Cisco Umbrella vs EfficientIP DNS Firewall comparison

Cisco and EfficientIP are both solutions in the Domain Name System (DNS) Security category. Cisco is ranked #1 with an average rating of 9.2, while EfficientIP is ranked #16. Cisco holds a 20.6% mindshare in DS, compared to EfficientIP’s 1.7% mindshare. Additionally, 97% of Cisco users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of EfficientIP users who would recommend it.

Cisco Umbrella

Read 121 Cisco Umbrella reviews

20,240 Views
4,250 Comparison Views

97% willing to recommend

EfficientIP DNS Firewall

Read 1 EfficientIP DNS Firewall review

294 Views
294 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Cisco Umbrella

EfficientIP DNS Firewall

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Sep 21, 2025

Cisco Umbrella and EfficientIP DNS Firewall are both contenders in the DNS security solutions category. Although Cisco Umbrella has the upper hand in support and pricing satisfaction, EfficientIP is favored for its integration capabilities, making it an attractive investment despite higher costs.

Features: Cisco Umbrella offers robust threat intelligence, seamless cloud integration, and malware prevention. EfficientIP DNS Firewall provides smart DDI, adaptive response strategies, and integrated IP management, enhancing network security with dynamic threat detection.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Cisco Umbrella's cloud-based deployment is straightforward, requiring minimal on-site setup and offering comprehensive remote support. EfficientIP DNS Firewall requires more detailed installation and configuration but provides deep technical support and specialized guidance.

Pricing and ROI: Cisco Umbrella offers a competitive pricing model with rapid ROI due to lower setup costs and quick deployment. EfficientIP DNS Firewall incurs higher initial costs but offers favorable ROI through enhanced DNS and IP management features.

To learn more, read our detailed Domain Name System (DNS) Security Report (Updated: September 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Domain Name System (DNS) Security

September 2025

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Helped 868,759 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 Umbrella

Ranking in Domain Name System (DNS) Security

1st

Average Rating

8.8

Reviews Sentiment

7.3

Number of Reviews

121

Ranking in other categories

Secure Web Gateways (SWG) (1st), Internet Security (1st), Cloud Access Security Brokers (CASB) (2nd), Cisco Security Portfolio (1st)

EfficientIP DNS Firewall

Ranking in Domain Name System (DNS) Security

16th

Average Rating

8.0

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the Domain Name System (DNS) Security category, the mindshare of Cisco Umbrella is 20.6%, down from 25.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of EfficientIP DNS Firewall is 1.7%, up from 1.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Domain Name System (DNS) Security Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
Cisco Umbrella	20.6%
EfficientIP DNS Firewall	1.7%
Other	77.7%

Domain Name System (DNS) Security

Featured Reviews

Emilio Montoya

CTO at PROA

Ensures internet navigation safety and boosts productivity

The features of Cisco Umbrella I prefer most are DNS protection and traffic redirect. With Cisco Talos's threat intelligence, we reduce the impact of malware traffic in our network, and we currently see the behavior of equipment and choose the correct sites. Cisco Talos has helped us reduce the impact of malware traffic. We can see the behavior and choose the correct sites. We're currently testing secure access with Umbrella in order to secure access to core applications. It's a product that the user doesn't even know is there, even though it is protecting them. It's not hard on the equipment. And, for us, it centralizes everything, which improves productivity. With the Experience Insights feature of Cisco Secure Access, we've seen impacts on the management of user connectivity by allowing us to deliver safe connectivity. We are testing the Secure Access product with Cisco Umbrella to improve our connectivity with our users in order to secure access to the corporate applications. Cisco Umbrella is in the cloud, which is nice.

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reviewer1080873

Senior Consultant at a tech services company with 51-200 employees

Easy to set up and use, and has a helpful network device inventory function

The vendor needs to do more to promote this product in certain regions, helping it to gain market share in territories where it is not widely adopted. The problem with this vendor is that they are too focused on revenue and sales numbers. If a partner is not able to generate the revenue that they're expecting, they put them on hold until they can generate interest and traction in their region for the products. It comes down to the management's mindset. They have a good product but they don't have much patience for a territory that is slow to adopt.

