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A10 Networks Lightning ADC vs LoadBalancer Enterprise comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Feb 8, 2026

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

A10 Networks Lightning ADC
Ranking in Application Delivery Controllers (ADC)
18th
Average Rating
7.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.3
Number of Reviews
3
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
LoadBalancer Enterprise
Ranking in Application Delivery Controllers (ADC)
8th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
30
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2026, in the Application Delivery Controllers (ADC) category, the mindshare of A10 Networks Lightning ADC is 2.0%, up from 0.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of LoadBalancer Enterprise is 4.9%, up from 3.9% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Application Delivery Controllers (ADC) Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
LoadBalancer Enterprise4.9%
A10 Networks Lightning ADC2.0%
Other93.1%
Application Delivery Controllers (ADC)
 

Featured Reviews

RONALDO DE MELO - PeerSpot reviewer
Sales Account Executive at l8
Efficient application security while optimizing connections
The initial setup is simple; it is not complex. The configuration itself is simple and can be done in a couple of hours. However, the migration of the system to A10 Networks takes longer due to critical applications. Clients prefer to move them one by one, which is why it takes a significant amount of time. The configuration itself is simple, especially for this application.
SM
Senior L3 Cloud Platform Network & Security Engineer at a comms service provider with 1,001-5,000 employees
High availability and strong security have supported our apps but advanced traffic control still improves
LoadBalancer Enterprise can be improved because the layer seven programmability is not as powerful as it could be. We cannot write code and programming on it. Additionally, access management and identity options are not available here like they are in F5 VPN. The WAF depth and analytics, such as in-depth logs and the WAF learning option that we have in other load balancers, are much easier to configure and to harden the policies and polish them. That option is not here. Fine-tuning is a bit difficult compared to other solutions. The automation and API maturity does not appear to be at the level of other load balancers. The main limitation is that there is nothing here with regards to F5 APM. There is no iRules option or policy option to manipulate the traffic according to requirements, which is a bit difficult. If an organization is basic and does not want very advanced features, then it is acceptable. However, if advanced features such as iRules are required, and complete detailed WAF monitoring is desired along with policies that can be learned and then implemented afterwards as you have in F5, then LoadBalancer Enterprise lacks these capabilities.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"It allows you to secure the application while balancing the connections for many other customers, reducing CPU usage and server load."
"Our clients appreciate that this is a security enabled solution."
"Our clients have reported an increase in revenue by around 5% on a year to year basis, since this solution was implemented."
"What I like about Lightning ADC, is that instead of having a big appliance sitting in front of the Kubernetes cluster, Lightning can pretty much go inside of Kubernetes."
"Most important for us that it makes sure that the load is distributed and that we always have access to the end servers."
"LoadBalancer Enterprise has positively impacted our organization because it includes everything, such as licensing cuts and total cost of ownership, which makes budgeting predictable."
"The user interface precludes need to be well versed with Linux IPVS command line. This make it easy for junior team members to participate in managing load balancing needs."
"The SSL Layer 7 load balancing is valuable."
"Their technical support is one of the best experiences that I have ever had."
"It helps us to route the traffic to the available servers. If we didn't have Loadbalancer we would fail to set the end-user and it would cause a failure in the cluster."
"Existing customers are trying to migrate from the physical F5 load balancer to the AVI load balancer because it is scalable and easily managed."
"With basic network knowledge, our required system functionality can be configured and maintained.​"
 

Cons

"The support from A10 should be improved."
"We would like to see some improvement in the rapidity with which we can customize security facts within the solution."
"A10 documentation is not as open and accessible as AWS and Azure documentation is."
"The documentation is pretty much closed and I think A10 crashes sometimes because initially, I was not able to set up Lightning ADC."
"It's worth the cost. It's not cheap, but it's a good solution."
"It doesn't have the bonding capability feature."
"Among the best features in LoadBalancer Enterprise, I note that some features are still not enabled compared to the on-premises environment."
"HTTP API would be really helpful, but they do have a command line api which is used over a SSH connection"
"Originally we had some stability issues with it, so they replaced it with a new box and it's fine."
"I'd like to see scalability improved; it can be costly."
"If I have to say something, I suppose they could add an automated configuration backup to an FTP location (or something similar) so you don’t have to manually do it. I don’t see this as a problem, of course, as the configuration rarely changes and we only need one backup, but maybe for other users that feature would be handy."
"Compared to the physical products, the solution's throughput is a little less."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available
"The solution requires an annual support license of $2,780 for four systems or $695 a year per unit for support not including the units."
"Licensing fees are paid annually."
"They're not the cheapest, not the most expensive, but I think value-wise, they're 100%."
"I love that they do not price on some arbitrary throughput rating where you are guessing at what the load balancer is going to handle."
"It is inexpensive, and even their “unlimited” version, the VA MAX is still far cheaper than competitors."
"I think it’s very affordable."
"It filled a requirement for our project, and it did so at lesser cost than their competitors.​"
"Loadbalancer.org is based on open-source products, but it requires money for support and other activities."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
No data available
Construction Company
17%
Computer Software Company
9%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
9%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business13
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise19
 

Questions from the Community

Ask a question
Earn 20 points
Do you recommend Loadbalancer.org?
Since Loadbalancer.org is an open-source solution, I would recommend this solution for smaller businesses that don’t have major scaling requirements and don’t have the budget for a commercial solut...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Loadbalancer.org?
I purchased LoadBalancer Enterprise through the AWS marketplace. With the licensing and setup cost, I think it is pretty good, but the overall cost is not something I am aware of. That is handled b...
What needs improvement with Loadbalancer.org?
LoadBalancer Enterprise could provide more flexibility in terms of configuration setup, making it more user-friendly when switching between other software. LoadBalancer Enterprise could work more o...
 

Also Known As

Lightning ADS
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Handle Financial
Vodafone, NASA, Mercedes, NBC, Siemens, AT&T, Barclays, Zurich, Penn State University, Fiserv, Canon, Toyota, University of Cambridge, US Army, US Navy, Ocean Spray, ASOS, Pfizer, BBC, Bacardi, Monsoon, River Island, U.S Air Force, King's College London, NHS, Ricoh, Philips, Santander, TATA Communications, Ericcson, Ross Video, Evertz, TalkTalk TV, Giacom, Rapid Host.
Find out what your peers are saying about A10 Networks Lightning ADC vs. LoadBalancer Enterprise and other solutions. Updated: August 2026.
908,858 professionals have used our research since 2012.