No more typing reviews! Try our Samantha, our new voice AI agent.

Check Point Quantum Force vs Netgate pfSense comparison

Why PeerSpot?
 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Feb 22, 2026

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

Check Point Quantum Force
Ranking in Firewalls
28th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
5.7
Number of Reviews
4
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Netgate pfSense
Ranking in Firewalls
3rd
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
223
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of November 2026, in the Firewalls category, the mindshare of Check Point Quantum Force is 0.9%, up from 0.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Netgate pfSense is 6.6%, down from 10.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Firewalls Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Netgate pfSense6.6%
Check Point Quantum Force0.9%
Other92.5%
Firewalls
 

Featured Reviews

VikramDhane - PeerSpot reviewer
IT Manager Cloud Network And Security at Piramal Group
Granular policy management has strengthened threat visibility and improved real-time response
I have observed weaknesses in Check Point Quantum Force, particularly when configuring tunnels from any point product to a peer, which has very complex configuration requirements. I must create a star topology or community in which I need to define some configuration, and it is not straightforward communication for IPSec. In comparison, another brand such as Palo Alto firewall offers very straightforward configuration. However, in Check Point, the complexity is present. I believe it would be beneficial if they could improve the configuration part. An additional feature I would appreciate in Check Point Quantum Force in the future is an easier way to manage and configure, along with real-time monitoring. From a user perspective, it would be beneficial to have all gateway tunnel monitoring in one window. Currently, there are different tabs for monitoring, and if I want to check the monitoring status, it would be better if I could access it all in a single window, as other firewalls offer. With Check Point Quantum Force, I currently check the tunnel status, which involves monitoring in another smart console that will open and show the status. I would prefer a smart console that consolidates all the statuses, such as tunnel status, tunnel monitoring status, and log status, in a single window rather than navigating to different windows.
Juan-Arias - PeerSpot reviewer
Principal Cloud Architect - Software Engineer at a consultancy with 11-50 employees
Rapid VPN setup has connected offices in minutes and brings live insights for proactive issue control
What I appreciate the most about Netgate pfSense is the ease and straightforward nature of the platform. I can set up a new office in less than 10 minutes. The benefits of using Netgate pfSense are that I can set up VPNs in less than two to three minutes, and then just deploy the file across my networks, where everybody would be connected in less than an hour. The dashboards of Netgate pfSense bring all the necessary information that I need at a glance, and it is actually a live update every three to five seconds. It is spotless, and I have been able to catch issues before they hit operations.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The outcomes from Check Point Quantum Force firewall gave us the ability to be fit and secure from the cyber world."
"The security features and layered security features are better compared to others."
"In performance and threat prevention, it has benefited my cybersecurity strategy."
"The most valuable features I find in Check Point Quantum Force are the security policy features, including all security features that are provided by firewall, IPS/IDS."
"It is a stable solution, it is also easy to install, and it can be deployed and maintained by one team member."
"We like the fact that the product is open-source. It's free to use. There are no costs associated with it."
"The power to use old hardware allows an exceptional ROI the investment is little just a few network cards"
"My favorite thing about pfSense is its overall stability of the product. It's rock solid and low maintenance. I like that aspect. It doesn't cost much, and it's feature-rich, including mobile VPN, pfBlocker, and IPS."
"Network security and speed have both improved."
"I am happy with the EPLS, the radius, and I am happy with the captive portal."
"We used Watchguard and Endian, but pfSense is the most complete for layer 3 firewalls."
"The most valuable feature of this solution is its simplicity."
 

