Fortinet FortiGate vs. Zscaler Internet Access

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
FortiGate
Score 8.7 out of 10
N/A
FortiNet FortiGate is a firewall option with high integrability. It offers a variety of deployment options and next-gen firewall capabilities, including integration with IaaS cloud platforms and public cloud environments.N/A
Zscaler Internet Access
Score 8.8 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
Fortinet FortiGateZscaler Internet Access
Editions & Modules
No answers on this topic
No answers on this topic
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
FortiGateZscaler Internet Access
Free Trial
YesNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoYes
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional DetailsFortiGate pricing starts at $250 for home office use, up to $300,000 for large enterprise appliances. Must contact sales team for pricing.
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
Fortinet FortiGateZscaler Internet Access
Considered Both Products
FortiGate

No answer on this topic

Zscaler Internet Access
Chose Zscaler Internet Access
Fortinet's hosted solution is not really supported in my opinion. Opening a ticket for hosted firewall is a pain and even during the POC phase we had to work with engineers who really didn't understand our use case and we were not really happy with the way they presented the …
Features
Fortinet FortiGateZscaler Internet Access
Firewall
Comparison of Firewall features of Product A and Product B
Fortinet FortiGate
8.7
51 Ratings
1% above category average
Zscaler Internet Access
-
Ratings
Identification Technologies8.949 Ratings00 Ratings
Visualization Tools8.249 Ratings00 Ratings
Content Inspection8.950 Ratings00 Ratings
Policy-based Controls8.851 Ratings00 Ratings
Active Directory and LDAP8.748 Ratings00 Ratings
Firewall Management Console7.750 Ratings00 Ratings
Reporting and Logging8.151 Ratings00 Ratings
VPN9.150 Ratings00 Ratings
High Availability9.446 Ratings00 Ratings
Stateful Inspection9.349 Ratings00 Ratings
Proxy Server8.737 Ratings00 Ratings
Identity Management
Comparison of Identity Management features of Product A and Product B
Fortinet FortiGate
-
Ratings
Zscaler Internet Access
5.3
2 Ratings
51% below category average
Multi-Factor Authentication00 Ratings5.32 Ratings
Endpoint Security
Comparison of Endpoint Security features of Product A and Product B
Fortinet FortiGate
-
Ratings
Zscaler Internet Access
9.8
2 Ratings
4% above category average
Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR)00 Ratings9.82 Ratings
Threat Intelligence
Comparison of Threat Intelligence features of Product A and Product B
Fortinet FortiGate
-
Ratings
Zscaler Internet Access
9.2
7 Ratings
5% above category average
Network Analytics00 Ratings9.27 Ratings
Threat Recognition00 Ratings9.37 Ratings
Vulnerability Classification00 Ratings9.17 Ratings
Automated Alerts and Reporting00 Ratings9.07 Ratings
Threat Analysis00 Ratings9.37 Ratings
Threat Intelligence Reporting00 Ratings9.17 Ratings
Automated Threat Identification00 Ratings9.17 Ratings
Zero Trust Security
Comparison of Zero Trust Security features of Product A and Product B
Fortinet FortiGate
-
Ratings
Zscaler Internet Access
9.5
7 Ratings
3% above category average
Continuous Verification00 Ratings9.37 Ratings
Secure Web Gateways00 Ratings9.77 Ratings
Network Flow Control00 Ratings9.87 Ratings
Network Traffic Analysis00 Ratings9.37 Ratings
Segmentation Leveraging00 Ratings9.46 Ratings
Admin Access Control00 Ratings9.27 Ratings
Network Data Encryption00 Ratings9.27 Ratings
Network Topology Mapping00 Ratings9.82 Ratings
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User Ratings
Fortinet FortiGateZscaler Internet Access
Likelihood to Recommend
9.0
(78 ratings)
8.7
(24 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
7.0
(5 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Usability
8.6
(19 ratings)
8.4
(8 ratings)
Availability
8.0
(3 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Performance
9.0
(2 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Support Rating
9.0
(27 ratings)
8.1
(5 ratings)
In-Person Training
10.0
(1 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Implementation Rating
5.0
(5 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Configurability
7.0
(2 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Contract Terms and Pricing Model
8.0
(1 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Ease of integration
7.0
(2 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Product Scalability
7.0
(3 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Vendor post-sale
8.0
(2 ratings)
8.0
(1 ratings)
Vendor pre-sale
8.0
(2 ratings)
8.0
