Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

pfSense VS Ubidots

Compare pfSense VS Ubidots and see what are their differences

Note: These products don't have any matching categories. If you think this is a mistake, please edit the details of one of the products and suggest appropriate categories.

pfSense logo pfSense

pfSense is a free and open source firewall and router that also features unified threat management, load balancing, multi WAN, and more

Ubidots logo Ubidots

A cloud service to capture and make sense of sensor data
  • pfSense Landing page
    Landing page //
    2021-09-20
  • Ubidots Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-09-25

pfSense features and specs

  • Open Source
    pfSense is open-source software, meaning it is free to use and has a large community-driven development environment. This allows for continuous improvement and updates.
  • Comprehensive Feature Set
    pfSense provides a wide array of features including firewall, VPN, routing, load balancing, and more, all within a single platform.
  • Customizability
    The platform offers extensive customization options for advanced users, allowing for tailored security and network solutions.
  • Excellent Documentation
    pfSense has a robust and detailed documentation repository, as well as an active community forum, which helps users troubleshoot and optimize their setup.
  • Enterprise Level Security
    With features like stateful packet filtering, role-based access control, and intrusion detection systems, pfSense offers high levels of security suitable for enterprise applications.
  • Scalability
    pfSense is highly scalable, suitable for small home networks up to large enterprise environments, allowing businesses to grow without having to switch platforms.

Possible disadvantages of pfSense

  • Complexity
    pfSense can be complex to configure and manage, especially for users who do not have extensive networking knowledge or experience.
  • Hardware Requirements
    High performance and some advanced features of pfSense may require more robust hardware compared to other solutions, which could increase costs.
  • Learning Curve
    The platform's extensive feature set can result in a steep learning curve for new users, particularly those unfamiliar with networking concepts.
  • Third-Party Integration
    While pfSense supports numerous plugins and features, integrating with some third-party solutions may require additional configuration and expertise.
  • Limited Support for Non-router Functions
    Although quite powerful as a firewall/router, pfSense may lack support for functionalities outside its primary roles, such as advanced endpoint protection or cloud-native security controls.
  • Updates and Maintenance
    Keeping the system up-to-date and secure requires regular maintenance and updates, which might be cumbersome for users managing multiple instances or complex configurations.

Ubidots features and specs

  • User-Friendly Interface
    Ubidots provides an intuitive and easy-to-navigate interface which makes it simple for users to create and manage IoT applications without extensive training.
  • Quick Prototyping
    The platform allows for rapid development and deployment, enabling users to quickly prototype their IoT solutions.
  • Data Visualization
    Offers powerful data visualization tools, including customizable dashboards and widgets, to easily track and analyze real-time data.
  • API Integration
    Ubidots provides robust API support, facilitating seamless integration with other applications and services.
  • Device Compatibility
    Supports a wide range of IoT devices and communication protocols, ensuring flexibility and scalability.
  • Cloud Storage
    Offers reliable cloud storage for data, ensuring that users can securely store, retrieve, and analyze data at any time.
  • Community and Support
    Active community and extensive documentation provide users with ample resources and support for troubleshooting and improving their IoT projects.

Possible disadvantages of Ubidots

  • Cost
    While Ubidots offers a free tier, the paid plans can be relatively expensive for startups and small businesses.
  • Limited Free Tier
    The free tier has limitations on the number of devices and data points, which can hinder large-scale projects.
  • Learning Curve for Advanced Features
    While basic features are user-friendly, more advanced functionalities may take time and effort to master.
  • Internet Dependency
    Requires a stable internet connection for real-time data monitoring and updates, which can be a limitation in remote areas.
  • Scalability Issues
    Some users have reported challenges when scaling their applications, particularly in terms of performance and cost-efficiency.
  • Limited Offline Capabilities
    Ubidots is largely cloud-based and lacks comprehensive offline functionality, making it less viable for applications that require constant connectivity.

Analysis of pfSense

Overall verdict

  • Yes, pfSense is generally considered a good option for network security.

Why this product is good

  • pfSense is an open-source firewall and router that offers robust security features.
  • It supports a wide range of configurations and add-ons, making it highly flexible and customizable.
  • pfSense is known for its reliability and strong performance, even under demanding network conditions.
  • The platform includes features such as VPN, traffic shaping, load balancing, and more, which are often found in commercial products.
  • The community and commercial support from Netgate provides valuable resources for troubleshooting and enhancements.
  • Its open-source nature means regular updates and improvements contributed by a community of users and developers.

