Same-subcategory comparison

Cisco Secure Access Zero Trust Network AccessvsPalo Alto Networks Prisma Access

Compare buyer fit, pricing, capability depth, and purchase constraints within one buying category. A higher score is not a universal winner.

Comparison summary

How to choose

These conclusions apply to this subcategory and the buyer conditions shown here. They do not make one product universally better.

Cisco Secure Access Zero Trust Network Access

Consider when

Mid-market and enterprise organizations modernizing private application access from broad VPN to least-privilege ZTNA
Cisco-centered environments using ISE, Duo, Secure Firewall, Catalyst or Meraki SD-WAN, XDR, Splunk, or Security Cloud Control

Check before choosing

Organizations requiring transparent self-service pricing or an entry below 50 covered users
Buyers seeking a self-hosted ZTNA control plane or a deployment without cloud service dependence

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Palo Alto Networks Prisma Access

Consider when

Large and global enterprises replacing remote-access VPN with application-aware Zero Trust policy
Palo Alto Networks customers seeking consistent policy across cloud-delivered and on-premises enforcement

Check before choosing

Buyers requiring public per-user prices, online checkout, or publicly stated short-term contracts
Small teams seeking a lightweight standalone private-web reverse proxy with minimal network design

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Dimension	Cisco Secure Access Zero Trust Network Access	Palo Alto Networks Prisma Access
Pricing and trial	Secure Private Access Essentials Requires quote · per covered user · custom quote · minimum 50 covered users Secure Private Access Advantage Requires quote · per covered user · custom quote · minimum 50 covered users Secure Private Access Essentials and Secure Private Access Advantage are the two core ZTNA purchase packages. Both are licensed per covered user with a 50-user minimum, and Cisco Commerce calculates the quote from user count and term. Standard subscription term choices are 12, 36, and 60 months; annual and full-term prepaid billing choices are described, but they are not collapsed into one inferred commitment or payment state. Enhanced software support is required through a separate support SKU, with Premium available as an upgrade. Secure Internet Access combinations, User Protection Suite access, trials, add-ons, and attached Experience Insights are not additional SPA plans. Combined Secure Internet Access and Secure Private Access: Cisco permits SIA and SPA to be combined within one Secure Access subscription when both use the same Essentials or Advantage tier. This broader SSE acquisition adds internet and SaaS security and is not another SPA plan; no combined-package offer is repeated here. Cisco User Protection Suite: The User Protection Suite provides Cisco Secure Access alongside Duo and Email Threat Defense, with additional endpoint and ISE products in Advantage. It is a broader suite route rather than a duplicate Secure Private Access edition. Full profile	Secure Web Gateway Requires quote · custom quote · Contact Palo Alto Networks for Secure Web Gateway edition pricing and terms. ZTNA Requires quote · custom quote · Contact Palo Alto Networks for ZTNA edition pricing and terms. Enterprise Requires quote · custom quote · Contact Palo Alto Networks for Enterprise edition pricing and terms. Palo Alto Networks publishes three current Prisma Access license editions but no public numeric amounts. Edition pricing, currency, billing cadence, payment timing, commitment duration, minimum purchase, and add-on pricing require sales confirmation. Mobile-user units represent users; remote-network units represent 1 Mbps, but those unit definitions do not establish a public rate. Full profile
Best for	Mid-market and enterprise organizations modernizing private application access from broad VPN to least-privilege ZTNA Cisco-centered environments using ISE, Duo, Secure Firewall, Catalyst or Meraki SD-WAN, XDR, Splunk, or Security Cloud Control Distributed organizations with private applications across on-premises data centers, public clouds, and multiple regions	Large and global enterprises replacing remote-access VPN with application-aware Zero Trust policy Palo Alto Networks customers seeking consistent policy across cloud-delivered and on-premises enforcement Organizations with private applications across data centers, AWS, Google Cloud, Azure, and overlapping private networks
Not for	Organizations requiring transparent self-service pricing or an entry below 50 covered users Buyers seeking a self-hosted ZTNA control plane or a deployment without cloud service dependence Buyers that require every legacy, peer-to-peer, or non-ZTNA application to use application-proxy access rather than VPNaaS	Buyers requiring public per-user prices, online checkout, or publicly stated short-term contracts Small teams seeking a lightweight standalone private-web reverse proxy with minimal network design Organizations expecting Prisma Browser, ADEM, Enterprise DLP, SaaS Security, or expanded Private App Access capacity in every base edition
Source check	98/100	95/100
