Cisco Meraki MX vs Sangfor NGAF comparison

Cisco and Sangfor are both solutions in the Firewalls category. Cisco is ranked #18 with an average rating of 8.0, while Sangfor is ranked #26 with an average rating of 8.1. Cisco holds a 3.2% mindshare in Firewalls, compared to Sangfor’s 1.0% mindshare. Additionally, 93% of Cisco users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 90% of Sangfor users who would recommend it.

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Cisco Meraki MX and Sangfor NGAF based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out in this report how the two Firewalls solutions compare in terms of features, pricing, service and support, easy of deployment, and ROI.

To learn more, read our detailed Cisco Meraki MX vs. Sangfor NGAF Report (Updated: March 2026).

Buyer's Guide

Cisco Meraki MX vs. Sangfor NGAF

March 2026

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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

Fortinet FortiGate

Mindshare comparison

As of March 2026, in the Firewalls category, the mindshare of Fortinet FortiGate is 18.3%, down from 21.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Cisco Meraki MX is 3.2%, down from 3.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Sangfor NGAF is 1.0%, down from 1.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Firewalls Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
Fortinet FortiGate	18.3%
Cisco Meraki MX	3.2%
Sangfor NGAF	1.0%
Other	77.5%

Firewalls

Featured Reviews

Vasu Gala

Manager, Information Technology Operation/Presales at TechMonarch

A stable solution with an intuitive interface and quick customer service

I have been working with Fortinet FortiGate, WatchGuard, Sophos, and SonicWall. I'm not as comfortable with SonicWall because of their UI and limitations. I prefer Fortinet above all other options. When it comes to configuration, I am confident in my ability to handle various tasks, including creating policies such as firewall rules, web policies, and application policies. Additionally, I can configure VPNs and implement load balancing, among other tasks. Overall, I feel much more comfortable working with Fortinet. Fortinet has made significant improvements by integrating AI with firewalls for threat analysis and prevention. In the past 2-3 years, they have launched FortiSASE and SIEM, and they also provide SOC services. Both Palo Alto and Fortinet FortiGate are excellent. While Fortinet FortiGate comes at higher prices, the functionality and support justify the cost. They promptly resolve firmware issues and inform all support providers about configuration changes.

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MURALI NIDAMANURI

Managing Director at a manufacturing company with 10,001+ employees

Experience improved network management with flexible and secure connections

I recommend that Meraki MX should improve to be a better solution for the next release by being more competent so that we can offer it as a primary solution among all other brands, although I don't have any specific feedback, while the competitors are also ahead of these solutions. Enhancing user experience is always required. Enhancing the seamless connectivity is crucial and user experience enhancement is needed daily, otherwise people find it outdated. New features should look and be dynamically connected, and users should not be bothered frequently when connectivity issues occur. It should automatically remediate and find out the issue and then resolve it on its own without interrupting the work of the employees.

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Zaid Farooqui

CIO at Indus Motor Company

Enhanced threat detection with integrated security features and good support

We are using application firewalling, WAF, and SD-WAN. The capabilities are mostly within the box. For example, you will get web application firewall WAF as part and parcel of this. SD-WAN is also bundled. It integrates with their SIEM and SOAR solutions very nicely. Lastly, the pricing point is very cost-efficient as well.

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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

"Fortinet FortiGate has improved our routing and made us more secure."

"The most useful feature of FortiGate IPS for me is Application Control."

"The scalability is very good."

"The most valuable feature of Fortinet FortiGate is URL filtering."

"The solution can scale well."

"Simple interface and easy to deploy."

"It is a good source for firewall protection."

"The most valuable features of Fortinet FortiGate IPS are firewall and filtering."

More Fortinet FortiGate pros

"In general, Meraki MX is easy to work with."

"It's flexible, easy to configure, and easy to manage."

"It is very easy to configure."

"Meraki MX has been a stable solution so far, and I haven't faced any issues with it."

"They have very good technical support and I have relied heavily on them."

"We work also with domain control (DC) from Microsoft or Amazon. We use a whole virtual appliance with Meraki."

"Their technical support has been great."

"Intrusion detection and prevention (IDS/IPS): The best feature. It can detect malware, even a virus, and warn you by email about the device that has it."

More Cisco Meraki MX pros

"It offers application control features."

"The price versus value is good because the solution is less expensive than Sophos, Fortinet, or SonicWall."

"The stability of Sangfor NGAF is good."

"The most valuable feature of Sangfor NGAF is its integration."

"Particularly good in the DPI where we can inspect inbound and outbound traffic."

"Sangfor NGAF works accordingly with our customers. The solution has good performance, easy to use, and integrates well with the endpoints."

