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Cisco Prime [EOL] vs Fortinet FortiManager comparison

Cisco and Fortinet are both solutions in the Network Management Applications category. Additionally, 91% of Cisco users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 95% of Fortinet users who would recommend it.
Cisco Prime [EOL]
Read 35 Cisco Prime [EOL] reviews
    91% willing to recommend
    Fortinet FortiManager
    Read 74 Fortinet FortiManager reviews
    • 6,650 Views
    • 2,062 Comparison Views
    95% willing to recommend
     

    Comparison Buyer's Guide

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    Executive Summary
    We performed a comparison between Cisco Prime [EOL] and Fortinet FortiManager based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

    Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco, Fortinet, Skyline Communications and others in Network Management Applications.

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    To learn more, read our detailed Network Management Applications Report (Updated: July 2026).
    Buyer's Guide
    Network Management Applications
    July 2026
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    Helped 908,858 peers since 2012

    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 Prime [EOL]
    Average Rating
    7.8
    Reviews Sentiment
    6.5
    Number of Reviews
    35
    Ranking in other categories
    No ranking in other categories
    Fortinet FortiManager
    Average Rating
    8.0
    Reviews Sentiment
    6.8
    Number of Reviews
    74
    Ranking in other categories
    Network Management Applications (3rd)
     

    Featured Reviews

    AR
    AndrewRichardson
    Network Engineer at Edmonton Catholic School Board
    Has an easy implementation process, but the performance monitoring feature could be more intuitive
    The project implementation was easy overall. Adapting Cisco's solutions to our specific environment required effort, as their documentation only covers some network scenarios. The deployment didn't happen all at once; it was staged and controlled to ensure a smooth transition. We started with a small test environment before gradually rolling it out to all campuses. This gradual approach helped mitigate the risk of any issues arising across multiple locations simultaneously, especially on a critical day like Monday morning. We have a team of three executives working on the process. Their job roles included network specialists and a manager. It requires maintenance, which is included in the annual cost. We receive updates and support as part of the renewal process.
    Read full review
    SudeepMaydeo - PeerSpot reviewer
    SudeepMaydeo
    Global Head of IT Infrastructure at EPL Americas
    Ensures seamless integration and centralized visibility for network security operations
    The version upgrade from a single dashboard for all the firewalls in one click is the beauty of Fortinet FortiManager as the most impactful feature in managing our network security. Fortinet FortiManager's policy management enhances our security protocols by enabling us and giving integrated centralized visibility, which has proven to be very healthy. Because of this, we have identified some of the vulnerabilities in our systems, and we mitigated them through Fortinet FortiManager. The central dashboards and the visibility are what appealed to us to go with Fortinet FortiManager. Fortinet FortiManager has adapted to changes in our network scale and complexity as we have geographically 18 international locations, all equipped with firewalls and some cybersecurity initiatives and IT infrastructure initiatives.
    Read full review

    Quotes from Members

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

    Pros

    "The solution helps with the management and support of the enterprise network."
    "Cisco Prime is helpful as it provides us with real-time monitoring, which allows us to be proactive in our environment."
    "Has a good wireless heatmap and search management features."
    "It helps us manage and monitor analytics and fix issues."
    "Operationally, Prime is quite easy to use and I like the wireless heatmap and search management features."
    "Cisco Prime is user-friendly, so we are comfortable using it."
    "As a large organization, it is difficult to individually monitor every device. Instead, we use Cisco Prime to keep an eye on the network and services. We do not use it as a node tool, as we have other tools for network operation centers. When services go down, it can cause issues, we rely on Cisco Prime to monitor and notify us of any service disruptions. We mainly use Cisco Prime Infrastructure for configuration-level tasks."
    "The solution is very easy to use, and I absolutely advise using it, as long as your budget has no limits."
    More Cisco Prime [EOL] pros
    "The most valuable feature is the centralized management console."
    "The most valuable features of Fortinet FortiManager, in my opinion, are SD-WAN and the manageability console."
    "It's a scalable product."
    "The functionality is good; it has good features and it works well for us, with multiple features in one box, which helps to avoid needing a lot of equipment and makes it unique."
    "FortiManager's best feature is the integration of administrator users."
    "The integration is quite good."
    "Fortinet FortiManager's best features allow me to operate multiple devices in one template, which helps me in my daily work as it reduces time and has positively impacted my organization by making it easy to centrally access and manage around 15 FortiGate devices from one portal instead of accessing every device standalone."
    "It would normally take us a handful of days to install one FortiGate instance on one site. But with this technology, zero-touch deployment, we need just one hour or maybe as little as 30 minutes to install one site. It is much more efficient."
    More Fortinet FortiManager pros
     

