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Palo Alto Networks CN-Series vs Zscaler Cloud Firewall comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

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
Ranking in Firewalls
1st
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
591
Ranking in other categories
Secure Web Gateways (SWG) (2nd), Intrusion Detection and Prevention Software (IDPS) (1st), Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions (1st), WAN Edge (1st), ZTNA (1st), Unified Threat Management (UTM) (1st)
Palo Alto Networks CN-Series
Ranking in Firewalls
32nd
Average Rating
9.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
2
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Zscaler Cloud Firewall
Ranking in Firewalls
36th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.1
Number of Reviews
19
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2026, in the Firewalls category, the mindshare of Fortinet FortiGate is 16.0%, down from 21.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Palo Alto Networks CN-Series is 0.4%, up from 0.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Zscaler Cloud Firewall is 1.0%, up from 0.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Firewalls Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Fortinet FortiGate16.0%
Palo Alto Networks CN-Series0.4%
Zscaler Cloud Firewall1.0%
Other82.6%
Firewalls
 

Featured Reviews

Abhinandan Yadav - PeerSpot reviewer
Network Security Engineer at Arrow PC Network Pvt Ltd
Unified security and sd-wan have improved uptime and cut wan costs for multi-site branches
Users report stability issues in certain versions, which requires regular updates. Real-world attacks have also highlighted the need for urgent patching of vulnerabilities.Fortinet FortiGate, while a powerful and feature-rich web firewall, could improve in areas like firmware stability, documentation, and ease of use. The learning curve can be steep for some users. For beginners, support quality can vary, and frequent updates with occasional vulnerabilities call for careful patch management. However, once Fortinet FortiGate is configured, it remains highly reliable and efficient. Customer support needs improvement, as I find it very slow, with reports from other users reflecting that customer support is inadequate.
Ahmed_Shalaby - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Cyber Security Engineer at Beta Information Technology
Application control excels and integration with monitoring system boosts efficiency
I am an integrator working with Palo Alto Networks CN-Series and Panorama. I have been involved with the implementation of Palo Alto Networks CN-Series The stability of Palo Alto Networks CN-Series is excellent. Application control is one of the most valuable features. Its monitoring capability…
Carlos Snel - PeerSpot reviewer
Director at Aquila ICT Solutions
Has streamlined secure deployments across large enterprises while offering reliable protection and intuitive management
The centralized management console, also referred to as the Zscaler dashboard, impacts the ability of my customers to respond to security incidents significantly. I see it as user-friendly, and clients are really happy with using it, which motivates them to keep using Zscaler Cloud Firewall because they enjoy the GUI. It's very intuitive, making it easy to navigate alerts and incidents. My clients rarely have questions about where to find specific information once Zscaler Cloud Firewall is running. The interface speaks for itself, requiring little to no additional training, which is a major plus. Advanced threat protection features in Zscaler Cloud Firewall are practically the key component that every customer wants. Unfortunately, it is an option and not included in the basic package. Clients need to pay for the next higher bundle to access it, but practically all clients I have dealt with want this feature 100%. Regarding visibility, I can confirm that Zscaler Cloud Firewall indeed includes a feature for application layer visibility embedded in the service. It provides visibility into what you're doing, which is especially interesting nowadays when discussing AI tools, as companies do not want their employees to copy-paste sensitive information into AI systems. We have seen cases such as Samsung's chip design where sensitive info got exposed. The visibility of applications, including cloud applications and AI tools, is significant for compliance with data policies, and you can also run reports and alerts on it.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"FortiGate Next Generation Firewall (NGFW) is more realistic in application, allowing for more specific, customized security policies without the extensive work involved with static rules."
"There is a tool called FSSO, which is a single sign-on user ID agent that works perfectly."
"We have a lot of experience with this solution and haven't had any issues; for repairs, the RMA process is also good, and we don't have any issues with the interface, customization, or integration, as this solution works well."
"Fortinet FortiGate has a very stable Linux-based operating system that is easy to use."
"This solution has solid UTM features combined with a nice GUI."
"Fortinet FortiGate is used to prevent security failures. Since implementing the solution, we have seen improvements in security and in the distribution of our network."
"The interface is very user-friendly and I like it very much."
"The most valuable feature is the deep inspection for traffic, which is capable of identifying zero-day attacks."
"The stability of Palo Alto Networks CN-Series is excellent."
"The app inspection is very helpful for network security."
"Includes advanced tech protection."
"I like the ease of deployment and its flexibility; we don't need to deal with license, quotes, procurement, delivery, and installation, as everything is software-based and very easy to operate."
"The initial setup is straightforward."
"The technical support from Zscaler was excellent."
"Zscaler is still a very good product."
"The scalability is okay. We have around 2200 people using this solution."
"Zscaler provides effective protection against various cyber threats ensuring a safe environment"
"With regards to ease, with regards to scalability, with regards to performance and support, those are the kind of top features that I would always look at and I have had a great experience in general."
 

