A10 Networks Thunder ADC vs Kemp LoadMaster comparison

A10 Networks and Progress Software are both solutions in the Application Delivery Controllers (ADC) category. A10 Networks is ranked #10 with an average rating of 8.0, while Progress Software is ranked #8 with an average rating of 9.0. A10 Networks holds a 5.0% mindshare in ADC, compared to Progress Software’s 7.5% mindshare. Additionally, 90% of A10 Networks users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 98% of Progress Software users who would recommend it.

A10 Networks Thunder ADC

Read 22 A10 Networks Thunder ADC reviews

2,544 Views
1,827 Comparison Views

90% willing to recommend

Kemp LoadMaster

Read 49 Kemp LoadMaster reviews

4,931 Views
2,762 Comparison Views

98% willing to recommend

A10 Networks Thunder ADC

Kemp LoadMaster

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 17, 2024

A10 Networks Thunder ADC and Kemp LoadMaster both compete in the application delivery controller category. A10 Networks Thunder ADC appears to have an upper hand due to its comprehensive feature set and cost-effectiveness.

Features: A10 Networks Thunder ADC is noted for its all-inclusive licensing model which simplifies budget management, advanced DDoS mitigation, and SSL offloading. These features make it ideal for enterprises handling mixed traffic across on-premise and cloud resources. Kemp LoadMaster is recognized for ease of deployment, stability, and a competitive cost-to-feature ratio, making it suitable for straightforward ADC needs lacking advanced security measures.

Room for Improvement: A10 Networks Thunder ADC could improve its third-party integration options and address regional support discrepancies causing delays. Resolving legal issues with Brocade and enhancing immediacy in support could also benefit users. Kemp LoadMaster might enhance security features and GUI usability, and integrate modern visualization tools and better certificate management. Users suggest more comprehensive documentation and intuitive updates for advanced configurations.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: A10 Networks Thunder ADC is often deployed on-premises, but users report delays in support during emergencies, and highlight a need for improved first-call resolutions and better training resources. Kemp LoadMaster is praised for its straightforward setup and reliable third-party support across varied deployments, with customer service improving satisfaction despite a call for more proactive support.

Pricing and ROI: A10 Networks Thunder ADC is perceived as cost-effective, offering a solid return on investment by simplifying configuration and saving on support contracts. It competes well with more expensive solutions like F5. Kemp LoadMaster's competitive pricing and trial options make it attractive for clients seeking cost-effective ADC solutions, with licensing flexibility enhancing its appeal against pricier alternatives.

To learn more, read our detailed A10 Networks Thunder ADC vs. Kemp LoadMaster Report (Updated: January 2025).

Buyer's Guide

A10 Networks Thunder ADC vs. Kemp LoadMaster

January 2025

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Helped 838,713 peers since 2012

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Categories and Ranking

A10 Networks Thunder ADC

Ranking in Application Delivery Controllers (ADC)

10th

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

7.2

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Kemp LoadMaster

Ranking in Application Delivery Controllers (ADC)

8th

Average Rating

9.4

Reviews Sentiment

7.8

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of February 2025, in the Application Delivery Controllers (ADC) category, the mindshare of A10 Networks Thunder ADC is 5.0%, up from 4.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Kemp LoadMaster is 7.5%, up from 7.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Application Delivery Controllers (ADC)

Featured Reviews

SatishBabu

Vice President at a computer software company with 1,001-5,000 employees

Known for its load balancing capabilities, the WAF features need to be improved

The solution's initial setup process was easy. For the installation, it takes around five minutes. One person can do the maintenance since it is not required much. So, it's a one-time solution, and its maintenance is fine. The number of people required for maintenance depends on the clients as well. One or two engineers are fine to serve around a hundred clients. If you have a number of devices, more people are needed for their maintenance because of the patching it requires during regular operations. Only for the maintenance, one engineer's fine. However, for regular operations, we need multiple people.

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PeterForster

Senior Consultant at a tech services company with 51-200 employees

A highly stable and scalable load-balancing software that offers great technical support

My company is really happy with Kemp LoadMaster as a product. My company is also happy with the support we receive from Kemp LoadMaster. I want Kemp LoadMaster to provide users with better reporting capabilities in relation to TCP packets. In general, the connections that are present in the system require improvement. Feature-wise, Kemp LoadMaster has everything that our company's customers require. Kemp LoadMaster also has features that have supported our company's past projects.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Pros

"A10 Networks Thunder ADC is an easy-to-use and flexible solution."

