Fortinet vs Palo Alto Networks: Revenue, Profit and Business Model
Fortinet reported $6.8B of revenue in FY2026 and $1.9B of net income. Palo Alto Networks reported $11.5B of revenue in FY2026 and $307M of net income.
Latest financial snapshot
Fortinet
- Latest revenue
- $6.8B (FY2026)
- Net income
- $1.9B
- Net margin
- 27.3%
- Revenue growth
- +18.2% a year, FY2016–FY2026
Palo Alto Networks
- Latest revenue
- $11.5B (FY2026)
- Net income
- $307M
- Net margin
- 2.7%
- Revenue growth
- +23.2% a year, FY2017–FY2026
Financial summary
Fortinet
Fortinet grew revenue from $1.28 billion in 2016 to $6.80 billion in 2025, while GAAP net income rose from $32 million to $1.85 billion. After the 2021-2022 surge, product sales slowed in 2023-2024 as customers digested firewall inventory, and revenue growth fell to 12% in 2024. Growth recovered to 14% in 2025, when free cash flow hit a record of roughly $2.21 billion and the buyback authorization was expanded by $1 billion. 2026 has been stronger again: Q1 billings grew 31% and Q2 billings grew 33% to $2.37 billion, Q2 GAAP EPS rose 44% to $0.82, and Q2 free cash flow was $966 million. On July 29, 2026 the company raised 2026 guidance to revenue of $8.02-$8.18 billion (about 19% growth at the midpoint) and billings of $9.35-$9.55 billion.
Palo Alto Networks
Revenue grew from $1.76 billion in fiscal 2017 to $11.48 billion in fiscal 2026 as the company moved from firewall boxes to subscriptions. GAAP profit has been uneven. The company lost money through fiscal 2022, then earned $440 million in fiscal 2023 and $2.58 billion in fiscal 2024 (a figure lifted by a one-time tax benefit). It earned $1.13 billion in fiscal 2025 and $307 million in fiscal 2026, when CyberArk and Chronosphere acquisition costs produced GAAP net losses of $177 million in Q3 and $282 million in Q4. Cash generation is stronger: fiscal 2026 adjusted free cash flow margin was 38.4%, and management targets 40% by fiscal 2028.
Revenue and profit by year
Fortinet
| Year | Revenue | Net income | Margin | Growth | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2026 | $6.8B | $1.9B | 27.3% | +0.0% | |
| FY2025 | $6.8B | $1.9B | 27.3% | +14.2% | Source |
| FY2024 | $6B | $1.7B | 29.3% | +12.3% | Source |
| FY2023 | $5.3B | $1.1B | 21.6% | +20.1% | Source |
| FY2022 | $4.4B | $857.3M | 19.4% | +32.2% | Source |
| FY2021 | $3.3B | $606.8M | 18.2% | +28.8% | Source |
| FY2020 | $2.6B | $488.5M | 18.8% | +19.9% | Source |
| FY2019 | $2.2B | $331.7M | 15.3% | +19.9% | Source |
| FY2018 | $1.8B | $334.9M | 18.6% | +20.7% | Source |
| FY2017 | $1.5B | $31.4M | 2.1% | +17.2% | Source |
| FY2016 | $1.3B | $32.2M | 2.5% | — | Source |
Palo Alto Networks
| Year | Revenue | Net income | Margin | Growth | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2026 | $11.5B | $307M | 2.7% | +24.5% | Source |
| FY2025 | $9.2B | $1.1B | 12.3% | +14.9% | Source |
| FY2024 | $8B | $2.6B | 32.1% | +16.5% | Source |
| FY2023 | $6.9B | $439.7M | 6.4% | +25.3% | Source |
| FY2022 | $5.5B | -$267M | -4.9% | +29.3% | Source |
| FY2021 | $4.3B | -$498.9M | -11.7% | +24.9% | Source |
| FY2020 | $3.4B | -$267M | -7.8% | +17.5% | Source |
| FY2019 | $2.9B | -$81.9M | -2.8% | +27.6% | Source |
| FY2018 | $2.3B | -$122.2M | -5.4% | +29.0% | Source |
| FY2017 | $1.8B | -$203M | -11.5% | — | Source |
Where the revenue comes from
Fortinet
- Service Revenue67%
FortiGuard subscriptions, technical support, SASE, SecOps, SaaS, and other services generated $4.5812B in FY2025 revenue.
- Product Revenue33%
FortiGate appliances, secure networking hardware, and software licenses generated $2.2184B in FY2025 revenue.
