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Netgate pfSense vs Sangfor NGAF comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jan 25, 2026

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

Netgate pfSense
Ranking in Firewalls
2nd
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
221
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Sangfor NGAF
Ranking in Firewalls
22nd
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.5
Number of Reviews
34
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2026, in the Firewalls category, the mindshare of Netgate pfSense is 7.4%, down from 11.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Sangfor NGAF is 1.1%, down from 1.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Firewalls Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Netgate pfSense7.4%
Sangfor NGAF1.1%
Other91.5%
Firewalls
 

Featured Reviews

JA
Principal Cloud Architect - Software Engineer at a consultancy with 11-50 employees
Rapid VPN setup has connected offices in minutes and brings live insights for proactive issue control
What I appreciate the most about Netgate pfSense is the ease and straightforward nature of the platform. I can set up a new office in less than 10 minutes. The benefits of using Netgate pfSense are that I can set up VPNs in less than two to three minutes, and then just deploy the file across my networks, where everybody would be connected in less than an hour. The dashboards of Netgate pfSense bring all the necessary information that I need at a glance, and it is actually a live update every three to five seconds. It is spotless, and I have been able to catch issues before they hit operations.
Zaid Farooqui - PeerSpot reviewer
CIO at Indus Motor Company
Enhanced threat detection with integrated security features and good support
We are using application firewalling, WAF, and SD-WAN. The capabilities are mostly within the box. For example, you will get web application firewall WAF as part and parcel of this. SD-WAN is also bundled. It integrates with their SIEM and SOAR solutions very nicely. Lastly, the pricing point is very cost-efficient as well.

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 features are the VPN and the capture photo."
"The VPN is my favorite feature."
"I think that having this kind of complex configuration and tuning with a robust open solution is a good value."
"I like the connectivity to the open VPN. It's very smooth."
"My company mainly works in the health and educational domain, schools and universities. I prevent the improper use of content from schools and universities. I defend the medical records for the patients in our hospitals. That is the main use case for me for the firewall."
"This product is the very best."
"I like that I can use it with OpenVPN."
"What I like most about the product is that it is simple to use."
"SSL VPN is the best feature."
"The most valuable feature of Sangfor NGAF is its integration."
"We are Sangfor Gold partners and I'd recommend this solution for the SMB market, as it is cost-effective and reliable."
"It offers application control features."
"You might try Sangfor if you are on a tight budget. The price is affordable, and Sangfor offers a lot of features. We don't have any complaints about Sangfor."
"The absolute best part of Sangfor NGAF is their support; it's a 24/7 support channel, and the last time I requested their assistance I got a reply within three minutes and they helped solve the problem immediately."
"This product is very user-friendly, and its Layer 7 security is very much improved."
"Sangfor has the best capabilities for securing connections, securing web browsers, securing servers, and general threat protection."
 

