Fortinet FortiGate is used to secure internet gateways.
Assistant Manager - Network & Security at a financial services firm with 5,001-10,000 employees
Simple initial setup, mature features, and responsive support
Pros and Cons
- "The most valuable features of Fortinet FortiGate are it is one of the most mature firewalls in the UTM bundle."
- "The most valuable features of Fortinet FortiGate are it is one of the most mature firewalls in the UTM bundle."
- "Fortinet FortiGate could improve by adding enhancements to FortiMail, FortiSOAR, and FortiDeceptor."
- "Overall it is not scalable."
What is our primary use case?
What is most valuable?
The most valuable features of Fortinet FortiGate are it is one of the most mature firewalls in the UTM bundle.
What needs improvement?
Fortinet FortiGate could improve by adding enhancements to FortiMail, FortiSOAR, and FortiDeceptor.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Fortinet FortiGate for approximately seven years.
Buyer's Guide
Fortinet FortiGate
April 2026
Learn what your peers think about Fortinet FortiGate. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: April 2026.
892,383 professionals have used our research since 2012.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Fortinet FortiGate is a stable solutions. Other solutions, such as Palo Alto, Cisco, and Forcepoint are less stable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
For scalability, you must define your needs before implementing Fortinet FortiGate. You must know specifications, such as throughput, the number of sessions, and the SSL. Overall it is not scalable.
How are customer service and support?
We had some simple questions for the support and they were able to respond within a few hours. I was satisfied.
I rate the support from Fortinet FortiGate a four out of five.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup is extremely simple. Customers that have never used it can manage it with ease after a few days.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
Fortinet FortiGate gives you most of the features in one license.
The activation of the license and support could improve. When I order Fortinet products, I have one year to activate my license and support. If this year passed without activating this license and support, I will lose it. If I ordered three years, I will lose all of the years. I must reorder them again, which is not reasonable. For example, if I have to activate my license in six months but didn't activate it during the six months, they should activate automatically. They should not remove the license. They should activate automatically after the grace period.
What other advice do I have?
I rate Fortinet FortiGate an eight out of ten.
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Information Technology Solutions Manager at UBG
Beneficial user interface, provides multiple engines, and high availability
Pros and Cons
- "The most useful functionality of Fortinet FortiGate is the user interface, multiple engines, and their cloud with the latest integrations. Additionally, the Security Fabric tool is very good."
- "The most useful functionality of Fortinet FortiGate is the user interface, multiple engines, and their cloud with the latest integrations, and additionally, the Security Fabric tool is very good."
- "Fortinet FortiGate can improve by integrating the web application firewall and the DDoS protection part of the solution. Having a WAF feature, web application firewall, and proxy together would be a good benefit."
- "Fortinet FortiGate can improve by integrating the web application firewall and the DDoS protection part of the solution. Having a WAF feature, web application firewall, and proxy together would be a good benefit."
What is our primary use case?
Fortinet FortiGate can be deployed on the cloud, hybrid, and on-premise. We use a combination of private and hybrid for the deployment.
We are using Fortinet FortiGate for parameter security, network isolation, and web filtering.
What is most valuable?
The most useful functionality of Fortinet FortiGate is the user interface, multiple engines, and their cloud with the latest integrations. Additionally, the Security Fabric tool is very good.
What needs improvement?
Fortinet FortiGate can improve by integrating the web application firewall and the DDoS protection part of the solution. Having a WAF feature, web application firewall, and proxy together would be a good benefit.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Fortinet FortiGate for approximately five years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Fortinet FortiGate is highly stable. It has high availability.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The scalability of Fortinet FortiGate is very good.
We have customers with 1,000 users using this solution and others with 100.
Engineers use this solution and all the end-users are connected to it. The whole organization is using the solution.
How are customer service and support?
The technical support is very helpful. We had a very good experience with them.
How was the initial setup?
The initial installation is straightforward, and the full process takes one to two days.
What about the implementation team?
We have our own team that does the implementation of the solution.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The support subscription for the solution is annual. You are paying for support and there are two levels of support, professional and advanced.
