People look for a Zscaler alternative when the quote arrives without a price list, when only internet access or only private access is needed, or when a team of a few dozen has no use for a platform sold in two bundles. They move to a published per-user product for private access, to a network-first SASE vendor, or to another full security vendor with a different licensing model.
Short answer: The first three alternatives to Zscaler in our SASE platform ranking are Cloudflare One, Twingate and Tailscale. Places 1 to 3 go to challengers, vendors outside the best-known brands in a category, wherever the category has them; the established names follow from place 4 in their ranked order. Choose Cloudflare One if you want to start on a free plan and prove the setup before any contract. All 11 alternatives below are ranked products from Best SASE Platforms in 2026, and each says where it differs from Zscaler.
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Pricing: Quoted per organisation; Essentials and Zscaler Platform bundles
Established in: United States
Built for: Large organisations moving every user off VPN and appliances onto a cloud gateway
Not for: Small teams that want to start with a self-serve trial
01
Why buyers look past Zscaler
01
No prices on the website
Zscaler's pricing page offers two platform bundles, Essentials Platform and Zscaler Platform, and shows no amounts. It points to a demo request, so a budget cannot be drafted before a sales conversation. Several alternatives in this category publish per-user prices, which is the main reason small teams leave the shortlist early.
02
Bundles and add-ons to reconcile
The Essentials bundle pairs internet access with ZPA Standard, and the page says private access in that bundle covers 5% of users. Advanced sandbox, firewall, isolation, data classification and privileged access are listed as separate add-ons. Working out which module is inside which bundle is real procurement work, and the invoice follows that map.
03
A security platform where you wanted remote access
Zscaler positions its Zero Trust Exchange as a security platform spanning internet access, private access, data security and workloads. A company replacing a VPN for a small group of engineers uses a fraction of it. Tools built only around private access do that one job with fewer moving parts.
Cisco's cloud SSE with Duo identity and ThousandEyes insight
Duo, ThousandEyes or Cisco networking are already in place and one contract is easier to manage
#12
03
What each one does differently
1
Cloudflare One
United States · Free plan up to 50 users; pay-as-you-go per user published; contract quoted
Sold by a company that began with web infrastructure and now documents Zero Trust plans named Free, Pay-as-you-go and Enterprise, where Zscaler has bundles only. Plan names are on the docs; the price figures load client-side on the pricing page, so check them before budgeting. Fewer procurement steps, but the Enterprise contract is still quoted.
Switch from Zscaler if you want to start on a free plan and prove the setup before any contract.
United States · Free Starter plan for up to five users; Teams and Business per user published; Enterprise quoted
Private access only, with no web gateway or data loss prevention. Starter is free for up to five users, Teams costs $5 and Business $10 per user per month (yearly billing takes 15% off), and Enterprise is custom. Zscaler's inline internet inspection has no equivalent here.
Switch from Zscaler if the real job is replacing a VPN for a team of up to 500 people.
Canada · Free personal plan; Standard and Premium per user published; Enterprise quoted
A mesh network of devices built on WireGuard rather than a cloud proxy that inspects traffic. Personal is $0 for up to 6 users, Standard $8 and Premium $18 per user per month, Enterprise custom. It connects machines and servers; it does not filter web traffic or classify data the way Zscaler does.
Switch from Zscaler if engineers need to reach servers, SSH and clusters and you do not need a web gateway.
Israel · Price not shown; calculator, demo and a Start Now button
The product formerly sold as Perimeter 81, now Check Point SASE, split into Private Access, Internet Access and SD-WAN. The site shows a TCO calculator, a demo and a Start Now button instead of prices and cites 85+ points of presence. Smaller in scope than Zscaler's list of modules.
Switch from Zscaler if you want a SASE product aimed at mid-sized companies that can start without a long sales cycle.
United States · No price on the site; demo requested through the site
Starts from the network side: SD-WAN, SD-LAN and routing sit in the same VersaONE platform as the security service edge. It lists Private SASE and Sovereign SASE alongside the cloud service, which Zscaler does not. No price on the site, and a customer quote on the page mentions per-user or per-bandwidth models.
Switch from Zscaler if branch networking and security should come from one vendor and one console.
United States · Quoted per organisation; three plans, SD-WAN, Unified SASE and Advanced Security
Sells by site and by remote user. Site plans are SD-WAN, Unified SASE as a Service and Advanced Security (which adds CASB and DLP); user plans run from Secure Remote Access to Advanced Universal ZTNA. A Request a Quote link replaces prices. Closer to a managed network service than Zscaler's security-first catalogue.
Switch from Zscaler if you are replacing MPLS or SD-WAN circuits and want security bundled with the connectivity.
United States · Per user per month at a published list price; minimums apply; trial offered
Combines firewall-as-a-service, ZTNA, web security and Secure SD-WAN, with a Try Free link and a demo. The SecureEdge Access page says pricing is per user per month by plan, though no amounts appeared on the pages we read. Barracuda's range is narrower than Zscaler's, with no equivalent of its data security modules.
Switch from Zscaler if you already use Barracuda products or want a smaller vendor with a trial route.