    Cons

    "There is room for improvement in the Access layer."
    "Cisco Prime could improve the notifications in the system. Having more details about what is happening would be useful, such as traffic numbers or who is connected. We can see them through the firewall controller, but it would be better if you can see them from one place."
    "The reporting could be simplified and the information made clearer to the user."
    "Cisco Prime is slow at times, we often have to restart the database to run reports or to gain access."
    "Maybe it could be a little cheaper."
    "Now, the complexity has increased, so the quality of work also has taken a slight hit with respect to their TAC support especially."
    "The product is expensive compared to other vendors in the market."
    "It should be able to monitor Palo Alto, Juniper, and Check Point products - not just Cisco solutions."
    More Cisco Prime [EOL] cons
    "One of the biggest limitations is the grammar of the API – not the API itself."
    "Issues arise when customers experience unstable electricity or poor grounding conditions."
    "The solution should be more open to other products."
    "The price always has room for improvement."
    "The solution has to be enhanced to manage new switches."
    "Regional support in African countries needs to be improved."
    "I didn't like the connectivity with FortiManager and FortiSwitch, which was buggy and annoying and had fewer features."
    "There is room for improvement in Fortinet FortiManager because there is no option for roaming profiles, and the cloud console is not available, which is different compared to Cisco Meraki, and the cloud connectivity is not sufficiently good."
    More Fortinet FortiManager cons
     

    Pricing and Cost Advice

    "Cisco Prime is an expensive solution."
    "The product's performance monitoring feature could be more intuitive."
    "The product is expensive compared to other vendors in the market."
    "The solution is not inexpensive but is worth it for large-scale environments."
    "If we have a license for Cisco DNA, we can use the same license for Cisco Prime."
    "I would rate the solution's pricing an eight out of ten."
    "You need to get special quotes from the company for each order."
    "I rate the solution's pricing an eight out of ten."
    More Cisco Prime [EOL] pricing and cost advice
    "On a scale from one to ten with one being the highest price and ten being the lowest price, I would rate FortiManager's price at three."
    "Fortinet FortiManager is costly."
    "Compared to Check Point or Cisco, Fortinet FortiManager is more affordable but it is still on the higher end."
    "Pricing could improve a little bit so I rate it a seven out of ten."
    "Fortinet FortiManager is not expensive at all if you compare it with other vendors like Check Point and Cisco. Fortinet products are the least expensive on the market in the category of firewalls."
    "Fortinet is a high-end product and the cost is high. They should consider reducing the price, especially for existing customers."
    "This is an affordable solution, and its licensing model is based on the number of devices."
    "The licensing costs depend on how many devices you want to use."
    More Fortinet FortiManager pricing and cost advice
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    Top Industries

    By visitors reading reviews
    Construction Company
    13%
    Government
    11%
    Financial Services Firm
    7%
    Healthcare Company
    7%
    Financial Services Firm
    10%
    Manufacturing Company
    9%
    Computer Software Company
    8%
    Construction Company
    8%
     

    Company Size

    By reviewers
    Large Enterprise
    Midsize Enterprise
    Small Business
    By reviewers
    Company SizeCount
    Small Business9
    Midsize Enterprise5
    Large Enterprise24
    By reviewers
    Company SizeCount
    Small Business34
    Midsize Enterprise17
    Large Enterprise21
     

