Forcepoint NGFW vs. Zscaler Internet Access

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Forcepoint NGFW
Score 8.0 out of 10
N/A
Forcepoint Next-Generation Firewall delivers network security at scale. They can be deployed from anywhere through the Secure Management Console (SMC) and unify policy management, incident response and reporting.
$900
one-time fee for the entry tier Forcepoint N60 (approx)
Zscaler Internet Access
Score 8.9 out of 10
N/A
Zscaler Internet Access™ (ZIA) is a secure web gateway (SWG), delivering cloud native cyberthreat protection and zero trust access to the internet and SaaS apps.N/A
Pricing
Forcepoint NGFWZscaler Internet Access
Editions & Modules
Forcepoint NGFW N60
$900
one-time fee (approx)
Forcepoint NGFW N120
$1314
one-time fee (approx)
Forcepoint NGFW N350
$7850
one-time fee (approx)
Forcepoint NGFW N1200
$13600
one-time fee (approx)
Forcepoint NGFW N2200
$36000
one-time fee (approx)
Forcepoint NGFW N3400 & N3500
varies
one-time fee
No answers on this topic
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
Forcepoint NGFWZscaler Internet Access
Free Trial
YesNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoYes
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional DetailsFirewalls are bought predominately through partners and third-party VARs. Pricing for purchase and lease and support options vary by reseller.
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
Forcepoint NGFWZscaler Internet Access
Features
Forcepoint NGFWZscaler Internet Access
Firewall
Comparison of Firewall features of Product A and Product B
Forcepoint NGFW
8.1
1 Ratings
6% below category average
Zscaler Internet Access
-
Ratings
Identification Technologies5.01 Ratings00 Ratings
Visualization Tools5.01 Ratings00 Ratings
Content Inspection10.01 Ratings00 Ratings
Policy-based Controls10.01 Ratings00 Ratings
Active Directory and LDAP8.01 Ratings00 Ratings
Firewall Management Console10.01 Ratings00 Ratings
Reporting and Logging8.01 Ratings00 Ratings
VPN9.01 Ratings00 Ratings
High Availability9.01 Ratings00 Ratings
Stateful Inspection7.01 Ratings00 Ratings
Identity Management
Comparison of Identity Management features of Product A and Product B
Forcepoint NGFW
-
Ratings
Zscaler Internet Access
5.0
2 Ratings
53% below category average
Multi-Factor Authentication00 Ratings5.02 Ratings
Endpoint Security
Comparison of Endpoint Security features of Product A and Product B
Forcepoint NGFW
-
Ratings
Zscaler Internet Access
10.0
2 Ratings
11% above category average
Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR)00 Ratings10.02 Ratings
Threat Intelligence
Comparison of Threat Intelligence features of Product A and Product B
Forcepoint NGFW
-
Ratings
Zscaler Internet Access
8.5
216 Ratings
9% above category average
Network Analytics00 Ratings8.7217 Ratings
Threat Recognition00 Ratings8.3214 Ratings
Vulnerability Classification00 Ratings8.5191 Ratings
Automated Alerts and Reporting00 Ratings8.2205 Ratings
Threat Analysis00 Ratings8.8203 Ratings
Threat Intelligence Reporting00 Ratings8.5199 Ratings
Automated Threat Identification00 Ratings8.5192 Ratings
Zero Trust Security
Comparison of Zero Trust Security features of Product A and Product B
Forcepoint NGFW
-
Ratings
Zscaler Internet Access
8.9
262 Ratings
4% above category average
Continuous Verification00 Ratings8.7245 Ratings
Secure Web Gateways00 Ratings9.0236 Ratings
Network Flow Control00 Ratings8.1217 Ratings
Network Traffic Analysis00 Ratings8.8219 Ratings
Segmentation Leveraging00 Ratings8.6194 Ratings
Admin Access Control00 Ratings9.0230 Ratings
Network Data Encryption00 Ratings8.8207 Ratings
Network Topology Mapping00 Ratings10.02 Ratings
Best Alternatives
Forcepoint NGFWZscaler Internet Access
Small Businesses
SonicWall NSA Series
SonicWall NSA Series
Score 8.4 out of 10
ThreatLocker
ThreatLocker
Score 9.0 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
Quantum Firewalls and Security Gateways
Quantum Firewalls and Security Gateways
Score 9.1 out of 10
Palo Alto Networks Prisma Access
Palo Alto Networks Prisma Access
Score 8.6 out of 10
Enterprises
Palo Alto Networks Virtualized Next-Generation Firewalls - VM Series
Palo Alto Networks Virtualized Next-Generation Firewalls - VM Series
Score 9.1 out of 10
Palo Alto Networks Prisma Access
Palo Alto Networks Prisma Access
Score 8.6 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
Forcepoint NGFWZscaler Internet Access
Likelihood to Recommend
9.0
(1 ratings)
9.0
(295 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
-
(0 ratings)
8.4
(6 ratings)
Usability
10.0
(1 ratings)
8.8
(279 ratings)
Availability
-
(0 ratings)
7.3
(1 ratings)
Performance
-
(0 ratings)
5.5
(1 ratings)
Support Rating
6.0
(1 ratings)
7.2
(10 ratings)
Online Training
-
(0 ratings)
7.3
(1 ratings)
Implementation Rating
-
(0 ratings)
8.3
(2 ratings)
Configurability
-
(0 ratings)
8.3
(2 ratings)
Product Scalability
-
(0 ratings)
7.3
(1 ratings)
Vendor post-sale
-
(0 ratings)
8.3
(3 ratings)
Vendor pre-sale
-
(0 ratings)
7.3
(2 ratings)
User Testimonials
Forcepoint NGFWZscaler Internet Access
Likelihood to Recommend
Forcepoint
If you are looking for a smaller network/security team, the ease and low complexity create an easy to manage environment. One engineer can easily manage 100 nodes/locations. If you are just starting to get security conscious and predict regular adjustments to policy, routing, and access, this is a very good system for making easy to understand and low impact changes on a regular basis without operations interruption.
Read full review
Zscaler
I feel the product is very good to set up basic standards and go beyond that in many aspects. However, due to being sometimes too simple, it limits the ability to do some other complex changes. Having the ability to do both would be ideal for some, if not all, of the products within Zscaler Internet Access. A simple setup to have it stand-up, and more advanced settings for those more experienced.
