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Aruba Wireless vs Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN vs Ubiquiti Wireless comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

Review summaries and opinions

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

Mindshare comparison

Wireless LAN
Wireless LAN
Wireless WAN
 

Featured Reviews

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.
RezaPradipta - PeerSpot reviewer
Streamline network management with a unified dashboard for seamless device integration
The primary use case for Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN is mostly for enterprise wireless, including guest Wi-Fi and enterprise Wi-Fi. I use it across various industries with a focus on retail Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN offers a single pane of glass management. It only comes with a controller on the…
Alejandro Del Rosal - PeerSpot reviewer
Software controller is very nice and provides excellent performance
Ubiquiti products are really good. I am a B2B wholesaler, and my type of business requires profit to sell to my installers or for my installers to sell to the end customers. Right now, Ubiquiti doesn't offer that. They are selling the product on their website. We face difficulties with Ubiquiti's supply chain because their products are usually out of stock. I would recommend Ubiquiti Wireless as a brand. However, we are no longer recommending it in my business. I am a wholesaler who recommends installing wireless or network solutions for other companies. I no longer recommend Ubiquiti Wireless because it is not profitable. Overall, I rate the solution an 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

"Support for both on-premises and cloud environments has proven effective for network management."
"Aruba Central is a valuable feature because I can monitor access points remotely, even if I'm not in the office."
"I have found the most valuable features are the new Wi-Fi six technology and it also integrates with triple-A solutions. It has good bandwidth and virtual control."
"Aruba allowed for the detailed control and management of an entire WiFi network from a single screen backed by a support team with local SEs who work with business partners to ensure the product's success.​"
"​Support through third party vendors or direct from HPE has been easy to manage. They are very responsive.​"
"Role assignment: Each user is assigned a different role based on the radius attributes returned by ClearPass."
"What I like best about Aruba Wireless is that it doesn't need a controller. The product also has a GUI that's easy to navigate."
"It has an aesthetically pleasing GUI for configuration."
"The solution provides good coverage and identity management. Additionally, the user interface is straightforward."
"Meraki WLAN is easy to deploy, includes a cloud controller, and updates continuously. It also offers high visibility."
"Allows for cloud-based management of your Wi-Fi network."
"Its flexibility, ease of management via the portal, and the variety of access points are the most valuable features."
"The ability to manage it remotely is the most valuable. If it has an internet connection, you can get to it. It is a great product for remote clinics. We kind of thought about doing this kind of standalone technology. Meraki is easy to manage. From a management perspective, it is the easiest to use, especially in the cloud. I like Meraki. I even have it in my home."
"I really don't have any problems with the stability of the product."
"It will allow me to integrate another system very quickly, as we continue expanding for our client."
"The interface is excellent. We've been really happy with it."
"Ubiquiti is intuitive. The management interface is user-friendly. You can easily make changes and do the things that need to be done."
"The 3x3 MIMO antenna provides excellent coverage and the product is well supported by Ubiquiti in terms of firmware updates."
"I like the price, quality, and consistency of manufacturing."
"The most valuable feature is the ease of setup."
"I would say that the user experience is pretty good in this solution as well as the roaming solution part of it."
"Ubiquiti outdoor access points in particular, are really stable, and if there are no obstructions, Ubiquiti works well."
"The range is usually pretty good, which is the most important thing to use because more or less, all wireless access points are the same."
"Ubiquiti devices are centrally managed, and you can log into the access points via SSH. If the GUI isn't working for some reason, you can intervene via SSH."
 

