Qaiser T.
QT
Qaiser T.
Audit Supervisor
Enterprise (> 1000 emp.)
"Powerful FortiOS Cloud Flexibility, But Tiering and Subscription Costs Add Friction"
3.5/5
What do you like best about FortiGate-VM NGFW?

Same OS: Runs the identical FortiOS image as physical units.Cloud

Flexibility: Deploys easily across multiple public and private clouds.

Automation: Supports robust REST APIs and infrastructure as code. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about FortiGate-VM NGFW?

Complex tiering and activation issues Management console slows down during heavy traffic. Advanced troubleshooting requires deep command-line knowledge and finally High pricing for premium security subscriptions. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

YN
Yonas N.
Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.)
"Robust Security with Minor Usability Challenges"
4.5/5
What do you like best about FortiGate-VM NGFW?

I like how FortiGate-VM NGFW combines enterprise-grade security with flexibility for virtual and cloud environments. It stands out with its all-in-one security features, including firewall, IPS, antivirus, web filtering, and application control, which makes security much easier to manage and more consistent across environments. I appreciate the strong performance; even with deep inspection enabled, it handles traffic efficiently without noticeable performance degradation. The granular policy control allows me to create detailed security policies that help with proper network segmentation and protecting sensitive workloads. The seamless integration with the Fortinet ecosystem simplifies management and improves visibility. Its scalability and flexibility as a virtual appliance make it easy to scale resources up or down as requirements change, especially in cloud or hybrid setups. I also find the good visibility and logging features incredibly helpful as they make troubleshooting and security analysis much easier. Overall, it is a powerful, reliable NGFW solution that fits perfectly in modern virtualized and cloud infrastructures. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about FortiGate-VM NGFW?

While FortiGate-VM NGFW is a strong solution overall, there are a few areas that could be improved based on real usage: Licensing complexity: The licensing model can be confusing at first, especially when choosing between different bundles and understanding what features are included. Learning curve: The platform is very powerful, but that also means it can feel overwhelming for beginners. UI and policy navigation: The interface is functional, but when managing many policies and objects, navigation can become less intuitive. Resource tuning in virtual environments: In some cases, fine-tuning CPU and memory allocation requires trial and error. Log analysis without additional tools: Basic logging is good, but deeper analysis often requires additional Fortinet tools. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Priyanka J.
PJ
Priyanka J.
Program Coordinator
Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.)
"Strong Security with Easy Deployment"
4/5
What do you like best about FortiGate-VM NGFW?

I really like FortiGate-VM NGFW's capability for exhibit and deployment anywhere, which provides all-in-one security. The strong visibility logging feature is a standout, and the dashboard is very clear, making it easy for me to understand. One of the strongest points is its faster troubleshooting; whenever something breaks, I can check forward traffic logs to see which policy might have allowed or denied traffic, and use real-time packet monitoring if needed. I also appreciate its immediate threat detection, where it clearly shows the top threats and blocked applications, enabling faster incident response. This has been crucial for making clear decisions. Additionally, the installation was very easy and straightforward. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about FortiGate-VM NGFW?

I am highly satisfied with the product visibility login capabilities dashboard design and over the performance from reliable however are improvement good naked better like policy and GUI simplification , performance monitoring granularity, reporting customisation and licence. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Douglas H.
DH
Douglas H.
Executive Vice President of IT Infrastructure
Enterprise (> 1000 emp.)
"Solid price point for enterprise firewall, scalable for company with 50+ offices without issues."
4/5
What do you like best about FortiGate-VM NGFW?

It works as intended, feature requests take to long but eventually comes down to us smaller customers.

Having it run in cloud with 50+ on prem firewalls on our separate SD-WAN is a nice feature and easily scalable when we add new offices. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about FortiGate-VM NGFW?

There's not much to dislike, it gives you what you need, cli for the users who need it and UI for the new users who dont understand the cli. If anything the identity piece can benefit from some scim automation. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Luis José Enrique R.
LR
Luis José Enrique R.
Project Development Manager
Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.)
"Powerful, Flexible Security for Cloud and Hybrid Deployments"
4.5/5
What do you like best about FortiGate-VM NGFW?

