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Cisco IOS SSL VPN vs F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Apr 20, 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

Cisco IOS SSL VPN
Ranking in SSL VPN
4th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
8.2
Number of Reviews
48
Ranking in other categories
Enterprise Infrastructure VPN (9th)
F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Man...
Ranking in SSL VPN
5th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
17
Ranking in other categories
Secure Web Gateways (SWG) (17th), Network Access Control (NAC) (8th), Remote Access (10th), Access Management (10th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2025, in the SSL VPN category, the mindshare of Cisco IOS SSL VPN is 8.5%, down from 10.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) is 13.3%, down from 16.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
SSL VPN
 

Featured Reviews

Rupesh Kolhapurkar - PeerSpot reviewer
Offers easy setup phase but needs to improve connectivity
For our company's remote workforce connectivity, the tool was very useful during the COVID-19 situation. In general, the VPN functionality offered by the product was very useful during the COVID-19 situation. In terms of the product's ability to secure third-party access, the tool works very well. The most valuable feature of the product in terms of network security stems from the fact that the tool provides access to the whole network, and even if users give access to some special applications, it is still really helpful. The clientless access feature is not available for clients. My company installed the product for its clients. If the product offers a clientless access feature, then it is okay and can be very helpful for our company. I recommend the product to those who plan to use it. Cisco IOS SSL VPN is a reliable product. The product is very helpful for a work-from-home setup as the tool can be used to access our company's internal network, which Falls outside the network of our organization. I rate the tool a seven to eight out of ten.
Ashish Kumar Rai - PeerSpot reviewer
Offers remote access control, good GUI and easy to configure
I'd suggest improved documentation integration directly within the GUI. Right now, finding comprehensive documentation often requires going to external websites like the community portal. In the APM interface itself, they could add direct hyperlinks to relevant online documentation. This would provide easy access to admin guides and other resources when working within the GUI.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"With Cisco IOS SSL VPN, you can access your corporate data safely and securely."
"The platform provides value and benefits to our organization through efficient and effective communication."
"Cisco IOS SSL VPN is an easy-to-use and straightforward solution."
"I like to work with the CMD command line because it's easy and it doesn't take very long to configure."
"The product's setup phase was easy."
"It's a very stable solution and I'd say it works perfectly."
"Cisco VPN is easy to connect."
"IOS is user-friendly and simple. You connect to a particular VPN, and that's it. You become seamless after that."
"The most valuable feature is the virtual IP creation. It's our most frequently used feature."
"Our customers have never complained about the stability"
"The product allows us to create customized portals for your users."
"I rate the overall solution nine out of ten."
"We have seen a return on investment from F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager. It provided access at a time when we didn't have it."
"The load balancing features are valuable."
"The portal access was very good."
"F5 BIG-IP APM is relatively easy to use."
 

Cons

"It can be difficult to find service and at times we cannot connect with the internet easily."
"The graphical interface is old and needs to improve."
"The system needs to be upgraded to replace the Token Authentication software, which will no longer be supported."
"The product’s dashboard is not good enough."
"The flexibility of configurations could be improved."
"The company sets the policies for the default location, and destination, which the VPN connects. If there is a problem with one of those locations, which happens sometimes when I travel I need to have an option to select a different available location. Currently, I am unable to see that from a user's point of view."
"In terms of what needs improvement, it should have better integration. Although, it might have already been taken care of."
"Cisco IOS SSL VPN should add a sensor that can authenticate with a fingerprint instead of having to type the username and password every time."
"Cloud services are something that F5 Access Policy Manager could do better"
"The initial setup was complex."
"F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager has room for improvement in integration with other products."
"The main improvement needed for F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) is to integrate into the cloud-delivered services from F5."
"The solution’s GUI looks very old."
"In my opinion, the GUI side needs some improvement based on my usage. Sometimes, it doesn't work as efficiently as the CLI side."
"The technical support’s response time must be improved."
"F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) does not have a direction for SaaS."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is an expensive product."
"There are no pricing programs for non-profit organizations and the product is otherwise expensive by comparison."
"The licensing fee is expensive."
"The platform is expensive."
"My company makes payments on a quarterly basis to the vendor to cover the licensing costs attached to the product. Cisco IOS SSL VPN is an expensive product. There are no additional costs apart from the licensing costs attached to the product."
"FortiGate does not charge the client a licensing fee, although Cisco charges clients a couple of dollars per year for each license."
"The solution is reasonably priced, and we have around 50% to 60% discounts from Cisco."
"The pricing of the solution is reasonable"
"Recently, they have simplified the licensing"
"The product is very expensive."
"I rate the tool's pricing an eight out of ten."
"The tool is a little bit expensive."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
23%
Financial Services Firm
13%
Educational Organization
7%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Financial Services Firm
14%
Computer Software Company
12%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Government
10%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco IOS SSL VPN?
The pricing for Cisco IOS SSL VPN is based on per user. For more than one hundred users, it costs about $60 per seat.
What needs improvement with Cisco IOS SSL VPN?
Compatibility can sometimes be a challenge. There have been issues with operating systems where newer updates cause problems with backward compatibility. For instance, Windows 11 ( /products/window...
What do you like most about F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM)?
In my opinion, the GUI is perfect with the configuration options provided. F5 BIG-IP has given customization options and policy configuration tools in the GUI. It's good and good enough to work.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM)?
F5 products are more expensive than other solutions but are valued for their quality and reliability, akin to purchasing a Bentley as opposed to an Audi.
What needs improvement with F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM)?
F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM ( /categories/application-performance-monitoring-apm-and-observability )) does not have a direction for SaaS. Most solutions focus more on remote access and acc...
 

Also Known As

Cisco SSL VPN
F5 Access Policy Manager
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

MST Systems
City Bank, Ricacorp Properties, Miele, American Systems, Bangladesh Post Office
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco IOS SSL VPN vs. F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.
849,190 professionals have used our research since 2012.