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Fortinet FortiGate IPS vs WatchGuard Intrusion Prevention Service comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 19, 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

Fortinet FortiGate IPS
Ranking in Intrusion Detection and Prevention Software (IDPS)
4th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
64
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
WatchGuard Intrusion Preven...
Ranking in Intrusion Detection and Prevention Software (IDPS)
26th
Average Rating
6.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
5
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2025, in the Intrusion Detection and Prevention Software (IDPS) category, the mindshare of Fortinet FortiGate IPS is 7.2%, up from 6.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of WatchGuard Intrusion Prevention Service is 0.4%, down from 0.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Intrusion Detection and Prevention Software (IDPS)
 

Featured Reviews

Taha Turkestani - PeerSpot reviewer
Enhanced threat prevention with very good support and valuable behavior reports
We use FortiGate as a firewall. We have a FortiGate 201 model It's good that we didn't get hacked or attacked, indicating strong threat prevention. The reporting on employee behavior and the prevention of new viruses are essential features. Additionally, we have found it convenient for…
Gianluca Vinci - PeerSpot reviewer
Helps us protect published resources with a valuable alarm system
Our primary use case for the solution is to protect published resources The alarm system is valuable because it alerts us if an external intruder tries to attack published resources. The user interface can be improved because it is sometimes difficult to manage functionality. For example, the…

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The product's most valuable feature is the ease of deploying IoT security with a single click. Additionally, the frequent updates to the online database ensure that our security measures are always up to date, enhancing our protection against emerging threats."
"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 product is scalable."
"FortiGate IPS is really easy to use. I don't have any problems with this."
"Its interface is the most valuable. It is quite easy to manage."
"It is a reliable solution."
"Fortinet FortiGate's most valuable features are the UTM package which provides internet blocking restrictions and load balancing. Additionally, the solution is easy to use and the security reporting is good. The security fabric which they have launched Fortinet FortiGate IPS, it's very good in terms of giving details."
"The product has an inbuilt IPS software. We can configure it to block specific anonymous attacks that are happening."
"The VPN and the filtering features are the most valuable. Its VPN is very strong, and its services are very nice. The main problem in India is the service. There are not enough Check Point and Fortinet Firewall services, but for this product, the service is very good."
"The initial setup was straightforward and, because we only need intrusion detection and prevention, we needed only about four hours to deploy it."
"The alarm system is valuable."
"It works right out of the box. You just have to enable it and you can start working."
"The most important feature of this solution is the SLAs."
 

Cons

"The system can slow down when inspections are carried out."
"Right now, it's not really scalable, but it's okay for us. However, looking ahead to three years from now, we might have a problem with scalability. We foresee a little risk down the road. The stability is okay for now."
"IPs are not handled well and the process is unnecessarily complicated."
"The interface could be better."
"The web filtering categories could improve in Fortinet FortiGate IPS. There are too many websites under the category of Unknown and the other categories are not featuring all the necessary sites."
"FortGate's IPS reporting could be made better by giving more details regarding the source and destination of network traffic when it comes to the overview section. This would allow me to more easily follow the flow of traffic based on IP addresses, without having to integrate the IPS with other products that perform more sophisticated traffic analysis."
"The solution is not scalable."
"The learning curve is a bit higher."
"I would like to see faster automatation."
"Its graphical user interface could be improved because not everybody is technical. There is a lack of knowledge, and they can give some training for this solution."
"Multi properties could be added to the solution in the future to make it better."
"Regarding technical support, they could use more engineers."
"The user interface and configuration can be improved."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is not expensive as compared to Cisco."
"The solution is offered as an annual license."
"We are currently evaluating a Palo Alto solution, and the pricing could be a reason for going for Palo Alto."
"The solution is very expensive so pricing is rated a one out of ten."
"The pricing is reasonable."
"I give the pricing of the solution a six out of ten."
"It's a year based license."
"There is only a standard license cost to use the solution."
"The price of WatchGuard Intrusion Prevention Service is pretty reasonable compared to similar solutions."
"The price of the solution is not expensive, it is less than FortiGate."
"It is not expensive. Other products like Fortinet and Check Point are of the same price."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
16%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Comms Service Provider
9%
Manufacturing Company
9%
No data available
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Fortinet FortiGate IPS?
The most significant aspect of IPS is self-explanatory as it primarily focuses on intrusion prevention, which is crucial for Fortinet's internal outbreak prevention efforts and ensuring compliance ...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Fortinet FortiGate IPS?
There are no extra expenses involved after purchasing the solution. Pricing could be better, however, overall, it is considered a middle-level price for a middle-level company.
What needs improvement with Fortinet FortiGate IPS?
There could be improvements in the mathematical algorithms used for behavior analytics of traffic. More advanced AI capabilities would be beneficial in future updates.
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Also Known As

FortiGate IPS
WatchGuard IPS
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Riverside Healthcare, Salt Lake City, Dell SecureWorks, Credit Bank Zagreb
Chester School District
Find out what your peers are saying about Fortinet FortiGate IPS vs. WatchGuard Intrusion Prevention Service and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.
848,716 professionals have used our research since 2012.