What other advice do I have?
I rate Fortinet FortiGate a nine out of ten.
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Buyer's Guide
Fortinet FortiGate
April 2026
Learn what your peers think about Fortinet FortiGate. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: April 2026.
892,383 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Senior Manager (Engineering Department) at a comms service provider with 10,001+ employees
Has UTM capabilities, integrates well with other Fortinet solutions, and is quite easy to deploy
Pros and Cons
- "The UTM feature is quite good. FortiAP is easy to deploy because both Fortigate and FortiAP are under the same brand. Otherwise, you need to do more work on the configuration."
- "The price-performance ratio is quite high for FortiGate."
- "Price, of course, can always be more competitive or better."
- "Price, of course, can always be more competitive or better."
What is our primary use case?
We have been using it for our internal infrastructure, but mainly, we are providing it as a service to our customers.
In one of the use cases, a customer is using FortiGate, and they also use FortiAP. To collect the usage and monitor the traffic, they use FortiAnalyzer. So, they have FortiGate, FortiAP, and FortiAnalyzer. It is not a very big deployment. It is a midsized company with less than 50 people.
What is most valuable?
The UTM feature is quite good. FortiAP is easy to deploy because both Fortigate and FortiAP are under the same brand. Otherwise, you need to do more work on the configuration.
What needs improvement?
Price, of course, can always be more competitive or better.
If a customer has a requirement for firewall, security, WiFi, and analytics, it is good if we can propose a solution from the same vendor, but we have found that no distributor in Hong Kong has sufficient knowledge to deploy Network Access Control (NAC) solutions. They have a wide range of products, but apart from the popular ones, such as a firewall or an AP, there is not sufficient support here in Hong Kong for NAC solutions.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using this solution for more than 10 years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
It is reasonably stable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Our customers are mainly small to medium businesses. I really didn't have a chance to scale it up. We have a customer with two subsidiaries on the same floor. They are changing from traditional features to SD-WAN features. Based on what I heard from my colleagues, migration work is quite smooth, and there are no big issues.
How are customer service and support?
I'm not doing hands-on work for the projects, but from my colleagues, I haven't heard of any delay or incompetency in support.
How was the initial setup?
It is quite easy. The duration depends on the complexity. If you are using a firewall from one brand and WiFi from another brand, then you probably would need more time to do the setup. Overall, the saving is around 25% in terms of labor hours.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
Their licensing costs are annual. The UTM feature license along with their support is called FortiCare. We include that as a part of the annual maintenance cost. Palo Alto or Juniper also have an annual subscription charge for UTM.
Price, of course, can always be more competitive, but it is not the most expensive product. The price-performance ratio is quite high for FortiGate.
What other advice do I have?
I would recommend this solution to others as well as to our existing customers who are not using FortiGate. I would rate it an eight out of 10.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer. Partner
Technical Architect at a computer software company with 10,001+ employees
Beneficial centralized management and scalable
Pros and Cons
- "The most valuable feature is the FortiManager for centralized management."
- "The price of Fortinet FortiGate is better than Cisco, Check Point, and Palo Alto."
- "Fortinet FortiGate could improve if it had a cloud-managed solution."
- "The technical support from Fortinet FortiGate is terrible. They can improve."
What is our primary use case?
I am using Fortinet FortiGate as a perimeter internet firewall.
What is most valuable?
The most valuable feature is the FortiManager for centralized management.
What needs improvement?
Fortinet FortiGate could improve if it had a cloud-managed solution.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Fortinet FortiGate for approximately 10 years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Fortinet FortiGate is approximately 80 percent stable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The scalability of Fortinet FortiGate is good.
How are customer service and support?
The technical support from Fortinet FortiGate is terrible. They can improve.
The presales, account management, and post-sales are the three worst things about Fortinet.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
I have previously used other solutions such as Cisco, Check Point, and Palo Alto.