"While the features are not dissimilar to other brands, configuration is much more simple, which works out great for Indonesian people."

"In four steps one can configure the entire firewall."

More Sangfor NGAF pros

Cons

"The solution's real-time connection with the cloud could be improved."

"The people we are working with are not able to configure MFA. They are having some technical issues. Fortinet needs to ensure that its partners are well-trained."

"The solution could improve by having some additional features, such as IBS and better cloud administration."

"Regarding stability, I have experienced performance issues with Fortinet FortiGate. Sometimes it does not work correctly in certain situations, such as DNS or URL categories, where it might block incorrectly."

"What could be improved in Fortinet FortiGate SWG is its pricing because it's a bit higher. If it's cheaper, my company could pitch it to customers and engage with customers better about it. What I'd like to see in the next release of Fortinet FortiGate SWG is an improvement in its dashboard or GUI. I'd like it to be more user-friendly."

"Fortinet can add some Machine Learning and AI to improve its accuracy and give it an edge on IPS detection and protection."

"They should make the rule sets more understandable for the end user."

"Fortinet FortiGate can improve the integration with Active Directory. Additionally, I would like to have a Cloud Controller, such as they do in the Cisco Meraki solution."

More Fortinet FortiGate cons

"We feel that Cisco provides smaller features with fewer possibilities versus other solutions out there."

"The client-side VPN is weak. The product could be improved with deployment templates."

"The event logging, alerting, and reporting features could use improvement."

"Management can be improved in Meraki MX."

"It is a little bit expensive. In order to work with Meraki support, you have to buy permission."

"The lack of HTTPS encryption is a big challenge that I have with Meraki."

"In the next release, because the security is pretty basic, I think they could include additional security features."

"We have been having a problem with the VPN. When the energy goes down and is back again, the VPN link doesn't get established. We have to manually turn off the modems and other pieces of equipment and manually establish the VPN. It has been around one month since we have been having this problem, and we don't have enough support from Meraki to solve the problem."

More Cisco Meraki MX cons

"The GUI needs to be improved, lacks logic in some areas."

"The user interface isn't user-friendly though."

"The product must provide more IPS features."

"The setup phase is quite complex."

"They need to increase the number of ports in the firewall."

"Scalability for any network device is not very easy in terms of vertical scalability."

"The tool's support is an area of concern where improvements are required."

"The reporting and log management could be improved."

More Sangfor NGAF cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"A year or two years back, its price was competitive and reasonable. That was one of the reasons that people easily switched to Fortinet. Over the last two years, the prices have increased drastically. However, the prices of others have also increased. An advantage is there from the price point but not as much as it was previously."

"It is not expensive as compared to Cisco."

"Fortinet has one or two license types, and the VPN numbers are only limited by the hardware chassis make."

"Fortinet FortiGate is cheaper than Palo Alto. It is about 20% cheaper."

"We saved a bundle by not needing all the past appliances from an NGFW."

"Fortinet prices are around $600 for the small 40F model, and for licenses, the simplest option is about $300 for a year. They sell licenses that can last for 1, 2, 3, or 5 years."

"Pricing and licensing is a little bit complicated in FortiGate. They are always on the higher side. This is one issue that we always raise with the company that they should reduce the price according to Indian market requirements. There are no costs in addition to the standard licensing fees."

"Cost-wise, there is not much difference from Sophos, but feature-wise, we get more features."

More Fortinet FortiGate pricing and cost advice

"The product’s price is reasonable."

"The solution is expensive compared to other vendors but you can get good discounts if you know the account manager. The product is less expensive than a normal Cisco subscription. The tool's hardware warranty is a lifetime but you need to purchase support which comes in three, five, and seven years subscriptions."

"The price is slightly increased, but reasonable."

"The price could be lower, but compared to the TCO of other products, it's not really that expensive."

"The product's price depends on use cases."

"It is more expensive than other solutions, but it is a cloud-managed network solution and support is given at the moment you call. That give a very big plus."

"It is a good global solution in terms of the price and features, but because we sell this solution in dollars, sometimes we don't get to sell this solution in Brazil because the dollar is very expensive. The price of every project is different. It varies depending upon the project, scenario, and client."

"Meraki is also expensive, but it's a little bit less expensive and it's easier to configure than Cisco ASA."

More Cisco Meraki MX pricing and cost advice

"Price-wise, I would not consider Sangfor NGAF to be a cheap product. It is an expensive firewall solution, though not as expensive as something like Palo Alto, which is costly. However, the higher price point is justifiable given the feature set the tool provides that other firewalls may not offer in a single dedicated appliance."

