It can be used as a firewall, SD-WAN enabler, and secure web gateway. You can also use it for unified threat management, email detection, mobile device management, and wireless management. I use it in the cloud and on-premises, and I have its latest version.
Senior IT Manager at a agriculture with 11-50 employees
A stable, flexible, and easy-to-use solution that works well and comes with a web management portal that can be accessed from anywhere
Pros and Cons
- "It is stable, flexible, and easy to use. It has got a web management portal that can be accessed from anywhere."
- "I would like to have more artificial intelligence in the web monitoring service that comes with it. It should alert us when particular events happen. It has already got some of that. I know that it is more of a service, and Sophos is already looking at it. It is called SIEM."
What is our primary use case?
What is most valuable?
It is stable, flexible, and easy to use. It has got a web management portal that can be accessed from anywhere.
What needs improvement?
I would like to have more artificial intelligence in the web monitoring service that comes with it. It should alert us when particular events happen. It has already got some of that. I know that it is more of a service, and Sophos is already looking at it. It is called SIEM.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using this solution for a few years.
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Sophos Firewall
January 2026
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881,665 professionals have used our research since 2012.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
We have roughly 700 users who use this firewall.
How are customer service and support?
I have interacted with them a few times. I am very satisfied with their technical support.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
We were using FortiGate.
How was the initial setup?
It is easy to install. I have done the installation in less than a day.
What about the implementation team?
We did it ourselves. We have two people for its deployment. We have one engineer and one admin.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
It is not that expensive compared to the other solutions. It is about the same price range as Fortigate, which we used previously. Licensing is on a yearly basis.
What other advice do I have?
I would recommend this solution. We're very happy with the product. It works very well, and we don't have too many issues.
I would rate Sophos XG a nine out of ten.
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
IT Security Manager at a financial services firm with 201-500 employees
Ability to be managed by all users; unfortunately there is no tracking
Pros and Cons
- "Each user has the ability to manage the solution."
- "Inability to investigate incidents, there is no tracking."
What is our primary use case?
We are customers of Sophos and I'm the company IT security manager.
What is most valuable?
I like that each user has the ability to manage the solution.
What needs improvement?
It's a problem that we are not able to investigate incidents, there is no tracking. Security is also lacking in this product.
For how long have I used the solution?
I've been using this solution for three years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Stability is good, no problems.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Scalability is fine.
How are customer service and technical support?
Technical support could be improved, it's not great.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The price is good, it's not an expensive product.
What other advice do I have?
I would not recommend this firewall to others.
I would rate this product a seven out of 10.
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Buyer's Guide
Sophos Firewall
January 2026
Learn what your peers think about Sophos Firewall. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: January 2026.
881,665 professionals have used our research since 2012.
IT Engineer with 51-200 employees
User-friendly and helpful interface with good support that responds quickly
Pros and Cons
- "The VPN access for users is also a great thing, especially nowadays when working from home."
- "Having a web portal where you could make requests for the categorization of non-categorized items, would be beneficial."
What is our primary use case?
For the primary use cases, we use SSL VPN access for rolling remote access. We use web filtering and we use the intrusion prevention that comes with network protection.
What is most valuable?
The user interface is very user-friendly and very helpful.
The VPN access for users is also a great thing, especially nowadays when working from home.
What needs improvement?
Categorization or uncategorized websites is an area that needs improvement.
Having a web portal where you could make requests for the categorization of non-categorized items, would be beneficial.
The DLP rules don't cover countries such as Serbia. You cannot make custom rules. That could be added so that we could detect content that is not supposed to leave the company via email, and so that the rules could be customized by the clients.
We only have predefined rules and most of them are not for Serbia or countries from the Region.
For how long have I used the solution?
We have been using Sophos from the time they acquired Astaro, before that it was UTM, then they released the XG firewall.
We are using the latest version.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
It's a stable solution. We have not experienced any issues.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
It's a scalable product. In the office, we have four users in our organization.
How are customer service and technical support?
