How much does a firewall cost?

With so many vendors, models and features, costs range from a few hundred pounds to several thousand – what represents good value? What does your business need? How much does a small business firewall cost?

Every small business with an internet connection requires a firewall to protect its network from attacks and to safeguard its users. For many, selecting the right make and model of firewall can be a difficult task.

Introduction to Firewalls

To learn about Small Business Firewalls, you can read our previous blog posts discussing the Best Small Business Firewall/Router and our Small Business Firewall Guide – which explains the differences and features of different firewalls. In other posts, we also outline the function of an internal network firewall.

What determines the price?

Two main elements determine the cost of a firewall:

• Make/Model of firewall, where the performance/capacity/redundancy of the device determines the price.
• The cost of any ongoing security or support subscriptions.

You should then also consider a third item, which is the configuration, monitoring and maintenance of the firewall.

If you lack the technical or network skills, this would be best left to an IT firm as part of a managed firewall service or IT support agreement.

How much does it cost?

We have illustrated some examples below with approximate pricing:

Small Office: 5-10 users

• Entry-level hardware firewall.
• Standard feature set (i.e. no web filtering).
• 8×5 Support.
• £300-£500

Small Office: 5-10 users

• Entry-level hardware firewall.
• Advanced security subscription (Antivirus, Web Filtering, IPS, Application Control, IP Reputation Blocking).
• 8×5 Support
• 3-Year contract.
• £900 – £1100

Small/Medium Business: <25 users

• Entry-level hardware firewall.
• Standard feature set
• Higher throughput.
• Built-in WIFI Access Point.
• 8×5 Support.
• £600 – £800

Small/Medium Business: <25 users

• Entry-level hardware firewall
• Advanced security subscription (Antivirus, Web Filtering, IPS, Application Control, IP Reputation Blocking).
• Higher throughput.
• Built-in WIFI Access Point.
• 3-Year contract.
• £1700-£1800

Small/Medium Business: 25-50 users

• Mid-level hardware firewall.
• Advanced security subscription (Antivirus, Web Filtering, IPS, Application Control, IP Reputation Blocking).
• Higher throughput.
• Local storage for reporting.
• 3-Year contract.
• £2,800-£3,000

Any other costs?

You need to consider the following:

• Does your business require someone else to install and configure the firewall?
• Do you use remote access or VPN connections?
• Do you need ongoing management and support?

Configuration time?

• If you have a basic firewall with very few policies, then budget a few hours work.
• For more advanced deployments, with site-to-site VPNs, application policies and custom rule sets, budget 1/2 to 1 days work.
• For organisations with regulatory oversight, PCI-DSS or similar obligations – the amount of work will be higher.

Ongoing management?

• For ongoing management, this depends on the hours of cover, response times and level of monitoring.  Ranges from £50pm to several hundred.

What about firewall subscriptions or firewall-as-a-service?

Many managed service providers can provide you with a firewall for a monthly fee. This is often described as firewall-as-a-service or it may form part of a managed security service.

The subscription cost is typically derived from the purchase price of the firewall over the term, with a surcharge for management/support.

Indicative figures would be anywhere between £80 and £500 per month, depending on the model, hours of cover etc.