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Aruba Instant vs Aruba 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:
 

ROI

Sentiment score
5.9
Aruba Instant provides a positive ROI by enhancing productivity, safety, and manageability, making it a cost-effective choice for users.
Sentiment score
6.5
Users had mixed ROI on Aruba Wireless, citing productivity gains yet facing early service reliability and ROI measurement challenges.
Overall, it's a fair pricing and good in terms of cost-effectiveness or ROI.
There is no need to buy additional controllers for managing access points.
There are significant time savings, around thirty to forty percent, due to minimal disconnections.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
8.2
Aruba Instant's support receives mixed reviews, praised for guidance but criticized for slow responses and integration issues with HPE.
Sentiment score
7.4
Aruba Wireless customer service is fast and professional but occasionally lacks communication clarity, especially at higher support tiers.
The technical support from Aruba is of high quality, and I would rate it a ten.
I rate Aruba TAC as a 9 out of 10.
I only needed support once or twice for a replacement, and it was handled smoothly without any difficulty.
I would rate their technical support nine out of ten.
The customer support is good.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
5.3
Aruba Instant is praised for scalability and efficiency in diverse environments, ideal for small to medium businesses.
Sentiment score
7.6
Aruba Wireless is praised for scalability, ease of deployment, and adaptability across diverse environments with cloud compatibility.
I find Aruba Instant to be highly scalable.
The solution is scalable, as multiple sites connect seamlessly.
It is easy to adapt and very scalable.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
8.6
Aruba Instant is praised for reliability, ease of management, excellent support despite rare bugs, cloud dependency, and latency issues.
Sentiment score
8.3
Aruba Wireless is highly reliable and stable, scoring 8-10, praised for handling heavy loads in diverse environments.
Aruba is a known name in the market providing sufficient support for all these products.
I have been using the product for the last nine years without facing any issues post-installation.
I don't remember it going down during the years it existed.
Aruba Wireless is stable.
 

Room For Improvement

Aruba Instant needs improved security, support, interface, scalability, IoT compatibility, cost efficiency, and enhanced equipment availability with feature additions.
Aruba Wireless needs better stability, user interface, support, affordable pricing, faster updates, and improved security and integration.
Some features are not listed in the cloud management platform and still require offline access, so enhancing the cloud management features would be better for us.
An important missing feature is the console port, which allows direct management without the cloud.
The product should be more affordable, especially the cloud and console for the Aruba product as it is currently very expensive.
While the technical specifications are satisfactory, the access points are expensive.
At the time of purchase, the prices were moderate, but now they are quite expensive.
 

Setup Cost

Aruba Instant offers enterprise buyers cost-effective pricing, focusing on hardware without ongoing licenses, despite some feature-related expenses.
Aruba Wireless setup costs are high, but maintenance is low; pricing is seen as competitive and justified by performance.
We do not sell very expensive devices as we move to other products.
However, when compared to entry-level market segments, the price is higher.
The pricing seems reasonable compared to other brands; however, it is too expensive for smaller businesses.
The pricing can be expensive.
The initial prices were more affordable compared to the current high prices.
 

Valuable Features

Aruba Instant delivers easy setup, robust performance, advanced security, seamless cloud management, and cost-effective scalability with flexible deployment options.
Aruba Wireless is preferred for its security, central management, cost-effectiveness, Wi-Fi 6, and user-friendly features.
The most beneficial features for network management are the price and the cloud console.
I highly value Aruba Instant for its ClearPass feature, which is an exceptional product for network access control and works as a NAC solution.
The most valuable feature of Aruba Instant On is that it is cloud-managed, making it easy to manage multiple locations in a single dashboard.
I do not need to buy a controller for the access point since the Aruba Access Point has a built-in virtual controller.
The Aruba Wireless solution has excellent roaming capabilities, ensuring seamless connectivity.
It has many features and is integrated with Azure AD and multiple active directories, making authentication easy.
 

Categories and Ranking

Aruba Instant
Ranking in Wireless LAN
10th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.2
Number of Reviews
52
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Aruba Wireless
Ranking in Wireless LAN
1st
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
149
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the Wireless LAN category, the mindshare of Aruba Instant is 2.0%, up from 2.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Aruba Wireless is 15.4%, down from 21.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Wireless LAN Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Aruba Wireless15.4%
Aruba Instant2.0%
Other82.6%
Wireless LAN
 

Featured Reviews

SreejeshSoman - PeerSpot reviewer
Has supported mid-market deployments with cloud-based centralized management and reliable wireless performance
I faced challenges earlier with a limitation of 50 APs in single sites, but that has enhanced to 100 numbers, eliminating that challenge for Aruba Instant On team. Additionally, some features are not listed in the cloud management platform and still require offline access, so enhancing the cloud management features would be better for us.
Muhammad_Faisal - PeerSpot reviewer
Experience seamless connectivity with top-notch roaming capabilities
The Aruba Wireless solution has excellent roaming capabilities, ensuring seamless connectivity. Once installed, Aruba Wireless works robustly without overheating issues. This is particularly effective compared to other products I've used, like FortiMonitor and FortiAPs, which sometimes heat up. I am very satisfied with the roaming feature, as it ensures connectivity when moving from one location to another. The product's stability, after setting it up, adds to its value.
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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
13%
Comms Service Provider
11%
Manufacturing Company
6%
Construction Company
6%
Computer Software Company
15%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Financial Services Firm
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business31
Midsize Enterprise7
Large Enterprise14
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business77
Midsize Enterprise46
Large Enterprise73
 

Questions from the Community

Which is better - Ubiquiti WLAN or Aruba Instant?
We researched Ubiquiti and Aruba when looking for a WLAN solution. Ubiquiti offers good WLAN access both indoors and outdoors. It provides an enterprise-level WIFI while remaining cost-effective. U...
What do you like most about Aruba Instant?
I find network management features related to monitoring Wi-Fi usage and visited sites particularly valuable. Content filtering is also important to prevent access to malicious or inappropriate web...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Aruba Instant?
In my experience, Aruba Instant's price is reasonable compared to premium products like Ruckus, Cisco, or Juniper. However, when compared to entry-level market segments, the price is higher. Overal...
What are pros and cons of Aruba 515 Series AP vs. Cisco Meraki or Extreme Networks?
Depends. I have personally used both Cisco and Aruba so I am familiar with them. Extreme I am not, so unless they have some feature that I need or want, I wouldn't consider them. Do you have expe...
Aruba Wireless or Ruckus Wireless?
At my organization, we researched Ruckus Wireless among other solutions but ultimately chose Aruba wireless. What did we like about Ruckus? First, it was very easy to use, and anybody with minimal...
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
Aruba WLAN, HP WLAN, HP Wireless, Aruba Instant On AP Series Access Point
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Purdue University, Orlando Magic, Brussels Airport Company, Molecaten Holiday Parks
Consulate Health Care, Los Angeles Unified School District, Science Applications International Corp (SAIC), San Diego State University, KFC, ACTS Retirement-Life Communities
Find out what your peers are saying about Aruba Instant vs. Aruba Wireless and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.
872,778 professionals have used our research since 2012.