Juniper Session Smart Router vs Versa Unified Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) Platform comparison

Juniper and Versa Networks are both solutions in the Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions category. Juniper is ranked #12 with an average rating of 8.0, while Versa Networks is ranked #10 with an average rating of 7.7. Juniper holds a 2.5% mindshare in SDW, compared to Versa Networks’s 4.3% mindshare. Additionally, 100% of Juniper users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 90% of Versa Networks users who would recommend it.

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Jan 1, 2025

Versa Unified Secure Access Service Edge Platform and Juniper Session Smart Router are competing solutions in the network infrastructure industry. Versa has an advantage in support and setup cost, appealing to cost-conscious buyers, while Juniper offers advanced router features justifying its pricing.

Features: Versa SASE Platform provides integrated security and networking, with centralized management that simplifies configuration and monitoring. Juniper Session Smart Router offers application-based routing, zero-trust security, and optimized data flow.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Deployment of Versa SASE Platform is smoother due to integrated solutions, reducing compatibility issues, and it is frequently praised for strong customer support. Juniper’s complex deployment process is mitigated by reliable installation guidance despite its sophisticated router configurations.

Pricing and ROI: Versa SASE Platform is generally more budget-friendly with lower initial setup costs, delivering quick ROI due to cost-effective integration. Juniper Session Smart Router entails a higher initial cost, but its features can provide substantial long-term benefits, appealing to those prioritizing long-term functionality.

To learn more, read our detailed Juniper Session Smart Router vs. Versa Unified Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) Platform Report (Updated: July 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Juniper Session Smart Router vs. Versa Unified Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) Platform

July 2025

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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 August 2025, in the Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions category, the mindshare of Fortinet FortiGate is 19.9%, down from 21.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Juniper Session Smart Router is 2.5%, down from 3.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Versa Unified Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) Platform is 4.3%, down from 5.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions

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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SRI GANESH PHANIYAPPA

Sub Divisional Engineer NOC Bangalore at Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited

Delivered tailored features and meets requirements effectively

We are using it as a DNG. This means all subscriber PPPoE sessions or ILS Smart VPN connections are terminated through the access network to this BNG, Uniphore BNG. From there, they are managed Everything has been fine. Although we did not explore much about the solution, they provided us with a…

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PranavGupta

Assistant Manager at Shyam Telecom Group

A cloud-managed, cloud-delivered private access service efficiently connecting distributed users with. distributed applications without compromising on security or user experience.

Certainly, there are areas that require enhancement, and the current focus is on improvements. Presently, I believe that the emphasis should be on enhancing user interface (UI) features, particularly over end devices. The issue arises when attempting to log in to Versa from other devices, as the UI is not device-specific. Consequently, guiding someone to log in to Versa antivirus becomes challenging. Despite the absence of issues on the website, the lack of a login scope impedes graphical representation of user data or databases. Since work databases support only a limited range of features, I recommend augmenting features for end devices to address these limitations.

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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

"Some of the best features of Fortinet FortiGate include the next-generation firewall features."

"Their interface is very easy to use, it is without bugs."

"Fortinet FortiGate is a scalable solution."

"Their web interface to manage it is excellent, even compared with other providers."

"It's easy to manage. The GUI is very simple, and what is very good is that every product, regardless of size, has the same interface."

"Good anti-malware and web filtering features."

"Good load balancing feature."

"The ability to set up remote systems is the most valuable feature."

More Fortinet FortiGate pros

"They provided us with a customized product according to our requirements."

"The solution is especially Session's smart, application-aware, AI-based."

"Customer service is very prompt."

"The most valuable feature of Juniper Session Smart Router is its unique SDR channel."

"As compared to the other major vendors in the SD-WAN market, such as VeloCloud, Cisco, and others, the tunnel-free and secure vector routing technology is its major USP, which gives plenty of room to discuss with the customer why IPSec from 1998 is a bit outdated."

"The necessary enhancement pertains to the controller segment, specifically addressing the issue of frequent flapping when a link is left. In the case of Versa Unified, if a link experiences frequent flapping within an entire branch, it triggers instability. Hence, it is imperative that the overall routing system is not contingent solely upon the active dial branches."

"The most valuable aspects of the solution are the next-generation firewall features and geo-blocking capabilities."

"There are great security and ops features without the need for having a different box for security."

"The solution is stable and suitable."

"The granularity when it comes to configuration and security features are valuable."

"Their dashboard is also a good point for us and the customer. The solution is very clean and easy."

"The division of Control Plane and Data Plane is most valuable. It can be deployed anywhere, and you can control it and configure it from anywhere. This is one of the good features of this solution."

"I like all the features. We utilize different LAN, bandwidth transferring, bandwidth balancing, and mappings. We use it as a centralized solution, and use the same product at all our locations."

More Versa Unified Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) Platform pros

Cons

"It could use more templates for third-party site-to-site VPN setups other than FortiGate and Cisco."

"The initial setup and configuration are not intuitive and require training."

"Difficult to add or define, and not that easy to configure and manage."