United States · Subscription per user or endpoint; amounts not shown
Built on FortiOS with one agent and one console, and meant to pair with FortiGate firewalls and Fortinet SD-WAN. Licensing is described only as subscription-based and no prices are shown. FortiSASE Sovereign runs in your own data centre, an option Zscaler's bundles do not mention. A SASE expansion bundle of 10, 50 or 100 seats exists for Fortinet SD-WAN customers.
Switch from Zscaler if you already run FortiGate firewalls and want SASE from the same vendor.
United States · Price not shown; demo, labs and a Private Access test drive
Covers the same ground as Zscaler (secure web gateway, CASB, ZTNA, data loss prevention) and adds Secure SD-WAN and a Netskope One platform name. No prices are shown, but the site offers a Private Access Test Drive and hands-on labs, which Zscaler's pricing page does not.
Switch from Zscaler if you want a like-for-like security service edge and the chance to test the private access before buying.
United States · Price not shown; licensing guide and sales contact
Prisma Access bundles ZTNA, secure web gateway, CASB, remote browser isolation and firewall-as-a-service, and is licensed per mobile user with a licensing guide instead of a price list. It also ties into Palo Alto's firewalls and Prisma SD-WAN. Aimed at firms already invested in that estate, with the same quote-first buying as Zscaler.
Switch from Zscaler if your firewalls are already Palo Alto and you want one vendor for the network and the cloud edge.
United States · Price not shown; test drive and workshop offered
Cisco's cloud security service edge, with ZTNA, VPN as a service, DNS Defense and Duo identity, plus ThousandEyes digital experience insight. No prices are on the page; it offers a test drive and a four-hour workshop. Fits organisations already buying Cisco networking and identity.
Switch from Zscaler if Duo, ThousandEyes or Cisco networking are already in place and one contract is easier to manage.
Zscaler remains the sensible choice when a large organisation wants internet access, private access and data security from one cloud, with the add-on modules it lists (sandbox, isolation, deception, privileged remote access, workload communications) under one agreement. It is also a standalone buy: ZPA, ZDX and Zero Trust SD-WAN do not require a platform bundle. If the team already operates it well and the quote is acceptable, swapping vendors costs more than it saves.
05
What moving off Zscaler involves
01
Inventory what each bundle quietly delivers
Before cancelling, list which services run through Zscaler today: web filtering, SSL inspection, sandboxing, data loss prevention, private app segments and digital experience monitoring. Some of these are add-ons you may not know you use, and each needs a named replacement or a conscious decision to drop it.
02
Rebuild policy and app segments by hand
Private access segments, URL categories and user groups are defined inside Zscaler's console. Expect to recreate them in the new product rather than import them, and run both in parallel for a pilot group, because a VPN-style cut-over affects every remote user at once.
03
Agents, connectors and identity
Zscaler Client Connector and app connectors have to be replaced with the new vendor's agent and gateways. Check device support (Windows, macOS, Linux, mobile) and the identity provider integration first, since a missing platform becomes a manual workaround for IT.
06
Questions about replacing Zscaler
6 answers
Does Zscaler publish its prices?
No. The pricing page on zscaler.com lists the Essentials Platform and Zscaler Platform bundles with their included modules and add-ons, and routes you to a demo request instead of a price. Among the alternatives here, Twingate and Tailscale publish per-user prices.
What is the cheapest Zscaler alternative?
For private access, Twingate has a free Starter plan for up to five users and Tailscale a free Personal plan for up to six users. Both are narrower than Zscaler: neither is a secure web gateway, so they replace a VPN, not the whole platform.
Which alternatives are full SASE platforms?
Palo Alto Networks Prisma SASE, Netskope, Cisco Secure Access, Fortinet FortiSASE, Check Point SASE, Versa and Aryaka all combine several of web security, ZTNA, CASB and SD-WAN. None of them shows a price on its site, so expect to request quotes.
Can I try an alternative before talking to sales?
Cloudflare One has a free Zero Trust plan, Twingate and Tailscale have free tiers, Barracuda links a free trial, and Netskope and Cisco offer test drives or workshops. Zscaler's pricing page offers a demo request.
Is Tailscale a SASE product?
Tailscale describes itself as a connectivity platform of mesh networks and access controls, with a Premium plan adding just-in-time access and network flow logs. It does not offer web filtering or data loss prevention, so it fits the private access part of Zscaler only.
Do I need to replace both internet access and private access?
Not necessarily. Zscaler sells ZPA as a standalone product and the platform bundles combine it with Secure Internet Access, so a team can keep one and move the other. Splitting vendors, however, means two agents on each device.
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Sources
Checked 27 October 2026
Zscaler pricing and plans: two platform bundles, included modules, add-ons, standalone products, no prices shown, ZPA for 5% of users in Essentials.
Zscaler home: platform description, Zero Trust Exchange, NASDAQ listing.
Cloudflare One docs: Cloudflare One as SASE platform and its component products.
Founder of The Knowledge Engineers and of 2 Steps Ahead, an AI search visibility agency. Editorially responsible for every page on this site; research and drafting are AI-assisted.
Written, edited and fact-checked by Sebastiaan Smits. Last reviewed
27 October 2026. How we review.