"For the past two and a half years, we have not had a need to open a tech support ticket. It is really stable. In the past, our experience with tech support was that they were extremely helpful."

"The solution is stable."

"Being a public entity and having a public website which is highly visible with a lot of traffic, we are a target for DDoS. Within the last year, we have had a couple of DDoS attacks which could have affected our web traffic and taken down certain parts of our website. This did not happen because the A10 was able to mitigate the attacks using rate limiting that can be configured for DDoS mitigation on the box."

"The ease of use is very good. It's very robust. It just sits and works."

"The Deterministic CGNAT feature is valuable for us."

"We do have the option of creating virtual chassis, so that gives it a bit more security. If we find an application which is not going to play well in the main pool, we can easily create a virtual chassis and have that application in that virtual chassis. With the virtual chassis we can also create system partitions and have a test system for test applications, and have the others elsewhere."

"We can control access based on the specific application. If other devices are attempting to directly access the servers, you can block them. Additionally, you can balance the load among servers to optimize performance. For example, utilizing caching can make the application run faster."

More A10 Networks Thunder ADC pros

"It has greatly fortified the performance and uptime of our front-door email ingress, simplified and segmented mail routing, and reduced admin overhead for mail issue resolution and troubleshooting."

"Great web balancing and remote access balancing."

"The configuration is really easy and the web portal is self-explanatory."

"The Global WAF has saved us more than one time from unwanted traffic."

"The most valuable feature is the load balancing and allowing for high availability of our web services."

"Managing and maintaining multiple servers is done in a single place."

"The most valuable features are synchronizing email with mobile devices and synchronizing with Outlook."

"The security features, load balancing, built-in templates, and the easy to implement virtual IPs are great."

More Kemp LoadMaster pros

Cons

"There is room for improvement in the upgrading process. Sometimes we have to contact A10 for verification of some stuff."

"Traffic flow issues are very difficult, as there's no means for us to analyze the traffic coming in or out of the appliance without technical support."

"They need to make the user interface (GUI) a bit more usable and intuitive. Some features can be a little difficult to find at times. Sometimes, the workflow in the GUI doesn't match the workflow of an actual workflow. E.g., if I want to create a load balancer application, sometimes you've got to do things a bit out of order in the GUI in order to make it work right."

"A10 Networks Thunder ADC could improve on the Application Delivery Controller. it's not a fully-fledged web application firewall solution. For example, application data and support need to improve."

"We are starting to do a lot with containers and how the solution hooks into Kubernetes that we haven't explored. I'm hoping that they have a lot of hooks into Kubernetes. That would be the part for improvement: Marketing use cases with containers."

"The user interface is not as pretty as it could be."

"I would like them to provide learning tips and a community forum where users can share ideas. They need more detailed support articles on the A10 website."

"The setup depends on certain situations. In certain scenarios, it may be more complex than others. For example, while the initial configuration may be easy, the environment itself may be complex and that may limit the ease of deployment. It is easy for those who understand their environment."

More A10 Networks Thunder ADC cons

"Some documentation is out of date versus the new version, and things have been moved."

"Perhaps Kemp could offer some training videos."

"There are some challenges with updates on certain models that don't have a few features."

"To make it a perfect ten out of ten it would need better connection logging. If there is an active connection, that there is better logging. It should also have better management monitoring tools."

"In the next release, Kemp should include the ability for LoadMaster to create different DNS record types."

"If I had to change something it would maybe be to have a little better reporting graphics that show more details in the reporting. It seems to be a little small in the graphic, and I'm not sure if possible but maybe a GUI page that one can use to monitor if any server goes down."

"Some of the support documentation seems to make assumptions that the person installing or configuring is experienced with the product or concepts."

"They were still in the process of development, and for example, we set it up in a cluster. So it was one logistical unit built out of two physical devices. And the expected behavior, which I know from other devices, will be formed into a logic cluster. It's that you configure one unit. Then you bring the second unit into this cluster with the already configured primary unit. So the secondary box pulls all the configured ones from its neighbor, does everything automatically, and then synchronizes with this primary neighbor. And then it works, like, one logical unit. And this didn't work with the Kemp's initially, where they caused a lot of issues when building up a cluster, so there were some specials on how to set this up. When we built or set them up for the first time and the months afterward with no new software releases, there were a couple of problems, but in the end, they worked fine. So, they developed a lot and learned from what they've responded to, what we responded to them, and what needs fixing."

