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Palo Alto Networks K2-Series vs Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Apr 6, 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
Ranking in Firewalls
2nd
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
333
Ranking in other categories
Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions (1st), WAN Edge (1st)
Palo Alto Networks K2-Series
Ranking in Firewalls
29th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.7
Number of Reviews
34
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Palo Alto Networks NG Firew...
Ranking in Firewalls
6th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
194
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2025, in the Firewalls category, the mindshare of Fortinet FortiGate is 21.4%, up from 17.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Palo Alto Networks K2-Series is 0.0%, up from 0.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls is 3.4%, up from 3.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Firewalls
 

Q&A Highlights

DL
Mar 23, 2021
 

Featured Reviews

EhabAli - PeerSpot reviewer
Efficient, user-friendly, and affordable
In the past, NSS Labs was utilized to test files and verify the numbers and datasheets. It would be beneficial to have an organization or testing lab that can verify the numbers in our datasheets since changes are frequently made, which can be inconvenient for review. For instance, when comparing different competitors such as Forcepoint, Palo Alto, and Check Point, the throughput or numbers in the datasheet may be lower than the actual numbers. Conversely, Fortinet typically reports very high numbers, but they cannot be replicated in the real world. Therefore, it would be advantageous for them to partner with a neutral testing organization such as NSS Labs to validate these numbers, thus providing more credibility and comfort to everyone regarding the accuracy of the datasheets. For the migration, everyone has a firewall in use and I am selling Fortinet. Typically, I am replacing another firewall. Previously, there was a tool available to convert configurations from one firewall, such as Palo Alto, to Fortinet, but this tool is no longer free. If it could be made free again, it would be very beneficial. This tool shows a lot of promise and is very good. Making it free would help many companies deliver their products in a more efficient and integrated way. It would also be more valuable to include the tool with the firewall package or license instead of having to pay extra for it. Paying extra puts more pressure on small companies to deliver the firewall and complete the configuration, especially if they have hundreds or thousands of policies. It's very painful to move through these policies line by line. The stability has room for improvement. When it comes to Secure SD-WAN, everything is fine. They are going the right way. SD-WAN is very promising. They can provide the SD-WAN solution separately, but they will not take this approach because even the smallest firewall can support the features, so there is no need to have a separate service or appliance. They are following the right steps, and there is nothing to be improved. Feature-wise, I'm really satisfied with the new release, and the features they have added. For now, it's fine.
Krishnakumar M - PeerSpot reviewer
One of the best tools for the prevention of evasive threats
There is a feature called granular application controls, which I liked. Instead of relying on ports and IP addresses, they use AMP ID. This kind of solution is very good. Another valuable feature is the prevention of evasive threats, which is one of the best tools I've encountered. SSL decryption and app ID-based SSL decryption are also impressive, along with the integration with user ID. Identity-based policies ensuring only authorized users can access specific resources are excellent features. Normally, there is something called SIM or SCIM in IDA IDM, but this feature is provided on the box, which is exemplary.
AmjadKhan1 - PeerSpot reviewer
Provides inline protection with a unified view and anti-spyware capabilities
I would rate Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls ten out of ten because it is the best. Our disaster recovery site utilizes Palo Alto Networks Next-Generation Firewalls. We are also in the process of upgrading the firewalls at our 365 sites in Pakistan to Palo Alto Networks firewalls. While budget firewalls may advertise comparable features, they often fall short of effectively detecting viruses, threats, and ransomware. In contrast, Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls, combined with Cortex XDR, provide comprehensive threat intelligence and detection capabilities, ensuring superior security coverage. I recommend conducting a proof of concept before selecting a firewall. This will allow you to evaluate different options and determine which best suits your needs. While Palo Alto offers robust firewall solutions, it's essential to compare them with other vendors to ensure you make an informed decision.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Fortinet FortiGate is good for helping you secure and protect mission-critical data."
"Fortinet FortiGate protects against internet-based threats, both internal and external. It is scalable, stable, easy to use, and easy to install."
"Fortigate is very scalable to serve our customers' needs. We have scaled already from fifty to more than a hundred instances of Fortinet FortiGate. Around 20 staff are required for deployment and maintenance, mostly engineers."
"Security solution with a straightforward and quick setup. It's a stable and scalable product."
"A strong point of FortiGate is that the graphical interface is complete and easy to use, especially if we think there is a list of operations that we are able to perform inside."
"The solution is stable."
"There are great templates, so you don't have to customize them if you don't want to. You do have the option to custom create some folders and some reports, however, with what is there, you don't really need to go through extra effort, as they already give you a lot of predefined views of reports and so forth."
"With FortiClient, you can easily connect when you are home, check out what you want to do, and connect to your network when you are not at work. You can switch on servers and you can check what is wrong."
"Palo Alto's App-ID is what differentiates it from other competitors."
"It is a stable solution."
"The most valuable features are the virtualization of the firewall and the antivirus."
"The most valuable feature of Palo Alto Networks K2-Series is its management abilities. Additionally, the updates are very good."
"One of the most valuable features is Palo Alto's firewall management. We find it easier to manage the firewall centrally."
"The scalability of the product is quite high."
"Palo Alto has a unique solution for DNS security, which is very good."
"Palo Alto has better and finer controls than, say, Cisco or Check Point."
"The most valuable features include the usual firewall functionalities, such as IPS and antivirus, which are effective."
"Overall, it is a good solution. It is stable. We use URL filtering, which is useful for blocking undesired URLs."
"The solution allows us to set parameters on where our users can go. We can block certain sites or ads if we want to."
"It's one of the best products I've worked with. It's typically a market leader on Gartner. It's a very respected brand."
"The graphical interface is easy to troubleshoot because it has a drill-down sequence. It is easy to monitor traffic."
"The initial setup was very easy."
"Protection from a single packet and ease of making security rules."
"The most valuable feature is WildFire, which blocks sophisticated attacks and distinguishes it from other traditional firewall functions."
 

