# FortiGate-VM NGFW vs Palo Alto Networks VM-Series Virtual Firewall Comparison
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## AI Generated Summary
- **G2 reviewers report** that FortiGate-VM NGFW excels in user experience, with many praising its **modern user interface** and straightforward setup process. Users appreciate how easy it is to manage multiple firewalls, highlighting that it feels **lightweight yet powerful** for handling complex threats.
- **Users say** that Palo Alto Networks VM-Series Virtual Firewall provides **consistent security** across both on-premises and cloud environments. Reviewers value its **App-ID, User-ID, and Threat Prevention capabilities** , which offer deep visibility and control, making it a strong choice for organizations with hybrid infrastructures.
- **According to verified reviews** , FortiGate-VM NGFW has a significantly higher G2 Score, indicating greater overall user satisfaction. Reviewers frequently mention its **reliable performance** and the ease of managing day-to-day tasks, which contributes to a more efficient workflow.
- **Reviewers mention** that while Palo Alto Networks VM-Series Virtual Firewall is robust, it can sometimes feel less intuitive compared to FortiGate-VM. Users have noted that the **configuration process** can be more challenging, which may impact the speed of implementation.
- **G2 reviewers highlight** that FortiGate-VM NGFW's support quality is rated higher, with users appreciating the **responsive customer service** and helpful resources available for troubleshooting. This support can be crucial for organizations that require quick resolutions to security issues.
- **Users say** that Palo Alto Networks VM-Series Virtual Firewall is a cost-effective solution, especially for enterprises, but some feel that it lacks the **user-friendly features** that FortiGate-VM offers. This can lead to a steeper learning curve for teams new to the platform.



| | FortiGate-VM NGFW | Palo Alto Networks VM-Series Virtual Firewall | 
|---|---|---|
| **Star Rating** | 4.6 out of 5 | 4.3 out of 5 | 
| **Total Reviews** | 245 | 92 | 
| **Largest Market Segment** | Mid-Market (57.3% of reviews) | Enterprise (44.0% of reviews) | 
| **Entry Level Price** | No pricing available | No pricing available | 

---
## Top Pros & Cons

### FortiGate-VM NGFW

Pros:
- Ease of Use (12 reviews)
- Features (10 reviews)

Cons:
- Difficult Learning Curve (4 reviews)
- Expensive (4 reviews)

### Palo Alto Networks VM-Series Virtual Firewall

Pros:
- Features (18 reviews)
- Threat Protection (18 reviews)

Cons:
- Expensive (26 reviews)
- Difficult Learning Curve (11 reviews)

---
## Ratings Comparison
| Rating | FortiGate-VM NGFW | Palo Alto Networks VM-Series Virtual Firewall | 
|---|---|---|
  | **Meets Requirements** | 9.1 (193 reviews) | 8.8 (85 reviews) | 
  | **Ease of Use** | 8.9 (196 reviews) | 8.3 (86 reviews) | 
  | **Ease of Setup** | 8.9 (162 reviews) | 8.2 (82 reviews) | 
  | **Ease of Admin** | 9.1 (148 reviews) | 8.5 (63 reviews) | 
  | **Quality of Support** | 8.6 (191 reviews) | 8.3 (82 reviews) | 
  | **Has the product been a good partner in doing business?** | 9.1 (144 reviews) | 8.6 (63 reviews) | 
  | **Product Direction (% positive)** | 9.5 (192 reviews) | 9.4 (82 reviews) | 

---
## Pricing

### FortiGate-VM NGFW

#### Entry-Level Pricing

No pricing available

#### Free Trial

Yes

### Palo Alto Networks VM-Series Virtual Firewall

#### Entry-Level Pricing

No pricing available

#### Free Trial

No information available

---
## Features Comparison By Category

### Unified Threat Management (UTM)

| Product | Score | Reviews |
|---|---|---|
| **FortiGate-VM NGFW** | 9.3/10 | 124 |
| **Palo Alto Networks VM-Series Virtual Firewall** | N/A | N/A |