Recommended for

  • Small to medium-sized organizations looking for an affordable yet powerful firewall solution.
  • Network professionals and enthusiasts who appreciate customization and open-source solutions.
  • Educational institutions needing a secure and versatile firewall and router solution.
  • Any environment that requires a reliable and feature-rich firewall without the cost of commercial alternatives.

Analysis of Ubidots

Overall verdict

  • Yes, Ubidots is considered a good platform for IoT applications due to its ease of use, extensive features, and reliability. Many users find it effective for managing and visualizing IoT data, though the suitability might depend on specific project requirements.

Why this product is good

  • Ubidots is a popular platform for Internet of Things (IoT) applications because it offers a user-friendly interface, robust data visualization tools, and seamless integration capabilities. It provides a range of features such as real-time data monitoring, cloud-based analytics, and customizable dashboards which are crucial for various IoT projects. Additionally, its API support and ability to handle multiple IoT protocols make it highly adaptable for developers and businesses looking to implement IoT solutions.

Recommended for

  • Small to medium enterprises looking to deploy IoT applications quickly.
  • Developers who need a reliable platform with strong API support.
  • Educators and students interested in learning about IoT through practical, hands-on projects.
  • Businesses aiming to integrate IoT data into existing workflows for enhanced decision-making.

pfSense videos

pfsense Firewall Setup and Features in Depth Version 2.4

More videos:

  • Review - Pfsense: 5 Reasons to Use It
  • Review - Netgate SG-3100 Teardown / Speedtest / Review of this powerful pfsense packet pusher!

Ubidots videos

Ubidots - IoT Application Development Platform overview

More videos:

  • Review - IoT Based ECG Monitoring with AD8232 ECG Sensor & ESP8266 on Ubidots
  • Review - 🌡️ Subiendo datos de temperatura y humedad a Ubidots con módulo ethernet y arduino

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to pfSense and Ubidots)
Perimeter Security And Firewalls
IoT Platform
0 0%
100% 100
Cyber Security
100 100%
0% 0
Data Dashboard
0 0%
100% 100

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare pfSense and Ubidots

pfSense Reviews

The top 10 alternatives to OpenVPN
Netgate offers secure networking solutions, including pfSense Plus and TNSR software, which provide firewall, router, and VPN functionalities. These solutions cater to personal users, professional users, and organizations seeking secure and reliable internet connectivity.
Best pfSense Software Alternatives and Competitors
pfSense Software firewall is a robust, open-source security solution that is compatible with any hardware and can be tailored to meet your specific needs. It is a widely used technology, and many individuals seek dependable, popular software solutions with multi-device support, multiple concurrent connections, and protocol selections. Despite its usefulness, pfSense has...
The Best Open Source Router OS Software for Large or Small Networks
pfSense is a free and open-source router and firewall operating system based on the FreeBSD operating system. It is designed to be used on standard x86 hardware and can be deployed as a virtual machine or on dedicated hardware. pfSense offers advanced features and capabilities that are typically found in commercial routers and firewalls, making it an ideal solution for small...
Best free Linux router and firewall distributions of 2023
pfSense is one of the most popular operating systems today. It's a BSD-based system, similar to OPNSense, but with a longer history. pfSense started in 2004, and since then, it has grown to be the most well-known open-source platform in the industry. Although it gradually loses users to OPNsense, it's still an excellent system for new users because it has the most extensive...
Source: teklager.se
11 Best pfsense Alternatives To Secure Your Network
Unlike those of other available pfSense competitors, its capabilities allow it to be compared to commercial firewalls. You can also customize the pfSense firewall to match your needs based on the level of security and protection you want, as well as your specialist knowledge.

