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Juniper Contrail SD-WAN vs VMware VeloCloud SD-WAN comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Sep 16, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

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

ROI

Sentiment score
4.9
Juniper Contrail SD-WAN offers enhanced performance, faster deployments, cost efficiencies, robust security, and improved visibility, simplifying management and reducing errors.
Sentiment score
4.9
VMware VeloCloud SD-WAN enhances bandwidth and deployment speed but poses challenges in quantifying exact ROI and productivity gains.
The deployment time with VMware VeloCloud SD-WAN saves 50 percent compared to traditional MPLS networks.
Senior Manager at NOVA Global
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
1.0
Juniper Contrail SD-WAN support is rated highly, with responsive service and effective assistance from Juniper and local partners.
Sentiment score
6.2
VMware VeloCloud SD-WAN support is generally knowledgeable, with varied responsiveness and options from basic to mission-critical support models.
I appreciate having dedicated service engineers who manage our account and ensure any technical issues are addressed efficiently.
Senior Manager at NOVA Global
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
6.8
Juniper Contrail SD-WAN excels in scalability for large enterprises, despite security challenges and evolving competition from companies like Fortinet.
Sentiment score
7.1
VMware VeloCloud SD-WAN is praised for scalability, suitable for all business sizes, despite higher complexity and cost as it expands.
The customer base for VMware VeloCloud SD-WAN has been growing 30 to 40 percent per year when transitioning from traditional MPLS networks.
Senior Manager at NOVA Global
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
6.5
Juniper Contrail SD-WAN is praised for stability and reliability, with users favoring it over Cisco and reporting no performance issues.
Sentiment score
7.7
VMware VeloCloud SD-WAN is praised for stability, reliability, and support, with some minor issues related to updates and internet connectivity.
Overall, VMware VeloCloud SD-WAN is a stable solution.
Senior Network Engineer at evolved systems
The technical team from VMware VeloCloud SD-WAN addresses these issues promptly, making us very happy with their support.
Senior Manager at NOVA Global
 

Room For Improvement

Juniper Contrail SD-WAN needs better training, user-friendly demo, improved support, integration, marketing, and optimized cost and UI/UX design.
VMware VeloCloud SD-WAN requires improved security, integrations, cost efficiency, support, scalability, and more user-friendly reports for better access.
Unlike the comprehensive reports we receive from Palo Alto for our firewalls, VMware VeloCloud SD-WAN doesn't offer detailed reports that effectively convey the solution's benefits to management.
At Messer Manager, Network & Communications (Americas) at a manufacturing company with 5,001-10,000 employees
I would like to see improved security features, such as adding more SASE functions.
Senior Manager at NOVA Global
 

Setup Cost

Juniper Contrail SD-WAN offers cost-effective, flexible licensing with competitive pricing, ensuring excellent ROI for large enterprises.
VMware VeloCloud SD-WAN pricing is comparable to competitors but considered high due to complex licensing and additional fees.
The pricing is high, making the margin thin, which limits mark-up opportunities from the wholesale price.
Senior Manager at NOVA Global
The pricing involves licensing for the VeloCloud gateway based on the bandwidth used.
At Messer Manager, Network & Communications (Americas) at a manufacturing company with 5,001-10,000 employees
 

Valuable Features

Juniper Contrail SD-WAN boosts security, visibility, and performance, excels in cloud integration, and simplifies operations through automation and acquisitions.
VMware VeloCloud SD-WAN offers easy setup, advanced security, cloud integration, and real-time monitoring for improved connectivity and scalability.
Previously, organizations used MPLS links for 1 MB at around $200, but now they can use 4G or 5G SIM cards for half that price while achieving more bandwidth.
Senior Network Engineer at evolved systems
Its proprietary Dynamic Multipath Optimization (DMP) technology is regarded as the most powerful and valuable function by VMware VeloCloud SD-WAN.
Senior Manager at NOVA Global
Real-time application prioritization offers MPLS-like quality of service using internet circuits, resulting in a cost-effective network solution.
At Messer Manager, Network & Communications (Americas) at a manufacturing company with 5,001-10,000 employees
 

Categories and Ranking

Juniper Contrail SD-WAN
Ranking in Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions
15th
Ranking in WAN Edge
11th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
5.4
Number of Reviews
7
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
VMware VeloCloud SD-WAN
Ranking in Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions
6th
Ranking in WAN Edge
4th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
55
Ranking in other categories
Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) (13th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2026, in the Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions category, the mindshare of Juniper Contrail SD-WAN is 2.0%, up from 0.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of VMware VeloCloud SD-WAN is 7.7%, down from 10.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
VMware VeloCloud SD-WAN7.7%
Juniper Contrail SD-WAN2.0%
Other90.3%
Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions
 

