Peplink SpeedFusion vs SonicWall SMA comparison

The compared Peplink and SonicWall solutions aren't in the same category. Peplink is ranked #8 in SDW , with an average rating of 9.7, and holds a 6.9% mindshare in the category. SonicWall is ranked #2 in UAG , with an average rating of 10.0, and holds a 50.0% mindshare. Additionally, 100% of Peplink users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 90% of SonicWall users who would recommend it.

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Peplink SpeedFusion and SonicWall SMA based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out what your peers are saying about Fortinet, Cisco, VMware and others in Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions.

To learn more, read our detailed Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions Report (Updated: April 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions

April 2025

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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

Mindshare comparison

Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions

Universal Access Gateways

Featured Reviews

EhabAli

Sr. Cybersecurity Solutions Architect at BMB

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.

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Samuel Romero

Field data engineer at a energy/utilities company with 501-1,000 employees

User-friendly, easy to install, and scalable

Peplink SpeedFusion needs a thin rail model for industrial solutions. The stability has room for improvement. Peplink SpeedFusion needs to have a heavy-duty heat sink on the case to perform better. Generally, what I found is that devices that have a heat sink on a case or, more weight on a case to absorb the heat, perform a little better. I get some areas where I'm right at the hundred and fifty degrees. So I've had a few failures not many, but I found more failures than a Cisco ISO eleven or a Moxa router. Those solutions have more mass to absorb the heat. Most failures have a lot to do with the case. That's why a lot of people have a hard time pushing Peplink SpeedFusion, and they want to move to Cradlepoint because they have a much more ruggedized case.

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Maheshbabu T

Project Manager at CGG

It allows us to provide CML-based access to any user, but the reporting could be better

I rate SonicWall SMA seven out of 10. If you're planning to implement this solution, I suggest checking the version to ensure it's compatible with your other technology. I say go for it if it's suitable for your use case. Multifactor authentication technologies are built into the product, whereas some products lack multifactor authentication. We need only one or two. They provide authentication, gateway integration, OTP integration, etc.

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Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Provides good firewall security and has great VPN features."

"I would advise others considering or evaluating the Fortinet FortiGate to buy it."

"I like that they have given me a solution at a fair price."

"Fortinet FortiGate is easy to use. Anyone can easily maintain it."

"The solution is very easy to understand. It's not overly complex."

"Fortigate's most valuable feature is that it doesn't need a push policy when writing rules."

"We use a lot of function on the IPS and it works well for us."

"Good anti-malware and web filtering features."

More Fortinet FortiGate pros

"In the Philippines, VPN usage may not be widely known, but we leverage VPN effectively within my organization. I've shared our in-house systems with other district offices, as I cover fifteen municipalities and cater to the entire province. This platform is a valuable tool for us, enabling collaborative work, and allowing us to update our services remotely."

"The most valuable feature is the virtual VPN concentrator."

"It is a very stable product."

"The SpeedFusion feature is good. It allowed us to move away from IPsec between the sites. It is also a really easy product to deploy."

"The SpeedFusion feature is the most valuable."

"Our customers find it to be an interesting and tempting solution."

"The valuable feature is that, after reading about its capabilities and using it for a while, Peplink SpeedFusion employs eight technologies within its SD-WAN profile, addressing issues like packet loss and latency. The solution is highly stable. I rate it a nine out of ten. The support team gives quick response and efficient local support."

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

"What I like best about SonicWall SMA is the relationship between its features and its price, because the solution is both affordable and functional."

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

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

"I am very satisfied with the technical support."

"The performance is good."

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

"I like the load balancing capability."

More SonicWall SMA pros

Cons

"Fortinet FortiGate needs to improve to be on par with its competitors, such as Palo Alto and Sophos. They are the market leaders. Fortinet FortiGate needs to improve its capabilities. However, we are happy with Fortinet FortiGate."

"Some features of Fortinet FortiGate are actually fee enabled that are inconvenient for deploying in production. Other issues relate to isolation with Cisco products and your server."

"We would like to have the ability to disable some of the security functionalities."

"There is one big configuration file with no separations for the unique VDOMs. Maybe they could separate individual VDOM configuration files with the root VDOM configuration file referencing the individual VDOM config files."

"It's my understanding that more of the current generation features could be brought in. There could be more integration with EDRs, for example."

"It would be good if they had fewer updates."

"I haven't had a single issue since using Fortinet."

"Though the tool's GUI is user-friendly, it can be considered as an area with certain shortcomings where improvements are required."

More Fortinet FortiGate cons

"The product needs to aggregate the bandwidth of different ISPs. It needs to improve scalability as well."

"Their hardware support isn't the greatest. We've had one unit go down, and it took a while for them to replace it. It was in the Caribbeans, so it might be a location-related issue."

"Its pricing is the main issue. The pricing could be improved. I would like to see an outbound policy based on the application. It is a very good feature, and most of the customers are looking for that. They can also include stronger firewall features. This would help the customers in choosing this product as the only device for the SD network."

"They don't have next generation firewall, UTM, like the other competitors."

"The stability has room for improvement."

"There is room for improvement in enhancing security features, such as incorporating intrusion detection blocking capabilities and integrating artificial intelligence to bolster security aspects on the device."

"I believe there could be some enhancements in the enterprise segment, offering greater options or something similar."

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

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

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

"The timed synchronization between the network appliance needs improvement."

"The solution could integrate better with other platforms."

"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."

"User interface could be improved."

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

More SonicWall SMA cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is cost-effective, and provides a good value for your money. The pricing, and license renewal, is very reasonable for us."

"It's expensive, but compared to the competition it's okay."

"For the price, I'd rate it a ten because it's very cost-effective."

"No comment."