(1 ratings)
User Testimonials
Fortinet FortiGateZscaler Internet Access
Likelihood to Recommend
Fortinet
Fortinet FortiGate addressed an immediate security issue we had a few years ago. The device gave us a much clearer picture of the activities on our network and also more importantly, increased our awareness of threats from the internet as a whole. Fortinet FortiGate helps us to mitigate these threats with regular signature updates from Fortiguard labs, identifying certain characteristics which, once recognised by Fortinet FortiGate, can be harnessed to deploy powerful 'playbooks'.
Read full review
Zscaler
Zscaler is suitable for all organisations as the internet traffic can be managed very well without any concern. All the devices can be available under a single umbrella, which is easier to manage. The application can be managed via a console, but installation can only be done with the help of a dedicated crew as it needs a one-time password.
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Pros
Fortinet
  • SD-WAN - Load balancing of Internet traffic is a USP of Fortigate and makes it stand tall in the competition. Be it 3 or more Internet Links, multiple Subnets/segments of users to distribute and bandwidth load balancing for links and users. SLA based monitoring of Internet Links / MPLS links, makes it even better to choose the links on the basis of performance (Latency, packet loss, Jitter etc).
  • SSL VPN configuration - As we all have WFH force (to some extend or all employee) during Covid-19, it is impossible to plan BCP without having a SSL VPN. In Fortigate, the SSL VPN configuration is very easy with the help of wizard. The deep CLI-level debugging is also very helpful in troubleshooting. Type of tunnel can be easily configured - Full Tunnel or Split Tunnel for SSL.
  • Explicit Proxy - This is also a great feature to shape and re-route the traffic, configuring the Proxy on the Firewall itself. We are using this feature in Pilot for now, and planned to rollout in few weeks looking at the success rate of the POC.
Read full review
Zscaler
  • Automatically block the malicious content and websites
  • Scans inbound and outbound network packets
  • Has a proxy server through which all the network calls pass through
  • We have customized Zscaler Internet Access to block websites like Netflix, Hotstar etc which can hinder producivity
Read full review
Cons
Fortinet
  • Documentation is missing a great deal of detail and assumes the customer and just guess and fill in the blanks themselves
  • Fortinet has lots and lots of video guides on topics that only a small percentage of customers would ever need
  • The documentation and video guides do not get updated so most is only relevant to older software versions
Read full review
Zscaler
  • Given all of the features Zscaler Internet Access bundles (firewall, CASB, URL filter, DLP, etc...) it makes the console somewhat cumbersome. Anyone planning to utilize Zscaler Internet Access should be prepared to invest time in training or seek out professional services.
  • In some cases, the app risk index ratings do not include enough criteria to effectively assess an applications risk exposure. Adding more criteria or allowing customers to add their own would be a welcomed feature.
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Likelihood to Renew
Fortinet
Fortinet's products have kept improving with new software releases and they continue to deliver great value. Their support is also very good. I believe that as a small enterprise, their products have given us competitive advantage delivering features and functionality that enable us to innovate and do things better. They also continue to be a leader in the markets they serve.
Read full review
Zscaler
No answers on this topic
Usability
Fortinet
The firewall runs very well, firmware updates are fairly quick but you must follow the upgrade path. Neglecting this step will cause a lot of pain. If you decide to go with Fortinet FortiGate switches and/or access points, they can be managed within the firewall which is great. We're also using the FortiAnalyzer which easily plugs into the firewall for any reporting you may require.
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Zscaler
Zscaler is a mandatory solution required by almost every large organization with a workforce working remotely or using cloud-based apps. Its deployment is relatively easy and it keeps on working in the background without actively bothering the user. Apart from a few weird messages which a user is unable to comprehend, Zscaler is able to provide fast and safe access to the internet and other external applications.
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Reliability and Availability