Palo Alto Networks
- Subscriptions and SupportLargest
Recurring security subscriptions, support, SASE, cloud security, and Cortex products.
- Product RevenueMaterial
Physical and virtual firewall products and related hardware/software sales.
- ServicesEmbedded
Incident response, advisory, and other security services.
Business model and strategy
Fortinet
How it makes money
Fortinet makes money in two ways. First, it sells products: FortiGate firewalls (physical appliances and virtual/cloud versions), plus switches, Wi-Fi access points and other secure-networking hardware and software licenses. Product revenue was $2.22 billion, or 33% of FY2025 sales.
Growth strategy
Fortinet is trying to grow beyond the firewall into three adjacent markets. Unified SASE combines FortiGate SD-WAN with cloud-delivered secure web gateway, ZTNA and firewall-as-a-service for remote users. Security operations (FortiSIEM, FortiSOAR, FortiAnalyzer, FortiEDR) targets the SOC. OT security sells ruggedized FortiGates and related tools to factories, utilities and transport operators.
Competitive advantage
Fortinet's main edge is custom silicon. It designs its own security processors (network processors such as NP7 and content processors such as CP9) that offload packet inspection, encryption and threat matching from general-purpose CPUs. That lets FortiGate deliver high throughput at a lower price and power draw than many rivals.
Palo Alto Networks
How it makes money
Palo Alto Networks makes most of its money from recurring subscriptions and support, with the rest from firewall products. Customers buy hardware and virtual next-generation firewalls and then pay yearly for threat prevention, URL filtering, DNS security and SD-WAN services.
Growth strategy
Since early 2024, Palo Alto has pursued 'platformization'. It offers customers free or discounted periods so they can move off rival tools before their contracts expire, in exchange for long-term commitments to its platforms.
Competitive advantage
Palo Alto's edge is breadth combined with a large installed firewall base. Few vendors can sell network security, SASE, cloud security, SOC automation and identity security under one contract, and the PAN-OS policies that enterprises have built up over years make firewall replacement slow and risky. Telemetry from that base feeds Unit 42 threat research and the AI models in Cortex.
Questions about Fortinet vs Palo Alto Networks
Which company has higher revenue — Fortinet, Inc. or Palo Alto Networks, Inc.?
Fortinet, Inc. reported $6.8B (FY2026), while Palo Alto Networks, Inc. reported $11.5B (FY2026). By last reported revenue, Palo Alto Networks, Inc. is the larger business, with Fortinet, Inc. reporting a smaller revenue base.
What is the market cap of Fortinet, Inc. vs Palo Alto Networks, Inc.?
Fortinet, Inc.'s market capitalisation stands at $127.3B, while Palo Alto Networks, Inc.'s is $306.5B. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. carries the higher market valuation, reflecting investors' expectations of its future earnings power relative to Fortinet, Inc..
Which is more financially efficient — Fortinet, Inc. or Palo Alto Networks, Inc.?
Fortinet, Inc. generates $450k / employee in revenue per employee, while Palo Alto Networks, Inc. generates $714k / employee. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. shows higher revenue efficiency per headcount, though this reflects business model differences — capital-light software companies routinely outperform labour-intensive manufacturers on this metric.
How do Fortinet, Inc. and Palo Alto Networks, Inc. make money?
Fortinet, Inc. and Palo Alto Networks, Inc. generate revenue in fundamentally different ways. Fortinet, Inc.: Fortinet makes money in two ways. Palo Alto Networks, Inc.: Palo Alto Networks makes most of its money from recurring subscriptions and support, with the rest from firewall products.
Which company is valued higher relative to revenue — Fortinet, Inc. or Palo Alto Networks, Inc.?
On a price-to-sales (P/S) basis, Fortinet, Inc. trades at 18.7x P/S and Palo Alto Networks, Inc. at 26.7x P/S. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. commands a higher revenue multiple, typically indicating that investors expect faster growth or higher future margins compared to Fortinet, Inc.. A higher multiple is not inherently better — it may also signal that the stock is priced for perfection.
Is Fortinet, Inc. bigger than Palo Alto Networks, Inc.?
By last reported revenue, Palo Alto Networks, Inc. ($11.5B (FY2026)) is the larger company compared to Fortinet, Inc. ($6.8B (FY2026)). Revenue scale is one dimension of size — market capitalisation, employee count, and geographic reach are also relevant depending on the context.
Figures come from each company's filings and the sources linked beside them. Amounts reported in another currency are shown in US dollars at an approximate rate and marked with ~. Back to the Fortinet vs Palo Alto Networks overview