"One area for improvement involves FortiAnalyzer, specifically regarding the SOC part and log interpretation. Sometimes interpretation is very difficult."

"I think Fortinet FortiGate is stable because previously it had a hiccup around a bug within the authentication VPN due to the firmware, but after updating, it's easier to control."

"From my experience, I see that the datasheets of the Fortinet FortiGate portfolio need to be more accurate because correct sizing is essential. The datasheets should provide clear information when deploying features."

"The visibility of the network can be better. The GUI can be improved for better visibility of the network flow. Other solutions have better GUI in terms of network visibility."

"The logging details need to be improved."

More Fortinet FortiGate cons

"The UI of the SSR conductor is the main part where improvements can be done. Today, for every configuration step, you have to do a series of clicks. What we are missing there are wizards. For example, I have two applications, and I want one application to be prioritized against the other. In such a case, a wizard for assigning policies to a service without configuring each step by hand would be very helpful. There should be an overhaul of the GUI of the conductor. The functionality they have got in the Mist portal should be baked into the conductor itself. It would be really great, but as we all know, that won't happen."

"Juniper Session Smart Router can improve the integration for Wi-Fi devices and add additional Sassy deployments."

"Juniper Session Smart Router could be better in terms of software performance."

"Regarding improvement, we still need to see what it can do."

"The support needs to be improved."

"The solution lacks a mobile version where small, manageable platforms can be developed."

"Another thing that should be improved in Versa are their firewall features."

"We are thinking about how to make customers consolidate the loads to an SD-WAN network so that the customers can have bigger chunk from the SD-WAN side so that customers can have critical data be transferred with NPS VPN and non-critical data or some labeled traffic can be transferred by the SD-WAN network. I think it's a very important direction for digital transformation."

"SASE is the next big thing that is coming up, and it needs to be developed in Versa. This is the only thing that needs to be adapted very quickly by Versa. With the pandemic going on, I would like to see more features for working from home. They have launched Versa Secure Access (VSA), but it is currently immature. They need to tighten it up for work from home and SD-WAN concept."

"The web interface can be improved."

"I heard about them for the first time just before I started working on Versa. They do have blogs for information, but they could publicize more about the documentation and architecture. It doesn't seem to have that much exposure, and they should work on their customer base more."

"There are limitations when you connect from multiple locations. It does not work as expected. If you have more than 400 users, then it will choke. It will not perform as expected."

More Versa Unified Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) Platform cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The license is too expensive to renew. The license renewal process is also complex."

"Some of our customers are using Sophos and SonicWall due to price concerns, as they can't manage the pricing of Fortinet FortiGate."

"The price of FortiGate is comparable to that of most other firewall solutions and is more affordable than Cisco."

"Its price could be better."

"Its price is affordable and lesser than Cisco. Cisco is expensive. In terms of licensing, there is only one issue. If a customer's license has expired a month ago and they do the renewal after one month, Fortinet renews the license from the start of the previous month. The activation of the product is done from the previous month, not from the date of renewal. The customers usually shout and complain that because they are paying today, the renewal should start from today. The support contract renewals or licensing should be renewed from the date of renewal, but Fortinet starts from the day it had expired. It is a loss for customers. They might have had some problems because of which they did not take the license one month before. Fortinet should work on this. Cisco doesn't do this. Cisco always starts from the day they apply for the license."

"No comment."

"Fortinet FortiGate's price can be reduced."

"The price is okay."

More Fortinet FortiGate pricing and cost advice

"It is a simple bandwidth-based license and the orchestration comes bundled with the solution by default."

"We are currently renegotiating the offer for the licenses and the license bundle model. The license for an ISP has to be different from the license for an end customer. This is something we are currently renegotiating with Juniper, but, of course, the pricing for the licensing is always an issue when you want to get more customers."

"It is neither cheap nor expensive. I rate the pricing a five out of ten on a scale where one is cheap and ten is expensive."

"We provide subscriptions for our customers on a yearly, not monthly, basis."

"While I cannot provide too much commentary on the price, I feel it to be fair for the moment."

"I find Versa a little more expensive than VMware in terms of remote access and secure web gateway elements."

"It is not very expensive because of the white box support. Its hardware is much cheaper than other products. With the support for x86 and white box, it is one of the most cost-effective platforms that are currently available."

"Price wise, it's more expensive than is the competition. I would give pricing a rating of three out of five."

"The price is expensive but it makes sense for the market."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

16%

Comms Service Provider

Manufacturing Company

Financial Services Firm

Manufacturing Company

16%

Computer Software Company

12%

Financial Services Firm

10%

Comms Service Provider

Computer Software Company

12%

Government

11%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Financial Services Firm

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

No data available

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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What do you like most about Juniper Session Smart Router?

The most valuable feature of Juniper Session Smart Router is its unique SDR channel.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Juniper Session Smart Router?

Juniper Session Smart Router is not significantly cheaper than, for example, Cisco.

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What needs improvement with Juniper Session Smart Router?

I did not find any problem with Juniper. Regarding improvement, we still need to see what it can do.

