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Aruba Access Points vs Cisco Wireless 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 Wireless
Ranking in Wireless LAN
3rd
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
151
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2025, in the Wireless LAN category, the mindshare of Aruba Access Points is 1.3%, up from 0.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Cisco Wireless is 11.5%, down from 15.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Wireless LAN
 

Featured Reviews

PRADIPJOSHI - PeerSpot reviewer
Pricing competitiveness and remote management have enhanced network flexibility
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. Additionally, they do not require any kind of license for implementation. Despite this, many customers have their own firewall, and they can control everything from their firewall, ensuring flexibility. Furthermore, the ease of management with Aruba access points enables customers to connect them directly to their network via a PoE switch and manage them remotely from mobile devices.
GulfrazAhmad - PeerSpot reviewer
Integrates with ISE, and is secure, reliable, and easy to deploy
The main concern is the length and overlapping. We have to put on four to six access points on the same floor, and we face the issue of overlapping areas. If Cisco can extend the range of their indoor APs, we would need to install just one or two access points, and it would eliminate the problem of the overlapping area. They should provide built-in features for safe authentication. Right now, we integrate with ISE and FortiClient for this feature. We first check the NAC, and after the NAC and before the domain, a token password installed on their mobile or a physical token is required to join the network. If Cisco had built-in authentication, we would be able to eliminate one product from our network.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"It offers remarkable client-handling capacity."
"The interest funds are valuable."
"The Adaptive Radio Management feature is quite good."
"We like the flexibility and the security, and the product is very easy to use."
"Aruba products are good. The Middle Eastern marketplace is one of the biggest markets where Aruba products are preferred."
"Aruba Access Points are reliable and easy to implement."
"Aruba Access Points provides secure and transparent access points for all users"
"Aruba Access Points is an economical solution."
"Security is an important feature for my customers, and I am able to offer this to them with our Cisco products."
"Wireless access has enabled users to be mobile and as a result, more productive."
"The ability to disable RRM or set hybrid RRM provides a more granular design of RF in the environment."
"Cisco Wireless is reliable and stable."
"The solution is easy to use and its stable."
"One of the most valuable features we have found is security"
"We were able to utilize the elements of the core and provide a solution to our customers similar to that of Cisco Meraki."
"The most valuable features are mobility and security."
 

Cons

"The product's stability and technical support services needs improvement."
"The price could be a bit lower."
"The solution should provide features to integrate audio and video devices in presentation rooms"
"They should reduce the prices as an advanced marketing tool."
"The solution’s updates and firmware are complicated to upgrade."
"I would like Aruba to provide integration capabilities for Microsoft Entra ID, Azure Directory, or other identity verification engines like Okta, Google Identity, or Ping Identity."
"The tool could be cheaper."
"Going with a cloud solution will make dependency no longer a challenge from a connectivity point of view."
"It would be better if some utility lets us know the best place to install the system. Every time we install it, we have to change it, and we have to add more access points. This is a problem we have all the time. It would be better if it integrated seamlessly with products from other vendors. It'll also help if they included a device diagnostics feature in the next release."
"The price could be better. The configuration is also complex. It would be better if there's an NEC solution. That's one of the things we really want to have. It should also be as fast as possible."
"We use a Cisco product called Room Kit for meetings. It would be nice if Cisco could improve that. I would also like a cloud solution."
"It requires a few tweaks in order to stabilize it. Its portal is complex. Cisco solutions are complex in general."
"Code stability is something that needs to be improved."
"There are some areas of improvement needed in roaming and streaming."
"Apple is definitely causing a lot of issues by turning on more security features on its equipment. It is causing more problems on the business side. One is what they call a randomized Mac address that Apple has put out. As far as I know, Cisco doesn't have a fix for that."
"The solution could improve by having more advanced features, such as AI that is able to do diagnosis on the network or detect incorrect configurations and is able to tell you what is the recommended practice. Additionally, it would be a benefit to have smart antennas that are able to track your movement, Wi-Fi 6 support, better transfer rates, low latency, stronger signals that can penetrate thick walls, and zero packet losses."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The price compared to other brands is slightly higher."
"Users have to pay a licensing fee for Aruba Access Points, which could be cheaper."
"I rate the product's price a seven on a scale of one to ten, where one is a high price, and ten is a low price."
"The tool's pricing is not expensive. It is perfect as per the features."
"The product is costly and comes with a lifetime license. There is neither renewal nor subscription. It is a one-time solution."
"My company needs to pay around 50,000 JPY to 1,00,000 JPY towards the licensing costs of the product on a monthly basis. Additional payments are to be made towards the maintenance and support costs of the product."
"The product's pricing could be better than one of its competitors."
"The pricing is competitive. It is neither cheap nor expensive. It is moderate. It offers better price than Cisco and other competitors."
"Cisco is not a cheap solution. Their licensing cost is higher than that for others."
"The price of Cisco Wireless equipment is expensive."
"Cisco WiFi 1572 is very expensive locally and our budget for this year is used."
"From a pricing point of view, it's a little bit expensive compared to competitors like Aruba and others."
"The price of Cisco Wireless could be adjusted down, it is a bit expensive. The solution is worth it for the name and the brand. However, there are more products now in the market that give you the same quality, but at a cheaper price."
"It's expensive because a lot of the controls come with licenses."
"The pricing is reasonable."
"Cisco Wireless solutions should have a price reduction for educations centers. Education centers are there to help people grow and there are not large budgets. The solution tends to be expensive and it can cause difficulties when purchasing them here in Africa."
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Comparison Review

it_user212721 - PeerSpot reviewer
Mar 24, 2015
Cisco vs. Aruba Wireless Solutions
Cisco or Aruba Networks? If you are considering wireless access solutions, this is a common question that you are probably asking. You probably have sales people knocking at your door. How do you make sense of all the stories that you are presented with. If you have done any research, you are…
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
15%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Computer Software Company
16%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Educational Organization
7%
 

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?
Due to its pricing, Aruba access points provide good value. They are priced at half the rate of Juniper access points for basic models.
What needs improvement with Aruba Access Points?
I would like Aruba to provide integration capabilities for Microsoft Entra ID, Azure Directory, or other identity verification engines like Okta, Google Identity, or Ping Identity. It is important ...
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...
Which is better - Ruckus Wireless or Cisco Wireless?
Ruckus Wireless offers users the benefit of being both easy to set up and get running as well as being very user friendly. This user-friendly quality also renders it easy to learn how to use and ma...
How does Cisco Wireless compare with Aruba Wireless?
On the most basic level, Cisco Wireless can offer a rather straightforward initial setup. In the span of about three hours, the basic framework can be set up. Step-by-step instructions are availabl...
 

Also Known As

No data available
Cisco WLAN Controller
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
Aegean Motorway, Baylor Scott & White Health, Beachbody, Bellevue, Brunel University London, Bucks County Intermediate Unit , Chartwell School, Children's Hospital Colorado, Cisco Live Milan, City of Biel, City of Mississauga, Dundee Precious Metals, Electricity Authority of Cyprus, Erickson Living, Goldcorp, Great Ormond Street Hospital, Grupo Industrial Saltillo (GIS)
Find out what your peers are saying about Aruba Access Points vs. Cisco Wireless and other solutions. Updated: March 2025.
842,690 professionals have used our research since 2012.