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Government · head to head

CivicPlus vs Fortinet FortiGate

CivicPlus logo

CivicPlus

Government

Civic Engagement Technology

From
On request
Free plan
No
Fortinet FortiGate logo

Fortinet FortiGate

Cybersecurity

Next-generation firewall with AI-powered threat protection

From
$500/year
Free plan
No

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: CivicPlus no public pricing tiers, rates, or cost information available; Fortinet FortiGate security services are sold as separate FortiGuard subscription bundles, so ATP, UTP and ENT determine which protections are actually active
  • They diverge on capability: CivicPlus covers Government Websites, Fortinet FortiGate covers Next-generation firewall.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which CivicPlus and Fortinet FortiGate actually diverge.

Attributes where CivicPlus and Fortinet FortiGate differ
AttributeCivicPlusFortinet FortiGate
Starting priceOn request$500/year
Pricing modelquotesubscription
PlatformsWeb, Ios, AndroidHardware, Virtual, Cloud
CategoryGovernmentCybersecurity
Founded20012000

Identical on both: free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in CivicPlus

  • Government Websites
  • Agenda Management
  • Mass Notifications
  • Online Forms
  • Social Media Management
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • GovDelivery

Only in Fortinet FortiGate

  • Next-generation firewall
  • Intrusion prevention
  • SSL/TLS inspection
  • Application control
  • Web filtering
  • SD-WAN
  • Zero-trust network access
  • AI-powered threat detection

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

CivicPlus

  • Municipal government softwarenot Fortinet FortiGate
  • City website managementnot Fortinet FortiGate
  • Recreation management for local governmentnot Fortinet FortiGate

Fortinet FortiGate

  • Next-generation firewalling at data centre, campus and branch scalenot CivicPlus
  • Secure SD-WAN across distributed sitesnot CivicPlus
  • Zero trust network access to internal applicationsnot CivicPlus
  • Virtual firewalls in AWS, Azure, Google Cloud and Oraclenot CivicPlus
  • Ruggedised deployments in industrial environmentsnot CivicPlus

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

CivicPlus

  • No public pricing tiers, rates, or cost information available
  • Requires direct contact with sales team for pricing estimates
  • No free trial or freemium tier option listed

Fortinet FortiGate

  • Security services are sold as separate FortiGuard subscription bundles, so ATP, UTP and ENT determine which protections are actually active
  • Throughput is tied to the appliance model, from 500 Mbps on the FortiGate 30G to 520 Gbps on the 7121F, so capacity planning is a hardware purchase
  • Pricing is not published and goes through partners

Pricing, plan by plan

CivicPlus

On request

No published plan breakdown. See the CivicPlus review.

Fortinet FortiGate

$500/year
  • FortiGate Entry$500/year
    • Basic firewall
    • VPN support
    • Threat protection
  • FortiGate Enterprise$2500/year
    • Advanced threat protection
    • SSL inspection
    • Application control
  • FortiGate Ultimate$10000/year
    • All Enterprise features
    • Zero-trust access
    • AI-powered analytics

Which should you pick?

Choose CivicPlus if

  • You need government websites.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android.
  • You also want agenda management.

Choose Fortinet FortiGate if

  • You need next-generation firewall.
  • You work on Hardware, Virtual, Cloud.
  • You also want intrusion prevention.

Questions people ask

Is CivicPlus or Fortinet FortiGate better?
Neither clearly leads. CivicPlus starts at On request and Fortinet FortiGate at $500/year, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, CivicPlus or Fortinet FortiGate?
CivicPlus starts at On request and Fortinet FortiGate at $500/year.
Does CivicPlus or Fortinet FortiGate run on more platforms?
CivicPlus runs on Web, Ios, Android. Fortinet FortiGate runs on Hardware, Virtual, Cloud.
What is CivicPlus best used for?
CivicPlus is most often used for municipal government software, city website management, recreation management for local government. Of those, municipal government software and city website management are not what Fortinet FortiGate is typically brought in for.
What can CivicPlus do that Fortinet FortiGate cannot?
CivicPlus covers Government Websites, Agenda Management, Mass Notifications, Online Forms. Fortinet FortiGate covers Next-generation firewall, Intrusion prevention, SSL/TLS inspection, Application control.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

CivicPlus: What does CivicPlus cost?

CivicPlus uses a custom pricing model with no published rates. Interested organizations must fill out a form and speak with a technology strategist to receive a pricing estimate based on specific needs.

Source
Fortinet FortiGate: What are the FortiGate security bundle options?

Fortinet offers three FortiGuard AI-Powered Security Services bundles: ENT Bundle (ultimate security for networks, web, file, SaaS, data, and devices), UTP Bundle (advanced web and network protection), and ATP Bundle (protection against network intrusions and malware with IPS, antivirus, and application control).

Source
CivicPlus: Does CivicPlus offer different pricing for different sized municipalities?

Yes, CivicPlus pricing is customized based on organization size and the specific products selected from their portfolio (websites, recreation management, utility billing, etc.).

Source
Fortinet FortiGate: How do I get pricing for FortiGate?

Pricing is not published on the product page. To obtain a quote, you can request a free product demo or connect with a security expert through the contact options on the site.

Source
CivicPlus: How do I request pricing from CivicPlus?

Visit civicplus.com/pricing to fill out a form or call 888-228-2233 to speak with a technology strategist about your municipality's requirements and receive a custom estimate.

Source
Fortinet FortiGate: Is there a free trial for FortiGate?

The product page does not mention a free trial. However, Fortinet offers a free product demo that allows you to evaluate the solution before committing to a purchase.

Source
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