Cisco Duo vs Cloudflare One comparison

Cisco and Cloudflare are both solutions in the Access Management category. Cisco is ranked #4 with an average rating of 8.8, while Cloudflare is ranked #10 with an average rating of 9.0. Additionally, 96% of Cisco users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of Cloudflare users who would recommend it.

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Jan 4, 2026

Cisco Duo and Cloudflare One compete in the security solution category. Cisco Duo has an advantage in deployment flexibility and customer support, while Cloudflare One benefits from enhanced integration and cost-effectiveness.

Features: Cisco Duo offers flexible multi-factor authentication without smartphones, strong VPN security, and easy integration with a simplified single-pane-of-glass management. Cloudflare One provides an identity-aware proxy, zero-trust network access, and improved latency, making it suitable for hybrid work environments.

Room for Improvement: Cisco Duo needs to address issues with telephony credits, complex pricing, and integration with vendors like Microsoft. Simplifying deployments and enhancing SMS delivery could be beneficial. Cloudflare One should improve pricing transparency, legacy system integration, and support documentation, while adding user feedback and automated alerts.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Cisco Duo supports deployment across public, hybrid, private clouds, and on-premises environments with generally reliable customer support. Cloudflare One provides simplicity in public cloud deployments but could improve support responsiveness and documentation to match Duo’s reputation.

Pricing and ROI: Cisco Duo's pricing varies with support and features, providing a fair investment through enhanced security and reduced breach risks. Cloudflare One, while competitively priced, can improve its pricing transparency but offers a good balance of cost and ROI, particularly for organizations streamlining security expenses.

To learn more, read our detailed Cisco Duo vs. Cloudflare One Report (Updated: December 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Cisco Duo vs. Cloudflare One

December 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

iboss

Featured Reviews

reviewer2701851

Managing Director

Enhances web security with a single pane of glass and flexible deployment

I don't see any need for improvement; one of the really good things about iboss as a company is that they listen to customer feedback. I have suggested enhancements, and they are responsive, making changes for the better, and they do a lot of testing. To improve iboss, although we haven't used it, we considered the VPN solution that comes with the highest tier licensing, which includes DLP and various other add-ons. We prefer using another product which automatically logs you back onto your network when turning on your PC. With iboss, the connection is manual, which doesn't meet our needs. Additionally, sizing can be tricky because, although the initial recommendations may seem adequate, actual usage may require more gateways than anticipated.

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Charles Slaustas

Information Technology Contractor at Insight global

Supports seamless authentication for users across multiple organizations and personal portals

The features I use in Cisco Duo include Duo Pushes to confirm my identity to the device, and eventually as MFA security was increased, I actually had to use exchange passcodes. Sometimes, I have to go into the site and get into Cisco Duo to retrieve the passcode, and many of them have been two-factor, where the sites send a passcode that I have to enter into Cisco Duo. It has been more of the latter. I have not seen issues with lagging or crashing on Cisco Duo's end; it was usually on the client end, often because someone set up a bad upgrade or there were connection issues with the Cisco Duo cloud through the administrative site.

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Cobe Van Coller

Network Architect at IP Dimension

Cloud security has improved remote access and has reduced costs for smaller client sites

I have used Cloudflare One's Identity-Aware Proxy, and it is quite straightforward from what I have seen so far. The app registration on the Azure side integrates fully into Cloudflare, and I am very satisfied with that part because it is easy to set up. The integration of Cloudflare One's Secure Web Gateway and Zero Trust Network Access works without any issues. That part is pretty automatic, and if you complete the rest of the setup, it comes together by itself with no issues from my side. What makes it nice is that we can actually start replacing on-site firewalls at this stage for the smaller clients because it does not matter if they go to a coffee shop or work from home; they are still secured by the same connection. The hops get shorter and you get better latency. We have done testing to see if it is better. One thing that we did notice with our proof of concept with our current client is that they have people connecting from the UK. When they used their previous VPN solution, uploading CAD drawings and other files to the server took a long time. They mentioned that it is much quicker on Cloudflare One's solution. I definitely believe that is part of the improved performance, and I am satisfied with that as well. What is nice about Cloudflare One is that it makes the setup easier and also easier to train technicians to maintain it. Compared to legacy systems, we do not need to get fancy firewalls in place that are costly. That is definitely also a cost-saver with Cloudflare One.