More Kemp LoadMaster cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The price is good they are very comparative."

"The price of A10 Networks Thunder ADC depends on capacity and the customer's requirement. They have several offerings. They have different price models and options to choose from. Additionally, you need to subscribe to support for the hardware appliances."

"You get a lot more for your dollar with A10."

"The price of the maintenance support is too expensive."

"Pricing is one of the features of the product that influence customers to use the product."

"There were budgetary constraints that keep us from investing in the single pane of glass traffic management feature. We saw a demo of this feature about a year to a year and a half ago."

"We just pay for support in addition to our licensing."

"The pricing is fine, considering the features they are providing. If you are an individual user, they'll price the product differently compared to how they price the product that is sold to an organization."

More A10 Networks Thunder ADC pricing and cost advice

"Licensing is yearly and I am going to guess that it is CAN $2000.00."

"This is a cost-efficient product."

"Setup is easy, the cost is affordable, and the licensing is quick and simple."

"The price is lower than other options."

"This product has good value and features for the money."

"Download Kemp's VLM trial and take it for a test drive; you will be impressed."

"Any decent product will cost money and if you want great support and a great product, then you will want to spend the money on it."

"Currently, no cost is involved with a virtual load balancer. They have used open source. We did not pay for software. We paid for the expertise. We are only paying the consulting charges, which are very reasonable, that is, around a thousand dollars."

More Kemp LoadMaster pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

21%

Financial Services Firm

12%

University

Government

Educational Organization

65%

Computer Software Company

Government

University

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

Questions from the Community

Which is the best DDoS protection solution for a big ISP for monitoring and mitigating?

I would recommend A10 Networks due that it delivers high performance in a small form factor to reduce OPEX with significantly lower power usage, rack space, and cooling requirements compared to oth...

See all answers

Do you recommend A10 Networks Thunder ADC?

I do recommend A10 Networks Thunder ADC. It's very user-friendly, easy to configure, and flexible. It is a very useful solution - especially now, when a lot of employees are working remotely. I hav...

See all answers

What do you like most about A10 Networks Thunder ADC?

A10 Networks Thunder ADC is an easy-to-use and flexible solution.

See all answers

What do you like most about Kemp LoadMaster?

Scalability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten...I rate the technical support a ten out of ten...The initial setup of Kemp LoadMaster is very simple.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Kemp LoadMaster?

LoadMaster is cheaper than some other solutions. It has a perpetual license, so it's a one-time cost.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Kemp LoadMaster?

There are some challenges with updates on certain models that don't have a few features. The support team often takes a lot of time to provide resolutions for issues. Also, I could see more capabil...

See all answers

Comparisons

F5 BIG-IP Local Traffic Manager (LTM) vs A10 Networks Thunder ADC

Compared 25% of the time

NetScaler vs A10 Networks Thunder ADC

Compared 16% of the time

Fortinet FortiADC vs A10 Networks Thunder ADC

Compared 15% of the time

Radware Alteon vs A10 Networks Thunder ADC

Compared 10% of the time

NGINX Plus vs A10 Networks Thunder ADC

Compared 7% of the time

More A10 Networks Thunder ADC Competitors

HAProxy vs Kemp LoadMaster

Compared 20% of the time

NGINX Plus vs Kemp LoadMaster

Compared 18% of the time

Fortinet FortiADC vs Kemp LoadMaster

Compared 16% of the time

NetScaler vs Kemp LoadMaster

Compared 10% of the time

Barracuda Web Application Firewall vs Kemp LoadMaster

Compared 5% of the time

More Kemp LoadMaster Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

A10 Networks Thunder ADC

February 2025

Download A10 Networks Thunder ADC product report

Buyer's Guide

Kemp LoadMaster

February 2025

Download Kemp LoadMaster product report

Also Known As

Thunder ADC, AX Series

LoadMaster Load Balancer

Overview

A10 Networks Thunder ADC is a dynamic application delivery controller and advanced load balancer. Thunder ADC is a value-added solution provided by A10 Networks specializing in robust, trusted, scalable application services for cloud, hybrid, edge cloud, and on-premise environments focused on improving business processes and keeping infrastructures safe. The solution consistently provides server availability, improves content delivery, and protects at-risk applications. A10 Networks Thunder ADC easily controls hybrid and multi-cloud deployments using a Polynimbus strategy to minimize difficulties and costs for IT processes, facilitating overall improved business results.

