Firewall-asa-service moved from experiment to default: inspection, IPS, and coverage delivered from the cloud, priced per consumer or per website as an alternative of per equipment.
The worth reply up entrance: Cloudflare provides probably the most accessible entry economics, Cato Networks the perfect converged price-for-simplicity within the mid-market, and Prisma Entry the deepest (and priciest) inspection stack — whereas third-party benchmarks put full SSE bundles market-wide at roughly $15–$25 per consumer monthly at checklist, earlier than 30–50% enterprise reductions.
Twelve suppliers, one desk, then the pricing element.
FWaaS Comparability Desk (2026)
| # | Supplier | Finest for | Pricing mannequin | Free tier/trial | Converged stack |
| 1 | Palo Alto Prisma Entry | Deepest inspection | Per-user/per-site quote | Trial by way of gross sales | Full SASE |
| 2 | Cloudflare (Gateway/Magic) | Entry worth + scale | Free tier → revealed → quote | Sure | SSE + community providers |
| 3 | Zscaler | Giant distributed enterprise | Per-user quote | Trial by way of gross sales | Full SSE |
| 4 | Examine Level Concord SASE (ex-Perimeter 81) | SMB-friendly zero belief | Printed per-user tiers | Trial | SSE + ZTNA-first |
| 5 | Netskope | Knowledge-protection-led SSE | Per-user quote | Trial by way of gross sales | Full SSE |
| 6 | Aryaka | World WAN + safety managed | Per-site/bandwidth quote | Demo | Managed SASE |
| 7 | Cato Networks | Converged simplicity | Per-site/consumer quote | Demo/PoV | True single-vendor SASE |
| 8 | Forcepoint ONE | Knowledge-first hybrid employees | Per-user quote | Trial by way of gross sales | SSE |
| 9 | Fortinet FortiSASE | FortiGate estates | Per-user tiers by way of companions | Eval | SASE + {hardware} continuity |
| 10 | Examine Level (Quantum SASE/CloudGuard) | Prevention-first patrons | Quote | Trial by way of gross sales | SSE + gateway heritage |
| 11 | Cisco Safe Entry | Cisco-standardized orgs | Per-user tiers by way of EA | Trial by way of companions | SSE |
| 12 | Versa Networks | Efficiency-per-dollar SASE | Per-site/consumer quote | PoV | Unified SASE |
What FWaaS Actually Prices in 2026
The market costs 3 ways. Per-user SSE: Zscaler, Netskope, Prisma Entry, Cisco, Forcepoint, and Examine Level’s SASE traces quote per consumer monthly — benchmark full bundles at ~$15–$25 checklist, with 30–50% reductions routine on multi-year enterprise phrases.
Printed/self-serve: Cloudflare (free tier upward) and Concord SASE (revealed per-user tiers from its Perimeter 81 heritage) let smaller groups begin with out procurement.
Per-site/bandwidth SASE: Cato, Aryaka, Versa, and FortiSASE lean on website/bandwidth economics that go well with branch-heavy estates.
Negotiation notes: TLS-inspection capability and data-residency PoPs are the silent differentiators behind identical-looking per-user costs; utilization true-ups and module gating (CASB, DLP, browser isolation) inflate renewals — itemize them; and hybrid patrons ought to demand credit score for present firewall investments (Fortinet and Palo Alto do that finest).
[VERIFY: current published tiers for Cloudflare Zero Trust and Harmony SASE.]
The 12 FWaaS Suppliers, In Temporary
1. Palo Alto Networks Prisma Entry

The complete PA-Sequence mind — App-ID, Superior Menace Prevention, WildFire, DNS Safety — delivered as a service with coverage unified throughout {hardware} and cloud by means of Palo Alto Networks Prisma Entry.
The deepest inspection in FWaaS kind and a 2025 Gartner SASE/hybrid-mesh Chief. Premium per-user pricing with stacking modules; constructed for security-mature enterprises that may use the depth.
2. Cloudflare — Finest Entry Worth

Gateway (DNS/HTTP filtering) and Magic Firewall (network-layer FWaaS) experience one of many web’s largest networks: free Zero Belief tier for small groups, revealed per-user pricing after, enterprise quotes at scale.
Deployment is famously quick; deep enterprise integrations and superior DLP mature by the quarter by way of Cloudflare safety implementations. The bottom-friction severe begin on this market.
3. Zscaler
.webp)
The most important devoted safety cloud (160+ DCs) with mature zero-trust integration — Zscaler’s Zero Belief Change covers each port/protocol with IPS and DNS controls as a part of ZIA.
Per-user quotes at premium-but-negotiable ranges. The appliance-retirement enterprise case at giant headcounts stays the strongest within the class; east-west/data-center visitors nonetheless wants separate enforcement.
4. Examine Level Concord SASE (ex-Perimeter 81) — Finest Printed SMB Tiers

Perimeter 81’s SMB-friendly, revealed per-user mannequin survived its acquisition by Examine Level and now ships as Examine Level Concord SASE: quick ZTNA-first deployment, FWaaS controls, and Examine Level menace prevention layered in.
The best quote-free begin after Cloudflare.
5. Netskope

