Aspera Managed File Transfer vs GoAnywhere MFT comparison

IBM and Fortra are both solutions in the Managed File Transfer (MFT) category. IBM is ranked #12 with an average rating of 9.0, while Fortra is ranked #1 with an average rating of 8.6. IBM holds a 3.1% mindshare in MFT, compared to Fortra’s 10.8% mindshare. Additionally, 80% of IBM users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 98% of Fortra users who would recommend it.

Aspera Managed File Transfer

Read 4 Aspera Managed File Transfer reviews

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754 Comparison Views

80% willing to recommend

GoAnywhere MFT

Read 70 GoAnywhere MFT reviews

3,098 Views
2,881 Comparison Views

98% willing to recommend

Aspera Managed File Transfer

GoAnywhere MFT

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Sep 14, 2025

Aspera Managed File Transfer and GoAnywhere MFT are competing in the managed file transfer space. GoAnywhere seems to have the upper hand due to its comprehensive feature set that balances cost-effectiveness with extensive capabilities, despite some drawbacks in pricing and support when compared to Aspera.

Features: Aspera Managed File Transfer is known for its exceptional speed and efficiency in transferring large files, alongside strong security for critical data moves. GoAnywhere MFT proposes a wide range of capabilities, including system integration, automation, and enhanced security measures, which cater well to enterprise needs.

Room for Improvement: Aspera could improve its customer support for complex setups and enhance its cost predictability. GoAnywhere could benefit from more competitive pricing and possibly addressing some user feedback on technical support quality, along with offering further scalability options for larger enterprises.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Aspera offers a straightforward deployment model but might face challenges with more complex configurations, which could be aided by improved support. GoAnywhere is generally seen as easier to deploy and configure, backed by more responsive customer service.

Pricing and ROI: Aspera presents a significant upfront cost but justifies this with the potential for high ROI due to its fast transfers for large files. GoAnywhere offers a more predictable pricing model with potentially lower initial costs, providing a balanced offering of cost and features, thus offering potentially better ROI for businesses seeking comprehensive solutions.

To learn more, read our detailed Aspera Managed File Transfer vs. GoAnywhere MFT Report (Updated: September 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Aspera Managed File Transfer vs. GoAnywhere MFT

September 2025

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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

Aspera Managed File Transfer

Ranking in Managed File Transfer (MFT)

12th

Average Rating

7.6

Reviews Sentiment

7.0

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

GoAnywhere MFT

Ranking in Managed File Transfer (MFT)

1st

Average Rating

8.8

Reviews Sentiment

6.7

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the Managed File Transfer (MFT) category, the mindshare of Aspera Managed File Transfer is 3.1%, down from 3.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of GoAnywhere MFT is 10.8%, up from 6.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Managed File Transfer (MFT) Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
GoAnywhere MFT	10.8%
Aspera Managed File Transfer	3.1%
Other	86.1%

Managed File Transfer (MFT)

Featured Reviews

Michele Illiano

Head of Division at Innovery

Beneficial quick protocol, powerful, but limited use cases

Aspera Managed File Transfer should be packaged into another solution. Explaining to customers you need to have multiple solutions from multiple vendors for their use cases can get complicated for them to understand. The best way to propose a suite is to have an integrated suite where the customer could choose to license part of it. This solution could be one solution not two choices between 10 or 12 different solutions. The main feature of Aspera Managed File Transfer is the communication protocol, which is fast. There are a lot of different clients that are offering features related to these fast protocols. It's possible to create one unique suite that can handle this base protocol. It will be quite easy to propose to the customers.

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Rohan Suryawanshi

Senior Software Engineer at Opcito Technologies

Automation simplifies file transfer and builds confidence in security

I appreciate the features of GoAnywhere MFT such as advanced workflows to automate all the transfer and reduce manual effort. The logs and reporting are very helpful for checking all the compliances. The encryption is quite good. The main feature which is very useful is connectors to connect it with cloud services such as AWS, Azure, GCP. The automation in GoAnywhere MFT really helps us because it reduced the manual work significantly. We can transfer hundreds of files with zero manual interventions. The audit trails also help during the compliance audits. It has given stakeholders more confidence in the security of file transfer. It also helped developers to securely transfer the files. Overall, the impact was very good and positive in our business and personal improvements.

