Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN vs Fortinet FortiWLM comparison

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN and Fortinet FortiWLM based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out in this report how the two Wireless LAN solutions compare in terms of features, pricing, service and support, easy of deployment, and ROI.
To learn more, read our detailed Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN vs. Fortinet FortiWLM Report (Updated: May 2023).
706,951 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Featured Review
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 pretty generic and easy to use.""In terms of reporting, in terms of all the user reports, it's very rich.""The simplicity is great.""The most valuable feature of Juniper Wireless Access Points (AP Series) is the ability to troubleshoot ports on the network. Additionally, when there is an update on the APs they are able to reboot quickly reducing downtime. Other solutions have a longer downtime when updates are done.""With Mist, every Wednesday they roll out new features.""The most valuable feature of the solution is Marvis, the AI-driven network management system.""The most useful feature of Juniper Wireless AP is the reporting Marvis."

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"Meraki WLAN is easy to deploy, includes a cloud controller, and updates continuously. It also offers high visibility.""The most valuable feature of Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN is that it is fast and does the job.""The visibility of the site is most useful.""The graphic user interface is very nice.""You can scale the solution easily.""Meraki is a decent solution for a small company, and we use it in a pretty typical way. We need Teams and Zoom to work, and we need a high level of security because we want our business to remain confidential.""If you're trying to identify one of the switches or pinpoint a computer or pinpoint something, you could find it just like that and change the IP address. It's easiest to do it that way.""Allows for cloud-based management of your Wi-Fi network."

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"Although there are a few steps, the initial setup is pretty straightforward.""At the moment, particularly with the COVID-19 situation, the most valuable feature is probably the IPsec VPN, which is easy to implement with Fortinet.""The most valuable feature of Fortinet FortiWLM is the single management pane and integrated controller inside the firewall.""For me, the ease of setup and the rugged nature in harsh environments are most valuable. So, durability and ease of use have been its best features.""Fortinet FortiWLM is good for tracking assets, monitoring, and overall management.""The most valuable feature of the solution is the management.""The most valuable features are the roaming profile, the mesh, and the performance.""The most valuable features of this solution are its speed, reliability, and integration with the firewall."

More Fortinet FortiWLM Pros →

Cons
"Juniper Wireless AP can improve by continually improving its reporting and integration with other systems.""The product should include adaptive Wi-Fi to show a more accurate location.""I need a bit more time with it before criticizing the features.""If you want to do more specific stuff, it's a bit limited.""Juniper Wireless Access Points (AP Series) could improve if the MIST platform had a built-in master key. This would be an advantage.""The price could be better.""The solution is expensive."

More Juniper Mist Wireless Access Points Cons →

"Cisco offers pretty expensive devices.""There should be better Spanish-language technical support.""Licensing is, in my opinion, the least appealing component. It can be difficult to keep licenses up to date in order for the system to function properly.""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.""The dashboard could be a bit better. I'd like to see more information about the whole controller and APs. It should be as simple and convenient.""An area for improvement would be that Meraki doesn't work well in a warehouse environment. The device is too sensitive to other wireless devices, which provokes noise and can require a reboot to erase this.""We'd like to have better mapping to showcase low-coverage areas.""They're great. If there's anything that they need to change, it is just simplifying the site to which you go to make changes on the admin side."

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"The roaming of Fortinet FortiWLM could improve when comparing it to other solutions. We are missing some of the functionality in the controller. Additionally, they should offer more logs instead of using FortiAnalyzer because all the users will not be using the same thing.""They need to do more with their marketing. That's what's wrong with them. Nobody knows they do all this other stuff. I love the product. For an enterprise-level system, you never have to explain why you're recommending Fortinet, whereas you might have to do that if you want to use the Ubiquiti Professional or the new Netgear line, but you don't have to explain Fortinet. It has been remarkable to work with.""The pricing for the solution is expensive and can be improved.""The interface could certainly do with some improvement. We have other customers with WiFi networks, and they always use Ubiquiti. With Ubiquiti, it's a much better user interface, and it is much easier to configure.""Areas for improvement would be the compatibility with Apple products and cross-platform integration.""In the next release, they could improve by adding a controller-less server, or architecture that is provided in other solutions, such as Aruba. This would be a great benefit for customers.""The initial setup is complex and has room for improvement.""When using the FortiGate as the wireless controller, you cannot have automatic user registration, which is something that they should offer."

More Fortinet FortiWLM Cons →

Pricing and Cost Advice
  • "We pay maybe 1000 SEK per year, per access point."
  • "Juniper Wireless AP's price is a little more expensive than other solutions, but you get what you pay for."
  • "The pricing is something Juniper Wireless Access Points (AP Series) can work on. The pricing is very high compared to the competition."
  • "The pricing is too high."
  • More Juniper Mist Wireless Access Points Pricing and Cost Advice →

  • "The price/benefit ratio is great."
  • "Its price is higher than other products. It is above the expectation of customers. So, every time we need to fight for a good price."
  • "Its price is okay for an enterprise. Its licensing is the most painful. If you hear anything bad about Cisco, it's about that. We're supposed to be one of the resellers but had to come back down to become a user. It's really bizarre."
  • "The solution is overpriced and more expensive than Hauwei."
  • "The solution could improve the licensing structure and the price is expensive."
  • "As is always the case, the price could be better, although I do not recall exactly how much this comes out to."
  • "Higher subscription fee may be necessary if extra features are required."
  • "Cost could be better."
  • More Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN Pricing and Cost Advice →

