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Azure Front Door vs Azure Web Application Firewall comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jan 1, 2025

Review summaries and opinions

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

ROI

Sentiment score
6.9
Azure Front Door offers ROI through cost reduction, quick setup, and simplified management, prompting proactive adoption amid system phase-out.
Sentiment score
3.9
Azure Web Application Firewall offers cost-efficiency through reduced administration, AI enhancements, and competitive pricing compared to leading competitors.
Azure Front Door offers a quick return on investment once it is set up.
Co-Founder at arpa
AI-based recommendations save on time and money.
Head of Digital Engineering, Management Consultant at Stax Inc.
Recently, they have been under serious attack with major exploits, such as Log4j, affecting Fortinet and Palo Alto, and even Cisco and VMware.
Senior Solutions Architect at EQ2 Technology
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
7.1
Azure Front Door's customer service is mixed; some praise responsiveness and documentation, others find problem-solving quality inconsistent.
Sentiment score
7.1
Microsoft support is generally satisfactory, with users preferring higher-tier options for faster response and clearer communication.
I am able to set up a critical call with Microsoft, and they respond quickly to tickets with the highest severity.
Co-Founder at arpa
I hardly use Microsoft's paid subscription or maintenance services, however, whenever I send them a note, they have been responsive.
Head of Digital Engineering, Management Consultant at Stax Inc.
I would rate the technical support that Azure provides from Microsoft a seven.
Global IT Solutions Specialist at RELIEF INTERNATIONAL INC
I reached out to their support, and they helped me resolve the issue effectively.
Owner at ICAL S.A.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.1
Azure Front Door offers scalable, reliable global capabilities, highly rated by users, though it may become costly with extensive use.
Sentiment score
6.6
Azure Web Application Firewall offers flexible, highly-rated scalability, easily adapting to traffic changes and various workload needs across subscriptions.
Scaling can be done anytime as needed.
Co-Founder at arpa
I find that Front Door can become expensive for large-scale projects with more transactions and users.
Azure Consultant at cloudshift
Beyond a certain SKU, I can install and use these services.
Head of Digital Engineering, Management Consultant at Stax Inc.
For our company, Azure Web Application Firewall works effectively for scalability.
Global IT Solutions Specialist at RELIEF INTERNATIONAL INC
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
8.4
Azure Front Door is praised for stability and performance, with minor DNS issues and advantages in updates via Azure Portal.
Sentiment score
7.1
Azure Web Application Firewall is highly stable, with minimal connectivity or performance issues and consistently earns high reliability ratings.
I rate Azure Front Door's stability a nine because it is easy to make updates through Azure Portal.
Co-Founder at arpa
Very rarely do I see any latency issues.
Head of Digital Engineering, Management Consultant at Stax Inc.
 

Room For Improvement

Azure Front Door needs improvements in multi-cloud support, pricing, user interface, DDoS protection, and enhanced functionalities as per feedback.
Azure Web Application Firewall needs better reporting, integration, cost plans, and process streamlining for enhanced management and support.
If I could use Azure Front Door with private IP addresses, it would be more beneficial.
Azure Consultant at cloudshift
It relies on the WAF module where users must configure rate-limiting rules, as it does not automatically sense malicious spikes in traffic.
Architect at a tech vendor with 5,001-10,000 employees
The only significant adjustment required is with URL set parameters that need to be passed for an existing domain.
Co-Founder at arpa
Upgrading the platform regularly is necessary for security, however, frequent updates every six months or year from Azure can be a maintenance overhead.
Head of Digital Engineering, Management Consultant at Stax Inc.
The pricing needs improvement, and I think for beginners it will be a little bit complicated, so the ease of use could be enhanced.
Global IT Solutions Specialist at RELIEF INTERNATIONAL INC
 

Setup Cost

Azure Front Door offers flexible, tiered pricing praised for balancing cost and features, though premium levels may seem expensive.
Azure Web Application Firewall offers scalable pricing, valued functionality, and favorable terms, appealing compared to AWS and GCP.
Azure Front Door is cheaper for small projects, companies, or applications compared to using separate tools.
Azure Consultant at cloudshift
It is even a lower cost compared to AWS and GCP.
Senior Solutions Architect at EQ2 Technology
Sometimes, when opting for a higher SKU, it's not the WAF itself that's costly but the additional requirements.
Head of Digital Engineering, Management Consultant at Stax Inc.
I would place Azure Web Application Firewall at an eight on a scale from one to 10, with one being cheap and 10 being expensive.
Global IT Solutions Specialist at RELIEF INTERNATIONAL INC
 