See all answers

What do you like most about Versa Titan?

The necessary enhancement pertains to the controller segment, specifically addressing the issue of frequent flapping ...

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Versa Titan?

The solution is very expensive, costing above one crore Indian rupees for our setup, which spans around twenty five b...

See all answers

What needs improvement with Versa Titan?

The cost of Versa Unified Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) is higher than other solutions available in the market. A...

See all answers

Comparisons

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Compared 20% of the time

Cisco Secure Firewall vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 12% of the time

Netgate pfSense vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 11% of the time

Meraki MX vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 5% of the time

SonicWall TZ vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 4% of the time

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Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN vs Juniper Session Smart Router

Compared 25% of the time

Aruba EdgeConnect SD-WAN Platform vs Juniper Session Smart Router

Compared 13% of the time

NFX Series Network Services Platform vs Juniper Session Smart Router

Compared 11% of the time

Prisma SD-WAN vs Juniper Session Smart Router

Compared 9% of the time

Cato SASE Cloud Platform vs Juniper Session Smart Router

Compared 6% of the time

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Meraki SD-WAN vs Versa Unified Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) Platform

Compared 12% of the time

Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN vs Versa Unified Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) Platform

Compared 12% of the time

VMware VeloCloud SD-WAN vs Versa Unified Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) Platform

Compared 11% of the time

Aruba EdgeConnect SD-WAN Platform vs Versa Unified Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) Platform

Compared 8% of the time

Prisma SD-WAN vs Versa Unified Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) Platform

Compared 4% of the time

More Versa Unified Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) Platform Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Fortinet FortiGate

August 2025

Download Fortinet FortiGate product report

Buyer's Guide

Routers

August 2025

Download Juniper Session Smart Router product report

Buyer's Guide

Versa Unified Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) Platform

July 2025

Versa Unified Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) Platform report

Download Versa Unified Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) Platform product report

Also Known As

FortiGate 60b, FortiGate 60c, FortiGate 80c, FortiGate 50b, FortiGate 200b, FortiGate 110c, FortiGate, Fortinet Firewall

128T Networking Platform, 128 Technology SD-WAN, Juniper SSR Series

Versa FlexVNF, FlexVNF, Versa Titan

Overview

Fortinet FortiGate offers comprehensive network security and firewall protection across multiple locations. It effectively manages data traffic and secures environments with features like VPN, intrusion prevention, and UTM controls.

Organizations rely on Fortinet FortiGate for its robust integration with advanced security policies, ensuring significant protection for enterprises, cloud environments, and educational sectors. It facilitates network segmentation, application-level security, and authentication management, securing communication within and between locations such as branches and data centers. Its efficient SD-WAN and UTM features enable streamlined data management and enhanced threat protection capabilities. Users appreciate its centralized management, facilitating seamless operations across diverse environments.

What are the key features of Fortinet FortiGate?

VPN Capabilities: Ensure secure remote access for users and seamless site-to-site connections.
Intrusion Prevention System (IPS): Detect and prevent security threats and vulnerabilities.
Advanced Firewall: Offers robust firewalling with application control and web filtering.
SD-WAN: Optimizes application performance and enhances bandwidth management.
SSL VPN: Provides reliable and secure access for remote workers.

What benefits should users expect from Fortinet FortiGate?

High-performance Security: Delivers effective threat mitigation with high availability.
Centralized Management: Simplifies network operations with cloud-based management tools.
Detailed Analytics: Provides comprehensive insights into network activity and security threats.
Load Balancing: Ensures optimal resource distribution and traffic management.

Fortinet FortiGate is crucial in sectors like education, offering robust networks for secure data flow between campuses and facilitating remote learning. In enterprise environments, it allows efficient management of application traffic and security across multiple branches, while in the cloud, it seamlessly integrates with diverse platforms to enhance security infrastructure.

Fortinet

The 128T Networking Platform (128T) natively provides network-based security, control, and insight across data centers, wide-area networks (WAN), and edge locations for enterprises, service providers, and cloud companies alike. 128T is reshaping the way organizations design, deploy, and operate real-world networks by making them dramatically simpler, smarter, and more secure — it’s going to fix the router — and ultimately the network — as we know it.

Juniper

The Versa Unified Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) Platform is a comprehensive solution that provides secure access to cloud applications and services. It combines networking and security functions into a single platform, making it easier for organizations to manage their network infrastructure. The platform includes features such as SD-WAN, VPN, firewall, web filtering, and more. It also offers advanced security capabilities such as intrusion prevention, malware protection, and threat intelligence. With the Versa SASE Platform, organizations can ensure secure access to their cloud applications and services from any location, while also reducing costs and simplifying network management.

Versa Networks

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

Revation Systems

CenturyLink, RCN Business, Colt Technology Services

Buyer's Guide

Juniper Session Smart Router vs. Versa Unified Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) Platform

July 2025

Free Report: Juniper Session Smart Router vs. Versa Unified Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) Platform

Find out what your peers are saying about Juniper Session Smart Router vs. Versa Unified Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) Platform and other solutions. Updated: July 2025.

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