#### Security - Unified Threat Management

| Feature | FortiGate-VM NGFW | Palo Alto Networks VM-Series Virtual Firewall | 
|---|---|---|
| **Antivirus** | 9.3 (97 reviews) | Not enough data | 
| **Whitelists** | 9.4 (99 reviews) | Not enough data | 
| **Antispam Filtering** | 9.0 (90 reviews) | Not enough data | 
| **Content Filtering** | 9.2 (96 reviews) | Not enough data | 
| **Web Filtering** | 9.7 (98 reviews) | Not enough data | 
| **Firewall** | 9.7 (104 reviews) | Not enough data | 

#### Administration

| Feature | FortiGate-VM NGFW | Palo Alto Networks VM-Series Virtual Firewall | 
|---|---|---|
| **Reports & Analytics** | 8.7 (97 reviews) | Not enough data | 
| **Dashboard** | 9.4 (99 reviews) | Not enough data | 

### Data Center Security Solutions

| Product | Score | Reviews |
|---|---|---|
| **FortiGate-VM NGFW** | 9.4/10 | 77 |
| **Palo Alto Networks VM-Series Virtual Firewall** | N/A | N/A |

#### Prevention

| Feature | FortiGate-VM NGFW | Palo Alto Networks VM-Series Virtual Firewall | 
|---|---|---|
| **Intrusion Prevention** | 9.6 (59 reviews) | Not enough data | 
| **Firewall** | 9.5 (63 reviews) | Not enough data | 
| **Encryption** | 9.2 (57 reviews) | Not enough data | 
| **Security hardening** | 9.4 (56 reviews) | Not enough data | 
| **Cloud Data Protection** | Feature Not Available | Not enough data | 

#### Detection

| Feature | FortiGate-VM NGFW | Palo Alto Networks VM-Series Virtual Firewall | 
|---|---|---|
| **Intrusion Detection** | 9.4 (59 reviews) | Not enough data | 
| **Security Monitoring** | 9.4 (54 reviews) | Not enough data | 
| **Anti-Malware / Malware Detection** | 9.3 (55 reviews) | Not enough data | 

#### Administration

| Feature | FortiGate-VM NGFW | Palo Alto Networks VM-Series Virtual Firewall | 
|---|---|---|
| **Compliance** | 9.4 (55 reviews) | Not enough data | 
| **Administration Console -** | 9.4 (59 reviews) | Not enough data | 
| **API / integrations** | 9.0 (52 reviews) | Not enough data | 

### Intrusion Detection and Prevention Systems (IDPS)

| Product | Score | Reviews |
|---|---|---|
| **FortiGate-VM NGFW** | N/A | N/A |
| **Palo Alto Networks VM-Series Virtual Firewall** | 8.8/10 | 37 |

#### Prevention

| Feature | FortiGate-VM NGFW | Palo Alto Networks VM-Series Virtual Firewall | 
|---|---|---|
| **Intrusion Prevention** | Not enough data | 9.2 (36 reviews) | 
| **Firewall** | Not enough data | 9.2 (37 reviews) | 
| **Encryption** | Not enough data | 9.2 (35 reviews) | 
| **Security hardening** | Not enough data | 9.1 (36 reviews) | 
| **Cloud Data Protection** | Not enough data | 8.8 (32 reviews) | 

#### Detection

| Feature | FortiGate-VM NGFW | Palo Alto Networks VM-Series Virtual Firewall | 
|---|---|---|
| **Intrusion Detection** | Not enough data | 9.0 (36 reviews) | 
| **Security Monitoring** | Not enough data | 9.1 (35 reviews) | 
| **Anti-Malware / Malware Detection** | Not enough data | 9.1 (36 reviews) | 

