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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:
 

ROI

Sentiment score
7.8
Aruba Access Points offer rapid ROI with improved management, security, and reliability, favored by medium-sized and enterprise clients.
Sentiment score
1.0
Cisco Wireless delivers fast ROI with improved productivity, security, and connectivity, valued by both profit and non-profit organizations.
Because of this security framework, it helps implement a zero touch approach, protecting against unauthorized access and vulnerabilities.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
7.4
Aruba Access Points support is generally praised for professionalism, though complex issues and HP's ticket system transitions present challenges.
Sentiment score
4.8
Cisco Wireless customer service is highly rated for prompt, knowledgeable support, despite some regional variability in quality.
For technical support alone, I would give them a score of nine out of ten.
Aruba's country manager is very responsive and supportive.
The technical support from Cisco is of high quality.
The technical support from Cisco is good.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.6
Aruba Access Points are highly scalable and flexible, suitable for various businesses, with positive user reviews and cloud-enhanced scalability.
Sentiment score
5.9
Cisco Wireless offers efficient scalability for various business sizes, though costs and controller limits may pose challenges.
Aruba access points integrate well with existing networks via PoE switches.
While scaling up to five hundred users, it may cause some performance issues.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
8.1
Aruba Access Points are highly rated for stability and reliability, despite minor issues after extended use or new firmware.
Sentiment score
7.2
Cisco Wireless is highly stable and reliable, performing well across environments with minimal issues and high user satisfaction.
 

Room For Improvement

Aruba Access Points require improved coverage, security, support, integration, and pricing; users report bugs and inadequate technical support.
Cisco Wireless faces cost, configuration, usability, security, cloud integration, and compatibility issues, requiring improvements across features, UI, and support.
Some customers comment that the shape and size of the access point is a little big, especially the one installed in the guest room.
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.
Sometimes, integration with other Cisco products requires manual intervention for tasks such as firmware upgrades, which should be automated.
In the long term, there could be a cost reduction because it does not require much maintenance.
 

Setup Cost

Aruba Access Points offer reasonable pricing with potential discounts, though hardware costs and licensing fees can be high.
Cisco Wireless offers premium, high-quality solutions with complex licensing, perceived as costly but justified by reliability, security, and performance.
The pricing is reasonable and lower than competitors.
They are priced at half the rate of Juniper access points for basic models.
The setup cost involves licenses.
The licensing of Cisco Wireless is competitive.
Cisco has provided significant discounts for large-scale deployments.
 

Valuable Features

Aruba Access Points offer reliability, easy setup, robust features, advanced security, AI optimization, and seamless integration, making them preferred.
Cisco Wireless excels in security, scalability, integration, ease of installation, and management, offering reliable connectivity and advanced features.
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.
It is very reliable, and the cost of the hardware is not much compared to Cisco and other products.
The unique selling point of Aruba Access Points is the ClearPass technology which HPE has to offer.
If one network fails, there is a link between different access points, which ensures network continuity.
When I install it, I can forget about it because there is no need for ongoing maintenance, and no other problems occur.
Cisco Wireless is easy to configure.
 

Categories and Ranking

Aruba Access Points
Ranking in Wireless LAN
5th
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.3
Number of Reviews
38
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Cisco Wireless
Ranking in Wireless LAN
3rd
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
5.1
Number of Reviews
154
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2025, in the Wireless LAN category, the mindshare of Aruba Access Points is 1.9%, up from 0.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Cisco Wireless is 11.0%, down from 14.3% 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.
Theesula Majuwanagamage - PeerSpot reviewer
Bridging capabilities ensure network continuity and reliability in large-scale deployments
The most valuable feature of Cisco Wireless ( /products/cisco-wireless-reviews ) is the bridging capability. If one network fails, there is a link between different access points, which ensures network continuity. Additionally, Cisco offers significant discounts for large projects. The reliability and robust solution are also key aspects, as there have been no errors or failures. The implementation is straightforward, and the user interface connection is easy.
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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
16%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Financial Services Firm
7%
University
7%
Computer Software Company
15%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Comms Service Provider
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'm a very small entity to comment on that, but I don't see any challenges as of today with the product getting improved. The only improvement would be to increase the market share if they try to r...
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: July 2025.
861,524 professionals have used our research since 2012.