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McAfee Total Protection vs Fortinet FortiGate

McAfee Total Protection logo

McAfee Total Protection

Software

Award-winning antivirus trusted by millions

From
$29.99/year
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Fortinet FortiGate logo

Fortinet FortiGate

Software

Next-generation firewall with AI-powered threat protection

From
$500/year
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: McAfee Total Protection significant renewal price increase after first year (from $29.99 to $84.99/year); 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: McAfee Total Protection covers Real-time antivirus, Fortinet FortiGate covers Next-generation firewall.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which McAfee Total Protection and Fortinet FortiGate actually diverge.

Attributes where McAfee Total Protection and Fortinet FortiGate differ
AttributeMcAfee Total ProtectionFortinet FortiGate
Starting price$29.99/year$500/year
Pricing modelUnknownsubscription
PlatformsWindows, macOS, iOS, AndroidHardware, Virtual, Cloud
Founded19872000

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

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 McAfee Total Protection

  • Real-time antivirus
  • Firewall
  • Safe browsing
  • Password manager
  • Secure VPN
  • Identity monitoring
  • Protection Score
  • Parental controls

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

Both cover

  • Cloud deployment

What people use each for

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

McAfee Total Protection

  • Antivirusnot Fortinet FortiGate
  • Internet Securitynot Fortinet FortiGate
  • Identity Protectionnot Fortinet FortiGate

Fortinet FortiGate

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

Where each one falls short

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

McAfee Total Protection

  • Significant renewal price increase after first year (from $29.99 to $84.99/year)
  • Customer support responsiveness issues reported as reason for switching
  • Renewal billing can be aggressive with auto-renewal defaults

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

McAfee Total Protection

$29.99/year
  • Basic$29.99/year
    • Antivirus
    • Firewall
    • 1 device
  • Plus$39.99/year
    • Antivirus
    • Firewall
    • 5 devices
  • Premium$49.99/year
    • Antivirus
    • Firewall
    • VPN
  • Advanced$74.99/year
    • Antivirus
    • Firewall
    • VPN

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 McAfee Total Protection if

  • You need real-time antivirus.
  • You work on Windows, macOS, iOS, Android.
  • You also want firewall.
McAfee Total Protection review

Choose Fortinet FortiGate if

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

Questions people ask

Is McAfee Total Protection or Fortinet FortiGate better?
Neither clearly leads. McAfee Total Protection starts at $29.99/year and Fortinet FortiGate at $500/year, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, McAfee Total Protection or Fortinet FortiGate?
McAfee Total Protection starts at $29.99/year and Fortinet FortiGate at $500/year.
Does McAfee Total Protection or Fortinet FortiGate run on more platforms?
McAfee Total Protection runs on Windows, macOS, iOS, Android. Fortinet FortiGate runs on Hardware, Virtual, Cloud.
What is McAfee Total Protection best used for?
McAfee Total Protection is most often used for antivirus, internet security, identity protection. Of those, antivirus and internet security are not what Fortinet FortiGate is typically brought in for.
What can McAfee Total Protection do that Fortinet FortiGate cannot?
McAfee Total Protection covers Real-time antivirus, Firewall, Safe browsing, Password manager. Fortinet FortiGate covers Next-generation firewall, Intrusion prevention, SSL/TLS inspection, Application control. Both handle Cloud deployment.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

McAfee Total Protection: How much does McAfee Total Protection cost?

McAfee Total Protection introductory pricing ranges from $29.99/year (Basic) to $74.99/year (Advanced), but renewal costs jump to $84.99/year after the first year.

Source
McAfee Total Protection: What is the trial period for McAfee Total Protection?

McAfee offers a 60-day money-back guarantee, allowing you to try the service risk-free for two months.

Source
McAfee Total Protection: How many devices can I protect with one McAfee Total Protection subscription?

Device coverage varies by plan: Basic covers 1 device, while other plans protect 5 to unlimited devices depending on the tier selected.

Source
McAfee Total Protection: Does McAfee Total Protection include VPN?

VPN is included in higher-tier McAfee plans if you opt for auto-renewal.

Source
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