"It is one of the cheapest tools in the market."

"I rate the product price as one on a scale of one to ten, where one is low price and ten is high price."

"The solution has a TCO that is 32% to 50% less than Sophos, Fortinet, and SonicWall."

"The price falls in the mid-range, neither exceptionally low nor high."

"The pricing is reasonable."

"Sangfor is cheaper than competing vendors."

"The license of Sangfor NGAF can be purchased at different interval lengths, such as annually or three years. They offer a range of packages to choose from, such as combo or hybrid packages. We are using the complete solution package which includes IM, NGF and SSL VPN, and WAF."

More Sangfor NGAF pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

11%

Comms Service Provider

10%

Manufacturing Company

Financial Services Firm

Computer Software Company

13%

Manufacturing Company

Comms Service Provider

Healthcare Company

Manufacturing Company

12%

Comms Service Provider

Financial Services Firm

Computer Software Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	360
Midsize Enterprise	135
Large Enterprise	190

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	42
Midsize Enterprise	20
Large Enterprise	16

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	15
Midsize Enterprise	10
Large Enterprise	10

Questions from the Community

Which is the better NGFW: Fortinet Fortigate or Cisco Firepower?

When you compare these firewalls you can identify them with different features, advantages, practices and usage a...

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What is the biggest difference between Sophos XG and FortiGate?

From my experience regarding both the Sophos and FortiGate firewalls, I personally would rather use FortiGate. I know...

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What are the biggest technical differences between Sophos UTM and Fortinet FortiGate?

As a solution, Sophos UTM offers a lot of functionality, it scales well, and the stability and performance are quite ...

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Fortigate 60d vs. Meraki MX67 for a small company without a dedicated IT Department

We have Meraki Mx devices now, we are looking to replace them. But that is because the Meraki MX platform lacks SSL I...

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Which is better - Meraki MX or Cisco ASA Firewall?

Cisco Adaptive Security Appliance (ASA) software is the operating software for the Cisco ASA suite. It supports netw...

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Meraki MX?

My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing for Cisco Meraki MX is that for more than five years, Meraki li...

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What do you like most about Sangfor NGAF?

I think Sangfor NGAF is more valuable than Cisco products because of its simplicity and ease of management. If I comp...

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Sangfor NGAF?

The licensing cost is quite high compared to other available firewalls in the market.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Sangfor NGAF?

The cost of licensing is very high compared to other firewalls available here. There should be improvements in hardwa...

See all answers

Comparisons

Sophos Firewall vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 19% of the time

Cisco Secure Firewall vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 13% of the time

Netgate pfSense vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 4% of the time

Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 4% of the time

WatchGuard Firebox vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 2% of the time

More Fortinet FortiGate Competitors

Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls vs Cisco Meraki MX

Compared 21% of the time

Sophos Firewall vs Cisco Meraki MX

Compared 8% of the time

Cisco Secure Firewall vs Cisco Meraki MX

Compared 5% of the time

SonicWall TZ vs Cisco Meraki MX

Compared 4% of the time

WatchGuard Firebox vs Cisco Meraki MX

Compared 3% of the time

More Cisco Meraki MX Competitors

Sophos Firewall vs Sangfor NGAF

Compared 16% of the time

H3C SecPath Firewalls vs Sangfor NGAF

Compared 6% of the time

Cisco Secure Firewall vs Sangfor NGAF

Compared 6% of the time

Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls vs Sangfor NGAF

Compared 5% of the time

Netgate pfSense vs Sangfor NGAF

Compared 5% of the time

More Sangfor NGAF Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Fortinet FortiGate

March 2026

Download Fortinet FortiGate product report

Buyer's Guide

Cisco Meraki MX

March 2026

Download Cisco Meraki MX product report

Buyer's Guide

Sangfor NGAF

February 2026

Download Sangfor NGAF product report

Also Known As

Fortinet FortiGate Next-Generation Firewall

MX64, MX64W, MX84, MX100, MX400, MX600

Sangfor NGAF Firewall Platform

Overview

Fortinet FortiGate is a versatile network security tool offering features like VPN, firewall, web filtering, intrusion prevention, and scalability. It is known for its performance and integration with other Fortinet products, making it a preferred choice for robust cybersecurity.

Fortinet FortiGate stands out as a comprehensive cybersecurity solution with strong performance and ease of configuration. It delivers unified threat management, integrating features such as dynamic routing, SD-WAN support, and centralized management. Despite its strengths, improvements in the web interface's stability, pricing structures, and reporting capabilities are needed. Users seek better integration with third-party tools and automation advancements to enhance the experience further. These enhancements, alongside improvements in bandwidth management and the reduction of licensing costs, are points of interest for users looking to capitalize on FortiGate's extensive capabilities.