Cons

"I have observed weaknesses in Check Point Quantum Force, particularly when configuring tunnels from any point product to a peer, which has very complex configuration requirements."
"The complexity of configuring a VPN needs to be improved because we need to go back and forth to configure VPNs."
"I see good competition which is less expensive."
"Check Point Quantum Force does not have strong local support. We are based in India, and Check Point Quantum Force does not have extensive local support in our region."
"It has everything I need, but the main drawback of pfSense is that it's not user-friendly."
"The portal is still not well-tuned. There are still issues regarding implementation and its effectiveness. But besides that, everything else is great, from the purchase to implementation, setup, etc. Only the portal needs a lot of work."
"It's probable that an improvement can be made to the user friendliness of the interface."
"VPN ability needs to be improved."
"I found the technical support of the solution to be not very good at all."
"pfSense's dashboard offers basic monitoring, but it lacks centralized management for multiple PSM devices and a unified event interface for various services."
"Maybe Netgate needs to see if a medium-level Netgate pfSense Plus can be created for smaller organizations."
"The user interface can be improved to make it easier to add more features. And pfSense could be better integrated with other solutions, like antivirus."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available
"pfSense is a free solution."
"The solution is free. However, you need to pay for support."
"The cost of other firewalls goes to thousands and lakhs of rupees compared to pfSense, which costs zero. If we opt for Fortinet, it costs about one lakh thirty thousand Indian rupees for the firewall, and then it costs up to almost fifteen to twenty thousand annually for the user subscription. With Netgate pfSense, all those things get covered at zero cost."
"There is an open-source community version that is available."
"The pricing is lower than some of its competitors."
"I like the fact that it is open-source."
"Netgate pfSense is a cost-effective option. If you're not using VPN, you can acquire a decent embedded PC for around a hundred dollars and install pfSense on it, effectively creating a robust firewall solution. With this setup, you can achieve a throughput of two hundred to three hundred megabits per second (Mbps) without any issues, provided you're handling relatively simple rules. The level of performance depends on the specific requirements and tasks."
"We are using the open-source version which is free. We are testing the solution to see if we are going to go to the enterprise version which requires a license and is not free."
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Firewalls solutions are best for your needs.
920,769 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Outsourcing Company
16%
Construction Company
10%
Comms Service Provider
10%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Comms Service Provider
12%
Computer Software Company
9%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Outsourcing Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business172
Midsize Enterprise34
Large Enterprise29
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Check Point Quantum Force?
In terms of pricing, setup cost, and licensing, many users and clients say that the pricing is high. The license structure, with which blades and features are included and what extra licenses you n...
What needs improvement with Check Point Quantum Force?
I would assess Check Point Quantum Force's real-time threat intelligence in guarding against ransomware as not effective. I have not used its real-time threat intelligence. I am not very familiar w...
What is your primary use case for Check Point Quantum Force?
I am dealing mostly with firewalls and I am working with Check Point Quantum Force. I have utilized the capability to secure only the on-premises environments and not in cloud.
Help me find the best open source router
You don't really specify what type of router you are looking for but if you are talking about a gateway router I recommend PFSense. This software solutions can be installed on youf own hardware or ...
How do I choose between Fortinet FortiGate and pfSense?
Fortinet’s Fortigate is a firewall solution we use and are very much satisfied with its performance. We find Fortigate both cost-effective and efficient. One of the features we like most is that Fo...
What is the difference between PfSense and OPNsense?
Two of the most common and well recognized firewalls, PfSense and OPNsense both support site-to-site IPsec VPN and client, Open VPN and client, and PPTP client. Both also have intrusion detection a...
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
Nerds On Site Inc., RKC Development Inc., Expertech, Fisher's Technology, Ncisive, Consulting, CPURX, Vaughn's Computer House Calls, Imeretech LLC, Digital Crisis, Carolina Digital Phone, Technigogo Technology Services, The Simple Solution, SwiftecITInc, Rocky Mountain Tech Team, Free Range Geeks, Alaska Computer Geeks, Lark Information Technology, Renaissance Systems Inc., Cutting Edge Computers, Caretech LLC, GoVanguard, Network Touch Ltd, P.C. Solutions.Net, Vision Voice and Data Systems LLC, Montgomery Technologies, Techforce, Concero Networks, ASONInc, CPS Electronics and Consulting, Darkwire.net LLC, IT Specialists, MBS-Net Inc., VOICE1 LLC, Advantage Networking Inc., Powerhouse Systems, Doxa Multimedia Inc., Pro Computer Service, Virtual IT Services, A&J Computers Inc., Envision IT LLC, CommunicaONE Inc., Bone Computer Inc., Amax Engineering Corporation, QPG Ltd. Co., IT 101 Inc., Perfect Cloud Solutions, Applied Technology Group Inc., The Digital Sun Group LLC, Firespring
Find out what your peers are saying about Check Point Quantum Force vs. Netgate pfSense and other solutions. Updated: November 2026.
920,769 professionals have used our research since 2012.