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Meraki MX vs Sophos XGS comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

Review summaries and opinions

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

Customer Service

Sentiment score
7.0
Fortinet FortiGate's customer service is responsive and helpful, though technical support experiences vary and can be inconsistent.
Sentiment score
8.0
Meraki MX's customer service is praised for 24/7 availability and efficiency, despite occasional delays and varying expertise levels.
Sentiment score
6.4
Opinions on Sophos XGS support vary, with some praising responsiveness and others citing slow response times and delays.
The response time for a critical priority one issue was over four hours and they only responded because we threatened legal action for them violating our support contract.
They say they will respond in 24 hours, but I have received responses in a maximum of one hour, which is impressive.
The technical support from Fortinet FortiGate is 24 hours a day seven days a week, and 365 days a year.
Technical support from Sophos is always available.
 

Room For Improvement

Sentiment score
4.6
Fortinet FortiGate needs better documentation, UI, integration, troubleshooting tools, scalability, reporting, and reduced impact on performance and fees.
Sentiment score
4.9
Meraki MX needs improved features, lower costs, more security, better integration, enhanced management, and combined platform functionalities.
Sentiment score
4.4
Sophos XGS requires better directory integration, SD-WAN, reporting, interface, support, pricing, security features, performance, automation, and marketing.
FortiWAN supports OSPF but does not support the BGP protocol.
Fortinet VPN and DDoS capabilities are great, yet we need to provide a solution that enables CASB and integration to the cloud.
The relationship between their accounts team and my leadership team seems to be the reason for phasing out FortiGate.
It would be beneficial if Sophos XGS offered an end-to-end solution with competitive pricing.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.1
Fortinet FortiGate provides effective scalability and adaptability, though careful budgeting and upgrades are needed for high-demand scenarios.
Sentiment score
8.4
Meraki MX offers scalable solutions for various needs, efficiently supporting from small to enterprise operations despite some hardware limits.
Sentiment score
6.6
Sophos XGS is scalable with varied user support, though some users note hardware limitations and mixed opinions on scalability.
The devices will usually fail way before reaching the capacity advertised in the data sheets, especially when you activate several of the features the device can handle.
The solution is working and it is still stable even across all of these devices and servers.
We have over 10,000 users behind it.
 

Setup Cost

Sentiment score
7.6
Fortinet FortiGate's initial costs are high, but offers competitive pricing and value compared to Cisco and Palo Alto.
Sentiment score
5.5
Meraki MX pricing is high but valued for ease of use and features, with flexible licenses and negotiable discounts.
Sentiment score
6.7
Sophos XGS provides cost-effective, competitive pricing for SMEs with flexible licensing, often more affordable than Fortinet or Palo Alto.
The cost of the original deployment fell below £5,000, and licenses are priced at around £3,000.
Every time you upgrade your license, you also get insurance for the equipment.
Overall, FortiGate is affordable.
The pricing of Sophos XGS is not very high or very low; it's medium.
If the pricing model is more flexible or lower, it would be highly preferable, making it a more competitive option for users.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.9
Fortinet FortiGate is highly stable and reliable, with improved performance in newer versions, praised for its consistent robustness.
Sentiment score
8.2
Meraki MX is stable, excels in harsh environments, but faces occasional feature issues and sporadic reboots, mostly rated highly.
Sentiment score
7.7
Sophos XGS is stable and efficient but experiences slowdowns when overcapacity, with room for improvement in support and firmware.
All of these issues were resolved in v5.2.
Stability has dramatically improved over the previous main version branch of FortiOS; 5.2.x and 5.4.x are stable enough for critical environments.
Overall, the devices have been very stable.
 

Valuable Features

Sentiment score
8.0
Fortinet FortiGate is valued for its robust security, ease of use, scalability, and comprehensive threat management features.
Sentiment score
8.3
Meraki MX provides user-friendly, cloud-managed network security with features like AutoVPN, SD-WAN, traffic shaping, and automatic updates.
Sentiment score
8.3
Sophos XGS offers fast processing, robust security features, easy management, and seamless integration, ensuring effective protection and scalability.
The two most valuable features are VPN and firewalling.
WiFi network for visitors isolated from our corporate WiFi network using only one unit
Allows for firewall rules to be programmed and named in a way that makes it 'readable'
I find DLP, API, IP, SDK, and web control to be valuable features.
Sophos XGS is cost effective and provides all necessary security features and throughput.
 

Categories and Ranking

Fortinet FortiGate
Sponsored
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
316
Ranking in other categories
Firewalls (2nd), Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions (1st), WAN Edge (1st)
Meraki MX
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
62
Ranking in other categories
Unified Threat Management (UTM) (2nd)
Sophos XGS
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
76
Ranking in other categories
Firewalls (17th)
 

Featured Reviews

DineshKumar28 - PeerSpot reviewer
Effective threat prevention with responsive customer support
We are using Fortinet FortiGate as a firewall Fortinet FortiGate has been invaluable. It has helped save costs due to its various features, reliable performance, very good UI, low latency, and stability. The Threat Intel engine in Fortinet FortiGate is highly rated for its effectiveness in…
Spencer Malmad - PeerSpot reviewer
Very easy to deploy with a simple configuration; stable and scalable with great support
The Cisco supply chain is problematic although that may not be all their fault. What I really want is to be able to sell the solution and deploy it for my clients. They are very cagey about the availability of their product and they definitely take better care of their larger clients, pricing out mid-sized organizations. I'd like their policy rules to be closer to those of some of the other vendors. They're very complacent and I find the rule set to be a little arcane. There's no company ou there that does the combination of hardware quality, reliability of service, and most importantly, the quality of the interface.
MarounAbboud - PeerSpot reviewer
Gives us peace of mind with network security, application control, and web server protection
Having previously worked with the Astaro Security Gateway platform (now called Sophos UTM), I can attest that the configuration and dashboard for this older platform was easier to manage than that of both Sophos XG and XGS. If it were up to me, I would prefer to go back to the older SG dashboard. I am hoping that in future, the dashboard for Sophos XGS will be simpler and easier.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Educational Organization
22%
Computer Software Company
15%
Manufacturing Company
6%
Comms Service Provider
6%
Educational Organization
26%
Computer Software Company
15%
Manufacturing Company
5%
Retailer
4%
Computer Software Company
18%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Financial Services Firm
5%
 

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...
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...
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 ...
Fortigate 60d vs. Meraki MX67 for a small company without a dedicated IT Department
We have Meraki Mx devices now, we are looking to replace them. But that is because the Meraki MX platform lacks SSL I...
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...
What do you like most about Meraki MX?
I am happy with the technical support for the solution. I rate the technical support a ten out of ten.
What do you like most about Sophos XGS?
The policies are the greatest feature. They allow us to configure granular control over our network traffic.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Sophos XGS?
On a scale of one to ten, I would rate the pricing of Sophos XGS at an eight out of ten. Cost and pricing of the prod...
What needs improvement with Sophos XGS?
Some features need remuneration and there are performance improvements required.
 

Also Known As

FortiGate 60b, FortiGate 60c, FortiGate 80c, FortiGate 50b, FortiGate 200b, FortiGate 110c, FortiGate
MX64, MX64W, MX84, MX100, MX400, MX600
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Overview

 

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
Hyatt, ONS
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Find out what your peers are saying about Meraki MX vs. Sophos XGS and other solutions. Updated: October 2024.
816,562 professionals have used our research since 2012.