Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway vs SonicWall SMA comparison

Microsoft and SonicWall are both solutions in the Enterprise Infrastructure VPN category. Microsoft is ranked #4 with an average rating of 8.7, while SonicWall is ranked #16 with an average rating of 9.5. Microsoft holds a 4.6% mindshare in EIV, compared to SonicWall’s 2.6% mindshare. Additionally, 90% of Microsoft users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 91% of SonicWall users who would recommend it.

Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway

Read 28 Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway reviews

3,008 Views
2,978 Comparison Views

90% willing to recommend

SonicWall SMA

Read 15 SonicWall SMA reviews

1,517 Views
1,274 Comparison Views

91% willing to recommend

Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway

SonicWall SMA

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Download the report

Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 6, 2024

The comparison between SonicWall SMA and Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway highlights their strengths and weaknesses based on user reviews. SonicWall SMA leads in pricing and support, while Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway stands out for its advanced features, justifying the higher cost.

Features: SonicWall SMA impresses with robust security features, customizable policies, and reliability. Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway is praised for seamless integration with other Azure services, scalability, and performance. Users find Azure's feature set more comprehensive, providing enhanced capability for hybrid cloud environments.

Room for Improvement: SonicWall SMA users suggest enhancements in reporting tools and a more intuitive configuration process. Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway users express concerns about occasional complexities in setup and a need for better documentation. SonicWall SMA could improve its ease of use, while Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway should focus on simplifying setup.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: SonicWall SMA offers a straightforward deployment process with strong customer support. Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway's deployment is more intricate due to advanced features, yet it benefits from Microsoft's extensive support resources. Users value the simplicity and support of SonicWall but appreciate the expansive support network and resources from Microsoft Azure.

Pricing and ROI: SonicWall SMA is noted for its competitive pricing and favorable ROI. Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway, while more costly, delivers strong ROI through its extensive capabilities, especially for enterprises leveraging the broader Azure ecosystem. Users find SonicWall more affordable, but the investment in Azure VPN Gateway is often justified by its powerful features.

To learn more, read our detailed Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway vs. SonicWall SMA Report (Updated: March 2026).

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway vs. SonicWall SMA

March 2026

Download the complete report

Helped 884,933 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

Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway

Ranking in Enterprise Infrastructure VPN

4th

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

6.4

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

SonicWall SMA

Ranking in Enterprise Infrastructure VPN

16th

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

5.6

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Universal Access Gateways (2nd), SSL VPN (6th)

Mindshare comparison

As of March 2026, in the Enterprise Infrastructure VPN category, the mindshare of Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway is 4.6%, down from 6.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SonicWall SMA is 2.6%, up from 1.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Enterprise Infrastructure VPN Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway	4.6%
SonicWall SMA	2.6%
Other	92.8%

Enterprise Infrastructure VPN

Featured Reviews

Srinivas A

Director- Head of DevOps, security, and Complaince at Rightdata

Secure data links from on-premise sources have enabled private access to client databases

The best feature of Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway is its sophisticated security mechanism for transmitting data between on-premise to Azure or Azure to Azure. The process of building the VPN gateway is user-friendly, making it easy to configure. Additionally, it supports various options to establish connections between on-premise to Azure or other sources to targets. Using pfSense as a firewall and VPN at our on-premise allows us to establish connections between Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway and our on-premise pfSense VPN easily. This streamlined connection process occurs within a few steps. Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway has positively impacted our organization because it is core to our system and crucial for establishing private connections to our customer's data sources. Their databases lie in a private network with no communication with the outside world. Our customers trust Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway, and by extension, trust us because of this efficient networking establishment process.

Read full review

Barry Arendt

Owner at ThinkEzIT

Security enhances through autonomous protection and strong support while multi-factor authentication secures access

I haven't utilized the high availability and scalability features of SonicWall SMA yet because I've never had a need to. I don't know where they can focus their energy on continuous improvements, as I haven't been looking at what they're releasing. We're a small shop, so we drop stuff in and manage it and do what we need to do to maintain it. If we run into an issue, we contact support. There's a learning curve, but it comes down to getting support to train you on the product, and then once you have the training you need, you're able to make the changes and updates that you need to.

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 most valuable feature is the networking. I didn't have a good experience with the networking that Sophos has."

"I rate the product ten out of ten."

"It is scalable and depends on your chosen network bandwidth."

"Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway has positively impacted our organization because it is core to our system and crucial for establishing private connections to our customer's data sources."

"The solution is very quick to connect."

"The interoperability with various firewall and access gateway vendors is one of this solution's most valuable features"

"What I like best about Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway is that it's a managed VPN, so it's one of the most powerful VPNs I've ever found. It also provides point-to-site VPNs configurable within a few minutes."

"The VPN Gateway is valued for its ease of use and redundancy."

More Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway pros

"The management and the dashboard are the solution's most valuable features."

"The advanced threat protection and the endpoint control features of SonicWall SMA have helped improve security measures tremendously."

"SonicWall SMA allows us to provide CML-based access to any user."

"The solution is reliable and has good overall performance."

"I like the load balancing capability."

"This solution has many options for remote desktop and access."

"I am very satisfied with the technical support."

"It is faster than other security options when using remote connections."

More SonicWall SMA pros

Cons

"The monitoring part needs to be improved."

"The solution must provide metrics to monitor the inbound and outbound traffic easily."

"The marketing material in the portal is not very user-friendly."

"They should release a less expensive version of the solution."

"The product must provide a single sign-on."

"The instructions on how to integrate P2N and P2S type networks into Azure VPN Gateway could be improved, though it is a constantly evolving process."

"It isn't stabilized on the first day, and you need to set up the channels properly."

"Their technical support could be better. If you don't have a support contract, it takes longer."

More Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway cons

"User interface could be improved."

"I'd like to see the product maybe polish keyboards in Bookmark."

"The only thing that they could try to improve is the support for enterprise customers. Normally enterprises and SMBs can create a ticket, but for enterprises, SonicWall SMA needs to provide a global view, and this is what's currently missing. It's not even a question of timing. It's a question of the global vision because currently, it's lacking. They concentrate on the topic, but not on the means and not on the global picture. In most cases, there's something wrong with the integration of SonicWall SMA with other products, so that could also be improved."

"The product's technical support services could be improved."

"SonicWall's reporting isn't good. Reports should be part of a data plan. The login mechanism should be improved. It would be helpful if the client could use an agent to log in. An agent-server model would improve the performance of the RDB, which consumes a lot of bandwidth."

"Enhancing live tracking capabilities could improve the product, particularly in monitoring user activity and request statuses in real-time on the web interface."

"This is an expensive solution and I think that the price could be improved."

"The overall menu is not very user-friendly and it could be easier."

More SonicWall SMA cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The solution is subscription-based and very cheap."

"I pay the licensing charges associated with the tool on an hourly basis. The tool is affordable."

"The software has good pricing compared to other vendors."

"Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway is the cheapest way for us to connect to our cloud infrastructure. Other solutions, such as ExpressRoute are very expensive."

"It's saved us money compared to getting a third-party appliance."

"The cost could be lower."

"The costs are quite high."

"Payment for licensing the solution is part of the operating model. So, one needs to keep on paying while consuming the solution. In short, the payment is based on the solution's capacity."

More Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway pricing and cost advice

"The platform has medium pricing."

"All the costs are included in a bundled license."

"I don't know about the pricing of the SSL-VPN box. I know the SSL-VPN software is free. Global VPN client, by comparison, is licensed for around $150 or something like that. But the SSL-VPN software is free. It is already built-in with the box."

"The cost of the licensing is based on the maximum number of concurrent users, and it costs a lot to add them."

"This solution is priced well and we currently have the maximum number of licenses allowed."

"Our licenses are stackable and can be anywhere from five users to a million users."

See which vendors are best for you

Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Enterprise Infrastructure VPN solutions are best for your needs.

See recommendations

884,933 professionals have used our research since 2012.

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

11%

Manufacturing Company

Comms Service Provider

Government

Manufacturing Company

11%

Computer Software Company

11%

Comms Service Provider

11%

Real Estate/Law Firm

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	14
Midsize Enterprise	2
Large Enterprise	14

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	11
Midsize Enterprise	3
Large Enterprise	2

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway?

The solution is user-friendly.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway?

The logging mechanism could use improvement. More detailed logging would help in troubleshooting any failures during connection establishment or monitoring Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway. Otherwise, e...

See all answers

What advice do you have for others considering Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway?

For those considering using Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway, read the documentation thoroughly. Create an Excel sheet outlining tasks for both the source and target sides, especially when establishing ...

See all answers

What do you like most about SonicWall SMA?

Blocklisting and allowlisting are the most beneficial features for network security.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SonicWall SMA?

The pricing for the solution could be a lot less.

See all answers

What needs improvement with SonicWall SMA?

See all answers

Comparisons

OpenVPN Access Server vs Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway

Compared 20% of the time

Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) vs Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway

Compared 13% of the time

Fortinet FortiClient vs Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway

Compared 9% of the time

Prisma Access by Palo Alto Networks vs Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway

Compared 9% of the time

Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) vs Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway

Compared 3% of the time

More Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway Competitors

Citrix Gateway vs SonicWall SMA

Compared 13% of the time

Ivanti Connect Secure vs SonicWall SMA

Compared 12% of the time

OpenVPN Access Server vs SonicWall SMA

Compared 11% of the time

Sangfor SSL VPN vs SonicWall SMA

Compared 11% of the time

Tailscale vs SonicWall SMA

Compared 5% of the time

More SonicWall SMA Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway

March 2026

Download Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway product report

Buyer's Guide

SonicWall SMA

February 2026

Download SonicWall SMA product report

Also Known As

MS Azure VPN Gateway

SonicWall Aventail, SonicWall SMA SSL-VPN, SonicWall Secure Mobile Access

Overview

A VPN gateway is a specific type of virtual network gateway that is used to send encrypted traffic between an Azure virtual network and an on-premises location over the public Internet. You can also use a VPN gateway to send encrypted traffic between Azure virtual networks over the Microsoft network. Each virtual network can have only one VPN gateway. However, you can create multiple connections to the same VPN gateway. When you create multiple connections to the same VPN gateway, all VPN tunnels share the available gateway bandwidth.

Microsoft

SonicWall SMA is a unified secure access gateway that enables organizations to provide anytime, anywhere and any device access to mission critical corporate resources. SMA's granular access control policy engine, context aware device authorization, application level VPN and advanced authentication with single sign-on empowers organizations to embrace BYOD and mobility in a hybrid IT environment.

SonicWall

Sample Customers

Information Not Available

UnitedStack, Newport City Homes, Faith Lutheran College Redlands, PRIME aerostructures GmbH, Celtic Manor Resort

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway vs. SonicWall SMA

March 2026

Free Report: Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway vs. SonicWall SMA

Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway vs. SonicWall SMA and other solutions. Updated: March 2026.

DOWNLOAD NOW

884,933 professionals have used our research since 2012.

See our Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway vs. SonicWall SMA report.

See our list of best Enterprise Infrastructure VPN vendors.

We monitor all Enterprise Infrastructure VPN reviews to prevent fraudulent reviews and keep review quality high. We do not post reviews by company employees or direct competitors. We validate each review for authenticity via cross-reference with LinkedIn, and personal follow-up with the reviewer when necessary.