SASE platforms · November 2026 Edition
Cato SASE Cloud vs Cisco Secure Access
Two of fourteen models named Cato SASE Cloud first on the direct prompt; one named Cisco Secure Access. Cato SASE Cloud was named by eight of the fourteen models and Cisco Secure Access by fourteen and Cato SASE Cloud carries 14 labels and Cisco Secure Access 35, so the shares are not directly comparable.
Named in five categories this edition.
Named in four categories this edition.
First-choice share11%2%Of first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts, 0 to 100.
Negative rate36%26%Negative labels as a share of the product's labels, 0 to 100.
Rank in category#3#6A position in a field of 10; printed, not drawn.
Labels1435A count; the two differ.
The two percentage rows are drawn on one 0 to 100 track, Cato SASE Cloud reading right to left. Rank and label count are printed, not drawn.Fortinet FortiSASE was named alongside these two in ten of the fourteen direct answers. Cato Networks vs Cato SASE Cloud · Cato Networks vs Cisco Secure Access · Cloudflare One vs Cato SASE Cloud
Share is the count of first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts over all fourteen models, for a mid-market B2B company; rank is within the category; every quote names the model and the prompt it came from. Both figures come from the SASE platforms page.
By framing
How many of the fourteen models made each the first choice, per way of asking, and how many argued against it.
Cato SASE CloudFirst choices, of fourteen modelsCisco Secure Access
Direct21
Paraphrase20
Comparative10
Budget-constrained102 against Cato SASE Cloud · 2 against Cisco Secure Access
Scale-constrained001 against Cisco Secure Access
Negative003 against Cato SASE Cloud · 6 against Cisco Secure Access
Bars are first choices, 0 to 14 each sideModels that argued againstA model can name both, so the two sides of a row do not sum to fourteen.
Every model, every framing
The eighty-four answers behind the chart above, one cell each: where Cato SASE Cloud and Cisco Secure Access stood in it.
| Model | Direct | Paraphrase | Comparative | Budget-constrained | Scale-constrained | Negative |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Claude Haiku 4.5 | | | ||||
| GPT-5.4 mini | | | | |||
| Gemini 3.5 Flash | | |||||
| Perplexity Sonar | | | | | | |
| Grok 4.20 | | | | |||
| Mistral Small | | | ||||
| DeepSeek V4 Flash | | | | |||
| Llama 4 Maverick | ||||||
| Qwen 3.7 Flash | | |||||
| Kimi K2 | | | | |||
| GLM 4.7 FlashX | | | ||||
| MiniMax M2.5 | | | ||||
| GPT-6 Luna | | | ||||
| Muse Glimmer 30B | | | | | |
Cato SASE Cloud Cisco Secure Access first choice named as an alternative argued againstblank: not namedEach cell is one answer, Cato SASE Cloud on the left and Cisco Secure Access on the right.The direct prompt
The plain question, one answer per model, grouped by where Cato SASE Cloud and Cisco Secure Access stood in it.
Cato SASE Cloud first, Cisco Secure Access not the choice
2 of 14 modelsCisco Secure Access was named in the answer but not as the choice, or not at all.Claude Haiku 4.5Cato SASE Cloud alternatives: Check Point Harmony SASE, Cisco Umbrella, Fortinet FortiSASE
Perplexity SonarCato SASE Cloud alternatives: Check Point Harmony SASE, Cloudflare One, Fortinet FortiSASE, Netskope One, Palo Alto Networks Prisma Access
Cisco Secure Access first, Cato SASE Cloud not the choice
1 of 14 modelsCato SASE Cloud was named in the answer but not as the choice, or not at all.GLM 4.7 FlashXCisco Catalyst SD-WAN, Cisco Secure Access alternatives: Cato Networks, Fortinet FortiSASE, Palo Alto Networks Prisma SASE, Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange
Neither was the first choice, one was named
4 of 14 modelsThe answer put something else first and named one of the two as an alternative.GPT-5.4 miniFortinet FortiSASE alternatives: Cato Networks, Cisco Secure Access, Netskope One, Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange
DeepSeek V4 FlashCato Networks alternatives: Cisco Secure Access, Fortinet FortiSASE, Netskope One
MiniMax M2.5Cato Networks alternatives: Cisco Secure Access, Netskope One, Palo Alto Networks Prisma Access, Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange
Muse Glimmer 30BCato Networks Cato SASE Cloud alternatives: Check Point Harmony SASE, Cisco Secure Access, Cisco Umbrella, Cloudflare One, Fortinet FortiSASE
Neither was named
7 of 14 modelsThe answer made no first choice from these two in this category.Gemini 3.5 FlashCato Networks alternatives: Check Point Harmony SASE, Cloudflare One, Fortinet FortiSASE
Grok 4.20Cato Networks' Cato SASE Cloud alternatives: Netskope One, Palo Alto Networks Prisma SASE
Mistral SmallCato Networks alternatives: Cloudflare One, Fortinet FortiSASE, Netskope One, Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange
Llama 4 MaverickCato Networks alternatives: Cloudflare One
Qwen 3.7 FlashCato Networks alternatives: Cloudflare One, Prisma Access, Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange
Kimi K2Cato Networks alternatives: Fortinet FortiSASE, Netskope One
GPT-6 LunaCato Networks alternatives: Fortinet FortiSASE, Netskope One, Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange
Bold names in an answer are the products the judge labeled a first choice; a model naming several gives each of them that label. The full answer text for every row is in the record.