Our experience with technical support has been positive.
We have support from the local distributor. We have rarely had the need to contact technical support but when we have, we have had quick responses from them.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup is very straightforward and the implementation takes a relatively short amount of time. The fine-tuning takes a little bit more time but in general, it can be deployed and implemented quickly.
Also, the upgrades, backups, and recovery are very easy.
What about the implementation team?
We are Sophos partners, we sell them and implement them ourselves.
We only need one engineer to deploy and maintain this solution. If you have a bigger deployment then you need two engineers.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
Licensing fees are on a yearly basis.
What other advice do I have?
I can recommend this solution to others who are interested in using it.
I would rate this solution a nine out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer. Partner
VP of Operations at a manufacturing company with 51-200 employees
Stable, easy to setup the rules, versatile, and good support
Pros and Cons
- "The most valuable feature of this solution is the flexibility of it, it's pretty versatile."
- "The UI needs improvement because it can be a little weird at times."
What is our primary use case?
The primary use case of this solution is as the main company firewall.
What is most valuable?
The most valuable feature of this solution is the flexibility of it, it's pretty versatile.
Also, the firewall aspect in terms of setting up rules. They worked pretty well.
What needs improvement?
The UI needs improvement because it can be a little weird at times.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have used Sophos XG in the last twelve months.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
This solution is stable. We haven't had any real issues.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
I don't know if this solution is scalable. We haven't explored this area yet.
As we grow, we plan to increase usage.
How are customer service and technical support?
Technical support is good.
How was the initial setup?
Initially, the setup was a bit complex.
It was complex because we were coming off of a different setup. It was just getting used to the software, but it's not too bad.
We require one and a half staff members for the deployment and the maintenance. They seem to do a pretty good job of updating it and keeping it current.
What about the implementation team?
We implemented ourselves. We did not use a vendor or integrator.
What was our ROI?
We're military contractors, and the cybersecurity compliance aspect of it has been the most helpful.
We know how the networks operate from our end, even though we are relatively green. We don't what we are comparing it to.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
We prepaid in advance to get the max discount.
What other advice do I have?
I would rate Sophos XG an eight out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Technical Department Manager at a computer software company with 11-50 employees
Has good VPN features and capabilities
Pros and Cons
- "We get good usage out of the features. It has enabled us to gain popularity. It has great features."
- "The VPN features and its capabilities are great."
- "We had a difficult time assigning IP addresses to specific MAC addresses."
What is our primary use case?
We use it for monitoring our web access, providing authentication and for security purposes.
What is most valuable?
We get good usage out of the VPN features and its capability; it is a great feature.
What needs improvement?
In terms of improvement, one of the features we are having a hard time getting a hang of is MAC addressing, like when we assign IP addresses to a specific MAC address. That is something that can be improved. For the next release, I think, it should have better feature integration.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Sophos XG for seven years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
It is a stable solution.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The solution is scalable. We use the product for around 70 to 100 users.
How are customer service and technical support?
The support that we used was great.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup was pretty straightforward. The setup took around one to two weeks.
What about the implementation team?
We did all of the deployment by ourselves and we use one person for maintenance.
What was our ROI?
I think, for the XG, I think the MAC addressing. We were having a very hard time assigning MAC addresses with specific IP.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
We haven't chosen any other product, besides Sophos.
What other advice do I have?
I would rate Sophos XG an eight out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
IT Support Executive at a healthcare company with 51-200 employees
Simple, stable and secure with regular timely updates
Pros and Cons
- "The simplicity and timely updates."
- "The interface could be simplified and diagnostic system graphs improved."
What is our primary use case?
Our primary use case is as a firewall, failover management of the internet lines. We have over 50 people using the product on 200 devices and we use it on a daily basis. I'm an IT support executive and we're a customer of Sophos.
How has it helped my organization?
We are using sophos XG as the firewall for our offices, so any connections going outside of the office go through it. We are also using VPN clients and especially during the lockdown, it was very helpful.
