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Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA) · Rank #8 of 10

Cisco Secure Access review and pricing

Cisco-installed-base SSE / ZTNA via Duo + Umbrella + Secure Connect.

By Cisco Systems, Inc. · Founded 1984 · San Jose, CA · public

Cisco Secure Access is Cisco's consolidated SSE / SASE offering, bringing together Duo Security (acquired 2018 for $2.4B), Umbrella (DNS-layer security; acquired via OpenDNS 2015 for $635M), and the newer Secure Connect ZTNA module under a unified Security Cloud control plane. Best fit for Cisco-network-anchored enterprises that already run Cisco AnyConnect, Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN, or Cisco firewalls and want consolidated security purchasing. Trade-offs: the platform is the product of multiple acquisitions stitched together (Duo + Umbrella + ThousandEyes + AppDynamics), creating UX inconsistency; product velocity in pure ZTNA lags Zscaler / Cloudflare; per-module pricing creates surprise costs; and the legacy-vendor architecture concern is real (Cisco was late to cloud-native SSE).

Visit Cisco Secure Access Vendor pricing Compare to Perimeter 81 (Check Point Harmony SASE)
Best for

Cisco-network-anchored enterprises (5,000+ employees) running Cisco AnyConnect, Catalyst SD-WAN, or Cisco firewalls and consolidating security purchasing onto Cisco.

Worst for

Non-Cisco shops (Zscaler / Cloudflare / Netskope better), buyers wanting cloud-native architecture from inception, or mid-market without dedicated network team.

Vendor Trust Score

Is Cisco Secure Access a trustworthy vendor?

7.3/10
Mixed
Pricing transparency
Published rates; no hidden fees
6.0
Contract fairness
Reasonable terms; no auto-renew traps
7.0
Incident response
How they handle outages and breaches
8.0
Post-acquisition behavior
Customer treatment after M&A or PE
7.0
Executive stability
Leadership churn over 24 months
8.5
Roadmap honesty
Public commitments held
7.0
Trust signal log
  • 2018-08
    Acquired Duo Security for $2.4B; MFA leadership consolidated
  • 2023-12
    Cisco Secure Access launched; Duo + Umbrella + new ZTNA module unified
  • 2024-08
    Post-Cisco product velocity flagged for Duo; same pattern observed in Secure Access roadmap
  • 2025-06
    Cisco Security Cloud unified control plane matured; UX integration improved
Vendor Trust is scored independently of product quality. A great product from an unfair vendor still earns a low trust score.
Review Intelligence

What 420 reviews actually say

Synthesized from G2, Capterra, Reddit, Trustpilot. Patterns >15% prevalence shown.

Last synthesized
2026-04-29

Praise patterns

  • Tight integration with Cisco network installed base
    87% →
  • Duo MFA bundled in is best in category
    78% →
  • Umbrella DNS security mature
    71% →

Complaint patterns

  • Platform stitched from acquisitions; UX inconsistency
    51% →
  • Pure ZTNA pillar lags Zscaler / Cloudflare
    47% →
  • Per-module pricing creates surprise costs
    41% ↑
  • Legacy-vendor cloud-native architecture concern
    38% →
Sentiment trend (6 months)
75/100 0 pts
12
01
02
03
04
05
Patterns are extracted from review corpus and human-verified. We surface trends, not anecdotes.
Verified Pricing

What buyers actually pay

142 anonymized deal disclosures · last updated 2026-05-01

Contribute your deal price
Company size Median annual
1,000-5,000 employees $120,000
5,000-25,000 employees $480,000
25,000+ employees $1,800,000
Verified pricing is crowdsourced from buyers under anonymity guarantees. Vendor-listed prices are validated against actual deals quarterly.
Compliance & Security

Auto-verified certifications

Verified 2026-05-01
SOC 2 Type II
ISO 27001
HIPAA
GDPR
CCPA
PCI DSS
FedRAMP Authorized

Editorial: Strengths

  • Tight integration with Cisco network installed base (Catalyst SD-WAN, AnyConnect, firewalls)
  • Duo MFA market leader bundled in
  • Umbrella DNS security mature
  • FedRAMP authorization for Umbrella and Duo
  • Public company financial transparency (NASDAQ:CSCO)
  • Cisco Security Cloud unified control plane

Editorial: Weaknesses

  • Platform stitched from multiple acquisitions (UX inconsistency)
  • Pure ZTNA pillar lags Zscaler / Cloudflare in velocity
  • Per-module pricing creates surprise costs
  • Legacy-vendor cloud-native architecture concern
  • Implementation complexity high for non-Cisco shops
  • Support quality varies by tier

Key features & integrations

  • +ZTNA (Secure Access)
  • +MFA (Duo)
  • +DNS Security (Umbrella)
  • +SWG and CASB
  • +DLP (newer)
  • +Talos threat intelligence
  • +Cisco SD-WAN integration
  • +Unified Security Cloud control plane
500+ integrations
Cisco AnyConnectCisco Catalyst SD-WANMicrosoft Entra IDOktaSplunkMicrosoft Sentinel
Geography supported
Global; strongest in US, EU, APAC; deep installed base
Best fit
1,000-500,000+ employees · Cisco-anchored enterprises
Editorial deep-dive

Read our full ranking of Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA)

Cisco Secure Access ranks #8 in our editorial review of 10 zero trust network access (ztna) platforms. The deep-dive covers methodology, comparison tables, decision matrix, migration scoring, and FAQs.

Read the full ranking

Closest alternatives in Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA)

#7
Perimeter 81 (Check Point Harmony SASE)
Mid-market ZTNA absorbed into Check Point; rebranded Harmony SASE.
★ 4.4 partial
#9
Palo Alto Prisma Access
Comprehensive SASE flagship from the firewall-heritage leader.
★ 4.4 opaque
#6
Cato Networks
SASE-pure single-vendor cloud-native architecture.
★ 4.5 opaque
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