicWall TZ pros

Cons

"Maybe they could make some features more accessible, such as a way to translate directions between two networks that share the same subnets."

"The initial setup and configuration are not intuitive and require training."

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

"The solution needs to improve its integration with cybersecurity."

"My only complaint about FortiGate is a lack of QinQ VLAN tunneling. I haven't found this feature in any Fortinet product. You can do this on all Cisco routers, including the smaller models. However, QinQ isn't available on the biggest, most expensive Fortinet units. They still don't have that. I think now we're on software version 6.0, and they still haven't found a solution for QinQ. It isn't a dealbreaker, but that's my main complaint."

"I would like to have logs, monitoring, and reporting for a month without extra fees."

"One of the problems I was having was with user mapping, and it is an issue for which I have escalated tickets with Fortinet support."

"The routing capability on the FortiGate devices has room for improvement."

More Fortinet FortiGate cons

"The process of procuring modern-day technology within the DOD needs to improve."

"The solution is overcomplicated in some senses. Simplifying it would be an improvement."

"In terms of what could be improved, I would say the UTM part should be more integrated for one price, because if you buy ASA from Cisco, you need to buy another contract service from Cisco as a filter for the dictionary of attacks. In Fortinet, you buy a firewall and you have it all."

"In terms of functionality, there isn't much to improve. There could be more bandwidth and better interface speed."

"I would like it if they made the newer generation a bit simpler. You can do ASA code and FXOS. It is just a bit confusing with the newer generational equipment on what it can do."

"Maybe the dashboard could be a bit better."

"Firepower's user experience should be a little bit better."

"It seems very clunky and slow. I would like to be able to tune it to be a more efficient product."

More Cisco Secure Firewall cons

"We have been facing issues with reporting."

"The user support could be improved because you have to go outside to get that kind of support."

"User interface could be improved."

"It needs more robust self-help documentation along with examples and things to watch out for."

"I expect to see SD-WAN in the tool's next release. The product should implement a content filtering feature. You need to put an agent on the user's laptop device. It would enforce security policies and block sites even if they were off-site. You can block sites from network sites."

"The market seems to be going to a cloud-supported, new generation of firewall products. I think that's probably going to be important to us, the next time around."

"The interface and technical support are probably the two most important things that I would like SonicWall to improve."

"From a support perspective, if we're talking tech support I think Silver Partners, Gold Partners, Platinum, whatever level, should have a different number to call. End users can call tech support over at SonicWall if they've paid for support as part of their AGSS or whatever services they bought. The end-user can call, or we can call, however, I don't want to be calling the same line that an end user's calling. I don't want the same response time. I need a different level of expertise."

More SonicWall TZ cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"In terms of the market, it's not a cheap product, but it's cost-effective."

"It is an inexpensive solution."

"We are on an annual license to use Fortinet FortiGate."

"For medium and enterprise organizations, FortiGate is more affordable."

"Setup costs and pricing depends on many variables, but it's mostly affordable."

"By default, they give SD-WAN along with the firewall. They don't have separate licensing for the SD-WAN functionality. However, they have security licenses that are sold separately on a subscription basis. Customers can consume these security features to protect their users from internet traffic."

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

"I give the pricing a nine out of ten."

More Fortinet FortiGate pricing and cost advice

"It is affordable. The hardware is not that expensive anymore. It is a matter of licensing these days."

"It was pretty good and not expensive on the subscription side. Cisco is doing a good job on this."

"The pricing could always be cheaper."

"We paid about $7,000 for the Cisco firewall, plus another small Cisco router and the lead switch. It was under the combined license. It's a final agreement."

"The pricing was pretty comparable to other solutions when we purchased it."

"Firepower has a very high cost and you have to pay for the standby as well, meaning that the cost is doubled."

"The pricing and licensing structure of the firewall is fair and reasonable."

"The licensing features are getting more complicated. These should be simplified."

More Cisco Secure Firewall pricing and cost advice

"License renewals come in around $35,000 to $45,000."

"The pricing was a factor for us, and we felt that the price was good."

"It is an expensive solution compared to one of its competitors."

"There are a few features that are licensed and there should be more that are licensed. The price of the solution is midrange compared to others, I have not had anyone complain."

"Licensing costs have been around $2,000. There are no other costs above the standard licensing fees."

"It is highly priced and has a slow performance compared to other firewalls."

"The price is fair for the solution for the quality you receive."

"You need to purchase multiple licenses to manage multiple devices which is cost-prohibitive for the value you would receive."

More SonicWall TZ pricing and cost advice

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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

Educational Organization

22%

Computer Software Company

14%

Comms Service Provider

Manufacturing Company

Educational Organization

37%

Computer Software Company

14%

Government

Manufacturing Company

Computer Software Company

18%

Manufacturing Company

Construction Company

Comms Service Provider

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

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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Would you choose Fortinet Fortigate or Sonicwall TZ?