The solution I would recommend largely depends upon the environment it is being implemented. We tend to mix and match firewalls, but Check Point tends to be, easier to manage, but more expensive. Their support is much better than Fortinet's when it comes to pre-sales and post-sales.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The price of Fortinet FortiGate is better than Cisco, Check Point, and Palo Alto. In terms of pricing, it's probably a better-priced firewall solution overall.
What other advice do I have?
I rate Fortinet FortiGate an eight out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer. partner
Secure, beneficial load balancing, and useful management UI
Pros and Cons
- "The most valuable feature of Fortinet FortiGate is load balancing. It can provide central management and VPNA. Additionally, it has enhanced our security environment."
- "The most valuable feature of Fortinet FortiGate is load balancing, as it can provide central management and VPN access and has enhanced our security environment, with a management UI that is more user-friendly than Cisco's solution."
- "Fortinet FortiGate could improve by adding FortiAnalyzer to its solution, we should not have to use another solution. FortiAnalyzer can provide more detailed information."
- "Fortinet FortiGate could improve by adding FortiAnalyzer to its solution, we should not have to use another solution."
What is our primary use case?
We use Fortinet FortiGate for a UPP solution. For example, DNS filtering, IPS, and VPN access.
What is most valuable?
The most valuable feature of Fortinet FortiGate is load balancing. It can provide central management and VPNA. Additionally, it has enhanced our security environment.
The management UI is more user-friendly than Cisco's solution.
What needs improvement?
Fortinet FortiGate could improve by adding FortiAnalyzer to its solution, we should not have to use another solution. FortiAnalyzer can provide more detailed information.
I hope that Fortinet FortiGate provides a software define network(SDN) solution. and provide the interface for the user. If we have the SDN interface we can develop our system to manage Fortinet devices.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Fortinet FortiGate for approximately one year.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Fortinet FortiGate is a stable solution.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
I have found Fortinet FortiGate to be scalable.
Our company is across many locations. For example, Europe, South America, America, China, Taiwan, and Asia. At this moment all of the sites are using Fortinet FortiGate. There are approximately 10,000 users that are using Fortinet FortiGate.
How are customer service and support?
I have not used technical support.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
I previously used Juniper. I did prefer the Juniper OS but not anymore because the Junos firewall seems not to be very stable. Since Juniper had stability issues is why we went with Fortinet FortiGate.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
There is a license to use Fortinet FortiGate.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
I have evaluated other solutions, such as Cisco.
What other advice do I have?
I would recommend this solution to others.
I rate Fortinet FortiGate a nine out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Executive at a computer software company with 10,001+ employees
Easy to use with a nice console but needs to offer container security
Pros and Cons
- "The solution is very user-friendly."
- "The solution is very user-friendly."
- "I'm not sure if it's something that they already have or are developing something, however, we need some dedicated features for container security."
- "I'm not sure if it's something that they already have or are developing something, however, we need some dedicated features for container security."
What is our primary use case?
We mainly use the solution as a firewall.
What is most valuable?
The solution is very user-friendly.
The collection of the integration of multiple nodes makes everything very easy. The fact that you can push, directly, one element, and you can leverage the distribution of the policy very well has been great.
Honestly, the console is done very well. It's easy to use.
From a strategic point of view, I've seen, in recent years, a big challenge from Fortinet to recover some kinds of space with respect to the other two biggest players, Check Point and Palo Alto. That has happened much more since the beginning of the next generation file. I found Fortinet recovered much market space in the last year.
What needs improvement?
I'm not sure if it's something that they already have or are developing something, however, we need some dedicated features for container security. Other vendors have developed some kind of specific product to protection. Containers now are very common, especially in the cloud. It's an area that needs to be addressed.
For how long have I used the solution?
I've worked with the product for three or four years, more or less.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The stability has been great. There are no bugs or glitches. It doesn't crash or freeze. It's reliable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
We have more than 10,000 people o the solution. The scalability capabilities are enough. We haven't had a problem at all.
How are customer service and support?
It would be hard to rate technical support due to the fact that, up until now, we've never had to deal with them.