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Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Pros

"Aspera Managed File Transfer is an optimal solution for customers who want to transfer large files to remote sites with lower bandwidth and in less time."

"Good user interface and ability to set up multiple file transfer jobs."

"We were able to effectively nullify the China firewall since the China firewall was disrupting our data transfer."

"The main feature of Aspera Managed File Transfer is that it's an incredibly fast protocol, you can use all the bandwidth available. If I need to send large amounts of data this is the fastest protocol on the market. I have been using it for some minor projects and it is very powerful."

"When users say, 'I'm building spreadsheets that I would like to be uploaded on a regular basis into the IBM i,' we are able to accommodate that request within a matter of hours rather than the days it would take to create programs to do that. That is very useful. It has eliminated several dozens of scripts for us."

"This product has numerous benefits as it has automated many processes that we previously had to do manually every day."

"The SFTP and encryption functionality works well, and SFTP is the bulk of what we use."

"All of it is valuable, but the most valuable would be the ability to release medical records without having a limitation for size and not having to deal with the fax machine."

"GoDrive eliminates the need to use the exchange server for file sharing."

"The best feature of GoAnywhere MFT is that it's easy to use, and the drag-and-drop option is available."

"The user interface is simple."

"The solution is easy to learn and user-friendly, which makes it accessible even to those without programming backgrounds and extensive scripting training. Newcomers can quickly get to grips with the platform, and as it's a more object-oriented application, it's easier to use and program."

More GoAnywhere MFT pros

Cons

"If you want to do a file transfer between two countries, and one is not China, then you have other more affordable options."

"The solution's pricing is high and should be reduced."

"If there is any failure in the data transfer and it can automatically detect and reinitiate it, that would be great."

"Aspera Managed File Transfer should be packaged into another solution. Explaining to customers you need to have multiple solutions from multiple vendors for their use cases can get complicated for them to understand."

"Deployment is complex and it was difficult to get support."

"The solution's support for the Unix platform and AS2 should be improved."

"would like to see GoAnywhere MFT integrating with more connectors or rather more integration with third-party tools. I feel there is still room for improvement in that area, but I'm quite satisfied overall."

"Sometimes we use GoFast in GoAnywhere MFT because there are many failures or server issues."

"The cloud connectivity of GoAnywhere MFT to connect to different applications such as Microsoft Azure, Amazon, or Google Cloud could improve, as it's a little bit patchy right now."

"GoAnywhere's interface could be a little more intuitive."

"I am unable to accomplish this with the predefined functions provided by GoAnywhere MFT, which is why I use shell scripting."

"A drawback is that it is not as feature-rich compared to its competitor Sterling, which we used before."

"The process of adding a vendor is very easy. You just point and click. You create your job, schedule, and project, and off you go. You just need to know what the processes do when you add in a new job that runs daily and so on. For us, it is not a problem, but maybe the documentation on that could be a little more straightforward. We, however, have no problems figuring that out. It is pretty straightforward for us."

More GoAnywhere MFT cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Aspera Managed File Transfer is not an inexpensive solution. I am not aware of many competitors to determine how affordable the price is overall."

"It was close to $10,000 to $20,000."

"The cost is fine. It is probably the best software that I've had for the money that we spend for it. I am not aware of any costs in addition to the standard licensing fees. I don't pay for it. IT pays for it."

"The product's pricing is reasonable."

"Fortra's GoAnywhere MFT carries a higher price tag than other MFT solutions."

"Pricing is based on a one-time license."

"The pricing is decent for mid-sized and small-sized companies. It is good for startups or mid-scale companies."

"The pricing is not favorable when we use it for a few people."

"It has flexible and affordable pricing because of custom quotes. The prices depend on the modules one needs and the volume of data being transferred. Overall, they offer custom and flexible pricing with an annual subscription, where you pay for specific features and functionality required."

"The pricing for GoAnywhere MFT seems reasonable when compared to other similar services, especially cloud services. Azure is significantly more expensive."

More GoAnywhere MFT pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

21%

Manufacturing Company

11%

Insurance Company

Healthcare Company

Financial Services Firm

13%

Manufacturing Company

11%

Computer Software Company

Healthcare Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

No data available

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	41
Midsize Enterprise	13
Large Enterprise	36

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Aspera Managed File Transfer?