I’ll say it depends on your needs. Fortinet FortiGate and SonicWall TZ are both next-gen firewalls (NGFW) with simila...

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What do you like most about SonicWall TZ?

The most valuable feature of SonicWall TZ is the double authentication, where it asks for one password and again asks...

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SonicWall TZ?

The pricing of SonicWall TZ is reasonable. I would also position its pricing as a three, where one is the lowest pric...

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Comparisons

Sophos XG vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 23% of the time

Netgate pfSense vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 13% of the time

WatchGuard Firebox vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 5% of the time

Meraki MX vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 5% of the time

Check Point NGFW vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 3% of the time

More Fortinet FortiGate Competitors

Palo Alto Networks WildFire vs Cisco Secure Firewall

Compared 10% of the time

Netgate pfSense vs Cisco Secure Firewall

Compared 6% of the time

Meraki MX vs Cisco Secure Firewall

Compared 4% of the time

Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls vs Cisco Secure Firewall

Compared 4% of the time

Juniper SRX Series Firewall vs Cisco Secure Firewall

Compared 2% of the time

More Cisco Secure Firewall Competitors

Sophos XG vs SonicWall TZ

Compared 16% of the time

Netgate pfSense vs SonicWall TZ

Compared 9% of the time

SonicWall NSa vs SonicWall TZ

Compared 7% of the time

Meraki MX vs SonicWall TZ

Compared 7% of the time

Zyxel Unified Security Gateway vs SonicWall TZ

Compared 1% of the time

More SonicWall TZ Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Fortinet FortiGate

January 2025

Download Fortinet FortiGate product report

Buyer's Guide

Cisco Secure Firewall

January 2025

Download Cisco Secure Firewall product report

Buyer's Guide

SonicWall TZ

December 2024

Download SonicWall TZ product report

Also Known As

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

Cisco ASA Firewall, Cisco Adaptive Security Appliance (ASA) Firewall, Cisco ASA NGFW, Cisco ASA, Adaptive Security Appliance, ASA, Cisco Sourcefire Firewalls, Cisco ASAv, Cisco Firepower NGFW Firewall

Dell SonicWALL TZ

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Fortinet

Cisco

SonicWall

Overview

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.

Cisco Secure Firewall stands as a robust and adaptable security solution, catering to organizations of all sizes. It's designed to shield networks from a diverse array of cyber threats, such as ransomware, malware, and phishing attacks. Beyond mere protection, it also offers secure access to corporate resources, beneficial for employees, partners, and customers alike. One of its key functions includes network segmentation, which serves to isolate critical assets and minimize the risk of lateral movement within the network.

The core features of Cisco Secure Firewall are multifaceted:

Advanced threat protection is achieved through a combination of intrusion prevention, malware detection, and URL filtering technologies.
For secure access, the firewall presents multiple options, including VPN, remote access, and single sign-on.
Its network segmentation capability is vital in creating barriers within the network to safeguard critical assets.
The firewall is scalable, effectively serving small businesses to large enterprises.
Management is streamlined through Cisco DNA Center, a central management system.

The benefits of deploying Cisco Secure Firewall are substantial. It significantly reduces the risk of cyberattacks, thereby enhancing the security posture of an organization. This security also translates into increased productivity, as secure access means uninterrupted work. Compliance with industry regulations is another advantage, as secure access and network segmentation align with many regulatory standards. Additionally, it helps in reducing IT costs by automating security tasks and simplifying management processes.

In practical scenarios, Cisco Secure Firewall finds diverse applications. It's instrumental in protecting branch offices from cyberattacks, securing remote access for various stakeholders, safeguarding cloud workloads, and segmenting networks to isolate sensitive areas.

User reviews from PeerSpot reflect an overall positive experience with the Cisco Secure Firewall. Users appreciate its ease of configuration, good management capabilities, robust protection, user-friendly interface, and scalability. However, some areas for improvement include better integration capabilities with other vendors, maturity, control over bandwidth for end-users, and addressing software bugs.

In summary, Cisco Secure Firewall is a comprehensive, versatile, and reliable security solution that effectively meets the security needs of various organizations. It offers a balance of advanced protection, user-friendly management, and scalability, making it a valuable asset in the realm of network security.

The secure, sophisticated SonicWALL TZ is widely deployed at small businesses, retail, government, remote sites and branch offices. It combines high-performance intrusion prevention, malware blocking, content/URL filtering and application control.

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.

AeroM_xico Delta TechOps, Unimat

Buyer's Guide

Cisco Secure Firewall vs. SonicWall TZ

January 2025

Free Report: Cisco Secure Firewall vs. SonicWall TZ

Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco Secure Firewall vs. SonicWall TZ and other solutions. Updated: January 2025.

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