Cons

"The solution has many heightened points which we cannot get to without working on CLI."
"There is a need for enhancement with the signature management, improving the datasheet numbers, and scalability issues."
"The solution could improve the integration."
"The support costs and licensing are sometimes so expensive."
"For our organization, the initial setup was not straightforward. It was pretty complex."
"Zero trust could be added. Nowadays, solutions like Zscaler, Netskope, and even SecureWorks combine multiple features into a single product."
"It's my understanding that more of the current generation features could be brought in. There could be more integration with EDRs, for example."
"In their datasheet, they put the throughput as huge, but once you enable all the features of the box, the performance is impacted dramatically."
"I'd like to see more IOPs features."
"Palo Alto Networks CN-Series could improve on its pricing as it is quite expensive."
"They do not provide a few components that are fundamental to differentiate the products"
"Data Leak Prevention is only for web filtering and there is no protection for email."
"The issue right now is probably that Zscaler is not providing web browser isolation. Another solution, Menlo, offers this. For one customer, we had to send traffic to Menlo to do the isolation for us. It was requested by the customer so that they could integrate any iframe. Zscaler needs to add this type of feature in their next release."
"Because it's on cloud, it doesn't allow application of extra settings."
"We are having some issues with internet access being denied when organizational ID-based policies change."
"When it comes to customer support, there is room for improvement in Zscaler's service."
"If I can get rid of Jetscaler, I will use Twingate for sure."
"Zscaler Cloud Firewall should have a better understanding of all dynamic cloud applications."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The beauty is the price performance ratio is great with FortiGate. It provides all the features we needed and the price is comparable with others' firewalls. The price is quite competitive with the firewalls with similar features."
"Currently, we are paying about $1,500 a month for three sites."
"The price of Fortinet FortiGate could improve, it is expensive."
"It was probably about $2,500 per firewall. It was all included. It included support, services, threat management software, and 24/7 FortiCare on it. Cisco products are more expensive."
"I rate FortiGate Next Generation Firewall a five out of ten for pricing."
"The product is expensive."
"While slightly more affordable than competitors, it remains relatively expensive due to its inclusive subscription."
"Fortinet FortiGate's price can be reduced."
Information not available
"It comes at a significantly reduced cost while ensuring control and effectiveness."
"The licensing is on a yearly basis. It is somewhere around 30 or 40 pounds per user for our organization."
"There are licensing costs, and I would not say that it's a cheap vendor."
"It is not the most budget-friendly solution, but it's important to consider its overall value."
"The product is a bit expensive compared to the solutions offered by its competitors, like Palo Alto. There is a need to make yearly payments towards the license in charges associated with the product."
"It is expensive for small businesses."
"Zscaler is priced too high compared to the cost of Fortinet."
"There are different subscription models available."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
10%
Comms Service Provider
10%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
7%
No data available
Manufacturing Company
11%
Construction Company
10%
Computer Software Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business367
Midsize Enterprise135
Large Enterprise193
No data available
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business6
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise12
 

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 is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Palo Alto Networks CN-Series?
The pricing of Palo Alto Networks CN-Series is quite expensive, rating around eight on a scale of one to ten for cost.
What needs improvement with Palo Alto Networks CN-Series?
Palo Alto Networks CN-Series could improve on its pricing as it is quite expensive. The SD-WAN implementation using P...
What is your primary use case for Palo Alto Networks CN-Series?
I am an integrator working with Palo Alto Networks CN-Series ( /products/palo-alto-networks-cn-series-reviews ) and P...
Which lesser known firewall product has the best chance at unseating the market leaders?
Netscope, Zscaler if they continue route they are on now. FIrewalls needs great deal of automation on each end, datac...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Zscaler Cloud Firewall?
Zscaler Cloud Firewall is quite expensive compared to competitors. However, it offered moderate value for money.
What needs improvement with Zscaler Cloud Firewall?
In terms of improvements for Zscaler Cloud Firewall, I think every product has needed enhancements over time, and cur...
 

Also Known As

Fortinet FortiGate Next-Generation Firewall
No data available
No data available
 

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
Zenith Live, Azure, Carlsberg Group
Find out what your peers are saying about Palo Alto Networks CN-Series vs. Zscaler Cloud Firewall and other solutions. Updated: April 2026.
893,221 professionals have used our research since 2012.