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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

"Because of iboss, I did not have to assign web filtering tasks to my techs on a daily basis."

"iboss is easy to use despite its complexity. Multiple engineers manage it, but it's significantly more straightforward to administer than traditional VPNs and web proxies."

"Valuable features: Within the filter: Controls (Web categories, applications, and Allow/Block list) and Network (local Subnets). Within the reporter: Logs (Event Log) and Reports."

"iboss is among the few products providing inline filtering where no application is needed on the device."

"First of all, the security policies are essential. I do not have to rely solely on Active Directory for our users."

"Technical support is pretty sharp and very responsive."

"Its initial setup was straightforward."

"The solution has massively improved our security posture, giving us full visibility into what our staff does online."

More iboss pros

"Cisco Duo has made us more secure. We've managed to stop some threats with it and keep our users and devices safe."

"The most valuable features of Duo Security are visibility and OTP authentication. The OTP is very important because it is a self-enrollment feature, you are able to enroll users very quickly with a shorter time period."

"The single pane of glass management works very well. That feature is very important because we have a lot of admins who have to manage Duo, and it's much easier when it's a single pane of glass. That single pane is also great because it's easy to enroll new devices."

"Cisco Duo seems very scalable; in my experience, I started with a small-medium business, and in my last contracting position, it was a large one for a major worldwide airline that had hundreds of thousands of devices that could use Cisco Duo, and it scaled very well."

"The flexibility is the most valuable feature. We use it for the app on the phone. When we're at different locations, the phone is usually there, so we can use that. It has just been a very flexible option."

"Cisco Duo has benefited our company overall by giving us the ability to have multi-factor authentication."

"Cisco Duo seems very scalable; in my last contracting position, it was a large one for a major worldwide airline that had hundreds of thousands of devices that could use Cisco Duo, and it scaled very well."

"The push notifications and the integrations they offer are valuable. Their mobile app is very useful. It is very easy to use."

More Cisco Duo pros

"Enables me to work from two locations."

"Clover is the best product globally."

"It's the endpoint exposition. We don't need to expose our VPN server to the internet and need a zero-test solution. I can apply some conditional access to the endpoint that's connecting to our network to check their security policies or the security condition of their workstation. Once the workstation is trying to connect to my internal network, then I would like to check the discrete condition of these endpoints that are trying to access my internal network. We created some conditional access. We have CrowdStrike, to check if the CrowdStrike is installed, to check if it's updated, and to check for Windows updates. We created some conditional policies to check it."

"Cloudflare is simple to use."

"Cloudflare Zero Trust Platform removes the risk of exposing the applications to the public."

"The blocking feature is very good."

"Cloudflare DDoS is better than its competitors for its security, deployment, and scalability."

"Cloudflare is by far the most effective solution that I have come across."

More Cloudflare One pros

Cons

"To scale up, a new iboss Node Blade Chassis must be purchased."

"One thing I would like to see differently with their Zero Trust platform is that some of the AI aspects related to high-risk activities have more false positives."

"Sometimes the agent stops working in iboss, and we have to reinstall the agent."

"Our biggest problem with their service was it did not recognize the device and filtering did not always work correctly."

"For zero trust implementation, we encountered complexity issues, especially with a large infrastructure company ExxonMobil."

"The reporting feature needs improvement."

"Iboss is growing so fast that it is often hard for them to keep up with the challenges."

"Regarding pricing, setup costs, and licensing, iboss is not cheap, and that's my only concern."

