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ExtremeWireless vs Fortinet FortiWLC comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Oct 31, 2024

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

ExtremeWireless
Ranking in Wireless LAN
14th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
29
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Fortinet FortiWLC
Ranking in Wireless LAN
25th
Average Rating
9.0
Reviews Sentiment
8.4
Number of Reviews
3
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2025, in the Wireless LAN category, the mindshare of ExtremeWireless is 1.7%, up from 1.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Fortinet FortiWLC is 0.2%, down from 0.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Wireless LAN
 

Featured Reviews

Seungho Yang - PeerSpot reviewer
Enhanced employee access with effective wireless monitoring and seamless roaming
Our use case for ExtremeWireless is to allow our employees to access the company systems The monitoring systems in ExtremeWireless have been very effective, and they are cheaper than other products. It provides better monitoring logs and detailed logs compared to Cisco Wireless. The most…
Md.Mehedi Hassan - PeerSpot reviewer
Offers a seamless and secure WiFi experience with outstanding customer support
FortiWLC is valuable due to its security features and the seamless WiFi experience it provides. Our customers benefit greatly from the security aspect, especially since they are already using Fortinet for Firewall services. The security features are crucial for their requirements. The stability and ease of use of FortiWLC also add to its effectiveness.

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 is stability."
"Based on my experience, I would recommend ExtremeWireless to others."
"The cloud-based solution allows for easy management and monitoring of traffic and congestion."
"The cloud-based management system is valuable."
"The central control is valuable."
"The initial setup was easy."
"The security is very good."
"ExtremeWireless offers profiles, policies, and tags."
"I rate the overall solution a ten out of ten."
"It's easy to set everything up during implementation."
"The most valuable feature of Fortinet FortiWLC is the overall high quality."
"FortiWLC is valuable due to its security features and the seamless WiFi experience it provides."
 

Cons

"Technical support is an area that needs to be improved."
"The reports could prove in ExtremeWireless. However, we are in the early stages of use and we might be able to configure them better."
"There is some delay in firmware upgrades for access points. When there is a problem with the firmware of one access point, the correction might be too late."
"The ExtremeWireless WiNG Access Point on-premise is not as good as the cloud and many of my customers are switching. It is easier for my clients to manage everything from the cloud. I currently use a model of the controller that does not support any cloud functionality."
"I experienced issues during firmware upgrades, as some devices required a physical restart, which affects system stability."
"One area that could be improved is the accuracy of tracking tags."
"Wireless products, in general, have room for improvement compared to wired ones, which are more stable."
"The performance of the access points could be improved."
"Fortinet FortiWLC is not simple to configure when compared to other solutions. The design could be better."
"One thing that is lacking is, compared with some other brands, the signal is a bit weaker. Ruckus has much wider signal coverage."
"However, for massive implementations, Fortinet should consider reducing the price to make it more affordable."
"For massive implementations, Fortinet should consider reducing the price to make it more affordable."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The solution is priced well and we currently are only paying for a license for maintenance."
"The pricing is reasonable."
"ExtremeWireless is subscription-based for both cloud and on-prem solutions, and it's quite expensive."
"Our access points device is at its end of life. I can buy one more and then I must buy a new device, but if it is a new device it will not support the old virtual appliance. I would need to upgrade our virtual appliance to the next version or build a new virtual appliance with new devices, and it's not good for us. The overall licensing subscription could be better."
"The purchase of 350 access points cost approximately $250,000 USD."
"The solution has a yearly subscription, and we have to pay additional costs for technical support."
"Extreme isn't the most expensive, but it's not a low-cost solution, and because there are no big volumes, you don't receive significant discounts, making the final price higher."
"I rate the price of Extreme Wireless a three out of five."
"The price of Fortinet FortiWLC is high. The solution will be out of the market for us because the price is too high for the features it provides."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
13%
Manufacturing Company
13%
Government
10%
Financial Services Firm
6%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Non Profit
10%
Real Estate/Law Firm
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with ExtremeWireless?
There is some delay in firmware upgrades for access points. When there is a problem with the firmware of one access point, the correction might be too late.
What is your primary use case for ExtremeWireless?
We work with some end customers, and we use ExtremeCloud IQ ( /products/extremecloud-iq-reviews ) for the administration of the wireless platform. We use Wi-Fi 6 E for many users.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Fortinet FortiWLC?
I cannot disclose the license price, however, I recommend Fortinet reduce its pricing for massive implementations.
What needs improvement with Fortinet FortiWLC?
Until now, I have not observed any issues. However, for massive implementations, Fortinet should consider reducing the price to make it more affordable.
What is your primary use case for Fortinet FortiWLC?
We are resellers of FortiWLC, and our customers mainly use it in enterprise settings, particularly for chemical companies.
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

St. Xavier High School, Americatel, Diamond Light Source
Black Gold Regional Schools, Amadeus Hospitality, Jefferson County, Chunghwa Telecom, City of Boroondara, Dimension Data
Find out what your peers are saying about ExtremeWireless vs. Fortinet FortiWLC and other solutions. Updated: March 2025.
845,406 professionals have used our research since 2012.