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Cisco IOS SSL VPN vs Ivanti Secure Access 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

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)
Ivanti Secure Access
Ranking in Enterprise Infrastructure VPN
22nd
Average Rating
7.6
Reviews Sentiment
8.3
Number of Reviews
3
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the Enterprise Infrastructure VPN category, the mindshare of Cisco IOS SSL VPN is 1.4%, up from 0.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Ivanti Secure Access is 2.1%, up from 0.7% 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%
Ivanti Secure Access2.1%
Other96.5%
Enterprise Infrastructure VPN
 

Featured Reviews

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.
BabarShahbaz - PeerSpot reviewer
A cloud solution to access the corporate network with BYOD policy
Ivanti Secure Access and Zscaler provide secure access to corporate networks, their methods and features may differ. Ivanti Secure Access offers granular control over network access, allowing for on-demand VPN connections when accessing corporate resources. This means users may not need to initiate a VPN connection manually but can access resources seamlessly when accessing corporate websites or applications. This granular feature helps enhance security and user experience by providing secure access only when needed.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The solution is very easy to work with. This is its most valuable feature. They also did a good job surrounding how you configure the devices."
"The user interface is user-friendly."
"It is highly scalable, speedy, and reliable."
"The setup and installation was easy."
"The platform provides value and benefits to our organization through efficient and effective communication."
"Cisco certainly has a really strong support team."
"The split panel functionality is much better in the Cisco IOS SSL VPN than in the Aruba VPN."
"The most valuable features are that it's reliable, convenient, and easy. It always works if configured well."
"The scalability of Pulse Client is good."
"The most valuable feature of Pulse Client is integration with Google authenticator for two-factor authentication."
"It also provides an auto-connect feature. When you turn on your laptop and put it on auto-connect, it automatically connects."
 

Cons

"The configuration must be improved."
"It would be nice if we could use this not just on mobile, but on laptops and desktops as well."
"The servers should be more user-friendly."
"The only issue with Cisco IOS SSL VPN is on the price point. Price is an area of the solution where improvements are required."
"The product costs a lot of money."
"The solution needs to integrate password-less technology so that you don't have to remember passwords each time that you log in, which is otherwise tedious. We should be able to log in as long as our system is connected to the internet."
"The product’s dashboard is not good enough."
"The solution takes some time to log in because of some unavoidable security barriers, but it would be better if that could happen faster."
"Pulse Client could improve the system tokens for authentication."
"Pulse Client could improve the reports. The reports are not in PDF and we can't check the details in the reports of users who are using the VPNs."
"Ivanti Secure Access and Zscaler provide secure access to corporate networks, their methods and features may differ."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I would say it is a bit expensive, but I think it is worth the price."
"Cisco IOS SSL VPN is more expensive than the Aruba VPN, but it is worth the money."
"My company makes payments on a quarterly basis to the vendor to cover the licensing costs attached to the product. Cisco IOS SSL VPN is an expensive product. There are no additional costs apart from the licensing costs attached to the product."
"The tool is expensive."
"The solution is reasonably priced, and we have around 50% to 60% discounts from Cisco."
"It is an expensive product."
"The pricing of the solution is reasonable"
"With Cisco, there is a free solution or a licensed version of the solution with a set of endpoint services."
"Pulse Client has two types of licenses. One is subsistence-based and the second is perpetual-based. The license cost is good, it is not very costly."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
23%
Educational Organization
7%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Financial Services Firm
13%
Computer Software Company
13%
Performing Arts
10%
Government
10%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business23
Midsize Enterprise4
Large Enterprise24
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

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...
What needs improvement with Pulse Client?
Ivanti Secure Access and Zscaler provide secure access to corporate networks, their methods and features may differ. Ivanti Secure Access offers granular control over network access, allowing for o...
What is your primary use case for Pulse Client?
We use the solution to access the corporate network.
What advice do you have for others considering Pulse Client?
The tool is a preferred option for making the tunnel from these cloud VPNs. Overall, I rate the solution an eight out of ten.
 

Also Known As

Cisco SSL VPN
Pulse Client
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

MST Systems
Information Not Available
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco IOS SSL VPN vs. Ivanti Secure Access and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.
869,566 professionals have used our research since 2012.