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Cisco IOS SSL VPN vs Fortinet FortiClient comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 6, 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

Cisco IOS SSL VPN
Ranking in Enterprise Infrastructure VPN
9th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
8.2
Number of Reviews
48
Ranking in other categories
SSL VPN (3rd)
Fortinet FortiClient
Ranking in Enterprise Infrastructure VPN
1st
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
99
Ranking in other categories
Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP) (13th), Endpoint Compliance (1st)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2025, in the Enterprise Infrastructure VPN category, the mindshare of Cisco IOS SSL VPN is 1.2%, up from 0.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Fortinet FortiClient is 13.7%, up from 13.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Enterprise Infrastructure VPN
 

Featured Reviews

Rupesh Kolhapurkar - PeerSpot reviewer
Offers easy setup phase but needs to improve connectivity
For our company's remote workforce connectivity, the tool was very useful during the COVID-19 situation. In general, the VPN functionality offered by the product was very useful during the COVID-19 situation. In terms of the product's ability to secure third-party access, the tool works very well. The most valuable feature of the product in terms of network security stems from the fact that the tool provides access to the whole network, and even if users give access to some special applications, it is still really helpful. The clientless access feature is not available for clients. My company installed the product for its clients. If the product offers a clientless access feature, then it is okay and can be very helpful for our company. I recommend the product to those who plan to use it. Cisco IOS SSL VPN is a reliable product. The product is very helpful for a work-from-home setup as the tool can be used to access our company's internal network, which Falls outside the network of our organization. I rate the tool a seven to eight out of ten.
MuhammadJahangir - PeerSpot reviewer
Users only need to install the VPN and authenticate with their email address
I primarily use remote VPN solutions to connect securely. We have configured both site-to-site VPN and remote VPN, and it is connected to FortiClient Implementing this solution has streamlined time management in our organization. Without SSO, we would need manual configuration for each PC, but…

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"It is a stable solution. In my company, we haven't faced any issues related to the product's stability. I rate the product's stability a ten out of ten."
"The setup and installation was easy."
"The customer service and support are the best. When it comes to support, Cisco is the best vendor ever."
"It is stable."
"The solution is quite transparent."
"It is highly scalable, speedy, and reliable."
"It is a product that is very robust and durable."
"Cisco certainly has a really strong support team."
"Fortinet FortiClient provides several benefits such as saving time, saving money, and improving security."
"The product is user-friendly."
"The most valuable feature of FortiClient is its user-friendly interface that allows easy navigation and access to all endpoint devices."
"Remote users connect to the office using FortiClient, where they can access business URLs through a VPN tunnel configured on the FortiGate firewall."
"It is very simple to use. I've used some of the others in the past, such as Cisco AnyConnect, which was a nightmare. I've used a couple of others, but FortiClient is very simple to use."
"From Forticlient, the EMS, the central management is easy to use."
"Overall Fortinet FortiClient has good functionality."
"It works well and the performance is good."
 

Cons

"Sometimes the connection drops, and we don't like that. I'm not sure the reason, but sometimes it will take time to connect or it will disconnect fast."
"I think the administration can be improved to include web interfaces."
"The Secure Plus Connect product could be improved with many enhancements in any price license, especially for licensing. Cisco could simplify the licensing; it could make it easier to order and use the features."
"The performance could be improved."
"The pricing needs to be better."
"I have no notes in terms of areas of improvement."
"The solution takes some time to log in because of some unavoidable security barriers, but it would be better if that could happen faster."
"The servers should be more user-friendly."
"I haven't found that that solution does anything amazing."
"There are compatibility issues, and sometimes, especially with macOS, it's difficult to set up properly."
"The endpoint side of FortiClient needs improvement, specifically the agent-based endpoint, which requires enhancements in detection and additional features to reduce bugs."
"The initial setup was probably more complex. The configuration was somewhat unclear."
"The connectivity could be improved."
"The user interface on the central server could be improved."
"Working with Distribution sometimes comes at a cost due to a lack of knowledge of the current status of your licensing and products."
"Sometimes there are issues when we are trying to connect."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"FortiGate does not charge the client a licensing fee, although Cisco charges clients a couple of dollars per year for each license."
"I would say it is a bit expensive, but I think it is worth the price."
"Price flexibility could be improved in comparison to other vendors."
"The licensing cost of the solution is on a yearly basis, and it is expensive compared to other solutions in the market."
"There are no pricing programs for non-profit organizations and the product is otherwise expensive by comparison."
"The pricing of the solution is reasonable"
"It is an expensive product."
"It stands as the priciest solution available in the market."
"An annual license costs about 1.5 to 3,000 US dollars. There are no additional costs."
"I don't have the licensing schema for the VPN solution because we just purchased the VPN gateway."
"Anyone can download this product for free, but you have to have a FortiGate gateway that you are connecting to."
"The solution is more cost efficient than Cisco, as FortiGate tends not to charge for the client license, which allows one to make free use of whatever is supported on the device."
"Its pricing is good. One thing that has always attracted us to the Fortinet range of products is that their pricing is very competitive. Our particular licensing is on a yearly basis. However, as part of this project, we did pre-purchase three years of maintenance and support at a fairly significant discount."
"Licensing was free up to ten users and after that, it was pretty reasonable."
"The solution is not expensive. We need more discounted rates in Pakistan. The price of the solution could be reduced to be more affordable for the solution."
"The licensing fee varies with what one is trying to accomplish. It can range from being free to costing several hundred thousand dollars per year."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
24%
Financial Services Firm
13%
Educational Organization
8%
Healthcare Company
6%
Educational Organization
39%
Computer Software Company
10%
Manufacturing Company
5%
Comms Service Provider
4%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco IOS SSL VPN?
The pricing for Cisco IOS SSL VPN is based on per user. For more than one hundred users, it costs about $60 per seat.
What needs improvement with Cisco IOS SSL VPN?
Compatibility can sometimes be a challenge. There have been issues with operating systems where newer updates cause problems with backward compatibility. For instance, Windows 11 ( /products/window...
How does Fortinet FortiClient compare with Open VPN Access Server?
Fortinet FortiClient is a feature-rich solution that is easy to use and deploy without sacrificing safety and security. It has a very fast connection rate and has a built-in VPN. With this solution...
What's the difference between Fortinet's FortiEDR and FortiClient?
I suggest Fortinet’s FortiEDR over FortiClient for several reasons. For starters, FortiEDR guarantees solid protection because it continually scans servers for emerging vulnerabilities, which gives...
 

Also Known As

Cisco SSL VPN
FortiClient
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

MST Systems
Black Gold Regional Schools, Amadeus Hospitality, Jefferson County, Chunghwa Telecom, City of Boroondara, Dimension Data
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco IOS SSL VPN vs. Fortinet FortiClient and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.
851,604 professionals have used our research since 2012.