A10 Networks Thunder ADC is effective for small to medium businesses (SMBs) to large enterprises. Service providers and cloud operators are all using A10 Network ADC to manage their large and fast-growing group of business-critical applications.

A10 Networks Thunder ADC supplies L4-7 load balancing with numerous layers of security using DNS and web app firewalls, comprehensive support for advanced encryption, single sign-on (SSO) authentication, and high-performance Perfect Forward Secrecy and Error Correction Code (PFS/ECC). Thunder ADC is designed upon A10 Networks Advanced Core Operating System (ACOS®) platform to provide consistent, efficient application performance and trusted security for any environment.

A10 Networks Thunder ADC Benefits

Consistently accessible: A10 Networks Thunder ADC employs numerous load balancing protocols to evenly distribute workloads to all servers and works to ensure constant application functionality. User requests are monitored to ensure loads are directed to the appropriate server so that there is always a proper response delivery to content. This process ensures the applications are consistently available.
Global Server Load Balancing (GSLB): To ensure business processes are fully optimized at all times, A10 Networks Thunder ADC employs a dynamic Global Server Load Balancing (GSLB) process to augment server load balancing capabilities throughout global data centers for high availability and improved user experience and application tolerance.
Fast content delivery: A10 Networks Thunder ADC conquers the general WAN latencies, chatty policies, and redundant software programs to ensure quick and responsive service. Employees receive a fast, excellent end-user experience while the organization's business leaders get exceeded SLA mandates and increased productivity with teams working remotely and a step up on the competition.

A10 Networks Thunder ADC Features

Detailed Analytics: When deployed with A10 Networks Harmony Controller, Thunder ADC delivers a large selection of detailed aggregate and per-request reports in real time. The reports include popular URLs, error and health indicators, latencies, and end-to-end response times. The data is further dissected to deliver per-app reporting, availability alerts, and performance.
API Coverage: Thunder ADC utilizes A10 Networks REST-based aXAPIs to structure all features with 100 percent API coverage. The resulting interface is then used to seamlessly integrate custom or third-party management solutions, such as VMware or other SDN platforms, OpenStack, Microsoft SCVMM, or other cloud orchestration systems. There are also software plug-ins available for private clouds utilizing VMware’s vRealize Orchestrator.
Comprehensive Management Controls: Thunder ADC is fully supported by A10 Networks Harmony Controller and can be deployed in software or as a software-as-a-service (SaaS). This controller functions as a native management platform that organizes and distributes application-centric service protocols and configuration data to numerous Thunder appliances and device cluster infrastructures throughout numerous multi-cloud environments. Users can instantly identify, audit and track every appliance using critical operational metrics, such as CPU, disk usage, device partitions, and end users. The A10 Networks Harmony Controller will also complete configuration backups and restore operations, and will schedule regular software upgrades.

A10 Networks

Kemp LoadMaster is a powerful load balancing solution that also serves as a web application firewall. Its primary use case is load balancing and application load balancing, making it an ideal solution for organizations that must distribute traffic across multiple servers. Kemp's integration with an active directory for ESP usage, hosting/deployment of SSL certificates, and pricing are some of its most valuable features.

Using Kemp has helped organizations mitigate cross-scripting vulnerabilities, cookie-related issues, and content security policy issues. It has also allowed them to handle everything with Kemp instead of working on each application individually.

Progress Software

Sample Customers

123inkt.nl, Bentley University, Box, Brainshark, Buienradar, Capgemini, CGN/LSN & NAT64, Chengdu Telecom, Club One, Code Ready, CRC Health Group, Cyso, Deutsche Telekom, Earth Class Mail, Excite, FFF Enterprises, Florence County, Framingham State University, From30

Kent County Council, KEMP, SMA Solar Technology AG, RT Player , Victrix (Quebec, Canada), Texas A&M, Macmillan Cancer Support, Cisco, Austin Bank

Buyer's Guide

A10 Networks Thunder ADC vs. Kemp LoadMaster

January 2025

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