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Aruba Access Points vs Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Oct 31, 2024

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

Aruba Access Points
Ranking in Wireless LAN
5th
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
37
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN
Ranking in Wireless LAN
4th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
5.1
Number of Reviews
118
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of February 2025, in the Wireless LAN category, the mindshare of Aruba Access Points is 0.9%, up from 0.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN is 13.1%, up from 12.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Wireless LAN
 

Featured Reviews

Trevor Fernandes - PeerSpot reviewer
This is a reliable product that is easy to scale thanks to its virtual controller
Aruba's virtual controller is the most important feature. I also have TP-Link, Huawei, and D-Link access points, and normally those solutions have a controller, which is a separate software or hardware used to control all of these. But Aruba's virtual controller basically sits in one of the access points, and if that particular access point goes down, the controller automatically migrates to the next available access point. With this feature, I firstly don't need any additional hardware for a controller. Secondly, I don't need maintenance for it. A virtual controller that roams around from one device to another automatically makes life very easy for me. My access points are nearly ten years old, so though they now have 2.4 and 5 GHz options, features like the captive portal for the guest Wi-Fi, avoiding sticky clients between two Aruba devices, reduced authentication, and the ability to look at the IDS are all still very advanced.
Mageshwaran S - PeerSpot reviewer
Enables organizations to control many sites globally with a lean IT team and provides visibility into the user activities
The solution can handle only medium and small businesses. We face a bottleneck on the gateway while using the solution for large enterprises. The solution must be able to expand to larger enterprises. Currently, the MX device can support only up to 10,000 users. It would be good if it can go beyond 1 lakh users. Catalyst 9300 is coming on the Meraki Dashboard. The vendor must also bring in the 9400 and 9600 Catalyst series. It will be very helpful. We will not have any choke on the gateway. There is no active-active concept. It will be very helpful if the solution provides active-active. Now, we are doing an active-passive setup, which is a warm spare. If it is an active-active setup, the gateway bottleneck issue can be resolved. I would be able to segment the Wireless LAN IPs. It will help support 20,000 devices at a go. Meraki does not have a single dashboard. I need to port an on-premise controller. There is a bottleneck while scaling the product. I need to consider a lot of things.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The interest funds are valuable."
"Aruba Access Points provides secure and transparent access points for all users"
"It offers remarkable client-handling capacity."
"The integration with robust network switches is valuable."
"Aruba Access Points is an easy-to-use solution."
"The tool's most valuable feature is better connectivity."
"One of the most valued aspects of Aruba access points is their price competitiveness; they are available at half the price of Juniper access points."
"The most valuable feature of the solution is its stability."
"The most valuable feature of this solution is the application visibility, which is one of the main features."
"It's a stable product."
"The graphic user interface is very nice."
"We can deploy it and check in on our customers without having an on-site connection or an on-site infrastructure for elderly customers."
"The flexibility, since it's a cloud service, is the most valuable feature of this solution."
"The most valuable feature is the ease of deployment."
"The most valuable feature is cloud management."
"It is cloud-based. You can manage it remotely from anywhere in the world, and you don't have to be on-site, which is a very big advantage."
 