More iboss cons

"I would appreciate seeing Cisco Duo improved with a tighter integration with Active Directory to secure not just Remote Desktop to a server, but all the remote levels of connection that you can make to a server."

"It is easy to use when logging in, but at times, there's a delay in getting the pop-up on a phone, requiring users to occasionally retry authentication depending on backend services."

"We have users who move throughout the world, and their levels of connectivity change. It can be a challenge, if someone is in Bahrain, to authenticate via Duo."

"We use Yubikey for pushing it to the phones. Yubikeys can get expensive because people tend to lose those for some reason. Fifty dollars a device is pretty high."

"The new smart license model doesn't always work. It's very complicated."

"Duo Security should better organize its tile feature to organize applications better."

"Cisco Duo could be improved if there were a way to make two-factor authentication quicker."

"Cisco Duo is a modern product that does not support older applications, lacking backward compatibility. It should work on supporting legacy applications and legacy approaches."

More Cisco Duo cons

"Our customers no longer use Cloudflare because its service is subpar."

"The free plan has limitations. For example, I can only set up three rules, and the application firewall is unavailable."

"Operating and tuning the product is difficult."

"From a logging perspective, it is still a bit difficult to see exactly what users are being blocked with the current views."

"The initial onboarding was causing us some confusion."

"Cloudflare Zero Trust Platform needs to improve its documentation. It took time to do the implementation."

"When there are any dynamic changes in complex applications, the tool takes a lot of time, making its analytics-related area a major matter of concern where improvements are needed."

"For the topic of improvement, providing some training material is one of my suggestions."

More Cloudflare One cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"We had the cost of purchasing a new appliance along with the implementation and licensing costs. However, the following year, the cost of just licensing was similar to what was paid the previous year for a new appliance along with the implementation and licensing costs."

"It is expensive compared to one of its competitors."

"The overall pricing for iboss is very competitive and transparent."

"It is not expensive, and it is also not cheap. iboss is priced right in the sweet spot for the number of features it offers."

"We have not priced the solution recently, but they were competitive with other vendors in the past."

"It is probably in line with other solutions, but I do not deal with the financial side."

"From a reseller perspective, it's still challenging to explain the whole license strategy to a client, so we really have to be ahead of that for all the true forward conversations."

"My experience with pricing, setup costs, and licensing has been good, with no issues. I am pleased that the prices remained stable after Cisco acquired the solution."

"With regard to pricing, for a small business buying a one off, it's pretty expensive. If it's an enterprise that has thousands of employees, however, it's really nothing to protect your data because if your network goes down or it's breached, you're losing millions of dollars every minute. When it comes to a large enterprise, it's priced where it should be because you're talking business to business. You're not talking business to consumer."

"Its price is reasonable. It is not highly expensive."

"I haven't seen any information on the pricing in four years, so I can't comment on that."

"The pricing was a lot more than what we were paying for our previous solution."

"Price wise, it's not cheap, but it's not expensive at all either. It's in the middle."

"The product’s pricing is reasonable."

More Cisco Duo pricing and cost advice

"The price tag is no longer $200,000, but rather $300,000 to $400,000. It's twice."

"The prices are slightly expensive."

"The solution's pricing lacks transparency."

"Cloudflare Zero Trust Platform's pricing is good."

"The pricing of the solution is cheap. The licensing cost is also very low. I rate the cost and pricing a three out of ten."

"The pricing is somewhere in the middle. I would rate the pricing a seven out of ten."

"The solution is not that expensive."

"My company has to make yearly payments towards the licensing costs attached to the solution. There are no hidden charges apart from the licensing costs of the solution."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

No data available

Manufacturing Company

11%

Computer Software Company

10%

Comms Service Provider

Government

Computer Software Company

12%

Comms Service Provider

11%

Financial Services Firm

Manufacturing Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	6
Midsize Enterprise	6
Large Enterprise	5

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	31
Midsize Enterprise	18
Large Enterprise	40

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	10
Midsize Enterprise	2
Large Enterprise	10

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with iboss?

