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Cisco IOS SSL VPN vs Sangfor SSL VPN comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on May 21, 2025

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 SSL VPN
4th
Ranking in Enterprise Infrastructure VPN
14th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
50
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Sangfor SSL VPN
Ranking in SSL VPN
7th
Ranking in Enterprise Infrastructure VPN
17th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.6
Number of Reviews
6
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2026, in the SSL VPN category, the mindshare of Cisco IOS SSL VPN is 10.1%, up from 9.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Sangfor SSL VPN is 7.4%, up from 3.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
SSL VPN Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Cisco IOS SSL VPN10.1%
Sangfor SSL VPN7.4%
Other82.5%
SSL VPN
 

Featured Reviews

VM
student at a university with 1,001-5,000 employees
Cost efficiency and ease of setup define network management while potential improvements in complexity handling are noted
Optimizing and configuring for network segmentation is the biggest thing for helping with segmenting traffic management. Configuring QoS on Linksys is pretty easy, especially compared to Cisco QoS, which I am certified in, as it helps ensure that the bandwidth for voice or other applications doesn't bleed over into the data links. In the past, Linksys has been pretty good at network protection, segmenting off that protection for unauthorized access or cyber threats. Cost savings and ease of use are the benefits I've seen from Linksys. It's a little bit less complex to set up and configure compared to Cisco switching. I utilized the VLAN support feature in the Linksys switches. A lot of the networks I have were broken up by VLAN, and I definitely configured them for different VLANs. The best feature of Linksys in my opinion is cost, as they tend to be more cost-effective compared to larger switches or Cisco switches.
Wajeeh Ul Hasan . - PeerSpot reviewer
Network Administrator at Shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto Institute of Science and Technology
A secure and user-friendly solution that is simple to implement and configure
We used Sangfor SSL VPN to access our servers from home during COVID-19 in case of emergency Sangfor SSL VPN has secured our organization, and we haven't faced any attacks. Sangfor SSL VPN is a secure and user-friendly solution. The other valuable features of the solution include web access…

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The solution's environment is stable and doesn't get disconnected every now and then."
"It's been stable for as long as I've been using it."
"It is very simple to use, and it allows me to get into the university's network from my home, which is very useful for me."
"Cisco IOS SSL VPN is very stable. We never experience issues with it."
"It's a stable solution."
"Cisco has been tested and used widely so there are virtually no issues in terms of selecting Cisco."
"IOS is user-friendly and simple. You connect to a particular VPN, and that's it. You become seamless after that."
"It is stable."
"The platform is easy to use."
"It is a stable solution...The initial setup of the product is very easy."
"Sangfor SSL VPN has a user-friendly user interface."
"Sangfor SSL VPN is a secure and user-friendly solution."
"Sangfor SSL VPN provides secure encryption for communication."
"The most valuable feature is our ability to limit access by user, IP address, or MAC address."
"Altogether, this is a very good product."
 

Cons

"The solution does not give us options if the connectivity to one server is not available."
"I think the administration can be improved to include web interfaces."
"Enhancing the client certificate deployment process could be a valuable improvement, ensuring smoother and more reliable certificate renewal experiences in the future."
"I would like Cisco IOS SSL VPN to provide a faster connection."
"It would be helpful if Cisco IOS SSL VPN could help us set up devices on our iPads and phones."
"I think the management of the design of the console or portal needs to improve because when you compare it to other vendors, you find that the graphical interface is old."
"Cisco IOS SSL VPN doesn't support the configuration of multiple VPNs."
"The solution's graphical user interface is not very user-friendly."
"The solution's integration with other firewall vendors could be improved."
"No solution is perfect, so there is room for improvement."
"The technical support team takes around two months to respond to queries. It is very time-consuming."
"Sangfor SSL VPN should provide advanced protection against ransomware and better data analysis."
"I think Sangfor can provide a web-based SSL VPN version."
"In redundancy mode, when the firewall goes off, the VPN should be able to connect to the secondary firewall automatically."
"No solution is perfect, so there is room for improvement."
 

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."
"The licensing fee is expensive."
"The tool is expensive."
"With Cisco, there is a free solution or a licensed version of the solution with a set of endpoint services."
"Users have to pay a yearly licensing fee for Cisco IOS SSL VPN."
"I would say it is a bit expensive, but I think it is worth the price."
"There are no pricing programs for non-profit organizations and the product is otherwise expensive by comparison."
"It stands as the priciest solution available in the market."
"My company has a three-year license for Sangfor SSL VPN."
"The product is inexpensive."
"The pricing is good and the standard license allows for 30 users."
"Sangfor SSL VPN is a cheap solution."
"The first 30 licenses are free, and you have to purchase the rest if required."
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Use our free recommendation engine to learn which SSL VPN solutions are best for your needs.
893,244 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Construction Company
16%
Marketing Services Firm
9%
Healthcare Company
9%
Computer Software Company
8%
Comms Service Provider
11%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Computer Software Company
9%
University
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business23
Midsize Enterprise4
Large Enterprise25
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with Cisco IOS SSL VPN?
I have not found any areas that could be improved so far. I am not sure how Cisco IOS SSL VPN can continue their improvements for the future, but I think it is a great product. To stay on top, they...
What is your primary use case for Cisco IOS SSL VPN?
Currently, I use Cisco IOS SSL VPN to VPN in, but not with high frequency. We use Cisco IOS SSL VPN as our VPN client to connect to our network. This is for health.
What needs improvement with Sangfor SSL VPN?
The solution's integration with other firewall vendors could be improved. Its interoperability matrices and different configurations with other vendor products also need improvements. Our client ha...
What is your primary use case for Sangfor SSL VPN?
We're currently exploring Sangfor SSL VPN more on the cybersecurity side.
 

Also Known As

Cisco SSL VPN
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

MST Systems
Investcorp, Central Bancorp, Griffiths & Armour
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco IOS SSL VPN vs. Sangfor SSL VPN and other solutions. Updated: April 2026.
893,244 professionals have used our research since 2012.