Sophos Email vs Symantec Messaging Gateway comparison

The compared Sophos and Broadcom solutions aren't in the same category. Sophos is ranked #11 in Email Security , with an average rating of 8.2, and holds a 2.0% mindshare in the category. Broadcom is ranked #13 in SEG , and holds a 2.7% mindshare. Additionally, 96% of Sophos users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of Broadcom users who would recommend it.

Sophos Email

Read 34 Sophos Email reviews

2,203 Views
1,961 Comparison Views

96% willing to recommend

Symantec Messaging Gateway

Read 20 Symantec Messaging Gateway reviews

1,269 Views
444 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Sophos Email

Symantec Messaging Gateway

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Sophos Email and Symantec Messaging Gateway based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out in this report how the two Email Security solutions compare in terms of features, pricing, service and support, easy of deployment, and ROI.

To learn more, read our detailed Sophos Email vs. Symantec Messaging Gateway Report (Updated: January 2024).

Buyer's Guide

Sophos Email vs. Symantec Messaging Gateway

January 2024

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Helped 879,310 peers since 2012

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

Sophos Email

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

6.9

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Email Security (11th), Office 365 Protection (1st)

Symantec Messaging Gateway

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

6.8

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Secure Email Gateway (SEG) (13th)

Mindshare comparison

While both are Messaging and Collaboration solutions, they serve different purposes. Sophos Email is designed for Email Security and holds a mindshare of 2.0%, down 2.4% compared to last year.
Symantec Messaging Gateway, on the other hand, focuses on Secure Email Gateway (SEG), holds 2.7% mindshare, down 2.8% since last year.

Email Security Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
Sophos Email	2.0%
Microsoft Defender for Office 365	10.4%
Proofpoint Email Protection	7.7%
Other	79.9%

Email Security

Secure Email Gateway (SEG) Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
Symantec Messaging Gateway	2.7%
Microsoft Defender for Office 365	26.8%
Proofpoint Email Protection	20.1%
Other	50.4%

Secure Email Gateway (SEG)

Featured Reviews

Kalyan Chowdhury

Founder at Computech infosysetm

Stronger email and mobile security has protected users from ransomware and simplified management

Price is obviously a challenging part, and I think it is the biggest problem we have suffered from over the last two or three years due to a 7 to 8% hike per year, twice a year, which is why we have some renewals on Sophos Email, Sophos XDR, EDR, and the firewall, but due to price hike, they are unable to renew it. The price is going to be very high. It would be better if Sophos can provide a more flexible pricing model for different types of businesses. Price could be lower. The main competitor for Sophos in the market is Palo Alto, which has reduced their price by more than 35 to 40%, making it a very challenging part to sell this product. Palo Alto provides the same functionality for email security, which adds to the challenge because the price is going very high.

Read full review

Girish Vijay

Deputy Manager IT at Carl Bechem Lubricants India Pvt. Ltd.

A stable and reasonably priced solution that performs well and has a very good malware database

Since Symantec merged with Broadcom, they might have lost some good technical engineers. Maybe that’s the reason why the product is performing poorly. When we have a good marketing and sales team, even though our product cannot perform, we will sell it at a high price because of the buzzwords. However, at the end of the day, the product should perform. Most of the products might not perform. Symantec is a very good product, but the services are basic. I rate the technical features of the product a nine out of ten. However, I would rate the services provided by the solution a six out of ten. Overall, I rate the tool an eight out of ten.

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

"I would recommend Sophos Email to both end-users and other entities that want to protect their emails."

"It's easy to use and the configuration is straightforward."

"The feature of Sophos Email that we find most effective for detecting suspicious emails is primarily based on their signatures."

"I cannot guarantee any email by its name. It can be spam. Sophos Email helps to double-check whether an email is spam or not. It has a dashboard which gives an overview of the alerts."

"The platform is scalable when installed on server-based systems."

"The anti-malware, risk scanning has been pretty spot on."

"Sophos already has Sandbox, and if any issues are identified, Sophos blocks that particular mail and site instantly, which is why customers are very happy and safe from other attacks."

"It is a stable solution...It is a scalable solution."

More Sophos Email pros

"I like that it's simple and easy to configure, deploy, and manage. The reporting function has all the features we're looking for, and we are fine with that."

"Symantec Messaging Gateway has a good GUI, and it is very powerful in detecting viruses and spam."

"The feature that I like the best is the fingerprinting concept."

"Symantec’s spyware and malware signature database is very good compared to other products."

"The solution is highly customizable. You can make rules for domains and configure policies for spam or malware. Messaging Gateway is an on-prem solution, so it's useful for companies without a cloud presence."

"The solution is stable and the performance is good."

"The setup is pretty simple."

"The cloud-based interface is very user-friendly."

More Symantec Messaging Gateway pros

Cons

"The tool's integration becomes an issue when the internet connection is weak."

"Sophos Email could improve DLP features."

"The main drawback is regarding the technical support."

"Email installation could be more user-friendly so that it can be done without involving the partner."

"Sophos Email can improve security."

"The solution's sandboxing and spam control features could be improved."

"Email installation could be more user-friendly so that it can be done without involving the partner"

"The product could include all the essential features and capabilities, similar to the on-premise, server-based version."

More Sophos Email cons

"What's lacking when you compare it with Proofpoint and other threat protection solutions is that it does the basic stuff, but we need more advanced threat handling."

"It could be more scalable."