Ubidots Reviews

Best IoT Platforms in 2022 for Small Business
Ubidots provides a no-code, easy to use, self-construct IoT Platform to connect your IoT devices to collect, analyze and visualize the data. The main feature of Ubidots is that it is device agnostic i.e., any device can be connected to the cloud to share data. Ubidots believe that flexibility is the key to build and retain any business and hence caters customizable IoT and...
Source: www.fogwing.io
Open Source Internet of Things (IoT) Platforms
Ubidots is an IoT platform that provides services for free to users with a limit of five sensors and to add a sensor, you have to pay a certain amount of money to remove the sensor limit. Ubidots also provides email and SMS notification services based on triggers created by sensor data according to user requirements.Ubidots is popular among IoT enthusiasts because its tools...
14 of the Best IoT Platforms to Watch in 2021
UbiDots is a data simulation IoT platform with a focus on using powerful visualization and simulation to develop customer-specific applications. Its IoT ecosystem supports an extensive cloud of devices including Espressif, Microchip, Particle, Amplified Engineering, and other board makers. With an extensive range of tutorials, SDKs and libraries, on-boarding any device in...

Social recommendations and mentions

pfSense might be a bit more popular than Ubidots. We know about 10 links to it since March 2021 and only 7 links to Ubidots. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

pfSense mentions (10)

  • Need some help on setting up home network
    Https://pfsense.org (netgate hardware is used in businesses). Source: about 2 years ago
  • Is pfsense.org down, or is it just me?
    I am having trouble seeing available packages, updating pkg, or getting a response from pfsense.org. Is anyone else seeing this or am I going to spend the rest of my day chasing bugs? Source: over 2 years ago
  • Help with VLAN
    From the PIA Client to pfsense.org PING pfsense.org (208.123.73.69) from 10.6.112.128: 56 data bytes 64 bytes from 208.123.73.69: icmp_seq=0 ttl=49 time=49.455 ms 64 bytes from 208.123.73.69: icmp_seq=1 ttl=49 time=51.927 ms 64 bytes from 208.123.73.69: icmp_seq=2 ttl=49 time=49.333 ms 64 bytes from 208.123.73.69: icmp_seq=3 ttl=49 time=49.133 ms 64 bytes from 208.123.73.69: icmp_seq=4 ttl=49 time=49.027 ms ... Source: over 2 years ago
  • Can Surveillance Station record offsite cameras ?
    The above setup is critical to a reliable system. I'd use enterprise quality routers for a store and home connection. I personally use https://pfsense.org but there are many to choose from and several open source. Source: almost 3 years ago
  • Exposing Synology to web: best/practical practices?
    What I would do is put that thing in DMZ and install a good router behind it like https://www.pfsense.org. No affiliation, just been my router for many years. There's also it's sibling https://opnsense.org. There are many, just get a enterprise quality router. Source: almost 3 years ago
View more

Ubidots mentions (7)

  • Need help in connecting my ESP8266 to Internet
    For hombrewing they use https://ubidots.com/ to read fermentation information. The device connects http outbound with a JSON payload. Source: over 2 years ago
  • Which startups are made using Django?
    I used to work in https://ubidots.com it’s also written in Django. Source: almost 3 years ago
  • Easiest Way to Add Cellular to an ESP32 IoT Project
    But we don't want your data to live on Notehub! The most important part of the story is securely routing your data to any cloud endpoint. Take a look at our extensive Routing Tutorials and pick your favorite cloud, such as Ubidots, and create an engaging cloud dashboard to interpret your data:. - Source: dev.to / about 3 years ago
  • Thermal Image Anomaly Detection with TinyML
    By using the "edge ML" capabilities provided by Edge Impulse, the cellular Notecard device-to-cloud data pump from Blues Wireless, a Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W, and an Ubidots dashboard, I was able to create a simple, low-power, thermal monitoring station with only a small bit of Python coding required 🐍. - Source: dev.to / over 3 years ago
  • Vacationing with a GPS Asset Tracker
    While this is great to see, the next step was to configure a more functional cloud-based dashboard to view the incoming data in real time. To do so I created a route in Notehub to securely sync data with Ubidots. - Source: dev.to / almost 4 years ago
View more

What are some alternatives?

When comparing pfSense and Ubidots, you can also consider the following products

OPNsense - OPNsense® you next open source firewall. Free Download. High-end Security Made Easy™. Offers Intrusion Prevention, Captive Portal, Traffic Shaping and more.

ThingSpeak - Open source data platform for the Internet of Things. ThingSpeak Features

SonicWall - SonicWall security solutions protects your network, systems, users and data from cyber threats.

Blynk.io - We make internet of things simple

Comodo Firewall - Comodo Firewall Pro - Secure your system against internal attacks such as Trojan viruses /...

Axonize - Axonize IoT platform - the smarter way to truly realize your IoT potential and create smart, scalable IoT projects to increase profitability.