Awards and recognition
Industry awards
SC Award: Best API Security Solution 2024
F5's Distributed Cloud API Security won "Best API Security Solution" at the 2024 SC Awards, protecting APIs from rising attacks.
2025 TrustRadius Top Rated Awards for Bot Defense, WAF, API Security and Network Connect
F5 earned multiple 2025 TrustRadius Top Rated Awards, based on customer reviews for the Application Delivery and Security Platform and products.
CRN Product of the Year for Networking – Enterprise 2023
F5 Distributed Cloud Network Connect SaaS-based service, was recognized as an overall winner for its capabilities in connecting and securing hybrid and multi- cloud networks.
CRN – The Top 25 IT Innovators Of 2025. François was recognized.
François Locoh-Donou, F5's CEO for eight years, has guided the company's major transformations, refocusing its strategy on application delivery and security.
CRN AI 100
F5 has been recognized as a leader in the 2025 CRN AI 100 for the 25 hottest AI companies for data center and edge, along with fellow leaders AMD, Cisco, Cohesity, Dell, HPE, Lenovo, Intel, and NVIDIA.
SC Awards 2025 – Finalist (Best API Security Solution)
F5 was a finalist in SC Media’s 2025 “Best API Security Solution” category, reinforcing its reputation for API-centric innovation.
CRN Women of the Channel 2025
Seventeen F5 women, including leaders like Lisa Citron, were featured in CRN’s Women of the Channel 2025.
Analyst reports
KuppingerCole Leadership Compass for Web Application and API Security
August 25, 2025 - F5 was recognized an Overall Leader in WAAP and named a Leader in innovation, product and market categories
EMA Vendor Vision 2025, Black Hat Edition
July 23, 2025 - F5 was named a visionary for delivering post-quantum cryptography readiness solutions.
The Total Economic Impact™ of F5 Distributed Cloud Services
August 2022 - A Forrester TEI study commissioned by F5 shows a 30% reduction in networking costs associated with cloud infrastructure optimization with Distributed Cloud Services.
KuppingerCole Leadership Compass for API Security and Management
July 24, 2025 - F5 was one of 25 vendors evaluated in the report.
Read the report (Subscription required)
IDC Market Note: F5’s Strategic Vision for Application Delivery and Security in the AI Era
June 2025 - F5’s strategic vision for application delivery and security in the AI era focuses on the transition to ADSP, which integrates AI-driven multicloud orchestration, security, observability and programmable data planes to address the complexity of modern application infrastructures.
2024 Market Share Leader: Overall Application Security & Delivery and Application Delivery Controller
May 2025 - According to Dell’Oro, F5 is market share leader for converged application security and delivery in 2024.
The Eight Components of API Security
May 26, 2025 - This report equips security leaders with the key components of an API security program.
451 Research Market Insight: F5 Aims to Optimize and Secure AI Applications
May 19, 2025 - The report noted that F5 Application Delivery and Security Platform includes AI tools to help simplify operations, and introduces insights and efficiencies that can reduce risks and save costs.
EMA Vendor Vision 2025
April 16, 2025
F5 was named a visionary, one of 12 “trailblazing security companies,” distinguishing itself by providing a unified Application Delivery and Security Platform (ADSP) that tackles the complexities of modern, hybrid, and multi-cloud environments.”
Market Guide for Cloud Web Application and API Protection
April 14, 2025 - F5 was named a representative vendor.
EMA Impact Brief: F5 Launches Application Delivery and Security Platform
April 2025 - The F5 Application Delivery and Security Platform reshapes the operational landscape for enterprises amidst the growing complexity of AI technologies and hybrid infrastructures.
IDC Spotlight: Enhancing AI Workload Performance with Advanced Networking Solutions
April 1, 2025 - IDC examines how F5 BIG-IP Next for Kubernetes, deployed on NVIDIA BlueField-3 DPUs, optimizes data movement and communication within AI clusters.
EMA PRISM Report: DDoS Mitigation Solutions
March 6, 2025 - F5 was ranked a Platinum vendor. The F5 Distributed Cloud DDoS Mitigation Service provides comprehensive support for both L3 and L7 attacks ensuring complete coverage across various threats.
GigaOm Radar for Cloud Networking
March 14, 2025 - F5 was named a Leader and Fast Mover reinforcing our continued commitment to provide best-in-class hybrid, multicloud networking at scale.
GigaOm Radar for Application and API Security
Dec. 13, 2024 - F5 was named a Leader and Fast Mover in GigaOm’s Radar for Application and API Security positioning F5 among the most innovative and mature application security companies.
IDC MarketScape: Worldwide Web Application and API Protection Enterprise Platforms 2024 Vendor Assessment
Sept. 2024 - F5 was recognized a Leader for demonstrating a long history of delivering high performance, advanced security capabilities to secure applications and APIs, often through strategic acquisitions of purpose-built point solutions.
IDC Link: F5 Launches NGINX One to Simplify Application Security and Delivery Across Hybrid Environments
Sept. 18, 2024 - Through its unified visibility and management system, NGINX One addresses challenges associated with managing NGINX's diverse functionalities, enhancing security and application delivery for both commercial and open source users.
KuppingerCole Leadership Compass for Web Application Firewall
April 8, 2024 - F5 was recognized an Overall Leader in WAF and named a Leader in innovation, product and market categories
Forrester™ Wave: Bot Management Software, Q3 2024
June 30, 2024 - F5 was named a Strong Performer. The report notes that “F5 Bot Defense will be attractive to customers looking for a single-stack appsec solution with a strong mobile application security component.”
Market Guide for API Protection
May 29, 2024 - F5 was named a representative vendor.
Read the report (Gartner subscription required)
Market Guide for Cloud Multicloud Networking Software
April 22, 2024 - F5 was named a representative vendor.
Read the report (Gartner subscription required)
GARTNER is a registered trademark and service mark of Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and internationally and is used herein with permission. All rights reserved.
Gartner does not endorse any vendor, product or service depicted in its research publications, and does not advise technology users to select only those vendors with the highest ratings or other designation. Gartner research publications consist of the opinions of Gartner’s research organization and should not be construed as statements of fact. Gartner disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied, with respect to this research, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.
Third-party testing
To ensure the highest standards of performance, scalability, and security, F5 has engaged with several leading third-party validation labs. These expert organizations provide objective assessments and stress testing across real-world enterprise scenarios.
Below are representative examples of trusted validation partners F5 has collaborated with:
Icons represent a sample of third-party validation labs F5 has worked with. Detailed test reports are available through authorized F5 channels.