Aruba Instant vs Ubiquiti WLAN comparison

Hewlett Packard Enterprise and Ubiquiti Networks are both solutions in the Wireless LAN category. Hewlett Packard Enterprise is ranked #11 with an average rating of 8.4, while Ubiquiti Networks is ranked #7 with an average rating of 7.8. Hewlett Packard Enterprise holds a 2.0% mindshare in Wireless LAN, compared to Ubiquiti Networks’s 5.1% mindshare. Additionally, 97% of Hewlett Packard Enterprise users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 82% of Ubiquiti Networks users who would recommend it.

Aruba Instant

Read 51 Aruba Instant reviews

2,729 Views
2,098 Comparison Views

97% willing to recommend

Ubiquiti WLAN

Read 44 Ubiquiti WLAN reviews

6,329 Views
6,078 Comparison Views

82% willing to recommend

Aruba Instant

Ubiquiti WLAN

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Oct 31, 2024

Ubiquiti WLAN and Aruba Instant are key competitors in the wireless LAN solutions market. Ubiquiti seems to have an edge due to its cost-effectiveness and ease of deployment, while Aruba Instant is favored for its advanced features and security.

Features: Ubiquiti WLAN provides an easy deployment process and robust performance with features like a free controller system, remote management, and straightforward configuration. It is competitively priced, making it appealing to users. Aruba Instant excels in cloud capabilities, security features, and seamless integration, offering centralized management and a strong end-user experience with its robust feature set.

Room for Improvement: Ubiquiti WLAN could improve its management features, support, and scalability as stability issues and limited troubleshooting tools have been noted. Aruba Instant needs enhancements in its management interface and support for larger deployments, with additional improvements in coverage and cloud management features necessary.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Ubiquiti WLAN is appreciated for its straightforward deployment process, adaptable to various environments, but has faced criticism for less responsive technical support compared to larger players. Aruba Instant also has a simple deployment process, benefiting from its Installation On feature, although its customer support availability and responsiveness have received mixed reviews.

Pricing and ROI: Ubiquiti WLAN is noted for its affordability, offering lifetime licenses and cost-effective pricing that appeals to small to medium environments without ongoing fees, resulting in a positive ROI when environmental needs are met. Aruba Instant, with a slightly higher initial cost, is favored for its comprehensive features despite the greater upfront price, delivering positive ROI when user requirements align.

To learn more, read our detailed Aruba Instant vs. Ubiquiti WLAN Report (Updated: March 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Aruba Instant vs. Ubiquiti WLAN

March 2025

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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 Instant

Ranking in Wireless LAN

11th

Average Rating

8.6

Reviews Sentiment

6.4

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Ubiquiti WLAN

Ranking in Wireless LAN

7th

Average Rating

7.4

Reviews Sentiment

6.9

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2025, in the Wireless LAN category, the mindshare of Aruba Instant is 2.0%, down from 2.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Ubiquiti WLAN is 5.1%, down from 6.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Wireless LAN

Featured Reviews

Prashant-Patel

Senior Presales Consultant - Networking Solutions at Mannai

A highly stable and easy-to-deploy solution that is free and provides excellent deployment guides

The setup is very straightforward. There is no complexity at all. It took us 15 minutes. We need IP address details, DNS, a gateway, DHCP servers, and SSIDs. Single access points can act as controller-based, controller-less, and cloud-based solutions. That is the beauty of Aruba. If I have an on-premise solution and want to move to the cloud, I don't need separate hardware. The same hardware can be utilized in the cloud. The deployment guides that we get from Aruba are excellent. We have every piece of detail.

Read full review

Gabriele-Pizzigati

Senior Software and Systems Engineer at SAMU.IT

Managing installations through one interface enhances efficiency but AI features improvement

Ubiquiti Wireless LAN is reliable and offers a good quality product. It provides one interface to manage all installations, allowing me to monitor all customers through the same web interface. The web interface in the controller allows for quick configuration of devices with just one click, which is a significant advantage.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The most valuable features of the solution are in the areas like routing and VLAN."

"The solution provides a very good end-user experience."

"It is easy to use, manage, and implement."

"The solution is stable, and we are satisfied."

"The access it grants to wifi is the solution's most valuable feature."

"The technical support from Aruba is of high quality, and I would rate it a ten."

"You can handle all of the access points at once virtually instead of manually handling each one. You're able to populate all of the information to all of the access points through the virtual controller as well. It transforms everything it a single access point, which simplifies things."

"We like being able to merge Aruba Instant to mobile via Bluetooth. You are also able to perform a lot of functions remotely such as creating an SSID IP."

More Aruba Instant pros

"The solution is scalable."

"The solution is not complex to deploy."

"The solution has a lot of great features."

"The main advantage of Ubiquiti WLAN is the network management. The whole concept has one complete range of products from end to end, with very basic and effective management systems. That's a key benefit in my mind. But the main thing is that it's so competitive—far more competitive than the other leading American brands."

"I use Ubiquiti WLAN because it's cheap and performs well. The range is its best feature for improving network performance."

"The ease of use and simplicity of the solution is its most valuable feature. This tool is best suited for small environments."

"Great management interface."

"Ubiquiti Wireless LAN is reliable and offers a good quality product."

More Ubiquiti WLAN pros

Cons

"There is a problem in the preferred portal access points when I'm using the portal."

"There is an issue with flooding to the Aruba access point on the ports."

"Aruba Instant should not have a limit on users for future releases."

"For on-premises, I would rate the scalability a seven out of ten. For on-prem, if I want to integrate two more controls, and I want to extend my network , and add a couple of access points that need to be integrated with my network, I have to do the configurations and all. So that will be each and every time, as and when the users expand, the Wi-Fi solution expands; I need to do the configuration settings on all other controllers."

