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Portnox vs Sophos Network Access Control comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Mar 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

Portnox
Ranking in Network Access Control (NAC)
7th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
21
Ranking in other categories
ZTNA (11th), Passwordless Authentication (2nd)
Sophos Network Access Control
Ranking in Network Access Control (NAC)
6th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
20
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2025, in the Network Access Control (NAC) category, the mindshare of Portnox is 3.3%, up from 2.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Sophos Network Access Control is 1.4%, down from 1.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Network Access Control (NAC)
 

Featured Reviews

Scott Kerr - PeerSpot reviewer
It is seamless and integrates well with our Azure setup
We use devices like PLCs and controllers, and when we receive a request to allow one on the network, we bypass typical authentication, associate it with a group account, and push it to a firewalled VLAN. However, problems arise when the same MAC address is requested for a different project. Our current system only finds authenticated MAC addresses, making it difficult to troubleshoot when the same device is used for multiple purposes. Ideally, we should be able to search for any MAC address in the database, regardless of its authentication status, to see all its associated groups and potential conflicts.
Abdul  Basit - PeerSpot reviewer
An affordable solution that provides web protection, URL filtering, and application filtering
Web protection, URL filtering, and application filtering are the most valuable features of Sophos Network Access Control Sophos Network Access Control needs improvement regarding its slow interface, loading time, and reporting. Big companies with 1,000 or 1,500 users might face difficulties using…

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The simplicity of the product is commendable."
"The product is a valuable solution within zero-trust architecture, enhancing network security and visibility."
"For the information security team, the security level was improved because it helped to manage and prevent rogue devices from connecting to the corporate network. The reporting was granular, and reports we scheduled for delivery on Portnox were useful during investigations and audits, especially in cases where the IP address changed."
"The cloud-based feature of Portnox is excellent."
"The Vidahost feature is currently in action, and it appears to be providing valuable data insights."
"The Portnox dashboard is very easy to use, and the UI is simple."
"There is an add-on feature for application control to kill unwanted applications when launched on a user's device."
"This is a self-sufficient network monitoring and security product that saves time and employee resources."
"The pricing is very reasonable and you can negotiate on the price."
"The wifi control is fantastic and makes it very easy to administer."
"Sophos has helped us to save time and money and to better manage web activities. It has also helped us to reduce misuse of the network and restrict hacking attempts."
"Sophos Network Access Control has a useful interface, and I like its dashboard, which is very useful for us to check everything."
"Sophos Network Access Control saves our clients time and money."
"What Sophos has done is integrate almost the entire OSI layer infrastructure. It gives me visibility across my infrastructure. It gives me visibility into all the mobile devices that are on my network and into the security I have on those mobile devices."
"We have had interactions with the technical support team through the Xnet platform. It's good."
"Sophos' technical support is great, very fast and responsive, and they always know how to fix the problem."
 

Cons

"The product should consider more integration with vendors like Huawei. It should also improve visibility. The solution should offer a partner portal that can provide customers training on the in and out of the solution."
"Their filtering system tends to lag quite a bit, so when I'm doing filtering at times, it doesn't filter the items properly."
"However, problems arise when the same MAC address is requested for a different project. Our current system only finds authenticated MAC addresses, making it difficult to troubleshoot when the same device is used for multiple purposes."
"It would be good to integrate Portnox CORE with CLEAR."
"Now, the way security is viewed, maybe including something like AI, to automate some of the things that are required to be done would be great."
"We have been having some issues with it. That's why we're considering migrating to Portnox Clear due to some limitations with CORE."
"In terms of operational efficiency, things are more complicated now. It takes more time to get devices on the network, but we increased security quite a bit."
"Ideally, we should be able to search for any MAC address in the database, regardless of its authentication status, to see all its associated groups and potential conflicts."
"The difficult thing was finding the metrics."
"I would like to see mobile administration capabilities in the next release so that we can administer the device from a mobile device."
"The interface on the cloud could be a bit better - just to give more performance on it."
"In order to provide better management, it would be ideal with they offered better plugins for their firewall."
"Sophos Network Access Control requires a lot of resources to work, which is an area for improvement. Pricing could also be improved because it's costly."
"The solution could offer more useful documentation."
"It would be beneficial to consider some improvements regarding the dashboard."
"Continuous development in specific areas might be required."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is not bad. It is a bit on the high side, but considering the cloud features and how much it costs to run the instance in the cloud, it is not unreasonable. We do have RADIUS servers for the US, Asia, and Europe."
"The pricing is a bit high, possibly due to the cloud features and running instances across regions like the US, Asia, and Europe."
"Pricing is not cheap. It is based on licenses per port. After licensing is purchased, you only pay for support."
"The licensing module should be reviewed to count the number of devices instead of port numbers of total switches. There is a case for this where not all ports for a switch are used by devices. Unused ports are calculated in the license, then the customer pays for license for those unused ports."
"The vendor price is fair."
"The solution is very expensive and I would rate it 10 out of 10."
"Pricing is quite reasonable."
"The users are not very happy with the new licensing option where there is only a subscription license. There is no perpetual license."
"Sophos Network Access Control is costly but has a similar price range as CrowdStrike and Check Point. The product can get more market share if Sophos can play around with Sophos Network Access Control pricing and improve it."
"It provides a moderate pricing option for all of its features and benefits."
"Sophos Network Access Control is very cheap compared to other solutions like Cisco, Barracuda, and Palo Alto."
"It is quite expensive."
"Sophos Network Access Control is an expensive solution."
"I rate the price of Sophos Network Access Control a five out of ten."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Manufacturing Company
16%
Computer Software Company
14%
Financial Services Firm
13%
Comms Service Provider
6%
Computer Software Company
15%
Government
8%
Educational Organization
7%
Comms Service Provider
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Portnox CORE?
It's easy to manage and troubleshoot thanks to the lightweight components.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Portnox CORE?
It's not cheap. It's not expensive. It's in the middle, so I'll probably give it a seven out of ten, where one is cheap and ten is expensive.
What needs improvement with Portnox CORE?
We have been having some issues with it. That's why we're considering migrating to Portnox Clear due to some limitations with CORE. At the end of the day, Portnox Clear's capabilities are much more...
What do you like most about Sophos Network Access Control?
Sophos Network Access Control has a useful interface, and I like its dashboard, which is very useful for us to check everything.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Sophos Network Access Control?
I am not able to say much on the financial specifics as it pertains to the sales unit.
What needs improvement with Sophos Network Access Control?
For now, I may not be able to say exactly what needs improvement. However, continuous development in specific areas might be required.
 

Also Known As

Access Layers Portnox, Portnox CLEAR
No data available
 

Interactive Demo

Demo not available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Data Realty, Royal London, Wales Millennium Centre, McLaren Construction Group, EL AL Israeli Airlines, 
Rushmoor Borough Council
Find out what your peers are saying about Portnox vs. Sophos Network Access Control and other solutions. Updated: March 2025.
845,406 professionals have used our research since 2012.