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AWS Firewall Manager vs Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 4, 2024

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

AWS Firewall Manager
Ranking in Firewall Security Management
7th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
11
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Cisco Secure Firewall Manag...
Ranking in Firewall Security Management
9th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.4
Number of Reviews
28
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of February 2026, in the Firewall Security Management category, the mindshare of AWS Firewall Manager is 3.2%, down from 4.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center is 1.7%, up from 0.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Firewall Security Management Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
AWS Firewall Manager3.2%
Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center1.7%
Other95.1%
Firewall Security Management
 

Featured Reviews

Venda E - PeerSpot reviewer
Cloud Option Engineer at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Centralized security policies have streamlined audits and ensure consistent protection by default
One area for improvement is the reporting and customization option. The compliance reports are helpful, but having more granular insights or export options would make it even easier to use during audits. Also, support for more third-party integration could improve flexibility. Another improvement I need to see is a smoother setup experience. Some of the initial configuration steps, especially around the organization and permissions, can feel complex. A more guided setup or clear UI explanation would make it easier for teams to adopt quickly. One more improvement would be better alerting options. Right now, we mostly rely on AWS Security Hub or CloudWatch for detailed alerts. Having more built-in, real-time notification directly from AWS Firewall Manager would make it easier to monitor policy violations without extra setup.
reviewer2290770 - PeerSpot reviewer
Sr. Solutions Architect, Consulting Engineer at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
Centralized firewall policies have strengthened security posture and simplified threat management
So far, I find that everything related to Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center is adequate. The only thing that was missing in the portfolio was SD-WAN, which I would like to use similar to Fortinet. Now Cisco has published the 120 series and the 1100 series, which support SD-WAN features in the firewall. I have not tried it myself yet, but I intend to use it and configure it as an SD-WAN gateway. When I use it, I will be able to provide feedback on whether there is anything new or if everything is adequate, but I have not used it or configured it by my hand till now.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"It has centralized cloud firewall management rules. It provides compliance in tracking and reporting."
"The product is highly reliable."
"It is helpful for our compliance, as the compliance manager manages compliance with leading industry standards such as FedRAMP, which my company complies with, GDPR laws, and ISO 27001."
"The interface is intuitive and it is easy for the users."
"The most valuable feature is scaling, which allows you to deploy one configuration and scan and deploy it across the network. The automated policy application feature also streamlines security operations."
"AWS Firewall Manager isn't a separate solution when you create the virtual private cloud (VPC), so you can control the traffic through that security group."
"The most valuable feature is the centrally managed rule. I also like the central orchestration."
"Once this solution is set up, we hardly have to touch it."
"Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center is scalable."
"The solution is easy to use."
"The applied policy inside the firewall is good."
"The solution has a great UI and a policy deployment mechanism, and all the configuration is easily manageable for the firewalls."
"The solution is quite scalable."
"I like the dashboard since it gives me a lot of information."
"The overall product rating is eight out of ten."
"Malware detection, URL filtering, and antivirus are the most beneficial features for our security management. The platform has three main components: filters, hardware, and antivirus. We use the standard approach for automation and integration. The person in charge of management follows the rules and policies of the equipment and handles operations. However, we haven't set up any notifications, so it's mostly manual."
 

Cons

"The system should be more customizable."
"Enabling and configuring the logging is not that straightforward."
"This solution is suitable for a small-scale enterprise and may not scale up to a very high volume of traffic or a large number of servers."
"I would like to see AWS add some UTM features to the firewall. It would also be great if AWS Firewall had native IPS/IDS. They have the separate IPS/IDS, GuardDuty."
"The product could benefit from improvements in the user interface and integration capabilities."
"They could consider organizing and enhancing documentation in a more structured and chronological manner"
"For AWS WAF, we have seen cases where it allowed suspicious HTTPS headers even if they carried malicious payloads."
"One area for improvement is the reporting and customization option."
"The product's setup could be easier."
"I recommend they work on usability and ensure the solution is more user-friendly."
"Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center could improve by being less expensive."
"The initial setup is a bit complex."
"The solution should improve the user interface."
"I expect more integration with AI."
"We use the suggested standard policies that come with the equipment. We don't put much effort into customizing these policies, which we know is a risk. We're moving to a more advanced IT area that will change how we manage the firewall policies. Cisco offers many ways to manage the equipment, but our team lacks extensive knowledge. We're moving these responsibilities to a specialized security team."
"Due to the lack of enough tutorials available online, I face problems with Cisco."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The licensing is on a pay-as-you-go basis and we are billed monthly."
"From what I've heard from my colleagues, it appears that the pricing is competitive, which influenced our decision to choose this option."
"The AWS Firewall Manager is a little on the costly side."
"It is a cost-efficient product."
"It could be considered relatively cheaper when compared to some other vendors in the market."
"As for pricing, the tool is expensive for us. I'd rate it eight out of ten on a scale where ten is the most expensive."
"Technical support is an additional annual cost and is not included with the license."
"One of the advantages of Cisco is its range of flexible licensing options."
"The price of the solution is expensive. We do not have to pay more than the standard licensing fees."
"The platform is costly."
"The product pricing is reasonable and falls in the mid-range."
"The solution is expensive. We have a multi-license, and we pay extra for support."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
8%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Hospitality Company
8%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Marketing Services Firm
15%
Computer Software Company
8%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Performing Arts
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business5
Large Enterprise8
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business12
Midsize Enterprise9
Large Enterprise7
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for AWS Firewall Manager?
My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing for AWS Firewall Manager has been straightforward. There is no separate licensing cost for AWS Firewall Manager itself. It is included with AWS...
What needs improvement with AWS Firewall Manager?
One area for improvement is the reporting and customization option. The compliance reports are helpful, but having more granular insights or export options would make it even easier to use during a...
What is your primary use case for AWS Firewall Manager?
My main use case for AWS Firewall Manager is centrally managing and enforcing security policies across multiple AWS accounts. It helps me to ensure consistent WAF rules, security group policies, an...
What do you like most about Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center?
The platform has significantly enhanced our organization's operations by providing secure communication channels between different office locations.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center?
I find the pricing for Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center to be very reasonable, as they offer the license for both virtual and hardware options. For the virtual option, they have minimum lice...
What needs improvement with Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center?
So far, I find that everything related to Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center is adequate. The only thing that was missing in the portfolio was SD-WAN, which I would like to use similar to Fort...
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Expedia, Intuit, Royal Dutch Shell, Brooks Brothers
Information Not Available
Find out what your peers are saying about AWS Firewall Manager vs. Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center and other solutions. Updated: February 2026.
881,733 professionals have used our research since 2012.