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Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN vs Meraki SD-WAN comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

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

Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
92
Ranking in other categories
Network Management Applications (5th), Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions (2nd), WAN Edge (2nd)
Meraki SD-WAN
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
77
Ranking in other categories
Software Defined Networking (SDN) (1st)
 

Featured Reviews

Igor Van Den Ouden - PeerSpot reviewer
Enables secure and flexible branch connectivity with application-aware routing
The valuable features of Cisco SD-WAN include its security policies and zone-based firewall that are applied to every site, as well as application-aware routing. Security is standard compliant, eliminating config drift that was prevalent before manual configurations. Application-aware routing offers flexibility in using different lines for traffic, depending on the policy implemented.
Martyn Walker - PeerSpot reviewer
Enables productivity in terms of users and has ease of management
Scalability could be improved. Yes, you can add more than 300 or 400 sites onto it, but because it's not a true SD-WAN and, effectively, it's just a Multi-VRF, it's all hub and spoke at that point. That's the nature of the design, but that's what keeps it simple to administer. So, it's a trade off.

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 feature of Cisco SD-WAN is its compatibility and integration with the rest of the infrastructure."
"The reliability is high and we have only had to restart it once or twice over the years."
"From my observations, Cisco has been rolling out new features every other day, so I would say their speed of innovation is one of the most valuable aspects for me."
"Troubleshooting is swift, allowing for fast turnaround times whenever we encounter an issue."
"The best feature of this technology that is available to us is the ability to do better load-balancing."
"So far, the feature that I like best is the policy configuration manager."
"Huge companies use SD-WAN. It is largely scalable."
"There is minimum blind space in this solution."
"The auto VPN feature is important because it automates many tasks, making things simpler and faster. It helps with setting up devices and changing configurations without manual effort."
"The solution is pretty easy to configure."
"This product has a simple configuration that can be accessed through a web interface or the API."
"It's made managing our client's networks extremely easy, regardless of my location. Being able to hop on my cell phone to see what's happening on a client's network makes everything much more manageable."
"Meraki SD-WAN is a scalable solution because changes are being made to the solution, enabling it to work in different environments."
"It is secure, and some features, like work device management, are very useful."
"The most valuable feature of Meraki SD-WAN is the Auto VPN."
"I can manage it very well and in a very easy way."
 

Cons

"Cisco SD-WAN could improve the integration with the cloud."
"I would like to see features related to security compliance, including a view of compliance with standards. With this, I should be able to do an audit of my network with SDWAN."
"The main area for improvement in Cisco SD-WAN is the lack of documentation, which often lags behind the software releases."
"The product's application delivery feature needs improvement."
"When it comes to adding more security features, you need to add more RAM."
"Technical support could be more helpful and responsive."
"We recently found some bugs."
"The initial setup is really complex."
"In Meraki SD-WAN, we have some limitations with the traffic shaping capabilities."
"The configuration from the firewall side could be improved a little bit more."
"This solution can only support up to two WAN ports."
"The solution lacks a certain amount of functionality and features."
"Some systems use some applications with the wrong data application. It bypasses the network, and you need to block that application on Meraki. We first try to put in passwords to do it and the network is not really safe. It's not 100%, the network can be bypassed."
"Technical support could be more knowledgeable and responsive."
"The security and upgrading could improve in this solution."
"The integration with other tools must be improved."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Cisco is more expensive than some competing products."
"The license model is too complex with too many flavors and options. You might not be able to see it from an end user's point of view, but from a telco point of view, their license model is too complex. They should have a flexible license model. If you want to have good pricing, you need to buy it for a two-year, four-year, or five-year license immediately. Some other vendors have much more flexible license models."
"The price of Cisco SD-WAN could improve, it is expensive. The cost of the solution is approximately 30 percent higher than competitors."
"You can get subscriptions for three or five years."
"The pricing for Cisco SD-WAN is more expensive than other brands or solutions, such as Fortinet and Palo Alto Networks, so it's one out of ten."
"SD-WAN as a service is probably something in the neighborhood of $100 to $200 a month per location."
"The price of the solution is the only negative factor, it is much more expensive compared with the Cisco Meraki SD-WAN solution."
"Licensing is on a subscription basis."
"Pricing is a significant concern for me. Amongst all the firewall brands, Cisco is one of the most expensive options. Despite its reputation and security features, many customers opt for other brands, such as SonicWall because of their lower prices. These other brands offer similar features to Cisco but at a lower cost. Cisco's pricing is something that could be improved to attract more customers. The brand has a good reputation, but when it comes to budgeting and pricing, it is not always the first choice."
"The price of Meraki SD-WAN could improve, it is expensive when compared to other solutions on the market, such as Aruba."
"The licensing model is a fair one, although having the hardware means nothing without the license. You need to continue to pay licensing fees."
"The pricing is reasonable and we can choose the software or the feature."
"The product is not very expensive."
"Regarding pricing, Meraki SD-WAN is quite competitive, especially compared to solutions like Fortinet. However, it's essential to consider that Meraki requires cloud orchestration, which adds to the overall cost. Overall, it's one of the most competitive solutions from Cisco for SD-WAN."
"I am not aware of the licensing fees."
"For a pure SD-WAN solution, the pricing is competitive. However, our clients are on the lower tier in terms of budget, viewing IT more as a necessary expense rather than integral to their business. While Meraki's solution might be pricey for them, there aren't many cheaper, reliable options."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Educational Organization
45%
Computer Software Company
13%
Financial Services Firm
6%
Manufacturing Company
4%
Computer Software Company
20%
Financial Services Firm
6%
Manufacturing Company
6%
Energy/Utilities Company
5%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Cisco SD-WAN?
When considering the most valuable features of Cisco SD-WAN, the decoupling of self-monitoring stands out significantly.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco SD-WAN?
The pricing for Cisco SD-WAN is rated eight out of ten, with some variability depending on the reseller discounts and the size of the enterprise. It is also relatively cost-effective for smaller bu...
What needs improvement with Cisco SD-WAN?
The main area for improvement in Cisco SD-WAN is the lack of documentation, which often lags behind the software releases. This is especially notable since Cisco acquired the solution and is still ...
What do you like most about Meraki SD-WAN?
The auto VPN feature is important because it automates many tasks, making things simpler and faster. It helps with setting up devices and changing configurations without manual effort.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Meraki SD-WAN?
The price is a little bit higher than local vendors, for example, Huawei ZTE or H3C. However, some customers require the best quality and performance, thus needing solutions and products from Cisco.
What needs improvement with Meraki SD-WAN?
They have to ask us many questions about configurations. It could be improved with some automation to trigger, for example, telemetry data, so we can determine the state of the deployment as of day...
 

Also Known As

Cisco SD-WAN
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Overview

 

Sample Customers

Doyle Research, Ashton Metzler & Associates
École Jeannine Manuel
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Fortinet and others in Network Management Applications. Updated: December 2024.
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