Key features	Application-specific private access with deny-by-default, identity-aware policy Client-based ZTNA for Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, and ChromeOS scope documented by Cisco Clientless HTTP and HTTPS access in both SPA packages Browser-based SSH and RDP in Secure Private Access Advantage Per-session access with continuous endpoint posture checking	Application- and sub-application-level least-privilege access using App-ID Continuous monitoring of device posture, user behavior, and application behavior ZTNA Connector automated tunnel management, nearest-location discovery, and private-app onboarding Private application access for all ports and protocols for client-initiated traffic Mobile-user access through GlobalProtect or Explicit Proxy
Cons	No public numeric price, currency, renewal amount, implementation amount, or support price is available The 50-covered-user minimum and required separate support SKU raise the entry threshold Term and billing choices are quote configuration states and should not be treated as one universal commitment	All current editions require sales-assisted pricing numeric rates, commitments, minimums, and add-on costs are not public. Strata Logging Service is required, and Strata Cloud Manager or Panorama requirements add licensing and operating dependencies.
Category buying score	79Higher category-fit score	78
Rank	#4	#5
Context	Security & Privacy / Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA) Software	Security & Privacy / Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA) Software
Least-privilege access	88Deny-by-default, contextual least-privilege policy and per-session continuous posture checking enforce application-specific access instead of network-wide reach for private apps that fit the ZTNA model.	89Application- and sub-application-level App-ID policy with continuous verification delivers least-privilege private access instead of broad network reach, which is the core control model buyers evaluate on the ZTNA and Enterprise editions.
Identity and device trust	83Integrates natively with identity infrastructure and continuous posture assessment, though advanced authentication features like Duo require separate licensing.	81Provides continuous, post-access trust verification, which relies on configuring external identity platforms and endpoint agents for context monitoring.
Application coverage	76ZTNA covers private applications reachable through client and clientless HTTP/HTTPS paths across on-premises, cloud, and multi-region designs, Advantage adds browser SSH and RDP, and remaining non-ZTNA applications are expected to use separate VPNaaS.	79Private-application coverage includes client-initiated traffic on all ports and protocols, multi-cloud and data-center reach, and agentless private HTTP/HTTPS on ZTNA and Enterprise, while Secure Web Gateway stays internet-focused and dynamic-port apps still need service connections.
User experience and performance	74Multi-platform Secure Client access, clientless browser paths, and choice of cloud or supported local enforcement give flexible user connectivity options, while quantified latency or experience outcomes are not established inside the core SPA capability set.	74Nearest-location discovery and automated tunnel management support user connectivity design, but the facts do not provide measured latency, throughput, or guaranteed performance outcomes for end users.
Security and resilience	84Outbound-only Resource Connectors, deny-by-default application access, continuous posture checks, and multi-region design options reduce inbound exposure and support resilient private-access architectures for covered applications.	84Least-privilege admission combined with continuous trust verification and ongoing security inspection keeps inspection active after access is granted, supporting resilient private-app and broader traffic control on the applicable editions.
Administration and integrations	82Simplifies multi-tenant administration through MultiOrg capabilities and integrates directly with Cisco security ecosystems like ISE and SD-WAN.	74Features unified administration within the Palo Alto Networks platform, but mandates licensing Strata Cloud Manager or Panorama to manage the environment.
Support and total cost	57Quote-priced per-covered-user licensing, a 50-user minimum, required separate support SKU, and no published numeric price or renewal figures keep total cost opaque and raise the commercial entry threshold for smaller or self-serve buyers.	55Involves complex deployment architecture and lacks transparent pricing, requiring custom sales quotes and multiple mandatory software add-ons to operate.
Full profile	Full profile	Full profile

Comparison summary

Most material score differences

These are the stored dimension rationales returned with each score. They explain the buyer conditions behind the gap without speculating about hidden model reasoning.

Administration and integrations

8 pts

Cisco Secure Access Zero Trust Network Access · 82/100: Simplifies multi-tenant administration through MultiOrg capabilities and integrates directly with Cisco security ecosystems like ISE and SD-WAN.
Palo Alto Networks Prisma Access · 74/100: Features unified administration within the Palo Alto Networks platform, but mandates licensing Strata Cloud Manager or Panorama to manage the environment.