That said, from talking with colleagues, my understanding is that they are good, and they offer standard levels of support in line with other competitors.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
We've also used Palo Alto and Check Point.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup is straightforward, however, we have knowledgeable teams. We also use Fortinet to check the configurations and make sure everything is supported during implementation.
It's pretty standard to deploy. We're also familiar with Palo Alto and Check Point and there is not much of a difference between the three.
What about the implementation team?
We managed, with my team, the setup. We also engaged with Fortinet in terms of professional services in order to check the installation and offer some support.
That said, we have many people on our team certified with the biggest firewalls and security infrastructure vendors.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
It's very difficult to discuss pricing as we have generally, in terms of pricing, at the end of the day, we have leveraged deals the existing contracts the client had in place. The client uses various technology vendors. I can't say that one is cheaper than the other. It's all in the same ballpark when you are speaking about comparable products.
What other advice do I have?
We are partners with many vendors, including Fortinet.
Likely our engineers would know what version of the solution we are on. I don't follow those details.
I'd rate the solution at a seven out of ten. It's stable, easy to set up, and easy to use. However, I have yet to see all of the features in play.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Managing Director with 51-200 employees
Secure, reliable, and support included
Pros and Cons
- "Fortinet FortiGate is stable. It's used across all the countries, this is the way most multinationals run their system."
- "Fortinet FortiGate is a firewall solution and once it's deployed, you can rest assured that your system is secure."
- "Fortinet FortiGate is a firewall solution and once it's deployed, you can rest assured that your system is secure."
- "The solution could improve by being more secure."
What is our primary use case?
We use Fortinet FortiGate to filter information, to ensure that we secure our network. Additionally, it's for overall security and to ensure that no information is leaking out.
What is most valuable?
Fortinet FortiGate is a firewall solution and once it's deployed, you can rest assured that your system is secure.
Since we have been using Fortinet FortiGate, we've not had anyone breaking into our network. We've used some penetration tests, and the system is very secure. However, the security of the network is dependent on the personnel itself.
For example, if you have a phishing email, you click on it, it takes you to the wrong server, and you put your credentials there, they can use those credentials to attack your system. In terms of somebody trying to break into your network without having the necessary credentials, Fortinet FortiGate is very good.
What needs improvement?
The solution could improve by being more secure.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Fortinet FortiGate for approximately six years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Fortinet FortiGate is stable. It's used across all the countries, this is the way most multinationals run their system.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The solution is scalable.
If the business expands into other geographical zones, we will need to expand the network and secure it. This is when we will expand the use of Fortinet FortiGate. However, because of this pandemic, businesses are slowly getting back to normal.
I don't think that expansion will come up in the next one or two years. Maybe in the next three years once they start to pick up their business, then there might be such an expansion or increase in hardware needed.
How are customer service and support?
Each of the devices is licensed every year and in case you have a serious critical issue we can contact the support from FortiGate directly. We contact them every once and a while but not often. We have to purchase a license that allows us the support to use them.
The support could be faster to come out with a solution.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
We were using Cisco previously.
How was the initial setup?
The Fortinet FortiGate deployment is not difficult. It's not simple, but it's easy for someone to learn. The whole process took approximately three hours. Cisco solutions are more difficult to deploy.
What about the implementation team?
We have experts in-house with experience and we did the deployment in-house. They used the deployment resources internally to deploy it.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The solution requires a license annually, it is not a user license, you can have as many users as your want. I must renew the license regularly per device.
The support is included in the license.
What other advice do I have?
I rate Fortinet FortiGate a nine out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Head of the Satellite Infrastructure and Operation System Department at a government with 1,001-5,000 employees
Supports many architectures, has a lot of features, and is useful for multi-tenant environments
Pros and Cons
- "The multi-tenancy feature is most valuable. It integrates very well with FortiManager and FortiAnalyzer."
- "Overall, we're very happy with their firewalls, but when we have issues or bugs, there are some difficulties in finding the resolution."
- "Their software support needs improvement. I would prefer to have better support for bug fixes. Sometimes, we open a ticket, and it is very difficult to get a solution. Specifically, we are not at all happy with their support for load balancing."