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Pros
Forcepoint
  • Easy to manage and make changes on - ACL's are done with ease.
  • Easy USB initial configuration - The easy initial setup of a new location and firewall saves massive time. Settings are automatically pushed to new nodes upon contact with the controller.
  • Low Complexity - This system does not have a lot of complexity requiring extra hours, training, or personnel to manage.
Read full review
Zscaler
  • Provides a secure VPN connection point for endpoint connectivity.
  • Provides the VPN connectivity in a fast and reliable connection state.
  • Very dependable, once connected the connection stays up and there's no fuss.
  • Very good at letting you know when you are not authenticated.
  • Very easy to authenticate and regain access when your session times out.
Read full review
Cons
Forcepoint
  • Poor Reporting - It exists but even when calling in to support for assistance, they have no idea how to tackle customizing reports or searching for specific data.
Read full review
Zscaler
  • ZS CLI support to turn off ZIA and ZDX service specifically on mac.
  • Better visibility into failed posture devices, including a timeline and the reason the posture failed (This is about the Zscaler mobile portal: Enrolled devices --> Failed posture devices).
Read full review
Likelihood to Renew
Forcepoint
No answers on this topic
Zscaler
While Zscaler Internet Access (ZIA) delivers critical value in cloud security and RBI compliance, I rate renewal likelihood 7/10 due to evolving needs versus platform limitations. Below is my rationale:
Key Gaps:
1. Advanced Threat Costs:
ZIA’s add-ons (e.g., Advanced DLP, Sandboxing) incur 35%+ cost premiums – straining budgets as transaction volumes (UPI/iMobile) grow 50% YoY.
2. API Banking Scalability:
ZIA’s API rate limits throttle real-time policy sync during UPI peaks (10K+ TPS), forcing workarounds for finacle integrations.
3. RBI Future-Proofing:
Limited native support for upcoming digital rupee (CBDC) security rules requires custom development, increasing compliance overhead.
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Usability
Forcepoint
The Graphical User Interface is very easy to read, understand and work with. The usability of this product is very high.
Read full review
Zscaler
Getting started was pretty straightforward. We can tell the product is way more robust than we are using it. It started as a replacement for previous DNS-blocking content filtering, but we're exploring how this will add value with an upcoming DLP redesign and with traffic optimization at some of our remote sites with severe bandwidth limits.
Read full review
Performance
Forcepoint
No answers on this topic
Zscaler
There are often performance issues reported
Read full review
Support Rating
Forcepoint
Support has varied over the history of the company. Terro is a name that comes up often with the best of service from this company.
Read full review
Zscaler
Zscaler's ZIA support is quick and knowledgable. They respond within 1-2 hours of you submitting your ticket. They are very thorough and are typically ready to jump on a live troubleshooting session. Our ZIA platform and how we use is it unique so at times tickets can be open for weeks but we alway get quality support compared to other unrelated product support in our enterprise
Read full review
Implementation Rating
Forcepoint
No answers on this topic
Zscaler
good the engineer give excellent support and eplanation
Read full review
Alternatives Considered
Forcepoint
There are similar hardware and license costs between the two products. The Forcepoint NGFW product is by far easier to use and manage.
Read full review
Zscaler
The overall user community and scope of supportability outweighed the others on our short list. Netskope was a close second, but the risk, though small, was greater than that of bringing Zscaler aboard. We were looking for a mature, well-supported, highly functional, and fine-grained solution that met all our user and information security requirements.
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Return on Investment
Forcepoint
  • Efficiency/Productivity increase. The company moved from Cisco firewall and routing hardware to Forcepoint NGFW. It now takes fewer people and fewer hours to manage the new product. This has allowed the company to put the man-hours to use on other projects and tasks.
  • Long term viability. This has been a concern in the past when the company started as Stonegate, merged to become Stonesoft then got purchased by McAfee, then McAfee got purchased by Intel. However, with Forcepoint the product seems to have found a stable home.
  • Low complexity. The Web GUI based system for management has reduced the cost of personnel and training required. There is no longer a need for the company to have higher trained and higher salary cost employees to manage the system. Mid-level admins at lower salaries are capable of managing the GUI based system with ease.
Read full review
Zscaler
  • I would say it has a very good ROI, as whenever someone can't access something, they submit a ticket to our network engineer, and within minutes, the site is safely added to ZIA with best-practice configurations. After seeing a little of the UI from the Zenith event, it seems very user-friendly to control these policies.
Read full review
ScreenShots

Zscaler Internet Access Screenshots

Screenshot of an overview of Zscaler Internet Access (ZIA), a cloud native security service edge (SSE) solution that builds on a decade of secure web gateway leadership. Offered as a scalable SaaS platform through Zscaler's security cloud, it replaces legacy network security solutions, preventing advanced attacks and data loss with a comprehensive zero trust approach. ZIA is integrated into the Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange™ to provide superior defense-in-depth, secure connectivity, end user experience, and administrative visibility and control.