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Aruba Access Points vs Cisco Wireless 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

Aruba Access Points
Ranking in Wireless LAN
5th
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
37
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Cisco Wireless
Ranking in Wireless LAN
4th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.5
Number of Reviews
153
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2025, in the Wireless LAN category, the mindshare of Aruba Access Points is 1.5%, up from 0.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Cisco Wireless is 11.4%, down from 14.9% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Wireless LAN
 

Featured Reviews

PRADIPJOSHI - PeerSpot reviewer
Pricing competitiveness and remote management have enhanced network flexibility
One of the most valued aspects of Aruba access points is their price competitiveness; they are available at half the price of Juniper access points. Additionally, they do not require any kind of license for implementation. Despite this, many customers have their own firewall, and they can control everything from their firewall, ensuring flexibility. Furthermore, the ease of management with Aruba access points enables customers to connect them directly to their network via a PoE switch and manage them remotely from mobile devices.
GulfrazAhmad - PeerSpot reviewer
Integrates with ISE, and is secure, reliable, and easy to deploy
The main concern is the length and overlapping. We have to put on four to six access points on the same floor, and we face the issue of overlapping areas. If Cisco can extend the range of their indoor APs, we would need to install just one or two access points, and it would eliminate the problem of the overlapping area. They should provide built-in features for safe authentication. Right now, we integrate with ISE and FortiClient for this feature. We first check the NAC, and after the NAC and before the domain, a token password installed on their mobile or a physical token is required to join the network. If Cisco had built-in authentication, we would be able to eliminate one product from our network.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The solution gives good visibility into access points."
"Aruba Access Points are reliable and easy to implement."
"It offers remarkable client-handling capacity."
"The solution's support, stability, scalability, and good redundancy features are beneficial for our network management."
"The Adaptive Radio Management feature is quite good."
"Aruba Access Points is an easy-to-use solution."
"It is a reliable solution with good coverage."
"Aruba products are good. The Middle Eastern marketplace is one of the biggest markets where Aruba products are preferred."
"From my experience, I have found Cisco Wireless to be scalable."
"Our environment has many devices constantly moving within our environment—approximately 3,000 devices daily, many of which change locations every 45 minutes. Therefore, the tool's seamless handoff is valuable for us. It's one of the reasons we have stayed with the product."
"You need to learn the technology but after that the setup is easy."
"The ability to disable RRM or set hybrid RRM provides a more granular design of RF in the environment."
"Its stability is most valuable."
"This is a very stable solution that solves complex issues."
"The mobility that it provides is really helpful."
"All the features of the solution are good. The enterprise environment seamlessly integrates with Cisco Wireless. I have contacted customer service and support about licenses and other technical aspects. I have not faced any issues. The solution is good for our environment."
 