Aspera Managed File Transfer is an optimal solution for customers who want to transfer large files to remote sites with lower bandwidth and in less time.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Aspera Managed File Transfer?

There are other products of Aspera which come as add-ons, however, we haven't purchased those, like report generation, since that was not our requirement. The features we needed were included in th...

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What is your primary use case for Aspera Managed File Transfer?

We have an office in China, and we wanted to transfer data from China to the UK. We have an office in the UK as well.

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What do you like most about Fortra's GoAnywhere MFT?

GoDrive eliminates the need to use the exchange server for file sharing.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Fortra's GoAnywhere MFT?

Regarding GoAnywhere MFT's pricing, I think it is quite affordable since it was subscribed for me by my boss.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Fortra's GoAnywhere MFT?

In the areas where GoAnywhere MFT could improve, I find that for a few tasks, sometimes it becomes more complex because the workflows they have are complex to understand. Their product documentatio...

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Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Managed File Transfer (MFT)

October 2025

Download Aspera Managed File Transfer product report

Buyer's Guide

GoAnywhere MFT

September 2025

Download GoAnywhere MFT product report

Also Known As

No data available

HelpSystems GoAnywhere MFT, GoAnywhere MFT, GoAnywhere Managed File Transfer,

Overview

IBM Aspera takes a different approach to tackling the challenges of big data movement over global WANs. Rather than optimize or accelerate data transfer, Aspera eliminates underlying bottlenecks by using its proprietary fasp technology that fully utilizes available network bandwidth to maximize speed and quickly scale up with no theoretical limit. Using fasp, transfers are secure end-to-end and are largely unaffected by file size, transfer distance, or network conditions, making transfer times up to 100Xs faster than TCP-based protocols.

IBM Aspera offers SaaS, on-prem, and hybrid solutions to meet the needs of modernizing infrastructures. All solutions offer robust security and compliance, intuitive file sharing, workflow automation, central administration, and real-time visibility. Quickly and easily initiate transfers across hybrid infrastructures, including support for cloud-to-cloud transfers. IBM Aspera offers unmatched transfer speeds, end-to-end security, reliability, and exceptional bandwidth control.

IBM

GoAnywhere MFT offers user-friendly workflow features, advanced security, and seamless integrations. Its intuitive interface supports streamlined operations and rapid project creation, making it suitable for managing secure file transfers.

GoAnywhere MFT provides sophisticated automation through Advanced Workflows, enabling reduced manual tasks and improved efficiency. With centralized data exchange, file monitoring, and comprehensive security protocols, it supports scalability, encryption, and IP filtering for enhanced protection. Users appreciate its adaptability with systems including IBM and Epic, contributing to improved process management and significant time savings. While beneficial, enhancements in DNS support, user interface intuitiveness, and customer service responsiveness are potential growth areas. License costs are noted as high, with demands for better documentation, cloud service integrations, and improved scalability and load-balancing functionalities.

What are the key features of GoAnywhere MFT?

User-Friendly Workflows: Intuitive interface streamlines operations.
Advanced Security: Includes encryption, IP filters, and monitoring.
Seamless Integrations: Adapts to systems like IBM and Epic.
Automation: Simplifies processes with reduced manual tasks.
Scalability: Grows with business needs.

What are the benefits and ROI of using GoAnywhere MFT?

Improved Efficiency: Reduces workload through automation.
Time Savings: Accelerates project delivery.
Enhanced Security: Protects data with advanced protocols.
Adaptability: Supports multiple platforms and integrations.
Process Management: Simplifies and streamlines data exchange.

GoAnywhere MFT is deployed by organizations for secure file transfers across systems like financial, healthcare, and corporate sectors. It supports SFTP, FTP, and HTTPS for data exchanges and is highly effective in automating processes and managing large file movements efficiently. It integrates well with cloud platforms like Azure and accommodates environments such as Windows, Linux, and IBM iSeries.

Fortra

Sample Customers

Gwinnett County Public Schools, Evonik, Voith, BITMARCK, Oracle

McKesson City of Modesto, California Kwik Trip Northwestern University Charter Communications

Buyer's Guide

Aspera Managed File Transfer vs. GoAnywhere MFT

September 2025

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