"It is not powerful enough and lacks features recommended for larger dimensions, making it unsuitable for big companies with requirements like 100 access points."

"The reach of the solution could be improved. It could be a bit stronger."

"The solution should be able to support more users on the access points."

"The security features must be improved."

More Aruba Instant cons

"The product must provide better warranties."

"The solution could improve by having a cloud version. A cloud version is the easiest to configure anywhere in the world."

"The solution should support a larger bandwidth or distance between the access points and the main stations."

"Ubiquiti WLAN is not a cheap solution."

"When I started to upgrade, the controller for Unbuntu was really struggling to start up, however, that has since been solved."

"The strength of the signal from the access points could be improved."

"When they release new products, you should know if there backward compatibility, or do you have to replace the entire forklift, It is useful to understand their strategy and where they are headed."

"Cloud management is one feature that should be included in the next release. This tool is best suited for small environments, not large and complex ones."

More Ubiquiti WLAN cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Some aspect of the price of Aruba Instant is very economical because if the customer is requiring more features the customer needs to pay a higher amount."

"The setup cost varies based on each organization's requirements but it is within reason."

"Aruba Instant is a free subscription with a limited lifetime warranty."

"Avoid the Central cloud license if you can."

"I would rate the pricing a five out of ten, where one is cheap and ten is expensive."

"I purchased the hardware and there are no monthly or yearly licenses to buy."

"In my region right now, Aruba Instant comes with a default two-year cloud access license."

"The product has increased its pricing by at least 30 percent."

More Aruba Instant pricing and cost advice

"Its cost is reasonable."

"It’s an expensive product but has all the essential qualities and functionality."

"I rate the pricing an eight on a scale of one to ten, where one is cheap, and ten is expensive."

"There is no licensing cost for this solution."

"Ubiquiti WLAN is a low-priced product."

"It is a stand-alone price."

"The tool is affordable."

"The tool's price is good and falls somewhere in the middle."

More Ubiquiti WLAN pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

15%

Comms Service Provider

Manufacturing Company

Financial Services Firm

Computer Software Company

13%

Comms Service Provider

Manufacturing Company

Educational Organization

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

Questions from the Community

Which is better - Ubiquiti WLAN or Aruba Instant?

We researched Ubiquiti and Aruba when looking for a WLAN solution. Ubiquiti offers good WLAN access both indoors and outdoors. It provides an enterprise-level WIFI while remaining cost-effective. U...

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What do you like most about Aruba Instant?

I find network management features related to monitoring Wi-Fi usage and visited sites particularly valuable. Content filtering is also important to prevent access to malicious or inappropriate web...

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Aruba Instant?

The licensing costs depend on the product. The smaller switch is around one hundred and twenty euros. We do not sell very expensive devices as we move to other products.

See all answers

Is Ubiquiti Wireless better than Ruckus Wireless WAN?

Ubiquiti Wireless is extremely easy to set up and is an excellent option for small businesses, offering enterprise features for a one-time fee and no ongoing licensing fees. Ubiquiti Wireless is ve...

See all answers

What do you like most about Ubiquiti WLAN?

Anyone can buy the product off the shelf and configure it.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Ubiquiti WLAN?

Ubiquiti is affordable, as it does not require recurring licensing fees. It only requires purchasing the appliance itself, making it a cost-effective solution for wireless deployment.

See all answers

Comparisons

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Compared 41% of the time

Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN vs Aruba Instant

Compared 14% of the time

Ruckus Wireless vs Aruba Instant

Compared 13% of the time

Huawei Wireless vs Aruba Instant

Compared 11% of the time

Aruba Instant On Access Points vs Aruba Instant

Compared 4% of the time

More Aruba Instant Competitors

Fortinet FortiAP vs Ubiquiti WLAN

Compared 21% of the time

Huawei Wireless vs Ubiquiti WLAN

Compared 18% of the time

Aruba Wireless vs Ubiquiti WLAN

Compared 15% of the time

Ruckus Wireless vs Ubiquiti WLAN

Compared 10% of the time

WatchGuard Secure Wi‑Fi vs Ubiquiti WLAN

Compared 2% of the time

More Ubiquiti WLAN Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Aruba Instant

March 2025

Download Aruba Instant product report

Buyer's Guide

Ubiquiti WLAN

March 2025

Download Ubiquiti WLAN product report

Overview

Aruba Instant delivers the only controllerless Wi-Fi solution that is easy to set-up, and loaded with security and smarts needed to accelerate your business without breaking your budget.

Hewlett Packard Enterprise

UniFi is a revolutionary Wi-Fi system that combines Enterprise performance, unlimited scalability, a central management controller and disruptive pricing.

Ubiquiti Networks

Sample Customers

Purdue University, Orlando Magic, Brussels Airport Company, Molecaten Holiday Parks

NASCAR Grand-AM, Maritime Parc, Outdoor Music Festival, One Republic Tour, British Armed Forces, Arcadia School District, Bartlett School District, Universidad del Azuay, Estelar Hotels, Intercontinental Bali, Moscow - Enforta, Miami - Sling Broadband, Manhattan - MST, Ecuador - Aire.EC

Buyer's Guide

Aruba Instant vs. Ubiquiti WLAN

March 2025

Free Report: Aruba Instant vs. Ubiquiti WLAN

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We monitor all Wireless LAN reviews to prevent fraudulent reviews and keep review quality high. We do not post reviews by company employees or direct competitors. We validate each review for authenticity via cross-reference with LinkedIn, and personal follow-up with the reviewer when necessary.