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National Instruments (NI) Oscilloscopes vs Rohde & Schwarz Oscilloscopes comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

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

National Instruments (NI) O...
Ranking in Oscilloscopes
7th
Average Rating
8.6
Number of Reviews
10
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Rohde & Schwarz Oscilloscopes
Ranking in Oscilloscopes
1st
Average Rating
8.2
Number of Reviews
13
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of September 2026, in the Oscilloscopes category, the mindshare of National Instruments (NI) Oscilloscopes is 4.4%, up from 1.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Rohde & Schwarz Oscilloscopes is 13.0%, up from 7.9% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Oscilloscopes Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Rohde & Schwarz Oscilloscopes13.0%
National Instruments (NI) Oscilloscopes4.4%
Other82.6%
Oscilloscopes
 

Featured Reviews

AA
Senior Technical Officer at a tech services company with 1,001-5,000 employees
I have saved almost 50 percent of my total budget for a project by using their products
The use of this solution does require a specific mindset. Some people are not tailored for it. Try it. The learning curve is really fast, so it's easy to use. We are measuring RF signals, one-sided analog signals, and control loops for system controls. We are not using this product to support connected devices nor are we planning to going forward.
SH
Works at Harrison Laboratories Inc
Designing audio circuits has benefited from rich measurements but reliability still needs improvement
A quick specific example of an electronic design task where I used Rohde & Schwarz Oscilloscopes is a digital amplifier. I found the basics for my needs to be met by Rohde & Schwarz Oscilloscopes, but it did have a nice large display. I liked the large display. It was reasonably intuitive for all that it did. I liked the fact that it had 16 extra digital inputs on the side that you could clip on to, so it had plenty of channels. It probably helped with specific tasks or saved me time due to the fact it had data recording. I could record data for a period of time. It had a long memory for a particular waveform.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"It helps us to save on our investment with a lot of the stuff that we buy, as we can find defects quickly."
"It saves me a lot of time. You can click a button and walk away, basically doing a week's worth of work in 20 minutes, it's a pretty good time saver."
"The user interface is absolutely great. It creates an easy working environment because it has well-integrated hardware and software. So, it is easy to use."
"I chose this solution because it integrates a lot of functionality in one piece of equipment."
"We haven't need technical support yet because all documentation is well done and there."
"It took us less than a week to get integrated into the solution, which is very fast."
"It speeds up the process to develop test software."
"The user interface is very good. Their boards are reliable. We buy boards from them, they are reliable, and we don't have problems with them."
"It is a more efficient, easier way to do measurements."
"I have been able to do quality measurements that I have been unable to achieve with the equipment from some other vendors."
"It is easy to connect with, accurate, reliable, and hardly fails."
"With this machine, it's easier for us to debug or clarify where the noise source could be because of its accuracy."
"Save up your money and get one."
"The noise floor for reference clocks is pretty low, so this instrument is able to measure it where others cannot."
"The characterization of RF channels was helpful... The user interface was very simple to operate and there were a lot of tutorials."
"Most of the features offered are free, like serial data analyzers or jitter measurements."
 

Cons

"There is a learning curve. It takes one to two months to get acclimated to the tool."
"It took a good year until I felt proficient using the product, as It is a complex program. Their newest version has a less steep learning curve, but back closer to 15 years ago, it was a lot less user-friendly."
"The price is a little steep."
"I would like more competitive pricing."
"I would like to have more RF. They're going that way, but still there is some work that they have to do."
"There is a learning curve."
"The software has room for improvement."
"I would like to see more of a tasking user base and documentation inside the instrument itself, rather than having to go online for it."
"The size of the unit is too big, too heavy. It has to be made more portable and smaller."
"The pricing is too high."
"The depth the the user GUI could be improved. It is a bit deep for new users. During the first two weeks we spent a lot of time finding the tabs."
"Sometimes, it's difficult to find menus on the user interface."
"The user interface could be improved, e.g., the documentation on the menus. I have to open a separate document to figure out the functionality sometimes."
"In the next release, I would like to see report generation. It would make it a lot easier to refer back to and, when doing final testing, seeing what went on during the pre-test would help."
"The Rohde & Schwarz user interface is very oriented towards drop and drag functions on the screen. Some of those are just not obvious how to use. You have to have somebody get you over the hump."
"User interface is okay. I would probably rate it a seven out of ten."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It's a bit expensive. However, you get the entire package, not just the box. It's a box which supports older releases."
"The price is a little steep. A lot of people, like our customers, use a different machine because of the price. The price has to come down a bit so we can do other tests without paying the equipment's high costs."
"It's reasonably priced for what we spend our money on in the lab. It's one of the lower-end purchases."
"The pricing was good. Compared to the others, it was very good."
"I would like more competitive pricing."
"These products are a very low-cost, effective alternative to traditional Big Iron ATE hardware."
"They have an initial investment cost, which is quite high. But, along the way, there is so much behind it that the product is really invaluable."
"I have saved almost 50 percent of my total budget for a project by using their products."
"When we chose this, the price was really reasonable, and it is a high-end product. It had a high price, but we understood that because it has 8 port, the same noise floor (as the competition) with double the measurement capabilities and a cheaper price."
"The pricing is expensive, but very fair when you look at the technology that you are getting. These are higher-end pieces which have a ton of engineering in them that is not evident on the package. However, you could imagine the amount of time that the vendor has spent on the firmware, optimizing the internal layout, developing custom ICs, etc. They're releasing a mass produced product, but these things are built to last."
"One of the things I liked less, not only me but also my company, was that Rohde & Schwarz are very expensive... There are solutions that are almost the same that sell at better prices."
"The pricing is too high."
"If we are looking to purchase a product, we ask for a loaner for a month or so to test it out. Then, we will make a decision."
"The pricing is very expensive."
"The pricing is way too expensive."
"Buying Rohde & Schwarz gear is like buying a Mercedes. It raises eyebrows when you're asking for that level of performance."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Legal Firm
26%
Healthcare Company
10%
Construction Company
10%
Comms Service Provider
10%
Manufacturing Company
16%
Government
10%
Outsourcing Company
10%
Comms Service Provider
9%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business3
Large Enterprise7
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business5
Midsize Enterprise1
Large Enterprise6
 

Questions from the Community

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Rohde & Schwarz Oscilloscopes?
My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing is that I think Rohde & Schwarz Oscilloscopes are a little bit pricey. Especially, I don't prefer buying Chinese scopes, but Rigol seems to...
What needs improvement with Rohde & Schwarz Oscilloscopes?
Based on my experience, I would improve Rohde & Schwarz Oscilloscopes by enhancing customer service. I would like to add more about the needed improvements regarding reliability, from at least ...
What is your primary use case for Rohde & Schwarz Oscilloscopes?
My main use case for Rohde & Schwarz Oscilloscopes is electronic design work. A quick specific example of an electronic design task where I used Rohde & Schwarz Oscilloscopes is a digital a...
 

Also Known As

NI Oscilloscopes
RT Series
 

Overview

Find out what your peers are saying about National Instruments (NI) Oscilloscopes vs. Rohde & Schwarz Oscilloscopes and other solutions. Updated: September 2026.
914,322 professionals have used our research since 2012.