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Cybersecurity · head to head

Fortinet FortiGate vs Snowflake

Fortinet FortiGate logo

Fortinet FortiGate

Cybersecurity

Next-generation firewall with AI-powered threat protection

From
$500/year
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Snowflake logo

Snowflake

Machine Learning

The AI Data Cloud for enterprise data warehousing

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Snowflake 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; Snowflake no flat subscription price is published - cost varies by edition, cloud provider, and region and requires a separate calculator or credit-consumption table
  • They diverge on capability: Fortinet FortiGate covers Next-generation firewall, Snowflake covers Separated Compute/Storage.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

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

Attributes where Fortinet FortiGate and Snowflake differ
AttributeFortinet FortiGateSnowflake
Starting price$500/yearFree
Pricing modelsubscriptionUnknown
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsHardware, Virtual, CloudWeb, API
CategoryCybersecurityMachine Learning
Founded20002012

Identical on both: 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 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 Snowflake

  • Separated Compute/Storage
  • Near-zero Maintenance
  • Data Sharing
  • Time Travel
  • Cloning
  • Multi-cluster Warehouse
  • Semi-structured Data
  • dbt

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 Snowflake
  • Secure SD-WAN across distributed sitesnot Snowflake
  • Zero trust network access to internal applicationsnot Snowflake
  • Virtual firewalls in AWS, Azure, Google Cloud and Oraclenot Snowflake
  • Ruggedised deployments in industrial environmentsnot Snowflake

Snowflake

  • Cloud data warehousing and SQL analyticsnot Fortinet FortiGate
  • Data engineering and ELT pipelinesnot Fortinet FortiGate
  • Data sharing and marketplacenot Fortinet FortiGate
  • AI/ML workloads via Snowpark and Cortexnot Fortinet FortiGate
  • BI backend for tools such as Tableau and Power BInot 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

Snowflake

  • No flat subscription price is published - cost varies by edition, cloud provider, and region and requires a separate calculator or credit-consumption table
  • Free trial is capped at $400 in credits or 30 days, whichever comes first, not a perpetual free tier
  • During the trial, certain features (external network access, hybrid tables, Openflow) are capped at 10 credits/day until a payment method is added
  • Total cost combines compute credits, storage, and data transfer billed separately

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

Snowflake

Free
  • Standard$undefined/mo
    • Consumption-based, per-credit pricing
  • Enterprise$undefined/mo
    • Consumption-based, per-credit pricing
  • Business Critical$undefined/mo
    • Consumption-based, per-credit pricing
  • Virtual Private Snowflake$undefined/mo
    • Consumption-based, per-credit pricing

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 Snowflake if

  • You need separated compute/storage.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, API.
  • You also want near-zero maintenance.
Snowflake review

Questions people ask

Is Fortinet FortiGate or Snowflake better?
Neither clearly leads. Fortinet FortiGate starts at $500/year and Snowflake at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Fortinet FortiGate or Snowflake?
Snowflake has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $500/year for Fortinet FortiGate and Free for Snowflake.
Does Fortinet FortiGate or Snowflake run on more platforms?
Fortinet FortiGate runs on Hardware, Virtual, Cloud. Snowflake runs on Web, API.
Can I use Snowflake for free?
Yes. Snowflake 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 Snowflake is typically brought in for.
What can Fortinet FortiGate do that Snowflake cannot?
Fortinet FortiGate covers Next-generation firewall, Intrusion prevention, SSL/TLS inspection, Application control. Snowflake covers Separated Compute/Storage, Near-zero Maintenance, Data Sharing, Time Travel.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

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
Snowflake: How is Snowflake priced?

Snowflake uses a consumption based model. Compute is billed in credits and storage is charged monthly on the average amount stored after compression. Capacity can be bought on demand or pre-paid.

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
Snowflake: What Snowflake editions are there?

Snowflake sells four editions: Standard as the entry level offering, Enterprise for high growth and large scale customers, Business Critical for regulated industries handling sensitive data, and Virtual Private Snowflake for a completely isolated environment.

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
Snowflake: Does Snowflake publish a per credit price?

Not on its pricing options page. Snowflake directs buyers to its Credit Consumption Table and a pricing calculator for the rates, which vary by edition, region and cloud provider.

Source
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