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Aruba Instant vs ExtremeWireless 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
8.5
ExtremeWireless provides scalable, cost-effective solutions with 30% ROI savings, easy deployment, and excellent support for long-term use.
Overall, it's a fair pricing and good in terms of cost-effectiveness or ROI.
Technical Consultant at Vertex Techno Solutions (B) Pvt Ltd
The best ROI is achieved over a three-year term.
Engineer at NewLogics
The monitoring access and excellent support provide significant value.
Wireless Network Analyst at a construction company with 51-200 employees
 

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
7.2
ExtremeWireless support is helpful but inconsistent, with slow response times and limited availability affecting user satisfaction. Ratings vary.
The technical support from Aruba is of high quality, and I would rate it a ten.
Director and Co-Founder at Converge Systems & Services Pvt. Ltd.
I rate Aruba TAC as a 9 out of 10.
Technical Consultant at Vertex Techno Solutions (B) Pvt Ltd
I rate their support as a nine because they are very helpful when we need assistance and they strive to help, even if not the fastest.
Wireless Network Analyst at a construction company with 51-200 employees
The technical support sometimes closes cases without resolution.
Engineer at NewLogics
I would rate the customer service as a ten.
Network Engineer at a consultancy with 201-500 employees
 

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
6.7
ExtremeWireless is scalable and adaptable for medium to large enterprises but may face stability issues at higher user thresholds.
I find Aruba Instant to be highly scalable.
Director and Co-Founder at Converge Systems & Services Pvt. Ltd.
The Extreme access points handle high-density connectivity needs very well, managing lots of traffic efficiently.
Wireless Network Analyst at a construction company with 51-200 employees
ExtremeWireless is suitable for companies with a user base below three hundred.
IT executive at a agriculture with 1,001-5,000 employees
ExtremeWireless is quite scalable.
Systems Engineer at LinkAxia Networks Sdn Bhd
 

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
7.0
ExtremeWireless is praised for its stability and reliability, though some encounter challenges with firmware updates in high-density environments.
Aruba is a known name in the market providing sufficient support for all these products.
Technical Consultant at Vertex Techno Solutions (B) Pvt Ltd
They work well without failures.
Wireless Network Analyst at a construction company with 51-200 employees
I experienced issues during firmware upgrades, as some devices required a physical restart, which affects system stability.
Network Administrator at THK Co Ltd
The stability of ExtremeWireless is somewhat weaker compared to previous solutions, like Motorola before its acquisition.
IT executive at a agriculture with 1,001-5,000 employees
 

Room For Improvement

Aruba Instant needs improved security, support, interface, scalability, IoT compatibility, cost efficiency, and enhanced equipment availability with feature additions.
ExtremeWireless must enhance affordability, integration, security, support, and performance to improve competitiveness and meet small business needs.
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.
Technical Consultant at Vertex Techno Solutions (B) Pvt Ltd
An important missing feature is the console port, which allows direct management without the cloud.
Sales Engineer at SGE
I wish for ExtremeWireless to optimize the roaming capability between access points, especially for IoT devices.
Network Administrator at THK Co Ltd
They should develop more troubleshooting tools for system management.
Network Engineer at a consultancy with 201-500 employees
There is some delay in firmware upgrades for access points.
Wireless Network Analyst at a construction company with 51-200 employees
 

Setup Cost

Aruba Instant offers enterprise buyers cost-effective pricing, focusing on hardware without ongoing licenses, despite some feature-related expenses.
ExtremeWireless provides good value with both free and paid options, despite medium-high pricing and substantial hardware costs.
We do not sell very expensive devices as we move to other products.
Sales Engineer at SGE
However, when compared to entry-level market segments, the price is higher.
Director and Co-Founder at Converge Systems & Services Pvt. Ltd.
Each customer typically buys around 100 APs, which makes it quite expensive.
Systems Engineer at LinkAxia Networks Sdn Bhd
The pricing is favorable due to its flexible licensing model.
Engineer at NewLogics
The pricing is a weak point for Extreme; it is very high.
Wireless Network Analyst at a construction company with 51-200 employees
 

Valuable Features

Aruba Instant delivers easy setup, robust performance, advanced security, seamless cloud management, and cost-effective scalability with flexible deployment options.
ExtremeWireless offers cloud management, strong security, seamless integration, and stability, making it ideal for security-focused sectors.
The most beneficial features for network management are the price and the cloud console.
Sales Engineer at SGE
I highly value Aruba Instant for its ClearPass feature, which is an exceptional product for network access control and works as a NAC solution.
Director and Co-Founder at Converge Systems & Services Pvt. Ltd.
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.
Technical Consultant at Vertex Techno Solutions (B) Pvt Ltd
A single license can be used for on-premises, hybrid, or cloud, allowing for easy transition between solutions without losing investment.
Engineer at NewLogics
The most valuable features of ExtremeWireless include the management through the one dashboard management with ActionCloud IQ, integrated with Site Engine.
Systems Engineer at LinkAxia Networks Sdn Bhd
The support from Extreme is very good and helpful.
Wireless Network Analyst at a construction company with 51-200 employees
 

Categories and Ranking

Aruba Instant
Ranking in Wireless LAN
11th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.2
Number of Reviews
52
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
ExtremeWireless
Ranking in Wireless LAN
15th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.7
Number of Reviews
30
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the Wireless LAN category, the mindshare of Aruba Instant is 2.2%, up from 2.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of ExtremeWireless is 2.1%, up from 1.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Wireless LAN Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Aruba Instant2.2%
ExtremeWireless2.1%
Other95.7%
Wireless LAN
 

Featured Reviews

SreejeshSoman - PeerSpot reviewer
Technical Consultant at Vertex Techno Solutions (B) Pvt Ltd
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.
KO
Network Administrator at THK Co Ltd
We manage complex networks with seamless guest and user access while ensuring device authorization
I use enterprise connections where users need to be authorized against radius servers. This feature is common across various products, including ExtremeWireless. Generally, the network management is valuable to me. However, I am unsure how the security architecture enhances our network protection as we typically use the latest firmware for access points. Nonetheless, we had some troubles with roaming, requiring me to install specific firmware to avoid issues.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
12%
Comms Service Provider
11%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Healthcare Company
6%
Manufacturing Company
13%
Computer Software Company
9%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Government
8%
 

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 Business14
Midsize Enterprise10
Large Enterprise8
 

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 needs improvement with ExtremeWireless?
There are concerns regarding the stability of ExtremeWireless. It could be an area of improvement, especially when compared to previous solutions such as Motorola before their acquisition. Another ...
What is your primary use case for ExtremeWireless?
We mainly use ExtremeWireless ( /products/extremewireless-reviews ) for the warehouse, specifically for the Zebra handheld devices and printers.
What advice do you have for others considering ExtremeWireless?
Overall, ExtremeWireless has a lot of room for improvement. The main concern is stability. As a user, I focus on supporting the devices and ensuring they meet my client’s needs. While I do not hand...
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Purdue University, Orlando Magic, Brussels Airport Company, Molecaten Holiday Parks
St. Xavier High School, Americatel, Diamond Light Source
Find out what your peers are saying about Aruba Instant vs. ExtremeWireless and other solutions. Updated: December 2025.
879,889 professionals have used our research since 2012.