Akamai Ion vs NetScaler comparison

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Akamai Ion

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 17, 2024

NetScaler and Akamai Ion compete in application delivery and performance optimization, with Akamai Ion often seen as more desirable due to its superior features.

Features: NetScaler offers robust load balancing, application security, and traffic optimization with strong enterprise integration. Akamai Ion focuses on web performance, real-time dynamic content delivery, and personalized content processing, featuring advanced performance technologies.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: NetScaler provides streamlined deployment with modular architecture for scalability, enhanced by dedicated customer support. Akamai Ion emphasizes rapid cloud-based deployment, optimized for diverse environments, with specialized consultancy for performance enhancement.

Pricing and ROI: NetScaler presents a favorable initial setup cost with consistent ROI from enterprise efficiencies, appealing to larger organizations. Akamai Ion has a higher setup cost, offering significant performance improvements and speed optimizations, with strong ROI for businesses focused on web experience.

To learn more, read our detailed Akamai Ion vs. NetScaler Report (Updated: November 2024).

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Akamai Ion vs. NetScaler

November 2024

Helped 823,795 peers since 2012

Categories and Ranking

Akamai Ion

Ranking in Application Delivery Controllers (ADC)

15th

Average Rating

7.6

Reviews Sentiment

7.3

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

NetScaler

Ranking in Application Delivery Controllers (ADC)

1st

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

7.0

Number of Reviews

107

Ranking in other categories

Network Management Applications (4th), Web Application Firewall (WAF) (10th)

Mindshare comparison

As of December 2024, in the Application Delivery Controllers (ADC) category, the mindshare of Akamai Ion is 0.5%, up from 0.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of NetScaler is 15.6%, up from 13.9% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Application Delivery Controllers (ADC)

Featured Reviews

HarshBhardiya

SOC Engineer at Just Dial Limited

Reliable bot management with valuable traffic analytics and good delivery configuration

We are using Akamai Ion primarily for CDN services. It is more about delivery configuration, and for security, we use Akamai WAF security controls and Botman Akamai Ion helps protect us from DOS, SQL injection, cross-site scripting, and scraping tools. Real-time analytics are very helpful for…

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DEMİRHAN ÇAVUŞOĞLU

Cloud Consultant at Migros Ticaret A.Ş.

A tool for centralized management including inventory and sales tracking

Citrix ADM has the ability to implement policies to tighten security. For instance, you can restrict access to your network from outsiders or lack necessary security measures such as antivirus programs. Additionally, there's the Delivery Controller, which allows for comprehensive monitoring and management tasks such as remote restarts, maintenance, and registration. Another essential component is the Director, which provides detailed insights into sessions, including identifying session failures, connection issues, user lockouts, etc. It presents a list of problems to address, enabling you to click on them and resolve them efficiently.

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Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Akamai is easy to use and very effective."

"The most valuable feature is bot management."

"This solution increases the backend network service performance, which is one of the things that we like the most."

"I would say the rewriting and redirection functions are must-have's for us."

"The load balancing feature of this solution is very good."

"SSL Offload"

"Its flexibility, agility, and robustness are the most valuable. Its management and implementation are also quite easy."

"The advantage of Citrix Web App and API Protection is just its graphic user interface for beginners. The solution is nothing special, but we have to use it for the corporation. Another advantage of Citrix Web App and API Protection is that we have our copy to test things and get the know-how of it."

"The most valuable features of Citrix ADC are load balancing and application firewall."

"We appreciate that this solution facilitates our access to Citrix internet."

More NetScaler pros

Cons

"Log management should display data for more than two months."

"The product must provide more flexibility."

"The technical support has room for improvement."

"Overall the price of Citrix ADC could be more competitive."

"They can improve the scalability and the multi-tenancy feature. We recently tried to configure an authentication, and we ran into some issues while using the web-based GUI. It was very slow when you log in with your credentials in the web-based GUI. Each time we clicked on the menu, it tried to do the authentication. It works properly in the console."

