# pfSense alternatives: what AI models name instead, November 2026

Gane Index, November 2026 Edition. 238 of the 252 answers in the 1 category where pfSense holds a standing named it neither first nor as an alternative; these are the first choices those answers made. Page: https://www.gane.ai/index/it/vendors/pfsense/alternatives

## Named instead, most often (every category and segment added)

- Fortinet FortiGate: 109
- Palo Alto Networks NGFW: 56
- Sophos Firewall: 9
- Check Point Firewall-as-a-Subscription: 6
- WatchGuard Firebox: 6
- Check Point Quantum: 5

## Next-generation firewalls

**Small business**: 77 of 84 answers did not name pfSense (pfSense is #5 of 9 at 2%).

- Fortinet FortiGate: first choice in 52 of those 77
- Sophos Firewall: first choice in 9 of those 77
- WatchGuard Firebox: first choice in 6 of those 77
- Check Point Harmony SASE: first choice in 1 of those 77
- Firewalla Gold SE: first choice in 1 of those 77
- FortiGate 70G: first choice in 1 of those 77
- Fortinet FortiGate FG-40F: first choice in 1 of those 77
- Fortinet FortiGate appliance: first choice in 1 of those 77

**Mid-market**: 77 of 84 answers did not name pfSense (pfSense is #3 of 9 at 4%).

- Fortinet FortiGate: first choice in 35 of those 77
- Palo Alto Networks NGFW: first choice in 18 of those 77
- Arista NG Firewall: first choice in 1 of those 77
- Check Point Quantum: first choice in 1 of those 77
- Cisco Secure Firewall: first choice in 1 of those 77
- FortiGate 200G: first choice in 1 of those 77
- FortiGate 70G: first choice in 1 of those 77
- Fortinet FortiGate 100F: first choice in 1 of those 77

**Enterprise**: 84 of 84 answers did not name pfSense.

- Palo Alto Networks NGFW: first choice in 38 of those 84
- Fortinet FortiGate: first choice in 22 of those 84
- Check Point Firewall-as-a-Subscription: first choice in 6 of those 84
- Check Point Quantum: first choice in 4 of those 84
- Check Point Force / Quantum: first choice in 1 of those 84
- Check Point Force Firewall: first choice in 1 of those 84
- Juniper Networks: first choice in 1 of those 84
- Palo Alto Networks Next-Generation Firewalls: first choice in 1 of those 84

Published under CC BY 4.0. The output is the models' output; nothing here is a recommendation by the index.