Cons

"Maybe they can add two-factor authentication."
"The main problem with pfSense is that we have to use proxy solutions."
"PfSense could better utilize the interface and dashboard and include some packages in the built-in solution. For example, pfSense is sharing some other packages. You have to download and configure them within the package manager of pfSense. Some of those important ones, like the IPS and the monitor, could be installed on the solution's image and configured."
"There's a bit of a learning curve during the initial implementation."
"One thing that stuck out to me was the move to use plastic chassis on the Netgate devices or products. They are moving away from using metal chassis, and I find that the plastic seems to get hotter than the metal."
"One area where Netgate could improve is communication with its user base."
"The VPN feature of the solution could improve by adding better functionality and providing easier configure ability."
"The load balancing can be improved as it uses tier levels to balance."
"Our experience with its customer support was quite challenging."
"Lacks consistency in terms of filtering certain websites and applications."
"They need to increase the number of ports in the firewall."
"Sangfor could improve by providing better real-time reporting, as the current reports don't offer the level of detail we need, especially for runtime insights."
"The solution has too many bugs and these slow down the implementation."
"It has an issue with the Sangfor Cloud Platform rather than the firewall. When we run a virtual machine, the window tabs display Chinese characters."
"Scalability for any network device is not very easy in terms of vertical scalability."
"Sangfor NGAF could improve the policies and default criteria. They could be much better."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"There is no license. You don't have to pay anything. It's completely free."
"PfSense is reasonable for a business but a little pricey for home use. With the time savings and reliability, it pays for itself. I've been more than happy with the unit we've gotten here for the capacity we need. However, it'd be nice to have nice to have some nice home units that aren't a thousand dollars."
"It is about €1,000. It is a one-time payment. I do not have a monthly or yearly subscription. I don't subscribe to any subscription because I hate cloud services. There are no additional costs."
"There are a few features not included, and when you have to use those features, you have to pay for them."
"I think Netgate pfSense's TAC or support is a little expensive, considering how inexpensive everything else is."
"Hardware costs more than $500. The cloud version costs me $50 a month."
"Its price is pretty fair."
"I am using the community version of the solution and it is priced well. There is a cost of learning how to use the solution, if it was free it would be better."
"Sangfor NGAF price is reasonable and there is an annual license. However, the maintenance cost can be a bit high."
"If one is very cheap and ten is very expensive, I rate the tool's price as three out of ten."
"The price could be more competitive."
"It is one of the cheapest tools in the market."
"The price falls in the mid-range, neither exceptionally low nor high."
"For four to five physical appliances for a licensed firewall, it costs approximately $4,000."
"We purchased one year technical support and return to factory support, and we also purchased one-year technical support services. So those were additional."
"I rate the product price as one on a scale of one to ten, where one is low price and ten is high price."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Comms Service Provider
12%
Computer Software Company
10%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Financial Services Firm
6%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Comms Service Provider
11%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Construction Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business171
Midsize Enterprise33
Large Enterprise29
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business15
Midsize Enterprise10
Large Enterprise10
 

Questions from the Community

Help me find the best open source router
You don't really specify what type of router you are looking for but if you are talking about a gateway router I recommend PFSense. This software solutions can be installed on youf own hardware or ...
How do I choose between Fortinet FortiGate and pfSense?
Fortinet’s Fortigate is a firewall solution we use and are very much satisfied with its performance. We find Fortigate both cost-effective and efficient. One of the features we like most is that Fo...
What is the difference between PfSense and OPNsense?
Two of the most common and well recognized firewalls, PfSense and OPNsense both support site-to-site IPsec VPN and client, Open VPN and client, and PPTP client. Both also have intrusion detection a...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Sangfor NGAF?
The licensing cost is quite high compared to other available firewalls in the market.
What needs improvement with Sangfor NGAF?
The cost of licensing is very high compared to other firewalls available here. There should be improvements in hardware scalability, allowing for more storage and memory capacity. Making the soluti...
What is your primary use case for Sangfor NGAF?
We are hosting applications over the platform, including websites and NAT traffic from our side. Because it's deployed in our data center, which is fully operational, we have various applications h...
 

Also Known As

No data available
Sangfor NGAF Firewall Platform
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Nerds On Site Inc., RKC Development Inc., Expertech, Fisher's Technology, Ncisive, Consulting, CPURX, Vaughn's Computer House Calls, Imeretech LLC, Digital Crisis, Carolina Digital Phone, Technigogo Technology Services, The Simple Solution, SwiftecITInc, Rocky Mountain Tech Team, Free Range Geeks, Alaska Computer Geeks, Lark Information Technology, Renaissance Systems Inc., Cutting Edge Computers, Caretech LLC, GoVanguard, Network Touch Ltd, P.C. Solutions.Net, Vision Voice and Data Systems LLC, Montgomery Technologies, Techforce, Concero Networks, ASONInc, CPS Electronics and Consulting, Darkwire.net LLC, IT Specialists, MBS-Net Inc., VOICE1 LLC, Advantage Networking Inc., Powerhouse Systems, Doxa Multimedia Inc., Pro Computer Service, Virtual IT Services, A&J Computers Inc., Envision IT LLC, CommunicaONE Inc., Bone Computer Inc., Amax Engineering Corporation, QPG Ltd. Co., IT 101 Inc., Perfect Cloud Solutions, Applied Technology Group Inc., The Digital Sun Group LLC, Firespring
The Ministry of Science, Technology, and Innovation (Indonesia), Lawson, Inc. (Philippines), Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin (Indonesia), TEK Automotive (Italy), etc.
Find out what your peers are saying about Netgate pfSense vs. Sangfor NGAF and other solutions. Updated: August 2026.
908,800 professionals have used our research since 2012.