What are Fortinet FortiGate's key features?

VPN: Ensures secure remote connections.
Firewall: Protects against unauthorized access.
Web Filtering: Blocks malicious sites and content.
Application Control: Manages and controls applications.
Intrusion Prevention: Detects and prevents vulnerabilities.
SSL Inspection: Enhances security by inspecting encrypted traffic.

What benefits should be considered when evaluating Fortinet FortiGate?

Affordability: Offers cost-effective security solutions.
Reliability: Known for consistent and stable performance.
Integration: Seamlessly integrates with other Fortinet products.
Comprehensive Protection: Provides broad threat protection capabilities.

Fortinet FortiGate is widely implemented across industries as a primary firewall system for securing internet gateways and safeguarding data centers. It supports businesses in achieving SD-WAN integration and enhances cybersecurity by providing essential features like antivirus, web filtering, and application control. Enterprises utilize FortiGate for securing remote connections and ensuring compliance with security standards, making it adaptable for different network sizes and industries.

Fortinet

Cisco Meraki MX offers cloud-managed security with user-friendly setup and efficient management, enhancing VPN and firewall functionalities for businesses.

Cisco Meraki MX is known for its robust cloud-based network management, featuring AutoVPN, SD-WAN, and advanced security. Its centralized control over firewall, traffic shaping, and monitoring ensures excellent connectivity and security. The interface allows easy management by non-technical staff, offering remote access and seamless network performance through real-time alerts and troubleshooting. It supports global connectivity with minimal effort, addressing needs across small to enterprise environments. Despite its strengths, users point out areas needing improvement like load balancing, VPN features, more flexible logging, and session capabilities. Pricing, integration limits, and licensing need enhancement.

What are the key features of Cisco Meraki MX?

AutoVPN: Enables automatic VPN configuration for secure, site-to-site connections.
SD-WAN: Optimizes traffic routes for increased performance and reliability.
Advanced Security: Offers unified threat management, intrusion prevention, and content filtering.
Centralized Management: Simplifies operations with remote monitoring and configuration.
Traffic Shaping: Prioritizes critical business applications to maximize performance.

What benefits should users consider?

Ease of Deployment: Simplified installation reduces setup time and cost.
Real-Time Alerts: Ensures proactive issue identification and resolution.
Scalability: Supports growth with seamless integration and management of multiple sites.
Global Connectivity: Maintains efficient connections across geographic locations with minimal effort.

In industries like retail, finance, and education, Cisco Meraki MX provides enhanced security and connectivity. Retail chains benefit from easy VPN setups for secure multi-site networking, while educational institutions find value in its ability to manage large campuses efficiently. Financial services leverage its robust security features to protect sensitive data, ensuring compliance and trust.

Cisco

Sangfor Next Generation Firewall (also known as NGAF) is a converged security solution providing protection against advanced threat, malware, viruses, ransomware and web-based attacks using integrated security features like firewall, IPS, anti-virus, anti-malware, APT, URL filtering, Cloud Sandbox, and WAF. As the world's first AI-enabled and fully integrated Next Generation Firewall & Web Application Firewall (WAF), NGAF offering the security visibility, real-time detection and response, simplified operation and maintenance and high-performance application layer security needed to operate an enterprise network in total security. Tested and proven to provide cutting-edge network security by ICSA Labs and endorsed by Gartner Inc., NGAF harnesses the power of Sangfor’s Neural-X threat intelligence and analytics platform and Engine Zero’s innovative malware detection to provide next-generation protection for today’s enterprise.

Sangfor

Sample Customers

Amazon Web Services, Microsoft, IBM, Cisco, Dell, HP, Oracle, Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint, Vodafone, Orange, BT Group, Telstra, Deutsche Telekom, Comcast, Time Warner Cable, CenturyLink, NTT Communications, Tata Communications, SoftBank, China Mobile, Singtel, Telus, Rogers Communications, Bell Canada, Telkom Indonesia, Telkom South Africa, Telmex, Telia Company, Telkom Kenya

Hyatt, ONS

The Ministry of Science, Technology, and Innovation (Indonesia), Lawson, Inc. (Philippines), Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin (Indonesia), TEK Automotive (Italy), etc.

Buyer's Guide

Cisco Meraki MX vs. Sangfor NGAF

March 2026

Free Report: Cisco Meraki MX vs. Sangfor NGAF

Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco Meraki MX vs. Sangfor NGAF and other solutions. Updated: March 2026.

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