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SonicWall NSa vs SonicWall NSv comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Sep 16, 2024

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
7.1
Number of Reviews
373
Ranking in other categories
Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions (1st), WAN Edge (1st)
SonicWall NSa
Ranking in Firewalls
16th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.5
Number of Reviews
87
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
SonicWall NSv
Ranking in Firewalls
36th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
10
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2025, in the Firewalls category, the mindshare of Fortinet FortiGate is 21.2%, up from 17.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SonicWall NSa is 1.7%, up from 1.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SonicWall NSv is 0.2%, up from 0.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Firewalls
 

Featured Reviews

Vasu Gala - PeerSpot reviewer
A stable solution with an intuitive interface and quick customer service
I have been working with Fortinet FortiGate, WatchGuard, Sophos, and SonicWall. I'm not as comfortable with SonicWall because of their UI and limitations. I prefer Fortinet above all other options. When it comes to configuration, I am confident in my ability to handle various tasks, including creating policies such as firewall rules, web policies, and application policies. Additionally, I can configure VPNs and implement load balancing, among other tasks. Overall, I feel much more comfortable working with Fortinet. Fortinet has made significant improvements by integrating AI with firewalls for threat analysis and prevention. In the past 2-3 years, they have launched FortiSASE and SIEM, and they also provide SOC services. Both Palo Alto and Fortinet FortiGate are excellent. While Fortinet FortiGate comes at higher prices, the functionality and support justify the cost. They promptly resolve firmware issues and inform all support providers about configuration changes.
Constantnos Achilleos - PeerSpot reviewer
Network security has strengthened with next-generation firewall features and cost savings
I primarily use SonicWall NSA as a next-generation firewall for network security architecture. It is especially used for securing business operations with networks of more than 250 people SonicWall NSA's most valuable features are its SD-WAN and a system RTBI that blocks all attacks. These…
Sileesh Sivadasan - PeerSpot reviewer
Helps small businesses expand branches more easily
The price is a significant factor. Mostly in India, the customer service has many hurdles to get real support. If I want to talk to a customer executive, they ask many trivial questions. Even if I explain that I am asking for a Dell partner, they still ask specific questions, and they will explain many unnecessary questions.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"We have found it to be very reliable and that's why our teams and various users in our company use it as our main firewall every day."
"This is an easy solution to deploy."
"We use a lot of function on the IPS and it works well for us."
"It's very good and very stable for businesses. It works very well."
"FortiGate is more feature-rich and has a broader range of hardware. T"
"The solution is highly scalable because they have devices that can handle a large amount of traffic."
"It can expand easily."
"Valuable features include the Web Application Firewall, and it even has DLP (data leak prevention)."
"The most valuable features are the VPN, SSL VPN, and IPSec VPN."
"User friendly and intuitive."
"The most valuable feature is the sandbox."
"Deep packet inspection and intelligent application control are the most valuable features. It is a very updated solution. It is very current as compared to other brands and vendors."
"It is a brilliant product. It is a Unified Threat Management (UTM) system. It has got about 11 security services that take care of your perimeter security. It takes care of any kind of cyber threats that could come in. It takes care of creating VPNs between two SonicWalls instantly and very easily. It has got spyware in it as well as a firewall. It has also got a gateway antivirus and an application firewall that can block things from outside."
"The solution has many useful features, such as content management, user management, user filtering, and domain controller connectivity mapping."
"With the deployment of the SonicWall NSA solution, we never suffered a problem due to invasion or contamination of any kind."
"Content filtering reduces the load on the available bandwidth and restricts employees from using distracting websites on the job, which leads to more productive hours."
"For my small NFB banking services, when they are expanding their branches, I could incorporate a little bit easier."
"SonicWall excelled in threat management, evident in how users handled it effectively."
"SonicWall NSV is easy to use, and you can use it to manage the logs easily."
"Out of ten, I would rate the solution at an eight."
"One of the standout features of SonicWall is its simplicity in creating and managing rules."
"The security of this system is fantastic, including the IPS and IDS."
"The solution has no additional charges and no restrictions on the number of users."
"We purchased the AGSS Bundle (Advanced Gateway Security Suite) for the security services, such as antivirus, intrusion prevention system, and anti-spyware botnet GUI."
 