Valuable Features

Azure Front Door enhances security, performance, and global reach with features like SSL offloading, load-balancing, and traffic analytics.
Azure Web Application Firewall offers robust security, seamless Azure integration, automatic rule management, and scalable, user-friendly deployment with minimal downtime.
Azure Front Door includes a built-in web application firewall, which performs signature-based checks of the request payload, offering protection against common attacks or malicious requests.
Co-Founder at arpa
Azure Front Door provides DDoS protection and features related to WAF.
Azure Consultant at cloudshift
With Microsoft, everything is within a single suite, making it easier to configure and plan.
Head of Digital Engineering, Management Consultant at Stax Inc.
It integrates effectively with things such as Sentinel and Defender for Cloud, so mostly it's the analytics and now the AI capabilities that have been introduced with Co-pilot.
Global IT Solutions Specialist at RELIEF INTERNATIONAL INC
It is almost impossible to access these assets from outside, requiring a very skilled attacker to obtain asset tokens of a customer using Azure.
Senior Solutions Architect at EQ2 Technology
 

Categories and Ranking

Azure Front Door
Ranking in Web Application Firewall (WAF)
13th
Ranking in Microsoft Security Suite
17th
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
16
Ranking in other categories
CDN (3rd)
Azure Web Application Firewall
Ranking in Web Application Firewall (WAF)
12th
Ranking in Microsoft Security Suite
21st
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
16
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the Web Application Firewall (WAF) category, the mindshare of Azure Front Door is 3.9%, up from 3.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Azure Web Application Firewall is 3.1%, down from 4.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Web Application Firewall (WAF) Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Azure Web Application Firewall3.1%
Azure Front Door3.9%
Other93.0%
Web Application Firewall (WAF)
 

Featured Reviews

reviewer2226693 - PeerSpot reviewer
Architect at a tech vendor with 5,001-10,000 employees
Optimizing global application performance with robust security measures and advanced traffic management
DDoS capabilities in Azure Front Door could certainly be improved. Although Microsoft states it comes with basic DDoS protections out of the box, I find it often ineffectual in mitigating thousands of requests from a single source in a short span of time. User then have to rely on the WAF module where users must configure rate-limiting rules, as it does not automatically sense malicious spikes in traffic. I believe Front Door should have an out-of-the-box premium DDoS protection that can automatically detect and block malicious traffic. I would appreciate improvements in the turnaround time for support, especially since issues with Azure Front Door are usually critical for businesses. If there is an issue, it often results in downtime for line of business applications. I have faced this situation multiple times as one of the largest financial institutions in India is hosted there, adhering to strict SLAs that require prompt responses.
Mano Senaratne - PeerSpot reviewer
Head of Digital Engineering, Management Consultant at Stax Inc.
Comprehensive suite simplifies configuration while frequent updates require management
Mainly, it comes with the complete suite of Microsoft services. I can use it in conjunction with the best options and other features that come with it. Configuration is much easier than using different platforms. For example, if I have hosted the application in AWS and am using the Application Firewall from Azure, there are certain additional steps to follow when configuring them. With Microsoft, everything is within a single suite, making it easier to configure and plan. Azure continually upgrades platforms and sends us messages to upgrade to the next version, simplifying the process. Later, it's much easier if I want to upgrade the software platform, scale it, or move it to a different application host as the whole suite comes together. The return on investment is good. If I am doing applications for clients, I can invoice them for better costs. Most applications that I run and use have a better return on investment.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
13%
Financial Services Firm
13%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Government
7%
Manufacturing Company
12%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Computer Software Company
11%
Government
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business9
Midsize Enterprise1
Large Enterprise9
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business6
Large Enterprise12
 

Questions from the Community

What's the difference between Azure Front Door and Application Gateway?
We found Azure Front Door to be easily scaled and very stable. The implementation is very fast and Microsoft provides excellent support. Azure Front Door can quickly detect abnormalities before the...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Azure Front Door?
I am not sure about the pricing but believe Azure Front Door might require a higher cost due to its entry point nature.
What needs improvement with Azure Front Door?
DDoS capabilities in Azure Front Door could certainly be improved. Although Microsoft states it comes with basic DDoS protections out of the box, I find it often ineffectual in mitigating thousands...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Azure Web Application Firewall?
I would place Azure Web Application Firewall at an eight on a scale from one to 10, with one being cheap and 10 being expensive.
What needs improvement with Azure Web Application Firewall?
The pricing needs improvement, and I think for beginners it will be a little bit complicated, so the ease of use could be enhanced. I've worked with Fortinet and Cisco, and I think the UI is a litt...
What is your primary use case for Azure Web Application Firewall?
Because we mostly operate in the cloud and because we're a Microsoft environment, it was the best option in the scenario. The options were limited in terms of wanting to be an only Microsoft enviro...
 

Also Known As

Azure Front-Door
No data available
 

Overview

Find out what your peers are saying about Azure Front Door vs. Azure Web Application Firewall and other solutions. Updated: January 2026.
881,082 professionals have used our research since 2012.