What is most valuable?
I like the simplicity of the solution and the timely updates. It works well.
What needs improvement?
The interface could be improved by simplifying it and making it much smarter. I would also like to see an improvement in the diagnostic system graphs. They could be modified to provide individual graphs. The present page has all graphs in a single page and it slows things down and takes more time to refresh and load.
Additional features they could consider including in any update would be symbols and tools. They could also include URL groups and all Office updates, the regular things that people do on a daily basis.
For how long have I used the solution?
I've been using this solution for the past year and a half.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
This is a stable solution.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
We haven't yet tried scaling, that will take another six months. I'll be in a better position to answer then.
How are customer service and technical support?
The technical support is fine overall.
How was the initial setup?
I've now configured three times and although it gets easier, deployment is a little complex. We had some issues with the company, unrelated to the product, more to do with the licensing procedures in India which could be simplified. Deployment only took about half an hour and the solution doesn't require any maintenance.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
Licensing costs are generally set for three years.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
PaloAlto, FirtiGate
What other advice do I have?
Before installing this product it's worth taking some lessons from the website which also provides some support. It's almost better than the technical support which is offline. If you have a good vendor with hands-on experience that's also helpful for first time deployment. After you've implemented once, it's easier the second time.
I would rate this solution an eight out of 10.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
IT Manager at a manufacturing company with 201-500 employees
User authentication rules are helpful, but the URL filtering is not good, and it suffers from instability
Pros and Cons
- "The user authentication rules are very useful."
- "Sophos needs improvements made to the console, such as host entry or defining rules directly from it."
What is our primary use case?
We use the Sophos XG firewall as part of our network security solution.
What is most valuable?
The user authentication rules are very useful.
What needs improvement?
Sophos needs improvements made to the console, such as host entry or defining rules directly from it.
For how long have I used the solution?
We have been using Sophos XG for the past five years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
I do not feel that this is a stable product. URL filtering is not good.
How are customer service and technical support?
I have not had any experience with technical support.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup is straightforward. It took a week to deploy.
What other advice do I have?
This is not a product that I can recommend to anybody who wants to implement a firewall.
I would rate this solution a four out of ten.
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Network & System Administrator at a tech services company with 201-500 employees
Easy to set up, monitor, and block traffic, but the stability could be better
Pros and Cons
- "The most valuable features are the central management, the user VPN, and communications."
- "I need to open the email to see what it contains and the value of it before I know whether to access it or not."
What is our primary use case?
We are using this product to monitor traffic, payments, and VPN access to our branches. Some are using VPN with hooks, Sophos XG 210, and the main one they are using in the data center is Sophos XG 310.
What is most valuable?
The most valuable features are the central management, the user VPN, and communications.
You can monitor and block traffic.
What needs improvement?
In regards to email as an example, if you experience any malware, it is contained in the container but doesn't give you any information about the email, or what is contained in the email. You only have the option to reject it or to release it.
I need to open the email to see what it contains and the value of it before I know whether to access it or not.
Stability needs improvements.
For how long have I used the solution?
We started with Sophos SG UTM 9, then we upgraded to XG. We have been using the latest version of XG for two years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The stability could be better.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
It's scalable and good for small businesses.
We have approximately 120 users.
How are customer service and technical support?
I have contacted technical support three to five times per year.
It's good, but I don't have many questions to ask.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
Previously, I was using Sophos SG. We were not using any other software from any other vendor. We have only dealt with Sophos.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup was simple. It was not complicated.
If you are familiar with the technology, the implementation will not be difficult.
It also depends on the business needs.
From testing and switching from SG to XG, it took approximately one week to deploy.
What about the implementation team?
We had help from the vendor. The maintenance and the VPN connection is done in-house.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
It is not expensive, it's a reasonable price.
There are some additional fees for additional tools.
What other advice do I have?
I can recommend Sophos XG to others who are interested in using this solution.
I would rate this solution a seven out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
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Updated: January 2026
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