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Fortinet FortiClient vs VMware Carbon Black Endpoint comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Sep 9, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

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

ROI

Sentiment score
5.7
Fortinet FortiClient improved productivity, enabled better remote work, reduced costs, and enhanced security despite some unused features.
Sentiment score
5.6
VMware Carbon Black Endpoint offers strong protection, reducing malware and saving 10% in costs, showing significant value within six months.
The VPN performance has a substantial impact on our remote workforce.
Technology Consultant at 1ware
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
6.7
Fortinet FortiClient's support is praised for responsiveness but criticized for inconsistency and delayed responses compared to competitors.
Sentiment score
6.3
VMware Carbon Black's support is knowledgeable yet occasionally slow, with variability in global and local assistance quality.
They initiate the troubleshooting process quickly and resolve issues in a timely manner.
Medical Coder at a tech services company with 1,001-5,000 employees
In 99% of cases, we do not have to do configurations on our own as they are normally handled by their service providers.
Director at a manufacturing company with 11-50 employees
They provide very good support, and an issue I had was resolved quickly over the phone.
Head IT at Burraq Cyber Security Solutions
Regarding the technical support of Broadcom, they are responsive and helpful.
Senior VP, Technology & Leading Technology Office at a outsourcing company with 1,001-5,000 employees
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.2
Fortinet FortiClient is scalable, suitable for small to large enterprises, but reviews on ease of scaling are mixed.
Sentiment score
7.1
VMware Carbon Black Endpoint is praised for scalability and ease of deployment, despite some challenges with report generation.
We normally take into consideration while installing the product that it can scale up to approximately 20%, but not more than that.
Director at a manufacturing company with 11-50 employees
Most of our clients are using the free version rather than the paid version due to the high range of maximum users available for the free version.
Senior Technical Manager at Flexaccel
I hope Fortinet will start an insider developer program where professionals can provide feedback on new releases to ensure improvements.
Head IT at Burraq Cyber Security Solutions
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.9
Fortinet FortiClient is highly stable, with minor issues mostly network-related, and users frequently rate it nine or ten.
Sentiment score
7.5
VMware Carbon Black Endpoint is generally stable and efficient, with minor integration issues and occasional latency quickly addressed.
Its stability level is excellent.
IT Manager at CNE
I normally get a call within 15-20 minutes after logging a complaint.
Director at a manufacturing company with 11-50 employees
Fortinet FortiClient is a stable product with no glitches or latency issues.
Senior Technical Manager at Flexaccel
 

Room For Improvement

Fortinet FortiClient needs improved management, simplicity, features, compatibility, pricing, connectivity, scalability, authentication, and better support across OS.
VMware Carbon Black Endpoint needs better integration, user interface, system compatibility, pricing, support, and enhanced features for improved client satisfaction.
FortiClient needs improvement in restricting user information and ensuring more secure customer data to better protect source code and reduce the risk of security breaches.
Head IT at Burraq Cyber Security Solutions
There are advanced features like Zero Trust that I currently do not use but could be beneficial for security.
Senior Manager Tech Compliance at Qenta Inc.
Fortinet frequently releases updates without thorough testing.
Medical Coder at a tech services company with 1,001-5,000 employees
 

Setup Cost

Fortinet FortiClient is cost-effective for basic VPNs, with competitive licensing for advanced features despite recent price increases.
VMware Carbon Black's pricing is high and inflexible, with users preferring user-based over endpoint-based licensing options.
FortiClient is a value-for-money product and is not considered expensive compared to similar products on the market.
Global Head of IT Infrastructure at EPL Americas
Justifying the price to clients can be difficult.
Head IT at Burraq Cyber Security Solutions
FortiClient is included in a package with the UTM features, so there is no separate cost for it.
Senior Manager Tech Compliance at Qenta Inc.
 

