Array Networks Web Application Firewall vs AWS Web Application Firewalls (WAFs): 2026 Comparison

Array Networks Web Application Firewall

Mid-market and enterprise security teams protecting APIs alongside traditional web apps will get the most from Array Networks Web Application Firewall, especially if you're running hybrid cloud and need zero-day blocking without waiting for signature updates. The platform's automatic threat detection across AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud plus on-premises deployments covers three NIST CSF 2.0 functions,infrastructure resilience, platform security, and continuous monitoring,which means you're not sacrificing visibility for prevention. Skip this if your primary concern is post-breach forensics; Array Networks prioritizes blocking over investigation, so buyers needing deep incident response integration should look elsewhere.

AWS Web Application Firewalls (WAFs)

Teams already deep in AWS infrastructure will move fastest with AWS WAF because it threads directly into API Gateway, CloudFront, and ALB without separate agent deployment or data exfiltration concerns. The free tier eliminates budget friction for prototype and mid-tier workloads, and native CloudWatch integration means you're not bolting on a separate SIEM. Skip this if your web applications sit outside AWS or you need API schema validation and runtime threat detection; AWS WAF does request filtering well but doesn't understand your API's legitimate behavior the way specialized API security tools do.