Cons

"It could use more templates for third-party site-to-site VPN setups other than FortiGate and Cisco."
"The way everything is set up could be easier. Currently, people need a lot of experience and knowledge to administer it and to link it to devices."
"The support costs and licensing are sometimes so expensive."
"The main aspect of FortiGate that could be improved is load balancing. Our management team does not want to buy another appliance for only load balancing."
"With FortiGate, the main complaint that I have heard is about the technical support."
"Fortinet FortiGate could improve by having a frequent ask questions(FAQ) area for people to receive quick answers to popular questions. Additionally, it would be beneficial to have an SMS notification feature. For example, if you cannot access your email you could receive an SMS message."
"We had some issues in the beginning while setting it up, but after doing the firmware update, it is working fine."
"The setup is pretty complex and not easy to implement."
"I'd like to see more data protection on the system."
"The ease of management and configuration should be improved."
"Threat prevention could use improvement. Not just in malware exploits and C2 traffic; enhancing web traffic protection would be a great upgrade."
"They should implement the features that the other firewalls have."
"The URL Filtering module needs to have more categories added to it."
"Palo Alto releases a lot of bug fixes for their firewalls, which means it's necessary to do frequent upgrades. They should work on decreasing their bugs so that upgrades aren't needed so often."
"We had some issues with upgrading in the past. They could make the process easier."
"The solution's commitment time could be reduced as it often takes a lot of time to execute."
"The solution is very expensive. There are cheaper options on the market."
"Currently, they don't have email protection. They can maybe add it in the future. Currently, if you want to do so, you need to go with another solution."
"I would like them to improve their GUI interface, making it more user-friendly."
"The solution could be more cost-effective."
"We would like to see the external dynamic list for this solution improved. The current version does not automatically block malicious IP addresses, which would be very useful."
"I would like to see it provide us with intelligent information from the data that it captures, within the same cost."
"Lacks mobility between on-prem and cloud based."
"The pricing of the solution is quite high. It's one of the most expensive firewall solutions on the market."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The price is highly competitive when compared to other brands that offer similar functionality."
"The price of FortiGate is good."
"It has a competitive price."
"When you look at these end security systems and firewalls, these firewalls even five years ago were $50,000 or perhaps $25,000 to implement in some types of customer sites. Now we're talking about tools that are $1,000. In this case, it might have been $500 or something like that."
"We are on an annual license to use Fortinet FortiGate."
"It's very competitive."
"The price of Fortinet FortiGate is affordable. Most of our customers are on a three-year license to use the solution. All the features and support are included in the price."
"The price of Fortinet FortiGate is reasonable for an SME."
"If you compare K2-Series' quality with its price, I think it is reasonable."
"The price of this solution is too high."
"It is an expensive solution."
"It would be nice if they lowered their prices for small businesses."
"This solution is expensive compared to other, similar products."
"The pricing is expensive."
"This product is designed for large companies. The price would not be suitable for a small or medium size company."
"When comparing Palo Alto Networks K2-Series with other solutions it is on the higher end of the price scale."
"The price could be better. Pricing is very different compared to WatchGuard, which costs around 60 lakhs, and FortiGate, which costs approximately 40 lakhs. Palo Alto Networks costs about a crore which is very high pricing. We bought this firewall, and our organization did not want to pay so much. We spent around one crore rupees which is not within our budget at all, and we are unhappy with them."
"The NG firewall is an expensive solution."
"If someone doesn't have a security platform in their network, then the following licenses will be required: antivirus, anti-spyware, vulnerability, and Wildfire analysis. There are also licenses for GlobalProtect and support."
"While Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls come at a premium, exceeding the cost of most competitors by 45 percent, their advanced security features, superior performance, and comprehensive threat prevention capabilities justify the investment."
"The cost of Palo Alto Network NG Firewalls is significantly higher compared to Huawei."
"I am not sure about the specific licensing costs of Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls, but FortiGate and Palo Alto are generally cheaper than some high-end Cisco devices."
"With Palo Alto, the licensing is very straightforward. For example, if you only have a requirement for a firewall, you can go with that. If you want to go with a subscription, you get all the features with it."
"Compared to other solutions, it's very expensive to set up and maintain."
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Answers from the Community

