No more typing reviews! Try our Samantha, our new voice AI agent.

Cisco Wireless WAN vs Fortinet FortiExtender comparison

 

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

Cisco Wireless WAN
Ranking in Wireless WAN
3rd
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
76
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Fortinet FortiExtender
Ranking in Wireless WAN
7th
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 May 2026, in the Wireless WAN category, the mindshare of Cisco Wireless WAN is 8.9%, up from 3.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Fortinet FortiExtender is 7.7%, up from 1.9% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Wireless WAN Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Cisco Wireless WAN8.9%
Fortinet FortiExtender7.7%
Other83.4%
Wireless WAN
 

Featured Reviews

HassanBilal - PeerSpot reviewer
Manager IT Infrastructure & Helpdesk at LCI Pakistan
Solution supports extensive connectivity but faces occasional coverage challenges
Cisco Wireless WAN has room for improvement in WiFi coverage. Sometimes, their coverage is normally good, but at the same area where the access points are deployed, people face continuous disconnectivity issues. These kinds of issues come over time, and we need to do troubleshooting, but they get resolved. This is a performance-related issue, and I think they have to work on that.
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

"It definitely makes our network and life much easier when using these features."
"The most valuable features of Cisco Wireless WAN are the dashboards, security functionality, and Cisco DNA center. The way the solution has integrated within the fabric of the environment with automation is very good."
"The security and the capabilities of the platform are the most valuable features, with very strong cybersecurity and secure authentication and authorization for both mobile and other users."
"The performance of the solution is valuable."
"The technical support we have experienced has been good."
"Cisco wireless is stable, easy to use, and simple to configure, and they have an outstanding GUI."
"What I like about this solution is that it is always available and it's up to me to integrate something called the DNA."
"The network management is good. We use it to control access, channels, and phones and limit bandwidth."
"Centralized management via FortiManager for my organization is very useful and a must-have."
"Management can be carried out from a central point."
"You don't need to have two different vendors to interoperate and get into comparability issues or inter-operability issues."
"Having the FortiExtender as a part of an SD-WAN topology is a major competitive value."
"The most valuable feature will be that it works."
"For me, the best feature of Fortinet FortiExtender is its integration with an external solution such as a 5G LTE broadband modem, wired modem, and cellular network. I also like that the product can be integrated into one device or a unified device, and that is one of its best features because it allows you to manage and centralize the control of every device."
"For me, the best feature of Fortinet FortiExtender is its integration with an external solution such as a 5G LTE broadband modem, wired modem, and cellular network."
"The overall stability deserves a perfect rating."
 

Cons

"They could reduce the product's cost of lower-tier products to make them more accessible to smaller companies."
"There is no centralized management for multiple wireless control deployments or a user tracking feature."
"The setup of Cisco Wireless WAN needs an expert. You need someone with experience to be able to work with Cisco Wireless solutions. It took approximately one to two weeks to implement the solution."
"The cost is one of the higher in the industry."
"The pricing could be improved in future releases. It's quite expensive."
"The product must be made more user-friendly."
"We feel that Cisco is quite expensive, so we're looking for a reasonable alternative. Cisco works fine, but the issue is the annual licensing and support costs."
"We would like to have the lead times improved."
"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."
"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 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."
"The support could be faster and more responsive."
"They could improve the remote console server feature and make it more user-friendly for more users."
"There is a huge downside because we need to remove and insert the SIM to get it working."
"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."
"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."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The total cost of the solution was about $6,000."
"On the low end, the solution costs probably around $1200 to $1300 for five years. It's an expensive product."
"This is a very expensive solution but there are no additional costs."
"The price could be better, but it's been okay. You must pay license fees for each access point connected to the controller."
"There is a license that is needed for the use of this solution."
"The tool is expensive."
"I don't know the exact cost as I'm only on the technical side, but I do know this solution is very expensive. With one being the most expensive and five being affordable, I would give Cisco a two out of five."
"Cisco's licensing model includes some mandatory licenses, making it more expensive than other vendors like HP, Aruba, and Ruckus."
"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."
"The solution is not that expensive."
"I'm not sure what the cost is. However, I anticipate that the purchase price will range between $2,500 and $5,000."
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Wireless WAN solutions are best for your needs.
893,915 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Marketing Services Firm
18%
Construction Company
16%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Government
6%
Media Company
10%
Outsourcing Company
10%
Comms Service Provider
9%
Financial Services Firm
9%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business26
Midsize Enterprise16
Large Enterprise38
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business11
Midsize Enterprise1
Large Enterprise1
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco Wireless WAN?
I think the pricing of Cisco Wireless WAN must be reasonable at present.
What needs improvement with Cisco Wireless WAN?
Cisco Wireless WAN's interface could be simplified in the future. Simplification would make it more helpful to see how the user is connecting. We are able to see the connectivity details, and we al...
What is your primary use case for Cisco Wireless WAN?
We are still working with Cisco products, and I am supporting the Cisco devices. We are working with Cisco switches, routers, and we have guest Wi-Fi now. Regarding Cisco Wireless WAN, I am not tha...
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

Aegean Motorway, Baylor Scott & White Health, Beachbody, Bellevue, Brunel University London, Bucks County Intermediate Unit , Chartwell School, Children's Hospital Colorado, Cisco Live Milan, City of Biel, City of Mississauga, Dundee Precious Metals, Electricity Authority of Cyprus, Erickson Living, Goldcorp, Great Ormond Street Hospital, Grupo Industrial Saltillo (GIS)
Black Gold Regional Schools, Amadeus Hospitality, Jefferson County, Chunghwa Telecom, City of Boroondara, Dimension Data
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco Wireless WAN vs. Fortinet FortiExtender and other solutions. Updated: April 2026.
893,915 professionals have used our research since 2012.