"It's not the cheapest, but it's value for money. Given everything we've got out of it: the DMZ port, the VPN, and the high availability, it's a pretty reasonable price."

"In the Asian economy in which we operate, FortiGate is expensive."

"The price is fair for what we get with FortiGate."

"We find the most valuable aspect of this solution is the price. It is affordable, and cheaper than other firewalls."

More Fortinet FortiGate pricing and cost advice

"I rate Peplink SpeedFusion's pricing an eight out of ten."

"Perpetual licensing, which is good for customers that don't want any annual or subscription based license."

"It has lifetime licensing. Its pricing is high for most of the markets."

"The cost is in the middle, a five out of ten."

"Its licensing fee is on a yearly basis. For the price, it is actually pretty good value."

"It's not cheap, but it is highly competitive."

"The platform has medium pricing."

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

"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."

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

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

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

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Educational Organization

19%

Computer Software Company

14%

Comms Service Provider

Manufacturing Company

Computer Software Company

11%

Manufacturing Company

Government

Construction Company

Computer Software Company

19%

Construction Company

10%

Comms Service Provider

Real Estate/Law Firm

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

No data available

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...

See all answers

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...

See all answers

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 ...

See all answers

What do you like most about Peplink SpeedFusion?

In the Philippines, VPN usage may not be widely known, but we leverage VPN effectively within my organization. I've s...

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Peplink SpeedFusion?

I rate Peplink SpeedFusion's pricing an eight out of ten.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Peplink SpeedFusion?

The product needs to aggregate the bandwidth of different ISPs. It needs to improve scalability as well.

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 platform has medium pricing.

See all answers

What needs improvement with SonicWall SMA?

Enhancing live tracking capabilities could improve the product, particularly in monitoring user activity and request ...

See all answers

Comparisons

Sophos XG vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 21% of the time

Netgate pfSense vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 13% of the time

Cisco Secure Firewall vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 11% of the time

WatchGuard Firebox vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 5% of the time

SonicWall TZ vs Fortinet FortiGate

Compared 5% of the time

More Fortinet FortiGate Competitors

Cradlepoint NetCloud vs Peplink SpeedFusion

Compared 21% of the time

Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN vs Peplink SpeedFusion

Compared 18% of the time

VMware VeloCloud SD-WAN vs Peplink SpeedFusion

Compared 9% of the time

F5 BIG-IP Local Traffic Manager (LTM) vs Peplink SpeedFusion

Compared 6% of the time

Versa Unified Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) Platform vs Peplink SpeedFusion

Compared 4% of the time

More Peplink SpeedFusion Competitors

SonicWall Netextender vs SonicWall SMA

Compared 20% of the time

Ivanti Connect Secure vs SonicWall SMA

Compared 17% of the time

Fortinet FortiClient vs SonicWall SMA

Compared 15% of the time

Citrix Gateway vs SonicWall SMA

Compared 14% of the time

Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN vs SonicWall SMA

Compared 10% of the time

More SonicWall SMA Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Fortinet FortiGate

May 2025

Download Fortinet FortiGate product report

Buyer's Guide

Peplink SpeedFusion

May 2025

Download Peplink SpeedFusion product report

Buyer's Guide

SonicWall SMA

April 2025

Download SonicWall SMA product report

Also Known As

FortiGate 60b, FortiGate 60c, FortiGate 80c, FortiGate 50b, FortiGate 200b, FortiGate 110c, FortiGate, Fortinet Firewall

No data available

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

Overview

Fortinet FortiGate offers comprehensive network security and firewall protection across multiple locations. It effectively manages data traffic and secures environments with features like VPN, intrusion prevention, and UTM controls.

Organizations rely on Fortinet FortiGate for its robust integration with advanced security policies, ensuring significant protection for enterprises, cloud environments, and educational sectors. It facilitates network segmentation, application-level security, and authentication management, securing communication within and between locations such as branches and data centers. Its efficient SD-WAN and UTM features enable streamlined data management and enhanced threat protection capabilities. Users appreciate its centralized management, facilitating seamless operations across diverse environments.

What are the key features of Fortinet FortiGate?

VPN Capabilities: Ensure secure remote access for users and seamless site-to-site connections.
Intrusion Prevention System (IPS): Detect and prevent security threats and vulnerabilities.
Advanced Firewall: Offers robust firewalling with application control and web filtering.
SD-WAN: Optimizes application performance and enhances bandwidth management.
SSL VPN: Provides reliable and secure access for remote workers.

What benefits should users expect from Fortinet FortiGate?

High-performance Security: Delivers effective threat mitigation with high availability.
Centralized Management: Simplifies network operations with cloud-based management tools.
Detailed Analytics: Provides comprehensive insights into network activity and security threats.
Load Balancing: Ensures optimal resource distribution and traffic management.

Fortinet FortiGate is crucial in sectors like education, offering robust networks for secure data flow between campuses and facilitating remote learning. In enterprise environments, it allows efficient management of application traffic and security across multiple branches, while in the cloud, it seamlessly integrates with diverse platforms to enhance security infrastructure.

Fortinet

Peplink’s patent-pending SpeedFusion technology powers enterprise VPNs that tap into the bandwidth of up to 13 low-cost cable, DSL, 3G/4G/LTE, and other links connected anywhere on your corporate or institutional WAN. Whether you’re transferring a few documents or driving realtime POS data, video feeds, and VoIP conversations, SpeedFusion pumps all your data down a single fat datapipe that’s budget-friendly, ultra-fast, and easily configurable to suit any networking environment.

Peplink

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

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

MIT Robotics Team, Intel, Apple, Google, Hootsuite, Northrop Gruman, Alcatel-Lucent, Motorola, Avocent, GE, VW, Marriott, Renaissance, WSI, Union /Pacific

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

Buyer's Guide

Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions

April 2025

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