DL
Mar 23, 2021
Mar 23, 2021
In the best tradition of these questions, Feature-wise both are quite similar, but each has things it's better at, it kind of depends what you value most. PA is good at app control, web filtering and such like, they have always been top of the pile there. The GUI is very good, and their product is very user-focused. Fortinet is good for scalability and predictable high throughput (ASICs in the...
2 out of 4 answers
AT
Mar 20, 2021
Hi, Both FT and PA have compelling features for large Enterprises. I would like to add a few good points about Fortinetwhich might be helpful ( from my 13 years of engagement with them as Distributor and Partner) Fortinet:  Have higher throughput; which comes with competitive rates Wide range of models to select to meet your requirement, without spending heavliy Outstanding customer support and very active customer care team Easly available skilled resources from the channel for deployment and post-implementation support  Regards Abhilash
LD
Mar 22, 2021
Hi PaloAlto is better when working on app control feature and special virtual wire links. Execpt that specific point, Fortinet is above. Best Regards, Damien
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Educational Organization
20%
Computer Software Company
14%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Manufacturing Company
6%
Computer Software Company
26%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Performing Arts
7%
Media Company
7%
Computer Software Company
15%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Government
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

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 ...
Features comparison between Palo Alto and Fortinet firewalls
In the best tradition of these questions, Feature-wise both are quite similar, but each has things it's better at, it...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Palo Alto Networks K2-Series?
The pricing for the Palo Alto Networks K2-Series solution is affordable and there are no complaints about the licensing.
What is a better choice, Azure Firewall or Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls?
Azure Firewall Vs. Palo Alto Network NG Firewalls Both solutions provide stellar stability and security. Azure Firew...
Which is better - Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls or Sophos XG?
Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls have both great features and performance. I like that Palo Alto has regular threat si...
What do you like most about Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls?
We utilize advanced threat prevention features like web filtering and SSL decryption, which haven't caused any issues.
 

Also Known As

FortiGate 60b, FortiGate 60c, FortiGate 80c, FortiGate 50b, FortiGate 200b, FortiGate 110c, FortiGate, Fortinet Firewall
No data available
Palo Alto NGFW, Palo Alto Networks Next-Generation Firewall
 

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
State of North Dakota, SEGA, Alameda County Office of Education, Temple University, VERGE, CAME
SkiStar AB, Ada County, Global IT Services PSF, Southern Cross Hospitals, Verge Health, University of Portsmouth, Austrian Airlines, The Heinz Endowments
Find out what your peers are saying about Palo Alto Networks K2-Series vs. Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.
851,604 professionals have used our research since 2012.