Valuable Features

Fortinet FortiClient provides cost-effective, comprehensive security with seamless integration, advanced features, and ease of deployment and management.
VMware Carbon Black Endpoint offers advanced threat detection, cloud management, machine learning, and centralized control for efficient incident management.
The most valuable feature of FortiClient is its high security level.
Head IT at Burraq Cyber Security Solutions
We appreciate its VPN capabilities and the features that offer extra security functionalities like antivirus and malware scanning.
Infrastructure Manager at a retailer with 501-1,000 employees
I strongly recommend this solution, especially for Fortinet customers who use FortiGate or other Fortinet products, as they can easily integrate these features and exchange information seamlessly.
Technology Consultant at 1ware
I assess VMware Carbon Black Endpoint's machine learning capabilities in detecting unknown threats as fantastic.
Senior VP, Technology & Leading Technology Office at a outsourcing company with 1,001-5,000 employees
 

Categories and Ranking

Fortinet FortiClient
Ranking in Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP)
12th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.7
Number of Reviews
102
Ranking in other categories
Endpoint Compliance (1st), Enterprise Infrastructure VPN (1st)
VMware Carbon Black Endpoint
Ranking in Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP)
37th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.7
Number of Reviews
64
Ranking in other categories
Security Incident Response (6th), Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) (30th), Ransomware Protection (8th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP) category, the mindshare of Fortinet FortiClient is 1.7%, down from 2.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of VMware Carbon Black Endpoint is 1.8%, down from 1.9% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP) Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Fortinet FortiClient1.7%
VMware Carbon Black Endpoint1.8%
Other96.5%
Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP)
 

Featured Reviews

KL
Senior Technical Manager at Flexaccel
Remote access has become seamless and secure while deployment remains simple for our users
Performance could be improved today. People are now moving toward SASE, which stands for Secure Access, Secure Edge Solution. Fortinet also has that offering, which would be easier since it operates through the cloud, acting as a first line of defense. When the user connects to the internet, they connect to the cloud first for posture assessment and monitoring before connecting to the outside world. The impact is significant because nowadays people are adopting SASE. During COVID time, many users were trying to connect back to their office, causing the performance or CPU utilization of the firewall to increase tremendously, which slowed down performance. I have not worked with endpoint telemetry in Fortinet FortiClient that could have been helpful for threat mitigation.
reviewer2689206 - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior VP, Technology & Leading Technology Office at a outsourcing company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Behavior analytics has strengthened threat prediction yet still needs to improve overall standing
Regarding the real-time monitoring feature with VMware Carbon Black Endpoint, it is helpful in addressing unseen threats. I find the behavior analysis feature beneficial. I assess VMware Carbon Black Endpoint's machine learning capabilities in detecting unknown threats as fantastic. The behavior and analytics feature employs machine learning, and these are features which make the product and give that distinguishing, differentiating factor. The intelligent threat hunting capabilities have impacted my customers' cybersecurity efforts by giving them the edge to be prepared well in advance. Whenever this feature provides prediction, you know what action to take. You are aware of a possible attack and what kind of attack it may be, so you are much better prepared.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Manufacturing Company
11%
Computer Software Company
11%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Financial Services Firm
6%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Government
9%
Computer Software Company
9%
Comms Service Provider
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business59
Midsize Enterprise23
Large Enterprise25
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business31
Midsize Enterprise9
Large Enterprise31
 

Questions from the Community

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...
What to choose: an endpoint antivirus, an EDR solution or both?
I can recommend Carbon Black, an award-winning next-gen anti-virus (NGAV) and endpoint detection and response (EDR) security solution. The CB Predictive Security Cloud platform combines multiple hi...
What's the difference between Carbon Black CB Response and Carbon Black CB Defense?
Carbon Black offers two different levels of Endpoint Detection and Response. One is the VM Carbon Black Cloud Endpoint Standard (CB Defense), and the other is the Carbon Black Endpoint Detection an...
What do you like most about Carbon Black CB Defense?
VMware Carbon Black Endpoint is a highly stable solution.
 

Also Known As

FortiClient
Carbon Black CB Defense, Bit9, Confer
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Black Gold Regional Schools, Amadeus Hospitality, Jefferson County, Chunghwa Telecom, City of Boroondara, Dimension Data
Netflix, Progress Residential, Indeed, Hologic, Gentle Giant, Samsung Research America
Find out what your peers are saying about Fortinet FortiClient vs. VMware Carbon Black Endpoint and other solutions. Updated: December 2025.
881,082 professionals have used our research since 2012.