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Aruba Remote Access Points vs Cisco IOS SSL VPN comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 6, 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 Remote Access Points
Ranking in Enterprise Infrastructure VPN
10th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
20
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Cisco IOS SSL VPN
Ranking in Enterprise Infrastructure VPN
8th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
50
Ranking in other categories
SSL VPN (4th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the Enterprise Infrastructure VPN category, the mindshare of Aruba Remote Access Points is 1.0%, up from 0.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Cisco IOS SSL VPN is 1.4%, up from 0.9% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Enterprise Infrastructure VPN Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Cisco IOS SSL VPN1.4%
Aruba Remote Access Points1.0%
Other97.6%
Enterprise Infrastructure VPN
 

Featured Reviews

Theesula Majuwanagamage - PeerSpot reviewer
Efficient Setup and Strong Performance Highlight Versatile Capabilities
In terms of areas for improvement in Aruba Remote Access Points, when planning for the customer's end, you need to highlight the precautions against EMF emissions and environmental emissions, as well as power management limitations. If the user is in one direction and you're transmitting everywhere, that's not good power management. Currently, all access points provide the same power requirement to the client, but we should explore what extra mile we can go. We are facing energy crises and climate issues, along with GHG and SDGs protocols. If we highlight the alignment with these protocols, it can enhance the product quality as an environmentally friendly option. Apart from that, service-wise, every unit is the same. Users can only distinguish those requirements using spectrum analyzers; otherwise, minor data delays of one or two seconds do not matter, but for high-security or high-speed needs, it becomes significant.
Rupesh Kolhapurkar - PeerSpot reviewer
Offers easy setup phase but needs to improve connectivity
For our company's remote workforce connectivity, the tool was very useful during the COVID-19 situation. In general, the VPN functionality offered by the product was very useful during the COVID-19 situation. In terms of the product's ability to secure third-party access, the tool works very well. The most valuable feature of the product in terms of network security stems from the fact that the tool provides access to the whole network, and even if users give access to some special applications, it is still really helpful. The clientless access feature is not available for clients. My company installed the product for its clients. If the product offers a clientless access feature, then it is okay and can be very helpful for our company. I recommend the product to those who plan to use it. Cisco IOS SSL VPN is a reliable product. The product is very helpful for a work-from-home setup as the tool can be used to access our company's internal network, which Falls outside the network of our organization. I rate the tool a seven to eight out of ten.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Overall, I would rate Aruba Remote Access Points nine out of ten. I can definitely recommend them to other users."
"The most valuable feature of the solution is experienced by those working at home since they get a secure Wi-Fi connection."
"The Aruba Remote Access Points are simple, not expensive, and very intuitive for management and configuration."
"Aruba works well in large spaces, especially for manufacturing. That's when you start seeing the effectiveness of Aruba."
"There are no bad features in Aruba Remote Access Points. Every feature is customized to meet customer requirements according to their limitations, and we can make use of all features to benefit us as needed."
"Once we got things set up properly, we just need to do updates, and it just runs."
"It is a very stable tool."
"The platform has the most valuable advanced filtering feature."
"It is a product that is very robust and durable."
"The solution's technical support is very good."
"The valuable features of Cisco IOS SSL VPN are the ease of use and the speed; it is pretty fast and easy to use, definitely helps with our efficiency as it is one of our primary VPN solutions, and helps with maintaining security."
"Cisco IOS SSL VPN is reasonably priced, and its technology is flexible."
"IOS is user-friendly and simple. You connect to a particular VPN, and that's it. You become seamless after that."
"With Cisco IOS SSL VPN, you can access your corporate data safely and securely."
"The best feature of Linksys in my opinion is cost, as they tend to be more cost-effective compared to larger switches or Cisco switches."
"The solution's environment is stable and doesn't get disconnected every now and then."
 

Cons

"One thing that would be beneficial is for the Aruba Central mobile app to work more effectively. Currently, it does not function as expected when I really need it."
"The product is not user-friendly."
"The solution is costly for medium-sized companies."
"The remote access point coverage should be bigger than it is now."
"I use the controller when using Aruba Remote Access Points, particularly during configuration. Hence, room for improvement in Aruba Remote Access Points is for its web UI to be easier to control."
"Its scalability capabilities should be improved."
"There are some issues, like the VLAN capabilities and support for routing between two VMs."
"To make the solution better, the cloud solution should be more integrated as it has too many different menus, and it would be preferable to have it more cohesive in one solution."
"The pricing needs to be better."
"The company sets the policies for the default location, and destination, which the VPN connects. If there is a problem with one of those locations, which happens sometimes when I travel I need to have an option to select a different available location. Currently, I am unable to see that from a user's point of view."
"Improvements could be made in terms of connectivity for applications."
"When many people are using the internet at home, which is usually right after dinner, this type of service is a little bit hard to use. The internet becomes quite slow, and sometimes, I have to stop using this application. I am not sure if this issue is because of the application or my internet provider."
"The system needs to be upgraded to replace the Token Authentication software, which will no longer be supported."
"The administration should be improved."
"I believe Cisco could support easier configuration and having tools that allow for easier management and configuration, as Linksys switches are a little bit easier to manage and set up compared to Cisco switches."
"In terms of what needs improvement, it should have better integration. Although, it might have already been taken care of."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"There are no other expenses than standard licenses for the product."
"Aruba Remote Access Points' pricing is good and affordable."
"The price of Aruba Remote Access Points could be better. It is a little expensive."
"Price-wise, Aruba Remote Access Points is in the middle, so my rating for its pricing is three out of five."
"Aruba pricing is not very high. They offer competitive pricing for what they provide."
"You require no separate licensing to convert an access point to RAP."
"In terms of pricing, we've found Aruba's offerings to be very competitive."
"Cisco IOS SSL VPN comes with a cost-effective subscription."
"I would say it is a bit expensive, but I think it is worth the price."
"It stands as the priciest solution available in the market."
"The tool is expensive."
"The solution is reasonably priced, and we have around 50% to 60% discounts from Cisco."
"The licensing cost of the solution is on a yearly basis, and it is expensive compared to other solutions in the market."
"Price flexibility could be improved in comparison to other vendors."
"Users have to pay a yearly licensing fee for Cisco IOS SSL VPN."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Healthcare Company
15%
Computer Software Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Government
8%
Computer Software Company
23%
Educational Organization
7%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Financial Services Firm
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business8
Midsize Enterprise5
Large Enterprise7
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business23
Midsize Enterprise4
Large Enterprise24
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Aruba Remote Access Points?
This solution is widely adopted and involves both technology and non-technical devices. It is robust, except in cases of significant power outages.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Aruba Remote Access Points?
The pricing is adequate. It is available in every range, from medium range to high range and enterprise level. Thus, it is not an issue.
What needs improvement with Aruba Remote Access Points?
In terms of areas for improvement in Aruba Remote Access Points, when planning for the customer's end, you need to highlight the precautions against EMF emissions and environmental emissions, as we...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco IOS SSL VPN?
The pricing for Cisco IOS SSL VPN is based on per user. For more than one hundred users, it costs about $60 per seat.
What needs improvement with Cisco IOS SSL VPN?
It's hard for me to say how Linksys could be improved. I can't think of any specific improvements needed. I believe Cisco could support easier configuration and having tools that allow for easier m...
 

Also Known As

Aruba RAP
Cisco SSL VPN
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Trafford Metropolitan Borough
MST Systems
Find out what your peers are saying about Aruba Remote Access Points vs. Cisco IOS SSL VPN and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.
869,566 professionals have used our research since 2012.