Juniper Session Smart Router vs Meraki SD-WAN comparison

The compared Juniper and Cisco solutions aren't in the same category. Juniper is ranked #6 in R , with an average rating of 9.0, and holds a 1.8% mindshare in the category. Cisco is ranked #1 in SDN , with an average rating of 8.7, and holds a 15.1% mindshare. Additionally, 100% of Juniper users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 97% of Cisco users who would recommend it.

Juniper Session Smart Router

Read 5 Juniper Session Smart Router reviews

1,299 Views
117 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Meraki SD-WAN

Read 80 Meraki SD-WAN reviews

3,086 Views
1,420 Comparison Views

97% willing to recommend

Juniper Session Smart Router

Meraki SD-WAN

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Juniper Session Smart Router and Meraki SD-WAN based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

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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

Juniper Session Smart Router

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

4.2

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Routers (6th), Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions (14th)

Meraki SD-WAN

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

6.8

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Software Defined Networking (SDN) (1st)

Mindshare comparison

While both are Enterprise Networking solutions, they serve different purposes. Juniper Session Smart Router is designed for Routers and holds a mindshare of 1.8%, up 0.5% compared to last year.
Meraki SD-WAN, on the other hand, focuses on Software Defined Networking (SDN), holds 15.1% mindshare, down 23.9% since last year.

Routers Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
Juniper Session Smart Router	1.8%
MikroTik Routers and Switches	20.3%
Cisco Enterprise Routers	15.0%
Other	62.9%

Routers

Software Defined Networking (SDN) Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
Meraki SD-WAN	15.1%
Cisco ACI	11.4%
Juniper Contrail Networking	7.6%
Other	65.9%

Software Defined Networking (SDN)

Featured Reviews

Bashir Bashir

IT Manager at Vegol

Real-time visibility has strengthened network control and supports long-term enterprise use

Juniper Session Smart Router could improve its documentation to become more competitive. It has very little documentation, and you have to rely mainly so much on support to do something, which I feel should not be that way. Otherwise, functionality-wise, I feel it is perfect. It is way high and expensive; that is why most of my clients on the lower end, I cannot suggest Juniper. It is too pricey. Of late, I am seeing them changing the interface; the UI is changing, and that is a good thing. But still, I feel you can standardize the syntax to be in line with the rest of them.

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Mageshwaran S

Solution Architect at airtel

Experienced streamlined network management with enhanced usability and room for improved security features

On the security features, when compared to Fortinet, they have more patterns and AI-generated ones. Meraki SD-WAN is slowly implementing AI, but it is not yet full-fledged. If AI comes into the picture, it will be helpful. I work with Fortinet where with a single command you can deploy the entire SD-WAN along with FortiGuard within minutes. For AI, it can discover and connect, but currently, we are doing it manually. In Meraki SD-WAN, some features require additional licenses and subscriptions. If these were bundled together, such as 10 or 20 licenses, it would be very helpful for a mini branch or small campus area coverage.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"For telecom companies, I think zero-trust segmentation is the way to go because if you allow anything that you do not understand, then it becomes a problem."

"As compared to the other major vendors in the SD-WAN market, such as VeloCloud, Cisco, and others, the tunnel-free and secure vector routing technology is its major USP, which gives plenty of room to discuss with the customer why IPSec from 1998 is a bit outdated."

"Customer service is very prompt."

"Because we are talking directly to engineers in the US, the support is usually the best you can possibly get."

"The most valuable feature of Juniper Session Smart Router is its unique SDR channel."

"The solution is especially Session's smart, application-aware, AI-based."

"They provided us with a customized product according to our requirements."

"The most valuable feature is application awareness."

"Meraki can react fast to emerging trends."

"For medium-sized and larger enterprises, Meraki is a very good choice."

"The best feature we're using is the packet shaping."

"Meraki SD-WAN is stable and the performance is good."

"The features of SD-WAN are very appealing because you have a centralized dashboard and multiple options to terminate. You have an internet leased line, which means that you can connect your broadband and 3G and 4G cellular networks on the same router. This makes it easy for us to manage everything on a single dashboard. That is, you can integrate multiple stacks in such a way that you do not have to maintain any other dashboard. You get single-pane-of-glass accessibility with Meraki."

"I believe this solution does a perfect job, it delivers what it's supposed to do and it's secure."

"The centralized console manageable from the cloud is one of the advantages."

More Meraki SD-WAN pros

Cons

"Juniper Session Smart Router can improve the integration for Wi-Fi devices and add additional Sassy deployments."

"Juniper Session Smart Router could improve its documentation to become more competitive. It has very little documentation, and you have to rely mainly so much on support to do something, which I feel should not be that way."

"The UI of the SSR conductor is the main part where improvements can be done. Today, for every configuration step, you have to do a series of clicks. What we are missing there are wizards. For example, I have two applications, and I want one application to be prioritized against the other. In such a case, a wizard for assigning policies to a service without configuring each step by hand would be very helpful. There should be an overhaul of the GUI of the conductor. The functionality they have got in the Mist portal should be baked into the conductor itself. It would be really great, but as we all know, that won't happen."