Featured Reviews

IS
Solution Architect at Posteo
Has automation features but provisioning new branches or making changes to the existing ones is difficult
I've worked with several SD-WAN solutions over the past few years, and the product felt more like an automated provisioning tool. Unlike solutions from Palo Alto or other SD-WANs orchestrated by a SaaS solution, Juniper Contrail SD-WAN already had the files and built their SaaS to orchestrate the configuration. Initially, you didn't do much, but then it started adding some routing capabilities. The automation features do help with network operations. Manually configuring SD-WAN is complicated, so the automation simplifies that. However, the initial SD-WAN solution had many limitations, particularly regarding its features. At some point, the tool began looking for other solutions and bought the 128T, which led to implementing a different SD-WAN approach. It also acquired another company for its session smart router, and then it began to develop the exact SD-WAN solution on the Mist Cloud.
Mohammed Gawas - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Network Engineer at evolved systems
Enhancements in deployment and monitoring simplify network implementation experience
We are dealing with VMware products including VMware VeloCloud, Cisco Catalyst, and Fortinet FortiGate as a system integrator, handling customer requests.We utilize VeloCloud's centralized orchestration for traffic prioritization. The impact of VMware VeloCloud SD-WAN's Dynamic Multi-Path Optimization on network application performance has been significant. We have tested this feature multiple times, and it was really powerful for steering traffic and packet regeneration, resulting in better flow. We have leveraged the automatic link resiliency feature in VeloCloud SD-WAN, conducting a VoIP test scenario that involved disconnecting link A and seamlessly shifting traffic to link B without any packet loss. However, we have not sold any CPE for VeloCloud in the last one and a half years due to the impact of Broadcom's acquisition. The significance of VeloCloud SD-WAN's deployment flexibility in an organization's network strategy is critical now, as every organization needs to reduce costs and undergo digitalization. SD-WAN provides security and quality of service without needing costly links such as MPLS, and using this CPE from VMware meets the SLA the customer needs. I evaluate VeloCloud's comprehensive visibility into network traffic as enhancing the network security posture. It provides detailed information such as user IP addresses, MAC addresses, and operating systems, giving us visibility for everything related to which customer, end user, application, and link are involved. On a scale of one to ten, I rate VMware VeloCloud SD-WAN a nine.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
13%
Healthcare Company
10%
Comms Service Provider
10%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Computer Software Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Construction Company
9%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business7
Large Enterprise1
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business24
Midsize Enterprise14
Large Enterprise20
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Juniper Contrail SD-WAN?
I've worked with several SD-WAN solutions over the past few years, and the product felt more like an automated provisioning tool. Unlike solutions from Palo Alto or other SD-WANs orchestrated by a ...
What needs improvement with Juniper Contrail SD-WAN?
There might be additional features that would be beneficial to have in the Juniper Contrail SD-WAN solution, including potential design improvements and UI/UX issues that have been observed.
What is your primary use case for Juniper Contrail SD-WAN?
Some time back, I conducted research on our website, PeerSpot.com, about IT solutions, specifically about Huawei Wireless and Juniper Mist Wireless Access Points. I am not selling anything or worki...
What are the biggest differences between Fortinet Fortigate and VMware SD-WAN?
One of our favorite things about Fortinet Fortigate is that you can deploy on the cloud or on premises. It is a very stable, reliable, and consistent solution. We like that we can manage the entire...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for VMware SD-WAN?
When it comes to setup cost and licensing cost for VMware, it is on the expensive side relative to the market. We are struggling to sell VMware as Fortinet offers SD-WAN with no additional costs. T...
What needs improvement with VMware SD-WAN?
The improvement needed for VMware VeloCloud SD-WAN is in the security area. The security part is the main issue for us when selling VeloCloud compared to Fortinet and Cisco.
 

Also Known As

Contrail SD-WAN
VMware SD-WAN, VeloCloud
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Allied Pinnacle
Redmond, Coca Cola, Roka Bioscience, MetTel, Deutsche Telekom, Rockford Construction,  The Bay Club, tru Independence, Triton Management Services, DevCon, AXPM
Find out what your peers are saying about Juniper Contrail SD-WAN vs. VMware VeloCloud SD-WAN and other solutions. Updated: April 2026.
893,221 professionals have used our research since 2012.