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Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN vs iBwave Wi-Fi comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Mar 9, 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 Meraki Wireless LAN
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
5.1
Number of Reviews
119
Ranking in other categories
Wireless LAN (4th)
iBwave Wi-Fi
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
12
Ranking in other categories
Network Modeling and Simulation (3rd)
 

Mindshare comparison

Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN and iBwave Wi-Fi aren’t in the same category and serve different purposes. Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN is designed for Wireless LAN and holds a mindshare of 12.7%, up 12.2% compared to last year.
iBwave Wi-Fi, on the other hand, focuses on Network Modeling and Simulation, holds 10.7% mindshare, down 12.0% since last year.
Wireless LAN
Network Modeling and Simulation
 

Featured Reviews

RezaPradipta - PeerSpot reviewer
Streamline network management with a unified dashboard for seamless device integration
The primary use case for Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN is mostly for enterprise wireless, including guest Wi-Fi and enterprise Wi-Fi. I use it across various industries with a focus on retail Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN offers a single pane of glass management. It only comes with a controller on the…
Gopi R S - PeerSpot reviewer
Enhanced accuracy in design projects with advanced three-dimensional modeling and great support
I am using iBwave Wi-Fi for a project where we are designing on campus. It is used for large venue designs such as a university campus, and my work involves optimizing and validating the designs for accuracy before site surveys Using iBwave Wi-Fi, I am able to provide more accurate results for…

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 thing to me is the stability of the product."
"I would recommend Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN simply because of the ease of deployment and its reliability."
"It enables quick deployment within all branches for the users."
"The most valuable aspect of this solution is the single pane of glass management and reliability."
"We can deploy it and check in on our customers without having an on-site connection or an on-site infrastructure for elderly customers."
"The solution ensures seamless connectivity as users move within the office. Six installed Meraki APs provide excellent coverage for around three hundred users, offering reliable speeds. Additionally, the system allows guests and users with priority devices to connect using their SAP ID. The traffic is managed through D and G controllers to meet the specified requirements for continuous connection and speed."
"The most valuable feature is cloud management."
"Provided reliability and a good price."
"The solution's 3D imaging is amazing."
"The stability and feature set of the application are top notch and can't be matched."
"Compared to other tools, iBwave Wi-Fi provides 95% accuracy and generates heatmaps."
"It can speed up design."
"I find the high-quality Heatmap generation, multi-floor, and wire mapping features to be most valuable."
"iBwave Wi-Fi's tech support is great. They pick up their phones. I have no complaints."
"The most valuable features of iBwave Wi-Fi include the critical three dimensional modeling capabilities, which are necessary for tasks like locating access points, determining their height, and cable routing."
"The 3D Coverage is a good feature that shows the signal propagation in three dimensions."
 

Cons

"The solution should be more secure."
"We're are not fully utilizing the features of Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN to know a more in-depth analysis of what areas need to be improved. However, the security could improve. It would be a benefit to be able to lock out particular clients that are trying to connect from outside the building."
"We would like to see Wi-Fi 6 support for devices sold in the Middle East."
"The initial setup was simple. However, the full deployment could be easier."
"In the future, I would like to see IP telephony in Saudi Arabia."
"Integration with the corporate LAN where Catalyst products are installed is a major challenge."
"The logging sometimes doesn't give us the granularity needed. Some of the rules are a bit more complicated. The switch ports on the routers are not individually addressable, in the sense that with a switch you can tell what MAC address is on what port but with the security appliances, you can't, which would be beneficial for troubleshooting."
"Updating the equipment and the scheme they use to bill for the license could be improved."
"I am currently looking for an alternative due to my reluctance with the reliability of this product."
"I would like to be able to see two buildings at the same time so that you can create a campus view."
"iBwave Wi-Fi doesn't have a distributor feed platform."
"It would be good if we could involve a visual while designing the backhaul."
"Areas of improvement would include more functionality in the Mobile App, expanded reporting features, and some shortcut features."
"It would do iBwave well to become more involved with their clients."
"iBwave Wi-Fi could be improved by adding a plot for overall improvement, allowing us to see where we are failing in design parameters, similar to features in Ekahau."
"The cost of the solution could be improved. It's extraordinarily expensive."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Having a good price is important when we are providing quotations for projects."
"The cost of both the hardware and licensing is high, and it is more than what I would prefer to spend currently."
"Users have to pay a yearly license fee for the solution."
"The solution could improve the licensing structure and the price is expensive."
"The cost is not so much for Wireless LAN, but when you have to get the security license, it costs a lot."
"Cost could be better."
"It's a pretty good value, but not great. Pricing is on a yearly basis for the Meraki solution."
"Its price is okay for an enterprise. Its licensing is the most painful. If you hear anything bad about Cisco, it's about that. We're supposed to be one of the resellers but had to come back down to become a user. It's really bizarre."
"The solution's pricing is cheap."
"I advise others to treat the cost as you would any tooling cost and use the monthly option as needed."
"iBwave Wi-Fi is an expensive solution, but it is worth the cost."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
19%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Educational Organization
13%
Construction Company
10%
Computer Software Company
10%
Government
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What are pros and cons of Aruba 515 Series AP vs. Cisco Meraki or Extreme Networks?
Depends. I have personally used both Cisco and Aruba so I am familiar with them. Extreme I am not, so unless they have some feature that I need or want, I wouldn't consider them. Do you have expe...
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...
How does Ruckus Wireless compare to Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN?
Cisco’s Meraki Virtual MX is a virtual instance of the Meraki SD-WAN appliance. We liked the Meraki. The Wifi APs are a great feature. The dashboard is a simple interface and easy to learn. It feat...
What do you like most about iBwave Wi-Fi?
Compared to other tools, iBwave Wi-Fi provides 95% accuracy and generates heatmaps.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for iBwave Wi-Fi?
Both iBwave Wi-Fi and Ekahau are costly tools. They're considered high in cost because the license needs to be renewed yearly.
What needs improvement with iBwave Wi-Fi?
iBwave Wi-Fi could be improved by adding a plot for overall improvement, allowing us to see where we are failing in design parameters, similar to features in Ekahau.
 

Also Known As

MR18, MR26, MR32, MR34, MR66, MR72, Meraki Wireless LAN, Meraki WLAN
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Advanced Medical Transport, Banco de Guayaquil, Baylor Scott & White Health, BH Telecom, Bowling Green State University, Calligaris, Children's Hospital Colorado, City of Biel, Del Papa Distributing, Department of Justice, Dimension Data, Dualtec Cloud Builders, Electricity Authority of Cyprus, Grupo Industrial Saltillo (GIS), Hertz, K&L Gates , LightEdge, Lone Star College System, Management Science Associates, Mindtree, NBC Olympics, Quest, Sony Corporation, The Department of Education in Western Australia, Valley Proteins
ARRIS
Find out what your peers are saying about Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Ruckus, Cisco and others in Wireless LAN. Updated: April 2025.
850,671 professionals have used our research since 2012.