"Juniper Session Smart Router could be better in terms of software performance."

"The UI of the SSR conductor is the main part where improvements can be done. Today, for every configuration step, you have to do a series of clicks."

"Regarding improvement, we still need to see what it can do."

"We'd like features that provide more transparency when there are issues. Right now, it's hard to get clarity on problems. We need more visibility."

"I would like improved stability in Meraki SD-WAN."

"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 have a lot of problems with distribution. The late deliveries likely have to do with the time it takes for the fabrication of components. It is a principal problem at this moment."

"I'd like to see improvements in the client VPN area. Currently, we use L2TP over IPSec, which, while widely supported, can be buggy on Windows due to Microsoft's implementation, not Meraki's."

"The solution needs to enact more advanced protections."

"I think they should enhance the security."

More Meraki SD-WAN cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"We are currently renegotiating the offer for the licenses and the license bundle model. The license for an ISP has to be different from the license for an end customer. This is something we are currently renegotiating with Juniper, but, of course, the pricing for the licensing is always an issue when you want to get more customers."

"It is a simple bandwidth-based license and the orchestration comes bundled with the solution by default."

"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."

"Meraki solutions come with a choice of several different subscription options including one year, three years, five years, seven years, and ten years."

"The license model may need improvement."

"The product is not expensive."

"The licenses cost a fortune."

"The price of this solution is good, it is not expensive."

"Meraki's pricing is on the higher side, which may limit who can afford to use them."

"I don't have information on the exact cost of Meraki SD-WAN, but I'd rate it a three out of five just because the licensing model is very much associated with the Meraki solution."

More Meraki SD-WAN pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Manufacturing Company

20%

Comms Service Provider

12%

Financial Services Firm

Computer Software Company

Manufacturing Company

Comms Service Provider

Government

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

No data available

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	38
Midsize Enterprise	13
Large Enterprise	32

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with Juniper Session Smart Router?

I did not find any problem with Juniper. Regarding improvement, we still need to see what it can do.

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Juniper Session Smart Router?

We are using it as a DNG. This means all subscriber PPPoE sessions or ILS Smart VPN connections are terminated through the access network to this BNG, Uniphore BNG. From there, they are managed.

See all answers

What advice do you have for others considering Juniper Session Smart Router?

On a scale of one to ten, I rate the solution nine.

See all answers

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.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Meraki SD-WAN?

When compared for the long run, it is reasonable, but for the short term, such as one year, it is costlier, especially compared to other OEMs such as FortiGate. If the license expires in FortiGate,...

See all answers

What needs improvement with Meraki SD-WAN?

The pricing of Meraki SD-WAN depends compared to which vendors, because it's a bit pricey, so not all retail would go for it unless it's a big retail company, but it depends on your comparison. I u...

See all answers

Comparisons

Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN vs Juniper Session Smart Router

Compared 13% of the time

VMware VeloCloud SD-WAN vs Juniper Session Smart Router

Compared 8% of the time

Aruba EdgeConnect SD-WAN Platform vs Juniper Session Smart Router

Compared 7% of the time

MikroTik Routers and Switches vs Juniper Session Smart Router

Compared 7% of the time

More Juniper Session Smart Router Competitors

Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN vs Meraki SD-WAN

Compared 18% of the time

Omada Cloud SDN vs Meraki SD-WAN

Compared 14% of the time

Cradlepoint NetCloud vs Meraki SD-WAN

Compared 12% of the time

VMware VeloCloud SD-WAN vs Meraki SD-WAN

Compared 11% of the time

VMware NSX vs Meraki SD-WAN

Compared 2% of the time

More Meraki SD-WAN Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Routers

March 2026

Download Juniper Session Smart Router product report

Buyer's Guide

Meraki SD-WAN

March 2026

Download Meraki SD-WAN product report

Also Known As

128T Networking Platform, 128 Technology SD-WAN, Juniper SSR Series

No data available

Overview

The 128T Networking Platform (128T) natively provides network-based security, control, and insight across data centers, wide-area networks (WAN), and edge locations for enterprises, service providers, and cloud companies alike. 128T is reshaping the way organizations design, deploy, and operate real-world networks by making them dramatically simpler, smarter, and more secure — it’s going to fix the router — and ultimately the network — as we know it.

Juniper

Software-defined WAN is a new approach to network connectivity that lowers operational costs and improves resource usage for multi-site deployments, allowing network administrators to use bandwidth more efficiently and ensure the highest possible level of performance for critical applications without sacrificing security or data privacy. For more information on deploying and configuring SD-WAN on the Meraki MX Security Appliance, see the Meraki SD-WAN Deployment Guide.

Cisco

Sample Customers

Revation Systems

École Jeannine Manuel

Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco, MikroTik, Huawei and others in Routers. Updated: March 2026.

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