Next-generation firewalls · October 2026 Edition
Sophos Firewall vs Palo Alto Networks NGFW
One of fourteen models named Sophos Firewall first on the direct prompt; zero named Palo Alto Networks NGFW. Both were named by all fourteen models and Sophos Firewall carries 35 labels and Palo Alto Networks NGFW 44, so the shares are not directly comparable.
Named in one category this edition.
Named in one category this edition.
First-choice share4%2%Of first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts, 0 to 100.
Negative rate3%20%Negative labels as a share of the product's labels, 0 to 100.
Rank in category#2#3A position in a field of 8; printed, not drawn.
Labels3544A count; the two differ.
The two percentage rows are drawn on one 0 to 100 track, Sophos Firewall reading right to left. Rank and label count are printed, not drawn.Fortinet FortiGate was named alongside these two in fourteen of the fourteen direct answers. Fortinet FortiGate vs Sophos Firewall · Fortinet FortiGate vs Palo Alto Networks NGFW · Sophos Firewall vs Cisco Secure Firewall
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 next-generation firewalls page.
By framing
How many of the fourteen models made each the first choice, per way of asking, and how many argued against it.
Sophos FirewallFirst choices, of fourteen modelsPalo Alto Networks NGFW
Direct102 against Palo Alto Networks NGFW
Paraphrase00
Comparative08
Budget-constrained102 against Palo Alto Networks NGFW
Scale-constrained01
Negative011 against Sophos Firewall · 5 against Palo Alto Networks NGFW
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.
Across every category in the October 2026 Edition, Sophos Firewall and Palo Alto Networks NGFW were named in the same answer forty-seven times, of the 94 answers naming Sophos Firewall and the 131 naming Palo Alto Networks NGFW. In those answers Palo Alto Networks NGFW took the first choice ten times and Sophos Firewall five.
Every model, every framing
The eighty-four answers behind the chart above, one cell each: where Sophos Firewall and Palo Alto Networks NGFW 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 4.1 Fast | | | | | | |
| 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 | | | | | | |
Sophos Firewall Palo Alto Networks NGFW first choice named as an alternative argued againstblank: not namedEach cell is one answer, Sophos Firewall on the left and Palo Alto Networks NGFW on the right.The direct prompt
The plain question, one answer per model, grouped by where Sophos Firewall and Palo Alto Networks NGFW stood in it.
Sophos Firewall first, Palo Alto Networks NGFW not the choice
1 of 14 modelsPalo Alto Networks NGFW was named in the answer but not as the choice, or not at all.GLM 4.7 FlashXFortinet FortiGate, Sophos Firewall
Neither was the first choice, one was named
9 of 14 modelsThe answer put something else first and named one of the two as an alternative.GPT-5.4 miniFortinet FortiGate alternatives: Check Point Quantum, Cisco Secure Firewall, Palo Alto Networks NGFW
Gemini 3.5 FlashFortinet FortiGate alternatives: Check Point Quantum, Palo Alto Networks NGFW, Sophos Firewall
Perplexity SonarFortinet FortiGate alternatives: Palo Alto Networks PA-Series, Sophos Firewall
Grok 4.1 FastFortinet FortiGate alternatives: Sophos Firewall, WatchGuard Firebox
Mistral SmallFortinet FortiGate alternatives: Palo Alto Networks NGFW, Sophos Firewall
DeepSeek V4 FlashFortinet FortiGate alternatives: Sophos Firewall
MiniMax M2.5Fortinet FortiGate alternatives: Palo Alto Networks NGFW, Sophos Firewall
GPT-6 LunaFortinet FortiGate alternatives: Check Point Quantum, Palo Alto Networks NGFW
Muse Glimmer 30BFortinet FortiGate alternatives: Palo Alto Networks PA-Series, SonicWall Gen 7, Sophos Firewall
Neither was named
4 of 14 modelsThe answer made no first choice from these two in this category.Claude Haiku 4.5Fortinet FortiGate alternatives: Check Point Quantum, Palo Alto Networks PA-Series
Llama 4 MaverickFortinet FortiGate alternatives: Cisco Secure Firewalls, Palo Alto Networks' PA-Series
Qwen 3.7 FlashFortinet FortiGate alternatives: Check Point Harmony Edge / Infinity, Palo Alto Networks PA-Series
Kimi K2Fortinet FortiGate alternatives: Cisco Meraki MX, Palo Alto Networks PA-Series, SonicWall NSa Series, Sophos XG, WatchGuard Firebox
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
Sophos Firewall leads by ten points.
Sophos Firewall12%#2 of 8Palo Alto Networks NGFW2%#7 of 8Mid-marketThe figures above
Sophos Firewall leads by two points.
Sophos Firewall4%#2 of 8Palo Alto Networks NGFW2%#3 of 8Enterprise
The order flips: Palo Alto Networks NGFW leads at enterprise.
Palo Alto Networks NGFW35%#2 of 5Sophos Firewall0%#5 of 5What the models said about Sophos Firewall
Every negative label with a quote, up to three, then the highest-weighted positives, up to three. Four of five in this category shown.
“Avoid SMB UTMs (Sophos, Barracuda) if you have a high-throughput environment” Gemini 3.5 Flash · negative prompt · hard negative
“The best next-generation firewall for a company with a limited budget is Untangle NG Firewall (Arista) or Sophos Firewall.” Llama 4 Maverick · budget prompt · first choice
“Most mid-market B2B companies will find Fortinet FortiGate or Sophos Firewall to be the best fit” GLM 4.7 FlashX · direct prompt · first choice
“consolidates IPS, web filtering, application control, VPN, and sandboxing into a single appliance, suitable for mid-sized organizations and SMBs” Llama 4 Maverick · paraphrase prompt · alternative
What the models said about Palo Alto Networks NGFW
Every negative label with a quote, up to three, then the highest-weighted positives, up to three. Six of eight in this category shown.
“Palo Alto Networks failed both network and transport-layer categories” Muse Glimmer 30B · negative prompt · hard negative
“Top-tier app control and Recommended ratings, but cons include high costs ("often most expensive per Mbps"), subscription stacking inflating TCO, and steep learning curve.” Grok 4.1 Fast · negative prompt · soft negative
“Palo Alto Networks, Fortinet, Cisco Secure Firewall/ASA, and Check Point all appear repeatedly in vulnerability lists and active exploitation coverage” GPT-5.4 mini · negative prompt · soft negative
“Palo Alto Networks is widely considered the gold standard for enterprise-grade threat prevention and deep application visibility.” Gemini 3.5 Flash · comparative prompt · first choice
“Strongest reputation for advanced threat prevention... deepest security capabilities and strongest premium platform feel.” GPT-5.4 mini · comparative prompt · first choice
“Known for its "Single Pass" architecture... especially strong in security-focused enterprise environments” Mistral Small · comparative prompt · first choice
Also compared
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.