Cons

"The solution should be made more robust."
"Aruba Access Points should improve its automation."
"Since we manufacture medical devices, we must adhere to pharmaceutical guidelines. According to these guidelines, our rooms are categorized as 'head type' and thus require network connectivity. However, installing high-end APs in every room may not be feasible."
"The stability must be improved."
"The solution's technical support and the quality of the new releases need to be improved because we have seen a lot of bugs in the solution's new releases."
"The support from Aruba, as well as the overall HPE unit, has been lacking. The regional head and hepatic services are nonresponsive, leading to a decline in market share. While Aruba is recognized for its top-notch quality, especially in switching technology, the services and support in the African region need significant improvement. There is a suggestion to focus on enhancing services, support, and presale activities in this region to address the challenges faced by customers, particularly in healthcare. Continued emphasis on research and development, along with addressing regional issues, is recommended for sustained success."
"I would appreciate for the higher-end models to offer the same signal strength as the older, smaller models, even while maintaining the latest standards, as this would enhance the overall network performance and coverage."
"The product's prices are an area of concern. The product should be available at a lower price point."
"In the future, I would like to see IP telephony in Saudi Arabia."
"Initially, I liked some of the filtering features, but that's one of the components that we ran into problems with."
"We haven't had any issues with the solution. We like the way it works. There isn't anything I can think of that makes me worry that it might be lacking in a certain area."
"The solution’s pricing could be improved."
"It is not a very stable solution."
"They're great. If there's anything that they need to change, it is just simplifying the site to which you go to make changes on the admin side."
"Its price should be reduced."
"They could also add some more controls for guest access. For example, when you have a captive portal, it would be nice to limit the amount of time users can stay connected per day. Right now, you can only configure the splash frequency. And you can set the connection for one hour, but you have to use the billing feature."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The product is costly and comes with a lifetime license. There is neither renewal nor subscription. It is a one-time solution."
"The product is cheaper than Cisco and Huawei."
"The product is more expensive than two of its competitors."
"The pricing is reasonable."
"Aruba Central is a bit overpriced for some customers."
"Although not cheap, Aruba Access Points is a reasonably priced solution."
"The cost of Aruba Access Points has been on the rise, which may be due to market dynamics or regional factors, such as in Egypt. Additionally, the availability of Aruba products is a concern, with a lead time of approximately twelve months. This prolonged waiting period and a lack of responsiveness from HP, the parent company of Aruba, have led to the cancellation of some orders. The supply chain for Aruba appears to face challenges, impacting product delivery timelines."
"There is a need to pay the licensing charges for the product...I feel that it is a moderately priced tool that is available at a price higher than Cisco and Huawei."
"The tool is reasonably priced."
"The solution could improve the licensing structure and the price is expensive."
"We don't like the licensing model and we think that it needs to be improved significantly."
"The price of Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN could be improved, it is too expensive. We pay for the solution on an annual basis."
"The price is on the high side when compared to Aruba."
"We are on a SmartNet contract. All of our Cisco products are licensed under one contract. I do not think there are any additional costs."
"When compared to other vendors, Cisco's pricing is higher."
"Higher subscription fee may be necessary if extra features are required."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
12%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Comms Service Provider
6%
Computer Software Company
19%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Educational Organization
7%
Financial Services Firm
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Aruba Access Points?
After we installed the Aruba switches, the work became faster because the network speed improved.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Aruba Access Points?
Here, many owners look at the lump sum figure of the deal, comparing overall costs. Our company contacts Aruba's country manager for extra discounts to secure deals. The pricing is reasonable and l...
What needs improvement with Aruba Access Points?
Some customers comment that the shape and size of the access point is a little big, especially the one installed in the guest room. Other than that, nothing specific in terms of improvements comes ...
What are pros and cons of Aruba 515 Series AP vs. Cisco Meraki or Extreme Networks?
Depends. I have personally used both Cisco and Aruba so I am familiar with them. Extreme I am not, so unless they have some feature that I need or want, I wouldn't consider them. Do you have expe...
Which is better - Cisco Wireless or Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN?
Cisco Wireless is very robust, very rugged, and can handle indoor and outdoor coverage extremely well. We found it to be very reliable and to consistently run very efficiently. Cisco Wireless helpe...
How does Ruckus Wireless compare to Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN?
Cisco’s Meraki Virtual MX is a virtual instance of the Meraki SD-WAN appliance. We liked the Meraki. The Wifi APs are a great feature. The dashboard is a simple interface and easy to learn. It feat...
 

Also Known As

No data available
MR18, MR26, MR32, MR34, MR66, MR72, Meraki Wireless LAN, Meraki WLAN
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
Advanced Medical Transport, Banco de Guayaquil, Baylor Scott & White Health, BH Telecom, Bowling Green State University, Calligaris, Children's Hospital Colorado, City of Biel, Del Papa Distributing, Department of Justice, Dimension Data, Dualtec Cloud Builders, Electricity Authority of Cyprus, Grupo Industrial Saltillo (GIS), Hertz, K&L Gates , LightEdge, Lone Star College System, Management Science Associates, Mindtree, NBC Olympics, Quest, Sony Corporation, The Department of Education in Western Australia, Valley Proteins
Find out what your peers are saying about Aruba Access Points vs. Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN and other solutions. Updated: January 2025.
838,713 professionals have used our research since 2012.