Fortinet
We had didn't any hardware failures at our two main office locations and upgraded our units last year after using them for about 5-6 years
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Zscaler
No answers on this topic
Performance
Fortinet
Good performance and really good integration. We have integration with Microsoft AD.
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Zscaler
No answers on this topic
Support Rating
Fortinet
The Support team at Fortinet is excellent. They can not only help you configure the device for what you are trying to do, they offer suggestions on improving rules, and troubleshooting issues. Their response time is fast, ensuring you are up and running immediately with no questions asked. We had a hard drive failure in one of our Fortinet Fortigate appliances. The tech answered immediately, and started rebuilding the drive after some preliminary investigations. After rebuilding, there were still errors and issues, so they dispatched a brand new Fortinet Fortigate appliance. The tech then backed up the configurations for when the new device came in, which showed up in a few hours. A restore of the configuration took less than a minute, and there were no more errors or issues.
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Zscaler
I cannot give a fair rating for this as I have not had to contact Zscaler support. There was one time we had to contact them because we needed to check if they were having issues on their end. Our ISP was actually the problem but support seemed very friendly.
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In-Person Training
Fortinet
I received it a couple years afters use it and it was just to confirm my knowledge about the tool.
Read full review
Zscaler
No answers on this topic
Implementation Rating
Fortinet
Make sure that you have the most current version of FortiOS. Make sure all Fortigates are on the same version
Read full review
Zscaler
No answers on this topic
Alternatives Considered
Fortinet
[Fortinet] FortiGate is not only cost effective but it gives the comprehensive security against the APT attacks and gives the complete traffic visibility and granular control. You can easily create the VDOMs (Virtual firewall) within a Fortigate firewall and customize the dashboard as per your requirement if you have multiple VDOMs within a single firewall.
Read full review
Zscaler
Zscaler Intenet Access outperformed the competition due to its lightning-fast policy delivery and cross-compatibility. It is easy to track employee usage and block unnecessary websites, reducing company internet usage. Zscalar installed on every system increases cloud-based software bandwidth, decreasing user turnaround time and increasing efficiency.
Read full review
Contract Terms and Pricing Model
Fortinet
No changes needed to terms and conditions.
Read full review
Zscaler
No answers on this topic
Scalability
Fortinet
My environments are pretty small (less than 100 users per location) so no issues here.
Read full review
Zscaler
No answers on this topic
Return on Investment
Fortinet
  • The pricing given to us for our firewall was well within what we were already spending for other vendors solutions and had the added value of eliminating a separate expense for a dedicated web filtering appliance.
  • We have also adopted Fortinet's security fabric approach and thus changed vendors for our switch and AP devices. These devices have come at reduced prices as compared to another previous vendor we were using, particularly in relation to ongoing annual maintenance costs.
Read full review
Zscaler
  • We cancelled our lease line contract and our static IP contract from our ISP which is a key win for us.
  • We can make sure that our users are connecting to our share drive securely even if they are on the road which is also a key win.
  • The negative side with Zscaler is we cant choose our internet gateway IP address as its managed by Zscaler.
  • Another negative side is Zscaler is not a complete package for us as we maintain our on-premise firewall (Fortinet) along with Zscaler.
Read full review
ScreenShots

Zscaler Internet Access Screenshots

Screenshot of Stop Advanced Threats and Data Loss
Zscaler Internet Access (ZIA) is 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 the world’s largest security cloud, it replaces legacy network security solutions, preventing advanced attacks and data loss with a comprehensive zero trust approach. ZIA is integrated seamlessly into the Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange™ to provide superior defense-in-depth, secure connectivity, end user experience, and administrative visibility and control.