SSE with a data-protection soul: FWaaS alongside category-leading CASB/DLP and a severe personal community (NewEdge) delivered by means of Netskope. Per-user quotes within the premium band.
The choose when data-in-motion governance drives the SASE program and firewalling is one management amongst friends.
6. Aryaka
.webp)
Managed SASE on a personal international spine: websites and customers get safety (together with FWaaS controls) plus guaranteed-performance WAN, run by Aryaka’s ops staff with strict SLAs below managed SASE architectures. Per-site/bandwidth pricing.
Strongest for international enterprises that need WAN efficiency and safety in a single managed contract slightly than instruments to function.
7. Cato Networks
.webp)
The converged benchmark: SD-WAN, FWaaS, SWG, ZTNA, CASB on one cloud-native platform and personal spine with Cato Networks, well-known for operational simplicity and quick rollouts.
Web site/consumer pricing that mid-market groups constantly discover digestible. Finest-of-breed depth in any single management trails specialists — the commerce you’re making, knowingly.
8. Forcepoint ONE

Knowledge-first SSE from Forcepoint: FWaaS/SWG/CASB/ZTNA with DLP woven by means of by way of Forcepoint ONE, suiting hybrid workforces the place knowledge coverage is the organizing precept. Per-user quotes mid-premium.
Roadmap focus has consolidated on ONE — ask immediately how legacy NGFW/department merchandise suit your plan.
9. Fortinet FortiSASE
.webp)
FortiOS within the cloud: similar coverage logic as your FortiGates, FortiGuard providers carried over, unified hybrid administration with Fortinet FortiSASE — the smoothest migration path out there for Fortinet estates, at Fortinet-typical aggressive pricing by way of companions.
PoP footprint and SSE polish path Zscaler/Cato; hybrid continuity is the purpose.
10. Examine Level (Quantum SASE / CloudGuard)

Past Concord’s SMB tiers, Examine Level’s enterprise SASE traces convey ThreatCloud AI prevention — the 100% block-rate CyberRatings pedigree — to cloud-delivered firewalling with Examine Level Quantum SASE / CloudGuard, managed alongside Quantum gateways.
Quote-based; strongest for prevention-first patrons already invested in Examine Level administration.
11. Cisco Safe Entry
.webp)
FWaaS inside Cisco’s SSE: Umbrella DNS heritage, Talos intelligence, ZTNA/SWG alongside in Cisco Safe Entry, priced per consumer in tiers that negotiate finest inside enterprise agreements.
The mixing tax approaches zero for Cisco-standardized organizations; console coherence continues to enhance post-assembly.
12. Versa Networks

Unified SASE with efficiency receipts: Versa Networks unified SASE NGFW earned CyberRatings’ high “Beneficial” score (99.90% safety effectiveness, Q1 2025) with the bottom price per Mbps amongst beneficial distributors, and GigaOm’s 2026 SASE report ranks it a Chief/Outperformer.
Quote-based website/consumer pricing that routinely undercuts larger names. The under-shortlisted worth choose for branch-heavy estates.
Learn how to Evaluate FWaaS on Worth and Match
Normalize the whole lot to 3-year price per protected consumer (or per website for SASE shapes) with the modules you’ll really allow — TLS inspection, CASB, DLP — itemized.
Benchmark quotes in opposition to the ~$15–$25/consumer/month checklist band and anticipate 30–50% off at enterprise quantity. Then take a look at what pricing hides: latency out of your actual geographies, TLS-inspection throughput at your visitors combine, and hybrid coexistence with the firewalls you retain.
Migration credit score is negotiable leverage for Fortinet/Palo Alto estates. FWaaS is a zero-trust program determination as a lot as a firewall one — and your NGFW technique ought to co-plan with it.
FAQ (Value-Centered)
How a lot does FWaaS price per consumer?
Full SSE bundles benchmark at roughly $15–$25 per consumer monthly at checklist in 2026, with FWaaS-lighter configurations beneath that and 30–50% enterprise reductions routine on multi-year phrases. Cloudflare and Concord SASE publish entry tiers; most others quote.
Which FWaaS has an actual free tier?
Cloudflare — its Zero Belief free tier covers small groups with real Gateway filtering. Everybody else provides trials or proofs-of-value slightly than free tiers.
Is FWaaS cheaper than refreshing firewalls?
Often, for department and user-edge visitors: no {hardware} refresh, no per-site sizing, no emergency patching logistics. Mannequin 3-year FWaaS totals in opposition to equipment refresh + subscriptions + operations time. Knowledge facilities and OT maintain {hardware} regardless — funds hybrid.
What drives FWaaS quotes up?
Module stacking (CASB, DLP, isolation), TLS-inspection capability tiers, premium PoP/data-residency necessities, and log retention. Get each module itemized and cap renewal uplifts in writing.
Who’s the perfect worth FWaaS in 2026?
Entry: Cloudflare. Mid-market converged: Cato or Versa (whose CyberRatings cost-per-Mbps outcomes are the class’s finest public worth proof). Enterprise depth: negotiate Zscaler/Prisma Entry exhausting in opposition to one another — each low cost steeply in competitors.
Do these suppliers cost for east-west/data-center visitors?
Principally they don’t cowl it — FWaaS is consumer/branch-edge safety. Knowledge-center and OT segmentation stays on home equipment or cloud firewalls, which is why hybrid distributors (Fortinet, Palo Alto, Examine Level) pitch coverage continuity throughout each as a part of the deal.
Backside Line
Cloudflare and Concord SASE personal the clear entry tier, Cato and Versa the converged worth tier, Zscaler/Prisma Entry/Netskope the premium enterprise tier with Fortinet, Examine Level, and Cisco changing present estates, Aryaka promoting the managed lane, and Forcepoint the data-first angle.
Worth per protected consumer over three years, itemize the modules, and make two finalists show latency and inspection in your actual visitors.