"The reporting is not so good. They don't have an application to connect the logs."

"The technical support could be better. Whenever I contacted support, I rarely got the solution that we needed. And most of the time, I finished fixing the problem by looking on the internet or by finding documents about the problem on Google."

"We face challenges with the solution's firmware upgrades frequently."

"Manageability and adaptability can also be challenging for end customers."

"ADC from Citrix has added functionalities from other products and the usability is very difficult for someone who is used to a simpler user interface, it's a little bit of a mess to use."

More NetScaler cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The tool is expensive."

"For partners, NetScaler is not as expensive price-wise versus F5."

"We have a yearly licencing fee, and there are no additional costs."

"You can do CapEx and then a yearly monthly fee, or you can do a subscription model, whether that's one month, month-to-month, or three-year subscription model."

"Its licensing cost is much higher than other products, but it is acceptable because it is a one-time investment, and we are getting our requirements fulfilled when we buy this product. So, there is no issue with the pricing."

"Price-wise, I feel that the solution is a little bit expensive."

"The pricing for Citrix Web App and API Protection is unreasonable. I don't know the exact price, but I heard it's tens of thousands and it's a bit too much for the small country I live in."

"Citrix ADC could improve the price and make it less expensive, other competitors have a better prices. This would allow Citrix ADC to keep dominating the market."

"It is true that it is a bit pricey compared to newer technologies coming to the market. For example, A10 is a load balancer that does everything that Citrix can and it does a lot more than what NetScaler does when it comes to the security space, and their prices are so cheap. Every box comes with its own license and support built into it. When you compare that with NetScaler, you have to buy licenses separately, you have to buy a support agreement that is going to be separate. A small NetScaler, even if it is a VPX which is a virtual server, could cost you close to $150,000 to $200,000 dollars. So the pricing is really high."

More NetScaler pricing and cost advice

See which vendors are best for you

Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Application Delivery Controllers (ADC) solutions are best for your needs.

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823,795 professionals have used our research since 2012.

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

No data available

Educational Organization

17%

Computer Software Company

15%

Financial Services Firm

12%

Government

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

No data available

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Akamai Ion?

Akamai is easy to use and very effective.

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Akamai Ion?

The billing cycle is monthly, however, payment is done yearly. While expensive, it provides value for the services offered.

What needs improvement with Akamai Ion?

Log management should display data for more than two months. The traffic report needs to be more flexible. The response time of technical support should be improved.

What do you like most about Citrix ADC?

The most valuable feature for us is the application firewalling in Citrix NetScaler, ensuring only valid traffic enters our environment.

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Citrix ADC?

After deployment, Citrix Netscaler shifted to a subscription-based license scheme for support, which is slightly more expensive.

What needs improvement with Citrix ADC?

Citrix NetScaler is a robust product, but mastering it requires significant learning and training due to its complexity. While it could be easier to manage, it is like transitioning from driving a ...

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Product Reports

Application Delivery Controllers (ADC)

December 2024

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Download NetScaler product report

November 2024

Also Known As

No data available

Citrix ADC, Citrix NetScaler VPX, NetScaler Console, NetScaler Web Application Firewall

Learn More

Akamai

Overview

Ion, Akamai’s flagship performance solution, is a suite of intelligent performance optimizations and controls that helps deliver superior web, iOS, and Android app experiences. Built on the SLA-backed availability of the globally distributed Akamai Intelligent Edge Platform, Ion continuously monitors real user behavior — applying best-practice performance optimizations automatically — and adapting in real time to content, user behavior, and connectivity changes.

One platform for a consistent application delivery and security experience because nobody has time to learn multiple systems to manage ADC deployments. NetScaler is built with a single code base using a software-based architecture, so no matter which ADC form factor you choose — hardware, virtual machine, bare metal, or container — the behavior will be the same.

Sample Customers

Eurail, Boston Scientific

ABB Schweiz, Aer Lingus, AIDS Healthcare Foundation, Amnet Technology Solutions, Aramex International, Ascenty, Atos, Autodesk