No more typing reviews! Try our Samantha, our new voice AI agent.

Forescout Platform vs Sophos Network Access Control comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 5, 2024

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

Forescout Platform
Ranking in Network Access Control (NAC)
5th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.5
Number of Reviews
78
Ranking in other categories
IoT Security (4th), Endpoint Compliance (2nd), Extended Detection and Response (XDR) (19th)
Sophos Network Access Control
Ranking in Network Access Control (NAC)
7th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.2
Number of Reviews
24
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2026, in the Network Access Control (NAC) category, the mindshare of Forescout Platform is 9.7%, down from 13.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Sophos Network Access Control is 2.5%, up from 1.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Network Access Control (NAC) Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Forescout Platform9.7%
Sophos Network Access Control2.5%
Other87.8%
Network Access Control (NAC)
 

Featured Reviews

AshishKumar Rai - PeerSpot reviewer
Security Consultant at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Comprehensive visibility has strengthened endpoint control and automated threat response across networks
When it comes to improving Forescout Platform, I have faced some issues recently, particularly with the switch integration part. When integrating a switch, it asks for the vendor type, and often it does not match. For example, one series of HP switches may not be found in that vendor list. This leads to frustration because you have to check again with different HP models, and once you integrate a switch, you cannot edit the vendor list without removing it. Other issues are being worked on, particularly related to switch integration. I believe they will be fixed in the next upgrade or patch fix. There are no major issues, but the configuration changes needed for the switch model are necessary, and I think it would help if during integration, an admin user could check the password or credential used, as they currently cannot see the password after it is entered and saved.
HirenPatel2 - PeerSpot reviewer
Manager at rspl
Have faced delays in support despite strong multi-layer policy configuration
I have observed some disadvantages as we have experienced one particular problem. We were facing an issue of synchronization of the endpoint with our firewall with help on a cloud for heartbeat syncing. However, it was not syncing as per our requirement. The user has to connect our firewall with the help of VPN. We were supposed to assume a solution on a cloud, which has good synchronization on a cloud with Sophos Central. It will sync with our firewall as well with the help of Sophos Central. Endpoint and firewall synchronization is not as smooth as we are expecting from Sophos Network Access Control. We have to connect with VPN. We are expecting that if we have already installed an endpoint on our system and it is connected to the internet, then it must be synchronized on a cloud with Sophos Central. Through Sophos Central, it must connect with our firewall. If the endpoint is configured on Sophos Central and the firewall is also configured in Sophos Central, then there should be no need to connect to VPN.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The user interface is quite simple."
"The virtual firewall available on this solution is great and assists us in securing our servers, and the threat prevention feature provides complete visibility, making it very helpful in detecting, blocking, and monitoring heavy scanning on the system."
"The valuable feature of the product stems from the fact that it is easy to implement."
"We use the Forescout Platform for device visibility and control in our network. It's very helpful for tracking malicious or unusual activity. We use it to track which ports are open, which machines are running specific services, and to identify vulnerabilities. For example, there was a vulnerability related to SMB, and we could use the product to determine which machines inside our organization were allowing SMB traffic."
"The most important feature is that this solution works well without a 802.1x feature, and you can use CounterACT to implement that feature and also have a very granular control of your devices, including shadow devices."
"The 802.1X configuration, which is difficult for all switches, is not required, making it easier to work with switches and IoT devices."
"The solution offers very good management; it allows for good detection of all the vendor products we have on-site."
"The most valuable feature is the blocking of USB devices."
"There is really good visibility for the appliance."
"There is good documentation that helps to deploy a new wireless access point and a controller in a very easy way."
"Sophos' technical support is great, very fast and responsive, and they always know how to fix the problem."
"There is really good visibility for the appliance."
"Web protection, URL filtering, and application filtering are the most valuable features of Sophos Network Access Control."
"We have had interactions with the technical support team through the Xnet platform. It's good."
"The solution offers very good visibility."
"The initial setup is very easy."
 