Cons

"The tool could be cheaper."
"The solution's lead time is very slow and should be improved."
"The stability must be improved."
"The support from Aruba, as well as the overall HPE unit, has been lacking. The regional head and hepatic services are nonresponsive, leading to a decline in market share. While Aruba is recognized for its top-notch quality, especially in switching technology, the services and support in the African region need significant improvement. There is a suggestion to focus on enhancing services, support, and presale activities in this region to address the challenges faced by customers, particularly in healthcare. Continued emphasis on research and development, along with addressing regional issues, is recommended for sustained success."
"I would like Aruba to provide integration capabilities for Microsoft Entra ID, Azure Directory, or other identity verification engines like Okta, Google Identity, or Ping Identity."
"The solution should provide features to integrate audio and video devices in presentation rooms"
"The disadvantage of Aruba Access Points is experienced by me when I need it to offer me a long range of coverage."
"The solution’s updates and firmware are complicated to upgrade."
"And from an administration point of view, it is a very tedious job to check on each and every control. We have around 30 or 40 controls in our network."
"It should be fully compatible with other devices."
"The coverage area of Cisco Wireless could improve. Additionally, the reports when a problem arises could be better, such as how it is done in Aruba Wireless solutions. In the Aruba wireless solutions, there are reports that are provided regarding uploads, downloads, and other internet activity that are useful. If this feature was added to Cisco that would be a benefit."
"They are a pretty expensive option."
"The configuration interface could be easier. They should make roaming easier and should fix it so that when you cross a building you can keep the signal."
"It's end-of-life, it will be end-of-support in the next two years. The APs are also end-of-life."
"There are performance issues, particularly with video calls where throughput is not great."
"The GUI could be made more user-friendly. There should also be a dashboard where it can showcase how many end-users are connected to a particular access point."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The pricing is reasonable."
"The product's pricing could be better than one of its competitors."
"I rate the product's price a seven on a scale of one to ten, where one is a high price, and ten is a low price."
"The cost of Aruba Access Points has been on the rise, which may be due to market dynamics or regional factors, such as in Egypt. Additionally, the availability of Aruba products is a concern, with a lead time of approximately twelve months. This prolonged waiting period and a lack of responsiveness from HP, the parent company of Aruba, have led to the cancellation of some orders. The supply chain for Aruba appears to face challenges, impacting product delivery timelines."
"Aruba Central is a bit overpriced for some customers."
"The product is expensive if you want it to have a long life."
"There is a need to pay the licensing charges for the product...I feel that it is a moderately priced tool that is available at a price higher than Cisco and Huawei."
"The product is costly and comes with a lifetime license. There is neither renewal nor subscription. It is a one-time solution."
"The price for this product is a little bit high, which is why I am not using the most recent version."
"I think that the solution is expensive because the customer has to pay for a full year, at a minimum, in up-front costs."
"It is an expensive solution."
"The price of Cisco Wireless is expensive and there is an additional cost for support."
"The solution is a little expensive compared to other brands."
"The platform is expensive for small-scale businesses."
"Cisco is more on the expensive side, as compared to Aruba, but I must say Cisco's quality is unmatched, for sure."
"The pricing is reasonable."
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Comparison Review

it_user212721 - PeerSpot reviewer
Mar 24, 2015
Cisco vs. Aruba Wireless Solutions
Cisco or Aruba Networks? If you are considering wireless access solutions, this is a common question that you are probably asking. You probably have sales people knocking at your door. How do you make sense of all the stories that you are presented with. If you have done any research, you are…
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
15%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Computer Software Company
16%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Educational Organization
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Aruba Access Points?
After we installed the Aruba switches, the work became faster because the network speed improved.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Aruba Access Points?
Due to its pricing, Aruba access points provide good value. They are priced at half the rate of Juniper access points for basic models.
What needs improvement with Aruba Access Points?
I would like Aruba to provide integration capabilities for Microsoft Entra ID, Azure Directory, or other identity verification engines like Okta, Google Identity, or Ping Identity. It is important ...
Which is better - Cisco Wireless or Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN?
Cisco Wireless is very robust, very rugged, and can handle indoor and outdoor coverage extremely well. We found it to be very reliable and to consistently run very efficiently. Cisco Wireless helpe...
Which is better - Ruckus Wireless or Cisco Wireless?
Ruckus Wireless offers users the benefit of being both easy to set up and get running as well as being very user friendly. This user-friendly quality also renders it easy to learn how to use and ma...
How does Cisco Wireless compare with Aruba Wireless?
On the most basic level, Cisco Wireless can offer a rather straightforward initial setup. In the span of about three hours, the basic framework can be set up. Step-by-step instructions are availabl...
 

Also Known As

No data available
Cisco WLAN Controller
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
Aegean Motorway, Baylor Scott & White Health, Beachbody, Bellevue, Brunel University London, Bucks County Intermediate Unit , Chartwell School, Children's Hospital Colorado, Cisco Live Milan, City of Biel, City of Mississauga, Dundee Precious Metals, Electricity Authority of Cyprus, Erickson Living, Goldcorp, Great Ormond Street Hospital, Grupo Industrial Saltillo (GIS)
Find out what your peers are saying about Aruba Access Points vs. Cisco Wireless and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.
849,686 professionals have used our research since 2012.