    Questions from the Community

    Ask a question
    Earn 20 points
    What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Fortinet FortiManager?
    I am satisfied with the licensing cost, and I would rate it an 8.5.
    See all answers
    What needs improvement with Fortinet FortiManager?
    I think Fortinet FortiManager can be improved as the web page loading is slightly slow.
    See all answers
    What is your primary use case for Fortinet FortiManager?
    My main use case for Fortinet FortiManager is to manage multiple FortiGate devices. I can confirm that I use Fortinet FortiManager perfectly in my main use case.
    See all answers
     

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    Compared 8% of the time
    More Cisco Prime [EOL] Competitors
    Fortinet FortiGate Cloud vs Fortinet FortiManager Logo
    Fortinet FortiGate Cloud vs Fortinet FortiManager
    Compared 28% of the time
    Palo Alto Networks Panorama vs Fortinet FortiManager Logo
    Palo Alto Networks Panorama vs Fortinet FortiManager
    Compared 8% of the time
    Cisco DNA Center vs Fortinet FortiManager Logo
    Cisco DNA Center vs Fortinet FortiManager
    Compared 8% of the time
    Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN vs Fortinet FortiManager Logo
    Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN vs Fortinet FortiManager
    Compared 7% of the time
    HPE Intelligent Management Center vs Fortinet FortiManager Logo
    HPE Intelligent Management Center vs Fortinet FortiManager
    Compared 4% of the time
    More Fortinet FortiManager Competitors
     

    Product Reports

    Buyer's Guide
    Cisco Prime [EOL]
    August 2026
    Cisco Prime [EOL] reportDownload Cisco Prime [EOL] product report
    Buyer's Guide
    Fortinet FortiManager
    August 2026
    Fortinet FortiManager reportDownload Fortinet FortiManager product report
     

    Also Known As

    Cisco Prime Infrastructure
    No data available
     

    Overview

    Cisco Prime products deliver next-generation management by supporting an intuitive workflow-oriented user experience and integrated lifecycle operations across Cisco architectures, technologies, and networks.

    Cisco

    Fortinet FortiManager offers centralized management for FortiGate devices, ensuring easy synchronization with cloud accounts, automation, and policy deployment, enhancing network security and performance.

    Fortinet FortiManager provides comprehensive oversight and streamlined operations for FortiGate environments. It centralizes the administration of firewalls and other Fortinet devices, simplifying their configuration and deployment. Users benefit from its efficient automation and policy management capabilities, which reduce implementation times and enhance security protocols. FortiManager features seamless integration and robust monitoring within a single interface, offering visibility across network operations. While it requires improvements in documentation, platform integration, and licensing clarity, it remains an essential tool for large-scale network management.

    What are the standout features?
    • Centralized Management: Simplifies administration of multiple devices from one console.
    • Automation: Speeds up policy deployment and reduces manual tasks.
    • Zero-Touch Provisioning: Facilitates easy device setup and deployment.
    • SD-WAN Management: Provides tools for managing wide area networks effectively.
    • Intuitive GUI: Offers a user-friendly management interface.
    Why should users consider Fortinet FortiManager?
    • Ease of Use: Users appreciate the straightforward management processes.
    • Scalability: Adaptability to large-scale network demands.
    • Comprehensive Visibility: Detailed insights into network performance and security.
    • Reduced Implementation Time: Faster setup and configuration processes.

    In the finance and healthcare industries, Fortinet FortiManager enhances security and compliance by streamlining policy management and deployment across multiple sites. Retail sectors benefit from its scalable network management, ensuring continuous and reliable connectivity across branches. Education institutions use it to manage complex security infrastructures, effectively handling multiple devices and networks to safeguard sensitive data.

    Fortinet
     

    Sample Customers

    Mohawk Industries, Universidad EAFIT, Halton Healthcare
    Black Gold Regional Schools, Amadeus Hospitality, Jefferson County, Chunghwa Telecom, City of Boroondara, Dimension Data
    Buyer's Guide
    Network Management Applications
    July 2026
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