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Aruba Networks Wireless WAN vs Fortinet FortiExtender comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Feb 4, 2025

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 Networks Wireless WAN
Ranking in Wireless WAN
4th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.3
Number of Reviews
51
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Fortinet FortiExtender
Ranking in Wireless WAN
6th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.3
Number of Reviews
11
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of November 2026, in the Wireless WAN category, the mindshare of Aruba Networks Wireless WAN is 14.1%, up from 6.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Fortinet FortiExtender is 8.2%, up from 4.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Wireless WAN Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Aruba Networks Wireless WAN14.1%
Fortinet FortiExtender8.2%
Other77.7%
Wireless WAN
 

Featured Reviews

Edward Zeng - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Network Engineer at Auckland University of Technology
Faced deployment successfully but configuration complexity needs to be reduced
I think the layout is a bit complicated. There are so many different layers to set up, and it is very easy to miss out or make configuration mistakes because they are hierarchical. You need to be very careful about which one has been in use. Aruba ClearPass is also complicated as well. If Aruba could combine all of their products together, it would be great to have a single pane of glass. Currently, the Aruba sensor does not work together with other products. There is no single pane of glass for location configuration, so you need to log into different websites to check the user experience.
SyedQuadri - PeerSpot reviewer
IT director at Sajaya Medical Care Services
Has supported multi-branch connectivity effectively and still has potential for deeper feature utilization
Centralized management via FortiManager for my organization is very useful and a must-have. I have used Sophos Central as a manager and Fortinet manager as well. I believe Fortinet Manager has more in-depth features compared to Sophos or some other manager. The threat intelligence integration in Fortinet FortiExtender helps me to meet my industry's compliance standards. Fortinet FortiExtender brought many benefits to my organization. It was a very useful solution for us to have such a service.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The most valuable feature is reliability."
"The solution’s stability is rock solid."
"The newest features and options allow us to use leading-edge functionality like the central mobility controller which can manage everything instead of having the independent or basic cellular kind of setup."
"The solution works well and it does what we need it to do."
"Aruba Networks Wireless WAN is stable and good."
"I have found the technical support to be one of the most valuable features."
"It's stable and reliable."
"It works well. It is reliable."
"The overall stability deserves a perfect rating."
"You don't need to have two different vendors to interoperate and get into comparability issues or inter-operability issues."
"With Fortinet, it's cheaper and we don't sacrifice quality."
"The initial setup was was just beautiful. It was straightforward."
"Management can be carried out from a central point."
"Centralized management via FortiManager for my organization is very useful and a must-have."
"The product is easy to use and easy to integrate."
"Having the FortiExtender as a part of an SD-WAN topology is a major competitive value."
 

Cons

"Aruba's technical support has room for improvement."
"The most significant issue is that there is no monitoring in Mobility Master and the controller."
"Deployment can take some time if you haven't planned well."
"It would be better for customers if Aruba provided more license options, like 5-year licenses"
"We have had stability issues with some types of portable devices."
"The initial setup has a lot of options, which makes it very versatile yet very complicated to install. There should be two modes: a basic mode and then a more advanced mode to help make implementation easier. Most of the time, if it's a small installation, you don't need the complexity. You shouldn't need higher expertise in order to install a couple of access points in a single place."
"Traffic optimization is required in the future."
"From the commercial-side the pricing side is fine but in other aspects, it could be lowered."
"The Fortinet FortiExtender should be more suitable for outdoor use. Currently, the vehicle model can be used outdoors, but there are no dedicated outdoor devices."
"The solution would be a lot better if it was a little bit more intuitive. Additionally, the help menu would be a lot better if it was easier to identify the items that I was looking for. I find the graphical interface a little bit difficult to navigate. And I find the font that is used on the HTML interface not conducive to being able to be read in low light situations."
"What most of my clients are telling me is the price is a problem."
"They could improve the remote console server feature and make it more user-friendly for more users."
"In future updates of Fortinet FortiExtender, I would definitely want to see AI. They are working on the AI feature, but so far it is a great, amazing product."
"The support could be faster and more responsive."
"We would like to see some improvement in the price for 5G models, as they are currently very expensive."
"The engineering of the solution has some negative points, especially in terms of troubleshooting. It's difficult to troubleshoot when we have a problem. It's not like other products like Cisco or Palo Alto which make troubleshooting much easier."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The licenses are available as both perpetual or yearly."
"Licensing fees are paid on a yearly basis."
"That's really subject to the type of environment you're deploying. If you're doing a full controller model with 200 APs, the initial deployment could be 150 grand. Maintaining that or maintaining support for that per year could be something like 10 to 15 grand per year. In the cloud sense, the cloud is by the number of APs. So, everything is readily available."
"It is more affordable than Cisco."
"Aruba Wireless comes with the controller."
"Aruba Networks Wireless WAN is cheaper than Cisco, and the web experience is great."
"You will need to pay an annual subscription cost."
"The product's price is within range since it has a lower price."
"The solution is not that expensive."
"I've only used the open-source version of Fortinet FortiExtender, but I know that it has some features that require you to pay for a license."
"I'm not sure what the cost is. However, I anticipate that the purchase price will range between $2,500 and $5,000."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Outsourcing Company
16%
Construction Company
10%
Marketing Services Firm
8%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Outsourcing Company
17%
Government
9%
Comms Service Provider
9%
Financial Services Firm
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business28
Midsize Enterprise6
Large Enterprise18
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business11
Midsize Enterprise1
Large Enterprise1
 

Questions from the Community

Do you recommend Aruba Network Wireless WAN?
I recommend Aruba Networks Wireless WAN. I have been using Aruba for approximately a decade. It has a great centralized management system, which means we don’t need wireless LAN controllers at ever...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Aruba Networks Wireless WAN?
The pricing is not cheap. Compared to Cisco, it is a bit cheaper, but still not enough to switch over to Aruba. The benefits are not sufficient.
What needs improvement with Aruba Networks Wireless WAN?
I think the layout is a bit complicated. There are so many different layers to set up, and it is very easy to miss out or make configuration mistakes because they are hierarchical. You need to be v...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Fortinet FortiExtender?
The price for Fortinet FortiExtender deserves the highest rating.
What needs improvement with Fortinet FortiExtender?
In future updates of Fortinet FortiExtender, I would definitely want to see AI. They are working on the AI feature, but so far it is a great, amazing product.
What is your primary use case for Fortinet FortiExtender?
Since I was having FortiManager and everything, Fortinet FortiExtender was suggested by the vendor. I went through it and appreciated the product. There are plenty of things we are using Fortinet F...
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

The Pittsburgh Golf Club, Rio Rancho Public Schools, Amwaj Rotana - Jumeirah Beach Residence - Dubai, Trevecca Nazarene University
Black Gold Regional Schools, Amadeus Hospitality, Jefferson County, Chunghwa Telecom, City of Boroondara, Dimension Data
Find out what your peers are saying about Aruba Networks Wireless WAN vs. Fortinet FortiExtender and other solutions. Updated: November 2026.
921,148 professionals have used our research since 2012.