#### Administration

| Feature | FortiGate-VM NGFW | Palo Alto Networks VM-Series Virtual Firewall | 
|---|---|---|
| **Compliance** | Not enough data | 9.0 (35 reviews) | 
| **Administration Console -** | Not enough data | 8.8 (36 reviews) | 
| **API / integrations** | Not enough data | 8.6 (35 reviews) | 

#### Generative AI

| Feature | FortiGate-VM NGFW | Palo Alto Networks VM-Series Virtual Firewall | 
|---|---|---|
| **AI Text Summarization** | Not enough data | 7.7 (11 reviews) | 

#### Agentic AI - Intrusion Detection and Prevention Systems (IDPS)

| Feature | FortiGate-VM NGFW | Palo Alto Networks VM-Series Virtual Firewall | 
|---|---|---|
| **Autonomous Task Execution** | Not enough data | 8.3 (5 reviews) | 
| **Proactive Assistance** | Not enough data | 8.3 (5 reviews) | 

### Firewall Software

| Product | Score | Reviews |
|---|---|---|
| **FortiGate-VM NGFW** | 9.0/10 | 131 |
| **Palo Alto Networks VM-Series Virtual Firewall** | 8.7/10 | 70 |

#### Administration

| Feature | FortiGate-VM NGFW | Palo Alto Networks VM-Series Virtual Firewall | 
|---|---|---|
| **Policy Management** | 9.2 (105 reviews) | 8.8 (69 reviews) | 
| **Logging and Reporting** | 8.9 (104 reviews) | 8.9 (68 reviews) | 
| **Application Gateway** | 9.2 (93 reviews) | 8.6 (67 reviews) | 
| **Concurrent Sessions** | 9.3 (99 reviews) | 8.7 (66 reviews) | 

#### Agentic AI - Firewall Software

| Feature | FortiGate-VM NGFW | Palo Alto Networks VM-Series Virtual Firewall | 
|---|---|---|
| **Autonomous Task Execution** | Not enough data | 8.3 (12 reviews) | 
| **Adaptive Learning** | Not enough data | 8.9 (11 reviews) | 

#### Functionality

| Feature | FortiGate-VM NGFW | Palo Alto Networks VM-Series Virtual Firewall | 
|---|---|---|
| **Virtual Private Network (VPN)** | 9.4 (106 reviews) | 8.8 (64 reviews) | 
| **Antivirus** | 9.0 (98 reviews) | 8.8 (65 reviews) | 
| **URL Filtering** | 9.4 (102 reviews) | 9.0 (64 reviews) | 
| **Availability** | 9.5 (99 reviews) | 9.0 (65 reviews) | 

#### Monitoring

| Feature | FortiGate-VM NGFW | Palo Alto Networks VM-Series Virtual Firewall | 
|---|---|---|
| **Load Balancing** | 9.2 (93 reviews) | 8.7 (65 reviews) | 
| **Continuous Analysis** | 9.0 (94 reviews) | 8.7 (65 reviews) | 
| **Intrusion Prevention** | 9.2 (110 reviews) | 8.9 (68 reviews) | 
| **Intrusion Detection** | 9.3 (99 reviews) | 8.9 (65 reviews) | 

#### Generative AI

| Feature | FortiGate-VM NGFW | Palo Alto Networks VM-Series Virtual Firewall | 
|---|---|---|
| **AI Text Summarization** | 8.2 (20 reviews) | 7.9 (17 reviews) | 

#### Artificial Intelligence - Firewall

| Feature | FortiGate-VM NGFW | Palo Alto Networks VM-Series Virtual Firewall | 
|---|---|---|
| **AI Firewall** | 7.7 (5 reviews) | 8.8 (14 reviews) | 

### Data Security

| Product | Score | Reviews |
|---|---|---|
| **FortiGate-VM NGFW** | N/A | N/A |
| **Palo Alto Networks VM-Series Virtual Firewall** | N/A | N/A |

