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Sangfor NGAF vs WatchGuard Firebox comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Feb 15, 2026

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

Sangfor NGAF
Ranking in Firewalls
28th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.5
Number of Reviews
34
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
WatchGuard Firebox
Ranking in Firewalls
12th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
143
Ranking in other categories
Data Loss Prevention (DLP) (10th), Intrusion Detection and Prevention Software (IDPS) (4th), Anti-Malware Tools (7th), Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) (10th), Application Control (4th), Unified Threat Management (UTM) (3rd)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of September 2026, in the Firewalls category, the mindshare of Sangfor NGAF is 1.2%, down from 1.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of WatchGuard Firebox is 2.0%, down from 2.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Firewalls Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
WatchGuard Firebox2.0%
Sangfor NGAF1.2%
Other96.8%
Firewalls
 

Featured Reviews

Zaid Farooqui - PeerSpot reviewer
CIO at Indus Motor Company
Enhanced threat detection with integrated security features and good support
We are using application firewalling, WAF, and SD-WAN. The capabilities are mostly within the box. For example, you will get web application firewall WAF as part and parcel of this. SD-WAN is also bundled. It integrates with their SIEM and SOAR solutions very nicely. Lastly, the pricing point is very cost-efficient as well.
Abhishek Saini - PeerSpot reviewer
Professional Services Engineer at Next7 IT
Centralized security management has improved VPN reliability and simplified daily operations
WatchGuard Firebox is a strong and reliable platform overall, but there are a few areas where improvements could make the experience even better. One area is the user interface and navigation in some management tools. While the platform is powerful, certain configurations and troubleshooting workflows can feel less intuitive compared to some newer cloud-native firewall platforms. Another point is reporting and log analysis. Although the logging features are very useful, deeper analytics and more customizable reporting dashboards would make security monitoring much more effective. Firmware upgrades and policy synchronization can sometimes require careful planning to avoid security interruptions. Overall, the core security and VPN functionality are very solid, but improving usability, reporting, and automation would make the platform even stronger. One area that could be improved is the learning curve for new administrators. While experienced engineers can work with the platform effectively, some advanced networking and security configurations can be a bit complex for junior technicians. More guided configuration workflows, smarter recommendations, and simplified troubleshooting tools would make onboarding easier. Another improvement would be more flexible reporting customization for executive-level and client-facing reports.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The built-in features function as intended, providing exceptional value."
"This product is very user-friendly, and its Layer 7 security is very much improved."
"It seems to be a durable, stable product."
"We are Sangfor Gold partners and I'd recommend this solution for the SMB market, as it is cost-effective and reliable."
"You might try Sangfor if you are on a tight budget. The price is affordable, and Sangfor offers a lot of features. We don't have any complaints about Sangfor."
"SSL VPN is the best feature."
"The tool's performance is good."
"The support from Sangfor NGAF here in Pakistan is great."
"It's hard to pick one feature over another. But if I had to pick one, the UTM would be the most valuable because of the notification. I get notified via email if there is any type of threat detection or alert, telling me something is wrong."
"I like the High Availability features of the newest ones I'm using because they allow a firewall to fail and still be up and running."
"It is something that we need for compliance, and it has been useful. Their support staff is also amazing."
"Now, the provisioning goes more toward what types of software are needed, we have it completely unified across locations with a security standard through the WatchGuard systems due to the roles that we've set up for the organization, and productivity, especially within the IT department, has increased due to the time that we used to spend on each machine can now be spent on the network level."
"WatchGuard Firebox made it so that I can connect to my remote offices without having to set up every computer to connect to our headquarters."
"The most valuable features are WatchGuard’s antivirus, traffic protection, and ease of configuration."
"The Firebox offers valuable features such as network security, URL filtering, UTM features, intrusion prevention and detection, and authentication."
"Some of the most valuable features of the Firebox include web blocking, application control, protection against brute force attacks, load balancing, SD-WAN, and VPN support. These features help us manage and secure our network efficiently."
 