Cons

"Regarding challenges, customers initially faced issues like internet dropping, but after firmware upgrades, everything worked well."
"It would be nice if FortiGate incorporated some built-in endpoint protection features. I would also like a built-in SOC dashboard for managing multiple Fortinet firewalls."
"There are SD-WAN network monitoring, SD-WAN features, Industrial Databases, Internet of Things, Detection, etc., however, we do have not licenses for those features. We thought that if you bought a product, you should have all of the features it offers. Why should you need to make so many extra purchases to enable features? They should have one price for the entire offering."
"The main thing they have to improve in Fortinet FortiGate is the technical support; the rest of the features are good enough. We can handle them, but sometimes you really need support, and in that case, we are not getting it at the proper time."
"They should improve high CPU and memory usage that occurs."
"They should improve the interface to make it more user-friendly."
"This product could be improved with Active directory integration and better handling in IPsec and GRE Tunnels."
"Lacks sufficient security options."
"We also need to increase the throughput because the other devices are slower. The throughput will become slow. Since we're using VoIP, it tends to affect the voice quality. Even if you're using a quality service, it tends to decrease."
"The detection of malware can improve in SonicWall NSa."
"Vendor support needs improvement. The frequency of time and support should be increased."
"Needs a more detailed reporting feature."
"The logging, reporting, and storage capacity size could improve in a future release."
"It only has a single power interface, which has limitations in terms of high availability."
"The user interface could be better."
"The implementation for VLANs is a little bit cumbersome. It would be good to make that a little bit easier."
"We face some challenges when we upgrade the solution."
"The price is a significant factor."
"An area that could be improved is the export and import settings functionality."
"There are limitations to bandwidth management."
"SonicWall NSV's initial setup is complicated and requires good knowledge."
"It has been brought to our attention by a few customers that they are dissatisfied with the fact that our virtualized service is only offered as a subscription option on the cloud. However, it is worth noting that many other similar services are also offered through a subscription model on the cloud and not through perpetual licensing. It is unclear why these customers would have an issue with this subscription service when so many others are utilizing similar methods."
"The price is a significant factor. Mostly in India, the customer service has many hurdles to get real support."
"The engine provided initially was quite heavy, creating a trade-off between software and hardware-based threat management."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It has been two years. I don't remember the actual price, but it was affordable. We buy the boxes and then use the license for three years."
"Pricing is good. They offer a lot of things, the most important is the support. Every time you upgrade your license, you also get insurance for the equipment. If you have any problem with equipment, they send in new equipment."
"The value is the capability of having multiple services with one unique license, not having the limitation per user licensing schema, like other vendors."
"Fortinet FortiGate gives you most of the features in one license."
"We just pay a flat monthly fee to the vendor for the support."
"Here in Brazil, we're going through difficult economic times and the tax on the dollar is high. All the solutions from minor competitors are growing in the market. The prices have come more competitive."
"The price of the license and warranty can be better because it is very expensive."
"Its price is normal. If I compare it with other vendors, such as Palo Alto, it's normal. Palo Alto is expensive."
"The solution is based on a yearly licensing model that is reasonable compared to other options."
"The price is high. I would rate it four to five out of ten."
"NSa is not expensive, not high. It's at a moderate or medium level."
"The pricing is lower and better than other products."
"There is a license required for this solution and you can purchase a one, two, or three year term. Typically businesses choose the one year subscription and then later choose the three year licensing option if they are satisfied."
"Its price is okay."
"If you want to connect more than five concurrent users by VPN then you have to pay an additional fee."
"The pricing and value are good."
"SonicWall NSV is not very costly."
"The solution's pricing is good for the technology it offers."
"The solution’s pricing is less compared to other products."
"The tool is moderately priced."
"Our initial purchase, which included a three-year term of support, was about $25,000 USD."
"We are currently using the trial version."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
15%
Educational Organization
11%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Computer Software Company
14%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Educational Organization
7%
Computer Software Company
28%
Retailer
7%
Real Estate/Law Firm
6%
Educational Organization
6%
 

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 ...
What do you like most about SonicWall NSa?
The product blocks access when I visit unrecognized websites.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SonicWall NSa?
I would rate the price of the product as seven out of ten.
What needs improvement with SonicWall NSa?
There are some aspects of the dashboard configuration or customization that could be improved.
What do you like most about SonicWall NSV?
The product helps improve our security.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SonicWall NSV?
I am somewhat satisfied with the price for SonicWall NSv, rating it as eight because, compared to other products, the...
What needs improvement with SonicWall NSV?
Currently, we are getting challenges with user-wise reports and other reporting details. At present, they do not prov...
 

Also Known As

FortiGate 60b, FortiGate 60c, FortiGate 80c, FortiGate 50b, FortiGate 200b, FortiGate 110c, FortiGate, Fortinet Firewall
NSA 250M, NSA 2600, NSA 3600, NSA 4600, NSA 5600, Dell SonicWALL NSA
SonicWall Network Security Virtual
 

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
Orange County Rescue Mission, First Source, Michaels & Taylor, Green Clinic Health System, Aspire Chiltern Skills and Enterprise Centre, UnitedStack, Faith Lutheran College Redlands, Celtic Manor Resort, Star Kay White, Air Works, Unimat Life, NHS Yorkshire and Humber Commissioning Support (YHCS), Hutt City Council, Mato Grosso do Sul, Nspyre
Comlogic, Depaul, Hutt City Council
Find out what your peers are saying about SonicWall NSa vs. SonicWall NSv and other solutions. Updated: June 2025.
860,632 professionals have used our research since 2012.