Cons

"We would like to declare a specific number of devices that an employee or a user can use to access their Wi-Fi."
"Improvements to the GUI, such as being able to search in the Mobility Master, would be nice."
"They should provide usage guides and solutions to frequent problems."
"The solution could be more user-friendly."
"Aruba Wireless can improve the assigning of access points. We have times that the nearest access point is not assigned but one far away. The integration between access points could improve."
"The console is difficult to use. The firewall settings could be improved."
"Aruba doesn't match some competitors in wireless signal strength. It isn't in the same class as Cisco Meraki, so I would use Cisco Meraki in situations where I need to cover a large open space. Meraki has more powerful signals going out."
"Aruba is missing some features that are available in other solutions, such as the email notifications. It's a bit complex to configure the notification part. Mainly I'm talking about the rogue WiFi detection. This email notification is crucial for us, but it isn't possible to configure with the built-in software. You need something else, like an external system log collector or another Aruba software. These notifications are essential in hospitality for PCI compliance. My colleagues in famous luxury hotel chains need that report."
"Integration with the corporate LAN where Catalyst products are installed is a major challenge."
"The solution's pricing could be improved."
"There's nothing that special about it."
"The biggest pain point is that they limit you through firewall throughput. I understand why they do it, but that really grates me. For instance, for 450 Mbps throughput, you're looking at £800 for a router, whereas if you look at the one gig connection, for some of us are lucky enough to have a gig connection, you could almost be spending £3,000 for the option to have one gig connectivity. That's one of the pain points I've got. I don't mind paying for throughput, but I should at least have the option to be able to update that throughput, maybe through extra licensing or something else. It is crazy expensive to jump through to the next one."
"The most important improvement needed is to eliminate the limitation of uplinks."
"The licensing model is a terrible idea."
"The only thing that always causes problems with Meraki is the license. It's a bit of a bugbear with Meraki, and it remains today. So it's an unusual concept compared to the other products in the marketplace, but then it does cause a bit of a nuisance from time to time."
"Our only concern at this stage is how it's licensed."
"Maybe our Ruckus access points are easier to deploy. When I want to deploy a Ubiquiti access point with the centralized appliance, we can't do all the configuration in our lab and send it to the shop. Ruckus seems easier to deploy for the moment."
"The solution has very good product lines. However, it feels like some models overlap. For example, a new model is announced after three months, and another new model is announced shortly after. So, the release cycle feels too short, and some features overlap. Overall, the products are very good and reliable."
"The external devices, the outdoor devices, are not so rugged. For example, for the weather that we have here in Florida, it doesn't hold up well even though it is supposed to be designed for outdoor use."
"Better third-party integration would be helpful because often, Ubiquity is a product that customers choose after they already have something else from another vendor like HPE."
"One area of improvement could be the inclusion of conditional forwarding."
"We need an official distributor in Egypt as we don't have one right now."
"The biggest downfall is support."
"Better security is important because we need to have some degree of control over who is connected and how we can restrict the level of connectivity."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The price of Aruba Wireless is expensive."
"The price of Aruba Wireless should be cheaper."
"Customers have to pay for perpetual licenses with Aruba controller licenses, depending on the features they are looking for."
"It's not expensive. That is the reason we switched to Aruba."
"The price of Aruba Wireless is higher than other products, but you'll get stability, performance, and functionality out of it. On a scale of one to five, I'm rating the price of Aruba Wireless a three."
"I would rate the cost as an eight out of ten, with ten being the most expensive."
"A recent change is that ClearPass licensing is superb. It counts user-based instead of device-based, for BYOD on-boarding."
"​We will be buying the ClearPass solution, which will be pricey. However, in the trial version, it has even more tools to manage a busy network.​"
"When compared to other vendors, Cisco's pricing is higher."
"The solution's pricing is a little higher."
"It could be more affordable than other solutions."
"As is always the case, the price could be better, although I do not recall exactly how much this comes out to."
"I would say that they have adequate pricing."
"​If you are wondering if Meraki can work for you, contact one of their representatives because they will do onsite trials where you can set up their system. If it does not work, you can send it back to them for no charge.​​"
"The price is on the high side when compared to Aruba."
"Cost could be better."
"The platform offers a one-time purchase cost. It has competitive pricing."
"From a pricing point of view, Ubiquiti is excellent."
"There aren't any license costs attached to the product."
"Once you purchase the solution the license is included."
"The price of Ubiquiti Wireless is affordable, we pay approximately $100 and $150 per access point."
"I like the fact that it offers enterprise features at a cheap price. If you compare it with Cisco, it has most of the features that Cisco has been offering but at a lesser price. I am satisfied with its price."
"All the vendors' prices have gone up, so Ubiquiti has gotten more expensive. In terms of price versus performance, they're still well priced, but they are more expensive than entry-level products like Tenda and TP-Link."
"The price has been fair for what I have been using it for. There is no license for this solution."
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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
17%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Computer Software Company
18%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Computer Software Company
10%
Comms Service Provider
9%
Government
7%
Real Estate/Law Firm
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

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 h...
Aruba Wireless or Ruckus Wireless?
At my organization, we researched Ruckus Wireless among other solutions but ultimately chose Aruba wireless. What di...
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 ...
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...
How does Ruckus Wireless compare to Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN?
Cisco’s Meraki Virtual MX is a virtual instance of the Meraki SD-WAN appliance. We liked the Meraki. The Wifi APs are...
Which is better - Ubiquiti Wireless or Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN?
Ubiquiti Wireless offers a wide range of WLAN products. We tested their devices before ultimately choosing Cisco Mera...
Is Ubiquiti Wireless better than Ruckus Wireless WAN?
Ubiquiti Wireless is extremely easy to set up and is an excellent option for small businesses, offering enterprise fe...
Which is better - Cambium or Ubiquiti Wireless?
For me, Ubiquiti was easy to install, configure, set up, and maintain, while also providing solid coverage and better...
What do you like most about Ubiquiti Wireless?
We had a client with a power plant. Different wireless devices from various brands caused problems. We fixed it using...
 

Also Known As

Aruba WLAN, HP WLAN, HP Wireless, Aruba Instant On AP Series Access Point
MR18, MR26, MR32, MR34, MR66, MR72, Meraki Wireless LAN, Meraki WLAN
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Consulate Health Care, Los Angeles Unified School District, Science Applications International Corp (SAIC), San Diego State University, KFC, ACTS Retirement-Life Communities
Advanced Medical Transport, Banco de Guayaquil, Baylor Scott & White Health, BH Telecom, Bowling Green State University, Calligaris, Children's Hospital Colorado, City of Biel, Del Papa Distributing, Department of Justice, Dimension Data, Dualtec Cloud Builders, Electricity Authority of Cyprus, Grupo Industrial Saltillo (GIS), Hertz, K&L Gates , LightEdge, Lone Star College System, Management Science Associates, Mindtree, NBC Olympics, Quest, Sony Corporation, The Department of Education in Western Australia, Valley Proteins
NASCAR Grand-AM, Maritime Parc, Outdoor Music Festival, British Armed Forces, Arcadia School District, Moscow - Enforta
Find out what your peers are saying about Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Ruckus, Cisco and others in Wireless LAN. Updated: May 2025.
853,831 professionals have used our research since 2012.