- "Sometimes, we open a ticket, and it is very difficult to get a solution."
What is our primary use case?
We use it for a multi-tenant virtualized environment for public cloud services. We provide cloud services for the public sector.
We have two clusters with the latest version, and we also have two clusters that I would like to replace with the latest version. We have support from the vendor, and we're going to buy two new clusters.
How has it helped my organization?
We have all the solutions from Fortinet, and it integrates very well with all of them. I'm very satisfied with its integration with FortiManager and FortiAnalyzer.
What is most valuable?
The multi-tenancy feature is most valuable. It integrates very well with FortiManager and FortiAnalyzer.
They are flexible in terms of installation. They support many architectures. They can operate with most major public cloud providers. It is a trend now to use hybrid solutions.
It has a lot of features, and it is reliable.
What needs improvement?
Their software support needs improvement. I would prefer to have better support for bug fixes. Sometimes, we open a ticket, and it is very difficult to get a solution. Specifically, we are not at all happy with their support for load balancing.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using this solution since 2015.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
We're happy with its performance. I would rate it a 10 out of 10 in terms of performance.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
We are happy with its scalability. Its users are administrators. Our administrator team has about six people. The environment is set up as a multi-tenant, so each tenant has its own administrator for configuration.
It has been used every day since 2015. It is a core appliance for us.
How are customer service and support?
Their support needs to be improved. We're not at all happy with their support. It sometimes becomes very difficult to get a solution. We are not satisfied with their support for load balancing. The support we have for Cisco firewalls is much better. I would rate them a seven out of 10.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
We also have a Cisco solution in operation.
How was the initial setup?
Its initial setup is normal. It is not too complex.
What about the implementation team?
The deployment takes place with the help of an integrator. We have an integrator to help us deploy and install all the solutions. They analyze all the features that we need to use, and then we discuss and finalize the solution before starting with the installation.
We have five to six people in the network team.
What was our ROI?
We have seen an ROI with this solution.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The licensing scheme of Fortinet is better than Cisco. It is more logical.
What other advice do I have?
Before buying, I would advise thinking about the exact features that you need to avoid expenses. You must understand very well what you need for your daily operations and then decide on the features to buy.
Overall, we're very happy with their firewalls, but when we have issues or bugs, there are some difficulties in finding the resolution. In terms of features, we haven't found any problems. It has many features, but when we use a feature and it has some bugs, I expect better support.
I would rate it a nine out of 10.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Buyer's Guide
Download our free Fortinet FortiGate Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros
sharing their opinions.
Updated: April 2026
Product Categories
Firewalls Secure Web Gateways (SWG) Intrusion Detection and Prevention Software (IDPS) Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions WAN Edge ZTNA Unified Threat Management (UTM)Popular Comparisons
Netgate pfSense
Sophos Firewall
OPNsense
Darktrace
Cisco Secure Firewall
Cloudflare One
Cisco Umbrella
Prisma Access by Palo Alto Networks
Zscaler Internet Access
Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls
WatchGuard Firebox
Cato SASE Cloud Platform
Check Point Quantum Force (NGFW)
Cisco Meraki MX
Buyer's Guide
Download our free Fortinet FortiGate Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros
sharing their opinions.
Quick Links
Learn More: Questions:
- Comparison of Barracuda F800, SonicWall 5600 and Fortinet
- Sophos XG 210 vs Fortigate FG 100E
- Looking Into Implementing a Web Security Solution.
- Cyberoam or Fortinet?
- Fortinet, Palo Alto or Check Point?
- Which would you recommend to your boss, Fortinet FortiGate or Sophos UTM?
- What Is The Biggest Difference Between Cisco ASA And Fortinet FortiGate?
- Cisco Firepower vs. FortiGate
- We're trying to choose between Fortinet or Checkpoint UTM firewalls. Can you help?
- What Is The Biggest Difference Between Fortinet FortiGate and Meraki MX Firewalls?













