Try our new research platform with insights from 80,000+ expert users

OPSWAT Filescan Sandbox vs WatchGuard Firebox comparison

Sponsored
 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 9, 2025

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
Sponsored
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
580
Ranking in other categories
Secure Web Gateways (SWG) (2nd), Firewalls (1st), Intrusion Detection and Prevention Software (IDPS) (1st), Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions (1st), WAN Edge (1st), ZTNA (1st), Unified Threat Management (UTM) (1st)
OPSWAT Filescan Sandbox
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.5
Number of Reviews
1
Ranking in other categories
Anti-Malware Tools (24th)
WatchGuard Firebox
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
127
Ranking in other categories
Data Loss Prevention (DLP) (11th), Firewalls (11th), Intrusion Detection and Prevention Software (IDPS) (4th), Anti-Malware Tools (7th), Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) (18th), Application Control (5th), Unified Threat Management (UTM) (4th)
 

Featured Reviews

Vasu Gala - PeerSpot reviewer
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.
reviewer2390334 - PeerSpot reviewer
Cyber Security Engineer at a security firm with 11-50 employees
An easily integratable solution that helps scan files
I recommend leveraging the data and using case transcripts to understand how the tool can address your needs. Additionally, testing the solution in your environment can be helpful. If we keep it updated and ensure that the engines and the latest definitions are up-to-date, the solution functions without problems. It continues scanning without any delays. I rate the product an 8 out of 10. With OPSWAT Filescan Sandbox, we can scan various file types, including IOCs, Python compressors, and QR codes from images. All the configuration settings are user-dependent and can be modified over time. It's highly configurable—you can easily navigate to the console, click on any option, and quickly adjust settings, including the default size.
PS
CEO at ajuntament del Prat
Network protection has improved with stronger VPN connectivity but administration remains complex
Deploying WatchGuard Firebox was quite easy, but we have had some problems regarding the VPN and the administration of the tool and the two firewalls that we have. When comparing WatchGuard Firebox with our previous solution, Palo Alto, we have had some problems in administration because of the tools. I think that they have some aspects in their system that are cloud-provided, but they also have an on-premise solution, which makes this combination good. Although I should say that when compared to Palo Alto, we have taken a step backwards. In general, I would rate WatchGuard Firebox around 6-7; it is a good firewall, but they lack good administration tools. We experience many problems with the performance and administration tools on the web, including several issues with VPNs.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Centralized monitoring, policy management, and virtualized appliances allow us to take control over our public and private infrastructure."
"The best feature of Fortinet FortiGate is the IPS or IDS implementation. I appreciate most the agility or the flexibility to create hashes to block incoming threats, and I can integrate with third-party threat intelligence with our FortiGate."
"Having IPS helps in ensuring that our network is protected from potential threats, which is crucial as we implement our payment gateway."
"The best features of Fortinet FortiGate are that it does the job effectively and protects our environment."
"The most valuable features are SD-WAN, application control, IPS control, and FortiSandbox."
"The most valuable features are the enterprise modeling and the simple interface."
"The interface and other reports are all user-friendly."
"The CLI and GUI do a good job of putting a lot at your fingertips."
"What I find most valuable about it is the design interface."
"The tool's most valuable feature is the dashboard."
"It is something that we need for compliance, and it has been useful. Their support staff is also amazing."
"The policy monitoring and allowing different traffic flows are the most useful features for us; regulating which traffic comes in and out."
"The interface is very good."
"It's user-friendly. And if you are using a WatchGuard device and you want to test that side of the software, it's quite easy to get the license to test it."
"If you just plan to use WatchGuard Firebox in your office and not publicly, then it is okay to purchase it. With WatchGuard Firebox, you can manage your users and permissions while also taking care of the basic setup phase in your office."
"The most important feature of this solution is the SLAs."
"One of the most valuable features is that when we send emails and it gives a warning, you can configure those email addresses so that they can only send outside the email."
 