Application coverage

3 pts

Cisco Secure Access Zero Trust Network Access · 76/100: ZTNA covers private applications reachable through client and clientless HTTP/HTTPS paths across on-premises, cloud, and multi-region designs, Advantage adds browser SSH and RDP, and remaining non-ZTNA applications are expected to use separate VPNaaS.
Palo Alto Networks Prisma Access · 79/100: Private-application coverage includes client-initiated traffic on all ports and protocols, multi-cloud and data-center reach, and agentless private HTTP/HTTPS on ZTNA and Enterprise, while Secure Web Gateway stays internet-focused and dynamic-port apps still need service connections.

Identity and device trust

2 pts

Cisco Secure Access Zero Trust Network Access · 83/100: Integrates natively with identity infrastructure and continuous posture assessment, though advanced authentication features like Duo require separate licensing.
Palo Alto Networks Prisma Access · 81/100: Provides continuous, post-access trust verification, which relies on configuring external identity platforms and endpoint agents for context monitoring.

Research basis

This page uses stored product facts, official evidence, and category scoring rationales. It is not an account-based hands-on test, and third-party user ratings are not folded into the category buying score.

Cisco Secure Access Zero Trust Network Access: Fact confidence: 98% · Fact checked: 2026-08-12
Palo Alto Networks Prisma Access: Fact confidence: 95% · Fact checked: 2026-08-12

More tools

Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA) Software

Add more tools from the same subcategory to this comparison. The page keeps up to 6 tools.

Cloudflare Access

Cloudflare Access is a cloud-delivered zero trust network access product for identity- and device-aware access to self-hosted, SaaS, private-network, and non-web applications.

Twingate

Twingate is a cloud-managed zero trust network access service that uses endpoint Clients and outbound Connectors to provide identity- and device-aware access to private, public, cloud, and on-premises Resources.

Microsoft Entra Private Access

Microsoft Entra Private Access is an identity-centric zero trust network access service for per-app and broad private-resource access across on-premises, hybrid, and multicloud environments.

Cisco Secure Access Zero Trust Network Access

Cisco Secure Access Zero Trust Network Access is the private-application access capability sold through Cisco Secure Private Access Essentials and Advantage, with client-based and clientless access, continuous posture checks, contextual least-privilege policy, and cloud or local enforcement.

79Compared

Palo Alto Networks Prisma Access

Palo Alto Networks Prisma Access is a cloud-delivered secure access service edge platform that applies least-privilege access, continuous trust verification, and ongoing security inspection to private, internet, and SaaS application traffic.

78Compared

Akamai Enterprise Application Access

Akamai Enterprise Application Access is a cloud-delivered Zero Trust Network Access service that terminates user sessions in the cloud and brokers least-privilege access to private applications through outbound-only connectors. It supports clientless browser access and EAA Client access, device-posture policy, global edge transport, centralized reporting, SIEM feeds, and APIs while keeping Akamai's internet security, MFA, microsegmentation, WAAP, DDoS protection, browser security, connectors, and services in their proper product or component boundaries.

Netskope One Private Access

Netskope One Private Access is Netskope's current ZTNA product for direct, policy-controlled access to private applications across data centers, private clouds, public clouds, remote users, campuses, and selected OT and IoT environments. It supports managed-device access through Netskope One Client and clientless browser access, with Publishers connecting application environments to Netskope's cloud service.

Zscaler Private Access

Zscaler Private Access is a cloud-delivered ZTNA service that brokers direct connections between authorized users and named private applications without placing users on the network. Current standalone packages cover managed-device access through Client Connector and browser-based access for unmanaged and third-party users, with advanced segmentation, inspection, isolation, resilience, and data controls packaged separately.

Fortinet FortiSASE ZTNA

Fortinet FortiSASE provides agent-based and agentless zero trust access to private applications through its Secure Private Access capabilities, with identity, device context, application policy, and continuous posture checks.

#10

Chrome Enterprise Premium

Chrome Enterprise Premium is Google's current integrated secure enterprise browsing, data protection, and zero trust application access offer; it was formerly named BeyondCorp Enterprise.

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