#### Compliance

| Feature | FortiGate-VM NGFW | Palo Alto Networks VM-Series Virtual Firewall | 
|---|---|---|
| **Access Management** | Not enough data | Not enough data | 
| **At-Risk Analysis** | Not enough data | Not enough data | 
| **DLP Configuration** | Not enough data | Not enough data | 
| **Sensitive Data Compliance** | Not enough data | Not enough data | 

#### Administration

| Feature | FortiGate-VM NGFW | Palo Alto Networks VM-Series Virtual Firewall | 
|---|---|---|
| **Database Management** | Not enough data | Not enough data | 
| **Deduplication ** | Not enough data | Not enough data | 
| **Backup** | Not enough data | Not enough data | 
| **API / integrations** | Not enough data | Not enough data | 

#### Security 

| Feature | FortiGate-VM NGFW | Palo Alto Networks VM-Series Virtual Firewall | 
|---|---|---|
| **Multi-Factor Authentication** | Not enough data | Not enough data | 
| **Data Transport** | Not enough data | Not enough data | 
| **Data Types** | Not enough data | Not enough data | 
| **Security Tools** | Not enough data | Not enough data | 

---
## Categories
**Shared Categories (1):** [Firewall Software](https://www.g2.com/categories/firewall-software)

**Unique to FortiGate-VM NGFW (2):** [Data Center Security Solutions](https://www.g2.com/categories/data-center-security-solutions), [Unified Threat Management Software](https://www.g2.com/categories/unified-threat-management-utm)

**Unique to Palo Alto Networks VM-Series Virtual Firewall (1):** [Intrusion Detection and Prevention Systems (IDPS)](https://www.g2.com/categories/intrusion-detection-and-prevention-systems-idps)


---
## Reviewer Demographics

### By Company Size

| Segment | FortiGate-VM NGFW | Palo Alto Networks VM-Series Virtual Firewall | 
|---|---|---|
| **Small-Business** | 20.3% | 26.4% | 
| **Mid-Market** | 57.3% | 29.7% | 
| **Enterprise** | 22.5% | 44.0% | 

### By Industry

#### FortiGate-VM NGFW

- **Information Technology and Services:** 22.9%
- **Computer & Network Security:** 11.9%
- **Telecommunications:** 9.6%
- **Financial Services:** 7.3%
- **Computer Software:** 6.4%
- **Computer Networking:** 4.6%
- **Education Management:** 2.8%
- **Construction:** 2.3%
- **Automotive:** 2.3%
- **Retail:** 1.8%
- **Other:** 28.0%

#### Palo Alto Networks VM-Series Virtual Firewall

- **Computer & Network Security:** 17.6%
- **Information Technology and Services:** 16.5%
- **Consulting:** 5.5%
- **Computer Software:** 5.5%
- **Insurance:** 4.4%
- **Telecommunications:** 3.3%
- **Hospital & Health Care:** 3.3%
- **Oil & Energy:** 3.3%
- **Banking:** 3.3%
- **Education Management:** 3.3%
- **Other:** 34.1%

---
## Alternatives

### Alternatives to FortiGate-VM NGFW

- [Check Point Next Generation Firewalls (NGFWs)](https://www.g2.com/products/check-point-next-generation-firewalls-ngfws/reviews) — 4.5/5 stars (593 reviews)
- [WatchGuard Network Security](https://www.g2.com/products/watchguard-network-security/reviews) — 4.7/5 stars (268 reviews)
- [SonicWall Next Generation Firewall](https://www.g2.com/products/sonicwall-next-generation-firewall/reviews) — 4.1/5 stars (154 reviews)
- [Barracuda CloudGen Firewall](https://www.g2.com/products/barracuda-cloudgen-firewall/reviews) — 4.5/5 stars (52 reviews)
- [Juniper Firewall](https://www.g2.com/products/juniper-firewall/reviews) — 4.0/5 stars (32 reviews)
- [Huawei Firewall](https://www.g2.com/products/huawei-firewall/reviews) — 4.7/5 stars (15 reviews)
- [KerioControl](https://www.g2.com/products/keriocontrol/reviews) — 4.3/5 stars (10 reviews)
- [Sophos Firewall](https://www.g2.com/products/sophos-firewall/reviews) — 4.7/5 stars (869 reviews)
- [Netgate pfSense](https://www.g2.com/products/netgate-pfsense/reviews) — 4.7/5 stars (326 reviews)
- [Cisco Meraki](https://www.g2.com/products/cisco-meraki/reviews) — 4.3/5 stars (217 reviews)