Cons

"The support from Fortinet FortiGate could improve. They are not easily accessible when we need them. They could improve their response time."
"The pricing of Fortinet FortiGate IPS could always be improved."
"Fortinet technical support is lacking, as OEM support is slightly better. Improvement in their technical support could include response time as well as having more technically sound people in tech support."
"They've become quite expensive."
"With the addition of some features, it is possible that FortiGate can be used in all verticals."
"More SD-WAN features can be integrated into the FortiGate Next Generation Firewall"
"The solution lacks multi-language support."
"We had a minor problem where there was a major system upgrade on the hardware platfrom and the Mac client was not available as soon as it might have been. The PC client was available immediately, but we had to wait a month or so, before there was a mac client. I was slightly irritated that it was not ready on time, but it was eventually resolved."
"There's a size limitation, allowing us to scan only small files."
"I haven’t dug deeply into the reporting features yet or if they are working well. However, I have generated several reports and there was too much unnecessary information, in comparison with the reporting features in the Sophos firewall. Sophos' reporting is more readable and easier to configure."
"I would like to see faster automatation."
"The only downside is that it is missing an API, that you can use to easily collect information from it."
"The time they take to classify an application once they find that it is unknown can be better."
"The solution can improve by adding a feature to tag a MAC address of a computer system in the policy and more IP configuration settings."
"They could expand the amount of applications that are on the list, but it's pretty intensive anyway, so it's pretty good."
"It would be wonderful if the WatchGuard team develops nice products for threat intelligence."
"WatchGuard Data Loss Prevention needs to improve its support."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The price for the device and software is high. However, the solution is of good quality and has a lot of features."
"Setup costs and pricing depends on many variables, but it's mostly affordable."
"I rate the price of Fortinet FortiGate SWG a seven and a half out of ten since it is not a cheap solution, though I feel it is a good product for the money one pays."
"My experience with the pricing, setup cost, and licensing for Fortinet FortiGate is quite good. I don't have a public site, such as in Azure, where I can see the pricing. I always have to go through the distributor, and that could take some time to get the real price for each appliance."
"The tool's pricing is neither cheap nor expensive. Overall, I find it to be competitive in the market."
"Fortinet FortiGate SWG is an affordable solution."
"FortiGate Next Generation Firewall is an expensive solution."
"The price of Fortinet FortiGate is better than Cisco, Check Point, and Palo Alto. In terms of pricing, it's probably a better-priced firewall solution overall."
"The tool is free, but there's a size limitation, allowing us to scan only small files."
"The price is so small that I don't pay attention to it anymore. I think we pay a few thousand dollars for two to three years, so about $100 per month. That's for all of our users. There is an additional cost if we want to go with a deeper licensing model, but we just pay for antivirus, IPS, and main product support."
"The pricing is competitive."
"It costs me about $800 a year."
"We paid $4000 in AUD for WatchGuard Firebox per year. There were no additional costs."
"Over the years, the costs have increased, especially since I cater to very small businesses."
"It's fair pricing, but it could always be reduced."
"We pay about $3,500 every three years."
"The cost three years ago was about $800."
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Anti-Malware Tools solutions are best for your needs.
881,082 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
12%
Comms Service Provider
9%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
6%
Computer Software Company
9%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Energy/Utilities Company
8%
University
7%
Computer Software Company
11%
Comms Service Provider
11%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Retailer
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business357
Midsize Enterprise133
Large Enterprise188
No data available
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business92
Midsize Enterprise27
Large Enterprise15
 

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...
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...
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 ...
What do you like most about OPSWAT Filescan Sandbox?
What I find most valuable about it is the design interface.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for OPSWAT Filescan Sandbox?
The tool is free, but there's a size limitation, allowing us to scan only small files.
What is your primary use case for WatchGuard Firebox?
We are providing our services to all WatchGuard customers in the region.
What is your primary use case for WatchGuard Firebox?
We just use it as a secondary WiFi device. We're a small office and we needed to set up a WiFi device for a few of ou...
What is your primary use case for WatchGuard Firebox?
We're a hospital and we use it for developing our incoming and outgoing policies, and we also use it for VPN.
 

Also Known As

Fortinet FortiGate Next-Generation Firewall
No data available
WatchGuard Threat Detection and Response, WatchGuard Application Control, WatchGuard Data Loss Prevention, WatchGuard Gateway AntiVirus, WatchGuard Intrusion Prevention Service
 

Overview

 

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
Information Not Available
Ellips, Diecutstickers.com, Clarke Energy, NCR, Wrest Park, Homeslice Pizza, Fortessa Tableware Solutions, The Phoenix Residence
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft, SentinelOne, Check Point Software Technologies and others in Anti-Malware Tools. Updated: January 2026.
881,082 professionals have used our research since 2012.