For zero trust implementation, we encountered complexity issues, especially with a large infrastructure company Exxon...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for iboss?

Previously when I used iboss, we did the POC for iboss for ExxonMobil. Four or five people wanted to move from our ol...

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for iboss?

Regarding pricing, setup costs, and licensing, iboss is not cheap, and that's my only concern. There are cheaper alte...

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How does Duo Security compare with Microsoft Authenticator?

We switched to Duo Security for identity verification. We’d been using a competitor but got the chance to evaluate Du...

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Duo Security?

My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing reveals that one of the most powerful features is the licensing...

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What needs improvement with Duo Security?

One downside of Cisco Duo is the expense, as there are clients that can afford only the basic package, which does not...

See all answers

What needs improvement with Cloudflare Access?

Cloudflare Access has strong integration with Microsoft, among other platforms. However, when it comes to Kaspersky, ...

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What is your primary use case for Cloudflare Access?

Cloudflare Access provides secure access to internal applications for employees, external members of the organization...

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What advice do you have for others considering Cloudflare Access?

Cloudflare Access is one of the best integrations available. While about two hundred vendors offer similar services, ...

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Comparisons

Netskope vs iboss

Compared 13% of the time

Prisma Access by Palo Alto Networks vs iboss

Compared 10% of the time

Cisco Umbrella vs iboss

Compared 9% of the time

Zscaler Internet Access vs iboss

Compared 9% of the time

Lightspeed Filter vs iboss

Compared 4% of the time

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Fortinet FortiAuthenticator vs Cisco Duo

Compared 8% of the time

Microsoft Entra ID vs Cisco Duo

Compared 8% of the time

Fortinet FortiToken vs Cisco Duo

Compared 6% of the time

Yubico YubiKey vs Cisco Duo

Compared 5% of the time

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Cato SASE Cloud Platform vs Cloudflare One

Compared 5% of the time

Twingate vs Cloudflare One

Compared 4% of the time

Prisma Access by Palo Alto Networks vs Cloudflare One

Compared 4% of the time

Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange Platform vs Cloudflare One

Compared 4% of the time

FortiSASE vs Cloudflare One

Compared 3% of the time

More Cloudflare One Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

iboss

January 2026

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Buyer's Guide

Cisco Duo

January 2026

Download Cisco Duo product report

Buyer's Guide

Cloudflare One

January 2026

Download Cloudflare One product report

Also Known As

iBoss Cloud Platform

Duo Security

Cloudflare Area 1 Email Security, Cloudflare Bot Management, Cloudflare Gateway, Cloudflare Zero Trust Platform, Cloudflare DDoS, Cloudflare SASE & SSE Platform

Overview

Iboss offers a comprehensive cloud-based security platform valued for its scalability and autonomous features, ensuring robust security with easy deployment and management capabilities.

Renowned for its robust security architecture, Iboss integrates seamlessly within diverse networks, delivering efficient granular filtering and advanced content categorization. Its single pane of glass console provides ease of management, allowing rapid scalability suitable for rapidly deploying environments. Operates in BYOD setups due to inline filtering without device installation. Integration with cloud-based applications enhances user control, and features like SASE, SSL inspection, and ChatGPT risk protection stand as highlights. Despite its strengths, users have pointed out areas for enhancement like direct navigation in reports, SSL decryption, and better cloud integration while having room to improve data loss prevention.

What are the most important features of Iboss?

Scalability: Supports rapid deployment across diverse networks.
SASE: A consolidated approach to secure access.
SSL Inspection: Ensures safe data transmission.
Granular Filtering: Detailed control over accessible content.
Single Pane Management: Unifies control through a centralized console.

What benefits should users consider in reviews?

Cost-effectiveness: Offers competitive pricing with robust features.
Autonomous Operation: Reduces management overhead.
Responsive Support: Provides assistance when needed.
Flexible Deployment: Available for both cloud and on-premises environments.