### Alternatives to Palo Alto Networks VM-Series Virtual Firewall

- [Sophos Firewall](https://www.g2.com/products/sophos-firewall/reviews) — 4.7/5 stars (869 reviews)
- [Check Point Next Generation Firewalls (NGFWs)](https://www.g2.com/products/check-point-next-generation-firewalls-ngfws/reviews) — 4.5/5 stars (593 reviews)
- [Netgate pfSense](https://www.g2.com/products/netgate-pfsense/reviews) — 4.7/5 stars (326 reviews)
- [ThreatLocker Zero Trust Platform](https://www.g2.com/products/threatlocker-zero-trust-platform/reviews) — 4.8/5 stars (514 reviews)
- [Check Point Cloud Firewall (formerly CloudGuard Network Security)](https://www.g2.com/products/check-point-cloud-firewall-formerly-cloudguard-network-security/reviews) — 4.4/5 stars (294 reviews)
- [WatchGuard Network Security](https://www.g2.com/products/watchguard-network-security/reviews) — 4.7/5 stars (268 reviews)
- [Zscaler Internet Access](https://www.g2.com/products/zscaler-internet-access/reviews) — 4.4/5 stars (271 reviews)
- [TrendAI Vision One - Cloud Security](https://www.g2.com/products/trendai-vision-one-cloud-security/reviews) — 4.5/5 stars (187 reviews)
- [SonicWall Next Generation Firewall](https://www.g2.com/products/sonicwall-next-generation-firewall/reviews) — 4.1/5 stars (154 reviews)
- [LevelBlue USM Anywhere](https://www.g2.com/products/levelblue-usm-anywhere/reviews) — 4.4/5 stars (114 reviews)

---
## Top Discussions

### FortiGate-VM NGFW

- Title: [What is FortiGate-VM used for?](https://www.g2.com/discussions/what-is-fortigate-vm-used-for) — 2 comments
  > **Top comment:** "FortiGate-VM is Fortinet's virtual appliance version of the FortiGate firewall, designed for deployment in virtualized environments. It serves as a..."
- Title: [What is FortiGate NGFW used for?](https://www.g2.com/discussions/what-is-fortigate-ngfw-used-for) — 1 comment
  > **Top comment:** "It is a next generation firewall which has capability to do layer 7 insapaction "
- Title: [Is FortiGate and fortinet the same?](https://www.g2.com/discussions/is-fortigate-and-fortinet-the-same) — 1 comment
  > **Top comment:** "Fortinet is the company and FortiGate is their Firewall name :)"
- Title: [What three key additional security features do next generation firewalls provide that legacy firewalls do not?](https://www.g2.com/discussions/what-three-key-additional-security-features-do-next-generation-firewalls-provide-that-legacy-firewalls-do-not) — 1 comment
  > **Top comment:** "with FortiGate has many Features including SD-WAN, SSL-VPN, Video Filtering, integrated with Sandbox...."

### Palo Alto Networks VM-Series Virtual Firewall

No discussions available for this product.

---
**Source:** [G2.com](https://www.g2.com) | [Comparison Page](https://www.g2.com/compare/fortigate-vm-ngfw-vs-palo-alto-networks-vm-series-virtual-firewall)