We performed a comparison between Check Point NGFW and WatchGuard Firebox based on real PeerSpot user reviews.
Find out in this report how the two Firewalls solutions compare in terms of features, pricing, service and support, easy of deployment, and ROI."The SD-WAN feature is the most valuable. This feature evolved from link load balancing. It has helped us in terms of our uptime and privatizing applications whenever we experience an outage. The SD-WAN feature has been a plus for us. Two-factor authentication has allowed us to add more users in terms of remote working. We have two-factor authentication for remote workers to authenticate them before they get on the network."
"We are a visual effects company, and there have been a number of high profile security issues in our industry. This has brought us to a higher standard of security, which our clients are very keen on these days."
"Fortinet FortiGate appears to be scalable."
"We are using the FortiGate 100D series. VPN, firewall, anti-malware, OTM, and intrusion prevention are useful features."
"The secure web gateway module and the application control module are valuable. HA operations are very easy."
"User-friendly and affordable security solution that's recommended for SMB customers. This solution has good technical support."
"The solution is easy to configure and maintain remotely."
"The most valuable features are the enterprise modeling and the simple interface."
"They utilize various gateway features, including Identity as a Service (IDaaS), anti-spam, antivirus, and other security measures, effectively creating a robust defense against a wide range of potential risks."
"Its management web interface is very easy and user-friendly."
"The most valuable feature of the solution is the Quantum Intrusion Prevention System (IPS). I also like the solution's functionality, like autonomous threat prevention."
"I have not had an infected machine behind the firewall since I first installed and started using NGFW."
"We used Check Point for implementation, and they are top-notch. They know the hardware and software better than anyone."
"The central management makes it easier, and is a time-saver, when implementing changes."
"It's offering great security while also being rather easy to manage."
"One of the most advantageous features of Check Point firewall is its multi-interface capability."
"The most valuable feature is the NAT-ing, the IP addresses... We can direct the traffic where it needs to go. We can control the traffic."
"The firewall aspect and the branch office VPNs are the most valuable features... We don't have any issues with it. We don't have to spend a lot of time maintaining it."
"There are no problems with the technical support. If a problem occurs it gets resolved immediately with our technical support partners."
"It is a scalable solution."
"The main reason we went with it was the security protocols. They were more robust on this device."
"The most valuable feature of WatchGuard Firebox is its ease of use."
"We experienced that WatchGuard is easy to setup regarding VPN compared to other firewalls of other brands."
"The most valuable feature is the ease of use of the interface."
"Fortinet FortiGate could improve by having better visibility. Palo Alto has better visibility."
"While FortiGate is cheaper than most other solutions, we're seeing increased license renewal costs. Most of our clients are asking for more significant discounts because the price is going up."
"I need user-behavior analytics, to find threat scenarios from inside the organization, insider attacks. That would be very helpful for us. In addition, I would like next-generation features for small and medium businesses. These businesses require UTM, all in one product. Fortinet must include it."
"Its customer service could be better."
"The price of FortiGate should be reduced because there are some other leading products that are cheaper."
"The firmware needs improvement because there are bugs when a new release comes through. Sometimes, the configuration changes, and it's a bit harder to see where the fail is. The first time that you have the firmware, it tends to have some issues, and it's better to wait a bit to update the equipment."
"The solution could be more secure and stable."
"The captive portal could be improved."
"I would like the graphic user interface to be easier to use. For example, the NAT policy should be easier to use. Check Point's NAT policy is somewhat confused compared to other competitors."
"Check Point NGFW Firewall requires frequent updates to build more user-friendly dashboards."
"Check Point products have many places that need to be improved, but they are constantly upgrading."
"The current reporting capability needs to be parsed and edited to be appreciated by leadership."
"Hopefully, in the future, these will be much more plug-and-play and orchestrated from a single administration console."
"The number of physical network ports on the device should be increased to allow for greater capacity."
"There needs to be a Mac version of the Smart Console."
"I would like to see Check Point add more cloud management features and better integration with LAN software-defined networking."
"Cloud-based central administration of all devices from one point would be nice"
"Once you start getting into proxy actions and setting up: "Okay, cool. Once this rule gets triggered, what actions have to happen?" I do know a few people who use WatchGuard and they still have to get assistance when they look at that. So I would file that as a con for WatchGuard. Proxy actions can be a little bit complicated."
"I'd like to have better access to workstation monitoring, connection monitoring, and the amount of time an address is being used, to better gauge proper network utilization. If I knew that something was connected to a particular external location for an extended period that seems abnormal, I'd be able to act upon it."
"The data loss protection works well, but it could be easier to configure. The complexity of data loss protection makes it a more difficult feature to fully leverage. Better integration with third-party, two-factor authentication would be advantageous."
"Websense is an application that monitors and filters internet traffic. Websense was derived from WatchGuard. But when you go to WatchGuard to actually implement that particular feature, you have to use some type of additional feature and you have to pay for it, unfortunately. I think it should be free or free in the WatchGuard box itself, as an option. It would be nice if they didn't charge us for that."
"The level of support from WatchGuard is not as good."
"I believe there is a need for additional measures to connect mobile devices securely to the Firebox router."
"The software in it could be a bit more friendly for an amateur user. I look at it and don't understand what half the stuff is. Looking at the interface, it is all mumbo-jumbo to me. It's not a simple interface. You have to be an IT guy to understand it. It is not for your average person to use, then walk away from it. It is much more entailed."
Check Point NGFW is ranked 5th in Firewalls with 275 reviews while WatchGuard Firebox is ranked 13th in Firewalls with 78 reviews. Check Point NGFW is rated 8.8, while WatchGuard Firebox is rated 8.6. The top reviewer of Check Point NGFW writes "Good antivirus protection and URL filtering with very good user identification capabilities". On the other hand, the top reviewer of WatchGuard Firebox writes "Offers a streamlined deployment, intuitive interface and robust security features". Check Point NGFW is most compared with Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls, Sophos XG, Cisco Secure Firewall, Netgate pfSense and Forcepoint Next Generation Firewall, whereas WatchGuard Firebox is most compared with Netgate pfSense, Sophos XG, OPNsense, SonicWall TZ and SonicWall NSa. See our Check Point NGFW vs. WatchGuard Firebox report.
See our list of best Firewalls vendors, best Unified Threat Management (UTM) vendors, and best Firewalls vendors.
We monitor all Firewalls 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.