By buyer segment
The same question asked on behalf of a different buyer. Each standing is computed within its segment and they are never added together. The figures above are the mid-market standing, which is the one the category orders by.
Small business
Cato SASE Cloud leads by five points.
Cato SASE Cloud5%#4 of 12Cisco Secure Access0%#9 of 12Mid-marketThe figures above
Cato SASE Cloud leads by nine points.
Cato SASE Cloud11%#3 of 10Cisco Secure Access2%#6 of 10Enterprise
The order flips: Cisco Secure Access leads at enterprise.
Cisco Secure Access6%#7 of 9Cato SASE Cloud2%#– of 9What the models said about Cato SASE Cloud
Every negative label with a quote, up to three, then the highest-weighted positives, up to three. Six of six in this category shown.
“Cato SASE has been reported to have slow network speeds and lacks a full CASB suite of features and sandboxing incident response” Claude Haiku 4.5 · negative prompt · soft negative
“Excellent all-in-one with managed services, but it may edge into higher costs for full features.” Grok 4.20 · budget prompt · soft negative
“Cato SASE Cloud also has review complaints about connection issues and expensive licensing” GPT-5.4 mini · negative prompt · soft negative
“Often cited as the best budget option for SASE, offering a comprehensive solution at a lower price point” Mistral Small · budget prompt · first choice
“I'd recommend starting with Cloudflare One or Cato SASE Cloud” Kimi K2 · paraphrase prompt · first choice
“start with Cato, Netskope, Palo Alto Networks, and Zscaler” GPT-6 Luna · comparative prompt · first choice
What the models said about Cisco Secure Access
Every negative label with a quote, up to three, then the highest-weighted positives, up to three. Six of eight in this category shown.
“the combination of low independent test effectiveness scores and the elevated ransomware entry-vector risk is a common reason for caution” Muse Glimmer 30B · negative prompt · soft negative
“Rebadging concerns: Questions about whether it's truly integrated or just "re-badged Umbrella with extra steps"” Kimi K2 · negative prompt · soft negative
“Some practitioners consider Cisco Umbrella a "legacy option" rather than a true SASE platform” DeepSeek V4 Flash · negative prompt · soft negative
“1. Cisco Secure Access + Catalyst SD-WAN — Best Overall” GLM 4.7 FlashX · direct prompt · first choice
“if you have an existing Cisco environment or need strong enterprise integration, Cisco Secure Access would be more suitable” MiniMax M2.5 · direct prompt · alternative
“Small business needing the lowest per-seat cost: Cisco Umbrella from $2-4/user/month is the cheapest listed SASE/SSE” Muse Glimmer 30B · budget prompt · alternative
Also compared
Cato Networks vs Cato SASE CloudCato Networks vs Cisco Secure AccessCloudflare One vs Cato SASE CloudCloudflare One vs Cisco Secure AccessCato SASE Cloud vs Netskope OneCato SASE Cloud vs Fortinet FortiSASECato SASE Cloud vs Zscaler Zero Trust ExchangeNetskope One vs Cisco Secure AccessFortinet FortiSASE vs Cisco Secure AccessCisco Secure Access vs Zscaler Zero Trust ExchangeAll twenty-one head-to-head pages and the full SASE standing
Comparisons are drawn for the top eight products in each category, each against each. The output is the models' output; nothing here is a recommendation by the index.