Cons

"The cost of licensing is very high compared to other firewalls available here. There should be improvements in hardware scalability, allowing for more storage and memory capacity."
"Sangfor could improve their interface capacity on the 5100 series model and upgrade their hardware from one gig to 10 gig. This would improve the overall throughput."
"Lacks consistency in terms of filtering certain websites and applications."
"Our experience with its customer support was quite challenging."
"It would be ideal if the solution offered SD-WAN capabilities."
"The reporting and log management could be improved."
"The web interface needs to be improved, making it more user-friendly."
"I feel Sangfor should follow the hierarchy and close deals via resellers instead of closing it all with their own team."
"There is no message displayed for the user on the desktop informing them that access to a web page has been blocked by Application Control."
"There is room for improvement on the education side, regarding what does what, rather than just throwing it at a person and assuming they know everything about it. A lot of times, you have to call WatchGuard support to get the solution that will work, rather than their just having it published so that you can fix the problem on your own."
"I only regret that one cannot buy single modules out of the Total Security Suite, and that makes it a bit expensive for some SMB customers."
"Several areas of WatchGuard Firebox have room for improvement, including AI, UI, pricing, support, and implementation integration."
"The solution is a bit confusing and there are unusual complications with setup."
"The product's technical support services need improvement."
"Once you start getting into proxy actions and setting up: "Okay, cool. Once this rule gets triggered, what actions have to happen?" I do know a few people who use WatchGuard and they still have to get assistance when they look at that. So I would file that as a con for WatchGuard. Proxy actions can be a little bit complicated."
"The user interface and configuration can be improved."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Price-wise, I would not consider Sangfor NGAF to be a cheap product. It is an expensive firewall solution, though not as expensive as something like Palo Alto, which is costly. However, the higher price point is justifiable given the feature set the tool provides that other firewalls may not offer in a single dedicated appliance."
"The license of Sangfor NGAF can be purchased at different interval lengths, such as annually or three years. They offer a range of packages to choose from, such as combo or hybrid packages. We are using the complete solution package which includes IM, NGF and SSL VPN, and WAF."
"The price is unmatcheable."
"The price could be more competitive."
"The solution has a TCO that is 32% to 50% less than Sophos, Fortinet, and SonicWall."
"If one is very cheap and ten is very expensive, I rate the tool's price as three out of ten."
"In my opinion, the price of the tool is good in the Pakistani market. We can easily get discounts if needed."
"It costs about 8 to 10 thousand dollars per year for 500 users, standard licensing fees included."
"The price of the WatchGuard Firebox is reasonable."
"For what we use, the tool's price has been reasonable, but it is not the cheapest. The tool has been quite reasonable."
"Over the years, the costs have increased, especially since I cater to very small businesses."
"We only license our corporate one and the one we have at our DR site, we don't worry about the branches. It doesn't pay for us to license the ones at the branches. What they charge for what they call basic maintenance is extremely high for those little fireboxes."
"There is a license required to use the solution and we pay annually. The price could be reduced because it is a bit expensive."
"It's fair pricing, but it could always be reduced."
"The price of the solution is not expensive, it is less than FortiGate."
"I find the solution to be very affordable."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Comms Service Provider
12%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Construction Company
7%
Outsourcing Company
13%
Comms Service Provider
12%
Construction Company
8%
Manufacturing Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business15
Midsize Enterprise10
Large Enterprise10
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business104
Midsize Enterprise30
Large Enterprise17
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Sangfor NGAF?
The licensing cost is quite high compared to other available firewalls in the market.
What needs improvement with Sangfor NGAF?
The cost of licensing is very high compared to other firewalls available here. There should be improvements in hardware scalability, allowing for more storage and memory capacity. Making the soluti...
What is your primary use case for Sangfor NGAF?
We are hosting applications over the platform, including websites and NAT traffic from our side. Because it's deployed in our data center, which is fully operational, we have various applications h...
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 our employees.
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

Sangfor NGAF Firewall Platform
WatchGuard Threat Detection and Response, WatchGuard Application Control, WatchGuard Data Loss Prevention, WatchGuard Gateway AntiVirus, WatchGuard Intrusion Prevention Service
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

The Ministry of Science, Technology, and Innovation (Indonesia), Lawson, Inc. (Philippines), Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin (Indonesia), TEK Automotive (Italy), etc.
Ellips, Diecutstickers.com, Clarke Energy, NCR, Wrest Park, Homeslice Pizza, Fortessa Tableware Solutions, The Phoenix Residence
Find out what your peers are saying about Sangfor NGAF vs. WatchGuard Firebox and other solutions. Updated: September 2026.
913,806 professionals have used our research since 2012.