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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

"The primary advantage of Cisco Umbrella is its ability to safeguard our users no matter where they are working from - whether it's in the office or remotely, as per the new work model that has emerged globally. This integrated security solution has simplified our lives by combining all the necessary security measures in one product. Additionally, deploying the product is all it takes to protect all our users."

"There is much differentiation within the licensing so if anyone wants DNS security from the DNS security log, we are there already, and if anyone wants to go to a secure internet gateway, that is also available. We can get the integrated cloud DLP license keys. That is a good benefit with Cisco Umbrella. You can get a complete solution in a single licensing."

"The most valuable feature of this solution is its reliability."

"Improves security through DNS visibility, which can block malware, phishing, C&C, etc."

"It makes it really easy to accomplish content filtering. We don't have to do a lot of customization. You just click the box for the content category and it's up to date."

"It offers good visibility for the Administrator. The administrator has full visibility of what is blocked or has the knowledge of where users go when they are surfing the internet."

"One valuable feature is definitely its simplicity in terms of deployment. It is very easy to integrate it into the environment without any heavy lifting. Users didn't notice that we implemented it. You can start with a very low monitoring mode and start observing what Cisco Umbrella sees."

"The most valuable feature is its ability to detect if a URL has malware or is vulnerable."

More Cisco Umbrella pros

"This product has an inventory function to help maintain a list of the equipment, which is quite good."

Cons

"I'd like to see improvement in its overall integration with all the other platforms. There's some integration between Umbrella and Meraki, but an overall Cisco problem is that there are so many different tools, and finding easy, seamless ways of connecting everything together is always a challenge."

"The design of the screens could be improved. Sometimes you're trying to look for information, for what you think is critical that should be on that first screen of the dashboard so that you can quickly take screenshots to have people help out, but you have to hop between screens to find little pieces of evidence."

"For us, as an MSP, the initial licensing changes were a roadblock, and they still could be a lot clearer. Specifically, it's an honor-based licensing system. We'd like it to be more specific to our traffic or our users so that we can make sure that the customer is paying for all their licensing."

"Its price could be better."

"Cisco Umbrella is difficult to manage and needs to include a dashboard. It needs to improve pricing as well."

"It has happened in the past that Cisco Umbrella has denied us access to secure websites."

"I would like to see more integrability with other products."

"I don't have an answer for how Cisco Umbrella can be improved, as it has been some time since I've worked with it."

More Cisco Umbrella cons

"The vendor needs to do more to promote this product in certain regions, helping it to gain market share in territories where it is not widely adopted."

Pricing and Cost Advice

"We did a good negotiation, and at the moment, its price is fine."

"The licensing and pricing structure of Cisco Umbrella is in line with standard systems on the market, and we have no specific requirements in this area. Overall, we have found it to be an acceptable pricing model for our organization."

"The price should be slightly lower than the current price because if you look at the whole solution, it is simply a threat intelligence solution to block blacklisted things. The price should be lower looking at the features provided by the solution. The price isn't too high either, but it could be lower."

"Cisco Umbrella is expensive and could be cheaper."

"The licensing part for Umbrella is really flexible."

"The price of Cisco Umbrella is a little higher than similar solutions, like Gateway."

"The pricing model is easier compared to some of the other solutions, and it is also competitive."

"There are no hidden costs with Umbrella. Everything is included in the package."

More Cisco Umbrella pricing and cost advice

"The price of this product is very reasonable, especially considering that a company's reputation is priceless."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

18%

Manufacturing Company

Financial Services Firm

Healthcare Company

No data available

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	49
Midsize Enterprise	30
Large Enterprise	51

No data available

Questions from the Community

Which is the better security solution - Cisco Umbrella or Zscaler?

