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Security & Cybersecurity · head to head

Fortinet FortiGate vs ProtonVPN

Fortinet FortiGate logo

Fortinet FortiGate

Security & Cybersecurity

Next-generation firewall with AI-powered threat protection

From
$500/year
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
ProtonVPN logo

ProtonVPN

Security & Cybersecurity

High-speed Swiss VPN that safeguards your privacy

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only ProtonVPN has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Fortinet FortiGate security services are sold as separate FortiGuard subscription bundles, so ATP, UTP and ENT determine which protections are actually active; ProtonVPN free plan limited to one device at a time
  • They diverge on capability: Fortinet FortiGate covers Next-generation firewall, ProtonVPN covers No-logs policy.

Where they differ

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

Attributes where Fortinet FortiGate and ProtonVPN differ
AttributeFortinet FortiGateProtonVPN
Starting price$500/yearFree
Pricing modelsubscriptionfreemium
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsHardware, Virtual, CloudWindows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android
Founded20002014

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Security & Cybersecurity).

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 Fortinet FortiGate

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

Only in ProtonVPN

  • No-logs policy
  • Secure Core
  • Kill Switch
  • DNS leak protection
  • Tor over VPN
  • Split tunneling
  • NetShield ad-blocker
  • VPN Accelerator

Both cover

  • Cloud deployment

What people use each for

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

Fortinet FortiGate

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

ProtonVPN

  • Privacy-focused browsing without subscription costnot Fortinet FortiGate
  • Multi-device protection with Plus plan supporting 10 devicesnot Fortinet FortiGate
  • Integrated access to Proton email and cloud services via Unlimited plannot Fortinet FortiGate

Where each one falls short

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

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

ProtonVPN

  • Free plan limited to one device at a time
  • Free plan restricted to 10 countries with random selection
  • Pricing amounts not clearly published; shown as variable

Pricing, plan by plan

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

ProtonVPN

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the ProtonVPN review.

Which should you pick?

Choose Fortinet FortiGate if

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

Choose ProtonVPN if

  • You need no-logs policy.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android.
  • You also want secure core.
ProtonVPN review

Questions people ask

Is Fortinet FortiGate or ProtonVPN better?
Neither clearly leads. Fortinet FortiGate starts at $500/year and ProtonVPN at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Fortinet FortiGate or ProtonVPN?
ProtonVPN has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $500/year for Fortinet FortiGate and Free for ProtonVPN.
Does Fortinet FortiGate or ProtonVPN run on more platforms?
Fortinet FortiGate runs on Hardware, Virtual, Cloud. ProtonVPN runs on Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android.
Can I use ProtonVPN for free?
Yes. ProtonVPN has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Fortinet FortiGate starts at $500/year.
What is Fortinet FortiGate best used for?
Fortinet FortiGate is most often used for next-generation firewalling at data centre, campus and branch scale, secure sd-wan across distributed sites, zero trust network access to internal applications, virtual firewalls in aws, azure, google cloud and oracle. Of those, next-generation firewalling at data centre, campus and branch scale and secure sd-wan across distributed sites are not what ProtonVPN is typically brought in for.
What can Fortinet FortiGate do that ProtonVPN cannot?
Fortinet FortiGate covers Next-generation firewall, Intrusion prevention, SSL/TLS inspection, Application control. ProtonVPN covers No-logs policy, Secure Core, Kill Switch, DNS leak protection. Both handle Cloud deployment.
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