  • "There is a perpetual license required for this solution and the price could be reduced."
  • "Support contracts typically cost approximately $100.00 per year."
  • "To save yourself from increased setup and maintenance costs, I highly recommend undertaking a proper site survey from the beginning."
  • "Licensing costs are reasonable. There are so many different types of licenses with Fortinet, but the licensing and the 24/7/365 support are so reasonable that I automatically include it with every transaction. I never line item it without it. There are no additional costs."
  • "The solution is expensive. I give the solution a one out of ten for the price."
  • "The price of Fortinet FortiWLM is reasonable compared to the other vendors. We are using a five-year license."
  • "In the last few years, due in part to the impact of COVID on the market, Fortinet has increased its prices by 35 percent."
  • More Fortinet FortiWLM Pricing and Cost Advice →

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    Questions from the Community
    Top Answer:With Mist, every Wednesday they roll out new features.
    Top Answer:It is a bit expensive. However, it is such a valued system, they can charge whatever they want.
    Top Answer:The price could be better. That is relative to the market right now since it is such a valued Access Point and system to… more »
    Top Answer:Depends.  I have personally used both Cisco and Aruba so I am familiar with them.  Extreme I am not, so unless they have… more »
    Top Answer:Cisco Wireless is very robust, very rugged, and can handle indoor and outdoor coverage extremely well. We found it to be… more »
    Top Answer:Cisco’s Meraki Virtual MX is a virtual instance of the Meraki SD-WAN appliance. We liked the Meraki. The Wifi APs are a… more »
    Top Answer:The Fortinet FortiWLM system can be controlled through the cloud controller, which is convenient when the solution is… more »
    Top Answer:In the last few years, due in part to the impact of COVID on the market, Fortinet has increased its prices by 35… more »
    Top Answer:In comparison to the Extreme and UBNT wireless solutions, we find that Fortinet falls short in terms of validity… more »
    Comparisons
    Also Known As
    Juniper Wireless Access Points (AP Series), Mist Access Points
    MR18, MR26, MR32, MR34, MR66, MR72, Meraki Wireless LAN, Meraki WLAN
    FortiWLM, FortiAP, Fortinet AP/OAP, Meru Wireless LAN
    Learn More
    Overview

    Juniper Wireless Access Points work in conjunction with Juniper Mist Cloud Services and Mist AI to deliver premier wireless access capabilities. The Juniper Mist Edge extends microservices to the campus to bring agility and scale while enabling new applications at the edge.

    Cisco Meraki access points are built from the highest grade components and carefully optimized for a seamless user experience. The outcome: faster connections, greater user capacity, more coverage, and fewer support calls. The Cisco Meraki dashboard gives visibility into the network users, their devices, and their applications. Armed with rich analytics, administrators can quickly create access control and application usage policies, optimizing both the end-user experience and network security.

    Consolidate security and wireless LAN management with our integrated wireless solutions. Single-pane-of-glass management for security and access without the need to add point products simplifies deployment and reduces management complexity. These solutions are highly scalable to support even the largest organizations and distributed enterprises.

    Offer
    Learn more about Juniper Mist Wireless Access Points
    Learn more about Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN
    Learn more about Fortinet FortiWLM
    Sample Customers
    Information Not Available
    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
    Black Gold Regional Schools, Amadeus Hospitality, Jefferson County, Chunghwa Telecom, City of Boroondara, Dimension Data
    Top Industries
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Computer Software Company19%
    Government7%
    Educational Organization7%
    Manufacturing Company7%
    REVIEWERS
    Comms Service Provider19%
    Educational Organization11%
    Non Profit9%
    Government8%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Computer Software Company19%
    Comms Service Provider9%
    Government7%
    Educational Organization7%
    REVIEWERS
    Educational Organization25%
    Healthcare Company13%
    University13%
    Consumer Goods Company13%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Computer Software Company18%
    Comms Service Provider13%
    Government7%
    Manufacturing Company7%
    Company Size
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business43%
    Midsize Enterprise14%
    Large Enterprise43%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business29%
    Midsize Enterprise17%
    Large Enterprise54%
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business52%
    Midsize Enterprise23%
    Large Enterprise25%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business28%
    Midsize Enterprise17%
    Large Enterprise55%
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business67%
    Midsize Enterprise6%
    Large Enterprise28%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business31%
    Midsize Enterprise17%
    Large Enterprise52%
    Buyer's Guide
    Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN vs. Fortinet FortiWLM
    May 2023
    Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN vs. Fortinet FortiWLM and other solutions. Updated: May 2023.
    706,951 professionals have used our research since 2012.

    Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN is ranked 2nd in Wireless LAN with 44 reviews while Fortinet FortiWLM is ranked 11th in Wireless LAN with 10 reviews. Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN is rated 8.0, while Fortinet FortiWLM is rated 8.0. The top reviewer of Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN writes "Highly reliable, effective site blocking, and beneficial reports". On the other hand, the top reviewer of Fortinet FortiWLM writes "Impressive manufacturing quality, highly durable, and very easy to deploy". Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN is most compared with Aruba Wireless, Ubiquiti Wireless, Cisco Wireless, Mist AI and Cloud and Aruba Instant, whereas Fortinet FortiWLM is most compared with Aruba Wireless, Cisco Wireless, Ruckus Wireless, Fortinet FortiWLC and Ubiquiti Wireless. See our Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN vs. Fortinet FortiWLM report.

    See our list of best Wireless LAN vendors.

    We monitor all Wireless LAN reviews to prevent fraudulent reviews and keep review quality high. We do not post reviews by company employees or direct competitors. We validate each review for authenticity via cross-reference with LinkedIn, and personal follow-up with the reviewer when necessary.