Cisco Umbrella and Zscaler Internet Access are two broad-spectrum Internet security solutions that I have tried. Zscaler Internet Access is a good option for carrying out multiple security functi...

See all answers

Which is the better security solution - Cisco Umbrella or Microsoft Cloud App Security?

Cisco Umbrella is an integral component of the Cisco SASE architecture. It integrates security in a single, cloud-native solution, unifying multiple features like DNS-layer security, threat intelli...

See all answers

What do you like most about Cisco Umbrella?

Cisco Umbrella is easy to monitor, manage, and deploy.

See all answers

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Comparisons

Zscaler Internet Access vs Cisco Umbrella

Compared 17% of the time

Cisco Secure Access vs Cisco Umbrella

Compared 9% of the time

Prisma Access by Palo Alto Networks vs Cisco Umbrella

Compared 7% of the time

Infoblox Advanced DNS Protection vs Cisco Umbrella

Compared 5% of the time

Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps vs Cisco Umbrella

Compared 5% of the time

More Cisco Umbrella Competitors

BlueCat Edge vs EfficientIP DNS Firewall

Compared 45% of the time

Palo Alto Networks DNS Security vs EfficientIP DNS Firewall

Compared 24% of the time

Infoblox BloxOne Threat Defense vs EfficientIP DNS Firewall

Compared 15% of the time

More EfficientIP DNS Firewall Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Cisco Umbrella

September 2025

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Buyer's Guide

Domain Name System (DNS) Security

September 2025

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Also Known As

OpenDNS

No data available

Overview

Cisco Umbrella delivers rapid DNS security with over 30,000 customers, providing outstanding threat protection and handling more than 600 billion requests daily. It's recognized for high threat efficacy in the SSE domain and integrates elements like SWG, ZTNA, CASB, and more.

Cisco Umbrella is renowned for its effective DNS-layer security against ransomware and phishing. It offers flexible content filtering and integrates seamlessly with existing networks while providing single-pane-of-glass management for centralized monitoring. Its robust threat intelligence and customizable policies are central to its appeal. Users highlight room for improvement in areas like WHOIS data inclusion, malware enhancement, and reporting analytics. Integration with other threat feeds and better client support are requested for more comprehensive coverage.

What are the key features of Cisco Umbrella?

DNS-Layer Security: Blocks malicious domains, preventing ransomware attacks.
Web Content Filtering: Allows users to manage lists for strict content control.
Seamless Integration: Blends with systems like Active Directory and Meraki.
Remote Protection: Keeps remote users safe across different locations.
Single-Pane Management: Facilitates effective monitoring and reporting.

What should users expect in reviews about Cisco Umbrella?

Threat Intelligence: Provides comprehensive malware and attack data.
Customizable Policies: Enables tailored security measures for users.
Integration Options: Works with diverse systems for holistic security.
Ease of Use: Offers a straightforward experience for administrators.
Remote Worker Security: Ensures protection outside traditional networks.

Industries implement Cisco Umbrella primarily for DNS-level security, web filtering, and protecting remote employees. It strengthens cybersecurity frameworks by blocking malware and avoiding access to harmful sites. The tool is widely integrated with Active Directory and Cisco Meraki, providing consistent internet security for employees.

Cisco

DNS Firewall prevents connected devices from becoming infected with malware and blocks their activity by enabling recursive DNS servers to stop or redirect queries from clients that want to access identified malicious domains and/or IPs.

EfficientIP

Sample Customers

Chart Industries, City of Aspen, Eastern Mountain Sports, FLEXcon, George Washington University, Jackson Municipal Airport Authority, Ohio Public Library Information Network, PTC, Richland Community College, Smart Motors, Tulane University, VeriClaim

De Montfort University, STMicroelectronics, Leeds Beckett University

Buyer's Guide

Domain Name System (DNS) Security

September 2025

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