What I like most about FortiGate-VM NGFW from Fortinet is the strong balance it strikes between security capabilities, performance, and flexibility in virtualized environments.

From my experience working on system architectures and migrations, I especially appreciate how straightforward it is to deploy across cloud and hybrid infrastructures, which makes it a good fit for modern microservices and distributed systems. The centralized management, advanced threat protection, and deep traffic inspection also deliver solid network visibility and control, without introducing significant additional complexity. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about FortiGate-VM NGFW?

One thing I find challenging about FortiGate-VM NGFW from Fortinet is that the initial setup, as well as configuring more advanced features, can involve a steep learning curve. This tends to be even more noticeable in complex environments or for teams without deep network security experience.

On top of that, licensing and resource sizing in virtual environments can be difficult to plan accurately. It’s especially tricky when you’re scaling infrastructure or trying to optimize performance in cloud deployments, where getting the sizing right can take extra effort. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Rohan K.
RK
Rohan K.
Area Sales Manager
Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.)
"Effortless Deployment, Scalable Security Solution"
4.5/5
What do you like best about FortiGate-VM NGFW?

I like FortiGate-VM NGFW for its faster deployment, lower infrastructure dependency, and easier expansion, especially as customer environments grow. It makes things much easier for me and my team during both presales and customer discussions. Since it's a virtual firewall, we can quickly deploy it in cloud or virtual environments without waiting for hardware delivery. Plus, the initial setup was kind of easy for me. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about FortiGate-VM NGFW?

The licensing model can sometimes be confusing, especially when explaining different bundles and add-ons. It would help if Fortinet simplified the packaging to make it easier to position during sales discussions. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Verified User in Computer & Network Security
AC
Verified User in Computer & Network Security
Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.)
"Strong Enterprise Security Suite, But High Resource Use and Licensing Costs"
3.5/5
What do you like best about FortiGate-VM NGFW?

It has IPS it has VPN , Web Filtering and application control which is a nice package to have for enterprise networks.

strong performance and scalability for virtual aswell as cloud environments. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about FortiGate-VM NGFW?

THe CPU usage on some of the more advanced features is allot aswell as memory usage.

the licensing costs can be quite high for full functionality

Aswell as some newer people mmight have trouble because it can be complex/ Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

gagan p.
GP
gagan p.
Security Analyst
Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.)
"FortiGate-VM NGFW: Powerful All-in-One Security Made Simple"
5/5
What do you like best about FortiGate-VM NGFW?

What I like most about FortiGate-VM NGFW is how it combines strong security features with simplicity. It gives me everything in one place—firewall, VPN, intrusion prevention, and web filtering—without making things overly complicated. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about FortiGate-VM NGFW?

One thing I don’t like as much is the licensing structure—it can get a bit confusing and sometimes expensive depending on the features you need. Also, while the interface is generally user-friendly, there are moments where certain settings feel buried or not very intuitive, especially for new users. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Verified User in Financial Services
UF
Verified User in Financial Services
Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.)
"A Useful VM That Makes Day-to-Day Tasks Easier"
4/5
What do you like best about FortiGate-VM NGFW?

It’s a pretty useful VM, with new functionalities that make day-to-day tasks easier. In my personal experience, I prefer using it for its capabilities and for what it allows me to do. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about FortiGate-VM NGFW?

There are some setbacks, like the UI not being very user-friendly, and some features can be hard to use. But overall, it’s a nice VM that helps me day to day. Thanks. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

naty d.
ND
naty d.
Security Engineer
Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.)
"All-in-One Security Stack with Strong Performance and Straightforward Policies"
4.5/5
What do you like best about FortiGate-VM NGFW?

There are many reasons, the most relevant ones are having all in one stack like getting IPS, ssl inspection and web filtering in one place and it's better performance efficiency compared with paloalto and checkpoint. additionally, the policy design logic is much staraight forward and unambigious. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about FortiGate-VM NGFW?

When we talk about the drawbacks, it has complex licencing model and the security features are resource intensive. and the GUI is functional but a little bit challenging for new user, it is not intuitive. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.