"We've had issues in the past where the user finds spam, and Symantec does not recognize it as spam."

"In a later release, it would be nice if the messaging gateway supported the cluster feature."

"It will provide Excel reports and PDF reports, but it would be great if they supported the concept of Crystal Reports."

"The solution interface is from 2003 and is outdated. Symantec Messaging Gateway needs to update the interface."

"They really need to create a good package that competes with Microsoft."

"Sometimes the solution picks up false positive for viruses during scans."

More Symantec Messaging Gateway cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"There is an additional fee for their central managed console."

"The platform is inexpensive. It offers a cost-effective licensing model. We purchase its yearly license."

"The pricing is fair."

"The pricing is affordable, so I’d rate it around a four out of ten on the pricing scale. We pay about fifty pounds a month, including hardware so that costs may differ without it."

"Licensing is paid on a yearly basis."

"Sophos Email is a little expensive for us, but it's necessary. We have a subscription and renew it every three years."

"It falls somewhere in the middle—it's not excessively expensive nor very cheap."

"Sophos Email is neither cheap nor expensive."

More Sophos Email pricing and cost advice

"Symantec Messaging Gateway’s pricing is very cheap."

"They're a little costly compared to Microsoft."

"The cost of Symantec Messaging Gateway is too expensive in general. However, the appliance also includes the price of the license in the same bundle."

"For 150 users, we pay INR 1,60,000."

"A subscription for technical support costs extra."

"It's a bit expensive compared to its competitor Barracuda Email Security Gateway but cheaper than Sophos Email."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Manufacturing Company

11%

Computer Software Company

Outsourcing Company

Financial Services Firm

17%

Computer Software Company

13%

Manufacturing Company

Government

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	26
Midsize Enterprise	3
Large Enterprise	5

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	11
Midsize Enterprise	1
Large Enterprise	8

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Sophos Email?

The solution's identity proxy feature is very good and reliable.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Sophos Email?

Regarding Sophos Email pricing, I would rate it between six or seven out of ten.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Sophos Email?

See all answers

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Comparisons

Microsoft Defender for Office 365 vs Sophos Email

Compared 18% of the time

Microsoft Exchange Online Protection (EOP) vs Sophos Email

Compared 8% of the time

Hornetsecurity 365 Total Protection vs Sophos Email

Compared 8% of the time

Proofpoint Email Protection vs Sophos Email

Compared 7% of the time

Barracuda Email Protection vs Sophos Email

Compared 7% of the time

More Sophos Email Competitors

Microsoft Exchange Online Protection (EOP) vs Symantec Messaging Gateway

Compared 20% of the time

Trend Micro Email Security vs Symantec Messaging Gateway

Compared 11% of the time

Microsoft Defender for Office 365 vs Symantec Messaging Gateway

Compared 11% of the time

Cisco Secure Email vs Symantec Messaging Gateway

Compared 11% of the time

Fortinet FortiMail vs Symantec Messaging Gateway

Compared 10% of the time

More Symantec Messaging Gateway Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Sophos Email

December 2025

Download Sophos Email product report

Buyer's Guide

Symantec Messaging Gateway

December 2025

Download Symantec Messaging Gateway product report

Also Known As

Sophos Email Security

Symantec.cloud, Symantec Email Security.cloud

Overview

Sophos Email is a comprehensive email security solution designed to protect organizations from advanced threats and data loss. It offers robust protection against malware, phishing attacks, and spam, ensuring that only legitimate emails reach users' inboxes.

With advanced threat intelligence and machine learning algorithms, it can detect and block sophisticated attacks in real-time. Additionally, it provides encryption and data loss prevention capabilities to safeguard sensitive information.

The solution is easy to deploy and manage, with a user-friendly interface and centralized control. Sophos Email offers seamless integration with popular email platforms, ensuring uninterrupted communication while maintaining security.

With its comprehensive features and proactive approach, Sophos Email is a reliable choice for organizations looking to enhance their email security.

Sophos

Symantec Messaging Gateway is a comprehensive email security solution designed to protect organizations from advanced threats and spam. It combines multiple layers of protection, including anti-malware, anti-spam, and data loss prevention, to safeguard sensitive information and ensure email continuity.

With its advanced threat intelligence and machine learning capabilities, it can detect and block sophisticated attacks, such as ransomware and spear-phishing. The solution also offers robust encryption and authentication features to secure email communications.

Its intuitive management console provides administrators with granular control and real-time visibility into email traffic. Symantec Messaging Gateway is a reliable and scalable solution that helps organizations mitigate email-borne threats and maintain a secure messaging environment.

Broadcom

Sample Customers

Del Monte Foods, Terra Verde, spicerhaart, RIVERLITE, Dataprise, SureBridge, Reed's School, Sayfol International School

Doric, Joblink Plus, Our Lady of Mercy College, Parramatta, PPB Advisory, Slater & Gordon Lawyers, Sydney Adventist Hospital Ltd.

Buyer's Guide

Sophos Email vs. Symantec Messaging Gateway

January 2024

Free Report: Sophos Email vs. Symantec Messaging Gateway

Find out what your peers are saying about Sophos Email vs. Symantec Messaging Gateway and other solutions. Updated: January 2024.

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We monitor all Email Security reviews to prevent fraudulent reviews and keep review quality high. We do not post reviews by company employees or direct competitors. We validate each review for authenticity via cross-reference with LinkedIn, and personal follow-up with the reviewer when necessary.