Cons

"We have found that the agent-based authentication, available within this solution could be improved."
"We experienced some detection issues when checking compliance for the Sophos agent."
"Forescout Platform isn't flexible with connections to devices like printers and forces you to re-enter details like the MAC address after any breakdowns."
"Regarding pricing, there is room for improvement to enhance competitiveness with other vendors and solutions."
"The cost is too high."
"The technical support could be improved in terms of response time and first-level support quality."
"When adding what is in scope to a policy, it would be nice if you could select multiple policies instead of one policy at a time to add what is in the scope for network segmentation. I have found that during the install and configuration of the policies that if you want to modify multiple policies or enable multiple policies that you need to define what is in the scope (IP range or segments) one rule at a time. This caused some slow downs when implementing policies."
"Forescout Platform could improve the costs of integrations."
"An area that could be improved is the information about licensing, which is fairly confusing at present."
"The solution can improve the for applying policies. They can be complex depending don't the group they are applied to."
"The solution could offer more useful documentation."
"The difficult thing was finding the metrics."
"Users are not controlled by role-based access; it's basically device-based control. The definition of role-based control is a little vague here because on the cloud level, it regulates access rather than tasks."
"In Indonesia, there are a lot of false positives. For example, many websites from our government and local industries are blocked by the IPS."
"The difficult thing was finding the metrics."
"The interface on the cloud could be a bit better - just to give more performance on it."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The product's pricing is reasonable."
"The ROI is priceless."
"The price of Forescout is reasonable when compared to Cisco ISE."
"Time savings in finding rogue devices as well as identifying potentially unwanted devices on the network has saved the organization time and money."
"5,000 user licenses will cost you between seven and eight million dollars, compared to 20 million for Aruba."
"The cost of licensing for this product is quite high, but this cost covers all the features of the solution so it is a single payment for the term that has been selected."
"Licenses are perpetual but can come with renewable support."
"They base the license on the number of devices, which is quite misleading."
"I rate the price of Sophos Network Access Control a five out of ten."
"Sophos Network Access Control is very cheap compared to other solutions like Cisco, Barracuda, and Palo Alto."
"Sophos Network Access Control is costly but has a similar price range as CrowdStrike and Check Point. The product can get more market share if Sophos can play around with Sophos Network Access Control pricing and improve it."
"Sophos Network Access Control is an expensive solution."
"It is quite expensive."
"It provides a moderate pricing option for all of its features and benefits."
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Network Access Control (NAC) solutions are best for your needs.
886,077 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Manufacturing Company
12%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Computer Software Company
8%
Government
7%
Healthcare Company
9%
Government
8%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Computer Software Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business30
Midsize Enterprise10
Large Enterprise44
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business16
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise3
 

Questions from the Community

What advice do you have for others considering Forescout Platform?
Forescout is a very powerful NAC product that does not rely on port level configuration. It can detect and block unauthorized devices very quickly. But it has a lot of capabilities and really would...
What advice do you have for others considering Forescout Platform?
I would rate the Forescout Device and Visibility Control Platform at a six out of ten.
What advice do you have for others considering Forescout Platform?
I recommend doing a compression demo. If people use it, they will buy it. So they have to see the product in place. That's the main recommendation is to do a proof of concept. If they do, they will...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Sophos Network Access Control?
The pricing of Sophos Network Access Control is good, but it is somewhat high.
What needs improvement with Sophos Network Access Control?
In my opinion, one feature that should be added is the ability to trace emails from individuals who change their IP address or send misbehaving emails from alternative networks. If someone sends a ...
What is your primary use case for Sophos Network Access Control?
Sophos Network Access Control serves primary use cases for both networking purposes and security purposes.
 

Also Known As

Forescout Platform, CounterACT for Endpoint Compliance, ForeScout CounterACT
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

NHS Sussex, SAP, SEGA, Vistaprint, Miami Children's Hospital, Pioneer Investments, New York Law School, OmnicomGroup, Meritrust
Rushmoor Borough Council
Find out what your peers are saying about Forescout Platform vs. Sophos Network Access Control and other solutions. Updated: April 2026.
886,077 professionals have used our research since 2012.