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Aruba ClearPass vs Sophos Network Access Control comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 2, 2025

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 ClearPass
Ranking in Network Access Control (NAC)
1st
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
89
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Sophos Network Access Control
Ranking in Network Access Control (NAC)
10th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.1
Number of Reviews
24
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the Network Access Control (NAC) category, the mindshare of Aruba ClearPass is 21.6%, down from 24.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Sophos Network Access Control is 2.2%, up from 1.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Network Access Control (NAC) Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Aruba ClearPass21.6%
Sophos Network Access Control2.2%
Other76.2%
Network Access Control (NAC)
 

Featured Reviews

Darko Skurla - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Enterprise Customer Solutions Specialist at a comms service provider with 1,001-5,000 employees
Role-based policies have simplified secure access control for all users and smart devices
I do not know about the functionality of Aruba ClearPass integration with a third party. If you ask me if there is support for Zebra and for different IoT devices, they have it. However, I do not know how to describe integration with other products. Aruba ClearPass can act as a RADIUS server and it can connect to the domain RADIUS server, for example. The biggest problem is when a customer does not know what they want with Aruba ClearPass. I can recommend Aruba ClearPass to other users because it is very stable. My review rating for this product is ten out of ten.
HirenPatel2 - PeerSpot reviewer
Manager at rspl
Have faced delays in support despite strong multi-layer policy configuration
I have observed some disadvantages as we have experienced one particular problem. We were facing an issue of synchronization of the endpoint with our firewall with help on a cloud for heartbeat syncing. However, it was not syncing as per our requirement. The user has to connect our firewall with the help of VPN. We were supposed to assume a solution on a cloud, which has good synchronization on a cloud with Sophos Central. It will sync with our firewall as well with the help of Sophos Central. Endpoint and firewall synchronization is not as smooth as we are expecting from Sophos Network Access Control. We have to connect with VPN. We are expecting that if we have already installed an endpoint on our system and it is connected to the internet, then it must be synchronized on a cloud with Sophos Central. Through Sophos Central, it must connect with our firewall. If the endpoint is configured on Sophos Central and the firewall is also configured in Sophos Central, then there should be no need to connect to VPN.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The continuous server and posturing are valuable."
"Document authentications allows us to decide which users can connect to an office VLAN and this has been the most valuable feature."
"The most effective feature for us is the OnGuard feature."
"The setup is simple."
"I'd rate the solution ten out of ten."
"The most valuable feature of Aruba ClearPass is the ease of deployment and integration with other equipment in the network."
"Aruba has improved my organization because it supported me on my level of access."
"The most valuable feature, I would say, is the cost-effectiveness of the solution when compared to others."
"Sophos Network Access Control saves our clients time and money."
"The scalability of the system and the performance of the system and the solution's most valuable features."
"The user interface makes it easy to configure and use."
"Web protection, URL filtering, and application filtering are the most valuable features of Sophos Network Access Control."
"Sophos has helped us to save time and money and to better manage web activities. It has also helped us to reduce misuse of the network and restrict hacking attempts."
"We get full visibility into the network as a product, which is one of the key features of the product because recently they have acquired another product called Secure Wave, which is integrated into Sophos Network Access Control and provides advanced capabilities for managed detection and remediation, MDR, a major plus for customers."
"The pricing is very reasonable and you can negotiate on the price."
"There is really good visibility for the appliance."
 

Cons

"I can't think of an area where the solution is lacking a feature or a capability."
"Some functions could be improved."
"TLS authentication onboarding in Aruba ClearPass needs to be improved. The biggest problem we've seen in our environment is Huawei not being able to get onto Google Play. No Huawei device can be onboarded via Aruba ClearPass easily."
"It should be clearer in the pre-sales stage that clear, documented, executive-supported InfoSec policy is the key to success."
"Aruba needs to improve and the processes must be clear."
"The setup of ClearPass can be a bit convoluted at times."
"We cannot onboard IoT devices such as printers, cameras, and some smaller devices."
"I would like the area of managing wired technology to be improved. Wireless is very good but I'm still struggling a bit to do my end to end configurations in the wired technology area."
"There is room for improvement in pricing."
"I would like to see mobile administration capabilities in the next release so that we can administer the device from a mobile device."
"The user interface, in terms of managing the product, could be better."
"Sophos Network Access Control could be improved by having an ASIC chip similar to FortiNAC, as this would provide better processing for big organizations."
"It would be good if Sophos Network Access Control had better integration with other devices."
"An area that could be improved is the information about licensing, which is fairly confusing at present."
"One area in which the product could be improved is the user interface. While functional, it can be somewhat cluttered and unintuitive, especially for new users."
"Endpoint and firewall synchronization is not as smooth as we are expecting from Sophos Network Access Control."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"There are three types of licenses."
"Compared to the functionality, the pricing is very favorable. It's affordable and provides good value for the money."
"The product is quite expensive. I rate its pricing a seven out of ten."
"I can say that the package or licensing model offered for the solution is a permanent one."
"The starting price of Aruba ClearPass is 200k Hong Kong dollars. The licensing is based on the endpoints. For example, 100 - 500 end points."
"Run a 90 day free Proof of Concept (POC) for each product by implementing and using it fully in your environment. This way you will be educated on its features, functionality, and manageability.​"
"It is affordable. In Lebanon, companies are small, and they do not have a big budget. They cannot invest a lot of money, and Aruba ClearPass is quite affordable for them."
"Licensing and pricing are extremely straightforward."
"Sophos Network Access Control is very cheap compared to other solutions like Cisco, Barracuda, and Palo Alto."
"It provides a moderate pricing option for all of its features and benefits."
"Sophos Network Access Control is costly but has a similar price range as CrowdStrike and Check Point. The product can get more market share if Sophos can play around with Sophos Network Access Control pricing and improve it."
"Sophos Network Access Control is an expensive solution."
"I rate the price of Sophos Network Access Control a five out of ten."
"It is quite expensive."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
10%
Government
9%
Manufacturing Company
8%
University
7%
Computer Software Company
11%
Government
10%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Healthcare Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business44
Midsize Enterprise25
Large Enterprise33
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business16
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise3
 

Questions from the Community

Which is better - Aruba Clearpass or Cisco ISE?
Aruba ClearPass is a Network Access Control tool that gives secure network access to multiple device types. You can adapt the policies to VPN access, wired, or wireless access. You can securely ...
What is the biggest difference between Aruba ClearPass and FortiNAC?
I've done quite a lot of work with ClearPass, and not a lot with FortiNAC/Bradford. ClearPass incorporates a number of different functions including ClearPass Guest for creating complex wireless g...
What do you like most about Aruba ClearPass?
If you are looking at the base installation, then it was a very straightforward process, which I would rate an eight or nine out of ten.
What needs improvement with Sophos Network Access Control?
I have observed some disadvantages as we have experienced one particular problem. We were facing an issue of synchronization of the endpoint with our firewall with help on a cloud for heartbeat syn...
What is your primary use case for Sophos Network Access Control?
I am currently using the product as a customer. We are using Sophos Network Access Control solution for security purposes and security analysis only.
 

Also Known As

Avenda eTIPS
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Consulate Health Care, Los Angeles Unified School District, Science Applications International Corp (SAIC), San Diego State University, KFC, ACTS Retirement-Life Communities
Rushmoor Borough Council
Find out what your peers are saying about Aruba ClearPass vs. Sophos Network Access Control and other solutions. Updated: December 2025.
879,768 professionals have used our research since 2012.