The usage of Iboss spans educational institutions, specifically K-12, to enforce internet policies, protect data, and support remote work environments. It provides web filtering and security frameworks to ensure safe browsing. Its platform-as-a-service model offers flexibility for both cloud-based and on-premises requirements, integrating seamlessly to deliver enhanced security features suitable for various deployment needs including zero trust, CASB, and network security for work-from-home setups.

iboss

Cisco Duo is a cloud-based identity security platform safeguarding critical resources for any user and device worldwide. Known for its ease of use, Duo offers seamless protection across multi-cloud, hybrid, and on-premises environments.

Cisco Duo is designed to secure access with identity-first protection and provides extensive visibility throughout an organization's identity ecosystem. Offering multi-factor authentication, Duo facilitates easy integration and management, allowing teams to protect data effectively on VPNs, applications, and networks. Its single-pane management improves security processes while enhancing trust, making it suitable for diverse IT infrastructures.

What are the key features of Cisco Duo?

Multi-factor Authentication: Strengthens user verification with multiple methods.
Push Notifications: Simplifies authentication with quick approvals.
Single Sign-On: Enhances convenience by allowing one set of credentials.
VPN Access: Secures remote connections with reliable authentication.
User Activity Visibility: Offers comprehensive insights into access patterns.

Which benefits and ROI should users consider?

Quick Deployment: Facilitates rapid integration within existing systems.
Effective Management: Streamlines IT operations with centralized control.
Regulatory Compliance: Aids in meeting industry standards for data protection.
Enhanced Trust: Strengthens security posture across networks.
User-friendly Approach: Simplifies authentication for non-technical users.

In industries like education and finance, Cisco Duo is widely employed to secure multi-factor authentication across platforms such as email, databases, and servers. Its integration capabilities with Microsoft 365, Active Directory, and VPNs like AnyConnect are instrumental in verifying user identities using mobile apps or OTPs, catering effectively to both remote and on-premise environments.

Cisco

Cloudflare One is a comprehensive platform for security, performance, and connectivity. It provides features like rate limiting, DDoS protection, and application access, tailored to enhance user experience while securing internet access and accelerating communications.

Designed to integrate security measures with ease of use and scalability, Cloudflare One offers a secure web gateway and zero trust network access. These features ensure seamless setup and operation, making connectivity reliable and protected. Users appreciate its integrated console, intuitive interface, and the ability to manage risk effectively. It offers straightforward deployment, improves latency, and boasts cost-effectiveness. While its onboarding process and documentation need enhancement, its value in content delivery and application shielding is notable. Despite challenges in integrating Cloudflare Access with existing VPNs and the need for better automation and support, it remains vital for DNS and infrastructure protection.

What features make Cloudflare One stand out?

Rate Limiting: Controls the traffic rate to prevent abuse.
DDoS Protection: Shields applications from distributed denial-of-service attacks.
Secure Web Gateway: Provides secure internet access with seamless operation.
Zero Trust Network Access: Ensures secure, application-based connectivity without relying on traditional VPNs.
Access for Connectivity: Facilitates access to internal applications securely.

What benefits should users look for in reviews?

Security: Robust measures for DNS and browsing protection.
Performance: Enhanced site accessibility and communication speed.
Cost-Effectiveness: Offers competitive pricing for its features.
Ease of Deployment: Straightforward and efficient setup process.

In industries like finance, retail, and technology, Cloudflare One is crucial for enabling secure remote access and protecting web applications against dynamic threats. It supports compliance access policies and enhances content delivery, playing a key role in safeguarding digital infrastructure.

Cloudflare

Sample Customers

More than 4,000 global enterprises trust the iboss Cloud Platform to support their modern workforces, including a large number of Fortune 50 companies.

Information Not Available

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Buyer's Guide

Cisco Duo vs. Cloudflare One

December 2025

Free Report: Cisco Duo vs. Cloudflare One

Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco Duo vs. Cloudflare One and other solutions. Updated: December 2025.

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