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Cisco Wireless vs D-Link Wireless comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Oct 31, 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 Wireless
Ranking in Wireless LAN
3rd
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
4.9
Number of Reviews
154
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
D-Link Wireless
Ranking in Wireless LAN
15th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
17
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of November 2025, in the Wireless LAN category, the mindshare of Cisco Wireless is 10.6%, down from 12.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of D-Link Wireless is 2.1%, down from 2.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Wireless LAN Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Cisco Wireless10.6%
D-Link Wireless2.1%
Other87.3%
Wireless LAN
 

Featured Reviews

EvansEsezobor - PeerSpot reviewer
Has enabled centralized user management and improved wireless access point aggregation
To improve Cisco Wireless, the ports on the access points are all 100 Meg, not 1 gig. We have not gotten a gigabyte interface of about 1,000, but the controller we have is just 1 gig. We would prefer if we could increase the controller to a 10 gig interface because we want to connect our controller to a 10 gig interface, which currently limits us to 1 gig. When we want to move higher capacity data via wireless, it limits us to 1 gig.
NadirShahzad - PeerSpot reviewer
Wireless projects run smoothly with more access point support and competitive pricing
D-Link Wireless offers more supported APs to the WLC with the default license compared to other brands like Cisco. With Cisco, only four to five APs are connected with the default license, but D-Link Wireless provides more flexibility. Local support in Pakistan is necessary for those with limited budgets, creating a reach in the market.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"From my experience, I have found Cisco Wireless to be scalable."
"I've found it to be quite secure."
"The most valuable features for network security with Cisco Wireless were the policy enforcement capabilities."
"The most valuable feature of Cisco Wireless is the bridging capability."
"Cisco's support team is the best in the industry."
"The features that I have found most valuable with Cisco Wireless is that the average connectivity for this WIFI access point is 2.5 gigabytes. That's the highest technology and highest connectivity. They started using the new technology and WIFI to get you a faster connectivity."
"It is good, and it works."
"The most valuable feature of the solution stems from the fact that it can be integrated into other solutions in a particular environment, including where there are wired and wireless connections."
"The initial setup process was easy."
"The most valuable feature of D-Link Wireless is its durability."
"The solution is extremely easy to install. You just add them and in a few clicks, they are ready to go."
"It's scalable, user friendly, and easy to manage."
"D-Link is a good product that is quite affordable and I recommend it."
"This product is user-friendly and we can manage it as per the requirements of the user."
"This is an affordable product that offers good performance. This is why it is popular with our customers. It offers good speed and bandwidth."
"Overall, I rate D-Link Wireless nine out of ten as a solution."
 

Cons

"The solution could improve by having more advanced features, such as AI that is able to do diagnosis on the network or detect incorrect configurations and is able to tell you what is the recommended practice. Additionally, it would be a benefit to have smart antennas that are able to track your movement, Wi-Fi 6 support, better transfer rates, low latency, stronger signals that can penetrate thick walls, and zero packet losses."
"The solution doesn't have much coverage area."
"The media stream and Mojo settings are not sufficiently supported."
"The new licensing model isn't as good as what they had before."
"The pricing of Brazil is very expensive. When you look at other options, they are much cheaper."
"To improve Cisco Wireless, the ports on the access points are all 100 Meg, not 1 gig."
"If they could offer better coverage, we'd be much happier."
"The solution could be more stable."
"Its interface and support system need much improvement. Sometimes, when we use the interface to reset the password and configure SSIDs, or some other changes, the "Save" option does not show and we have to go to some internal setting and then we can "save" the setting. The “Save” option should be in front of or below of the settings."
"D-Link Wireless should include the 'cleaner' feature similar to Cisco's APs. This feature reduces signal interference with access points."
"D-Link Wireless’s stability needs improvement."
"Password restriction: Sometimes we set a password and it uses that password but, after some days/months, the password gets changed and a few laptops still use old the password while a few use the new password. The password restriction option needs to improve."
"The only issue is with the controller visibility of the devices connecting to the network."
"The cloud managed solution needs improvement, and they should focus on the SD-WAN segment with regard to integration."
"Sometimes we configure the SSID with a password but the same AP shows two WiFi connections with the same SSID name (one is protected by a password and another one give access without a password)."
"The tool's technical support can get difficult sometimes. We got a technician only after complaining for 10-15 days. The tool's technicians need to be made available everywhere."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The license structure is confusing."
"Expensive."
"As far as I know Cisco is very competitive, price-wise. Talk to your third-party vendor. It all depends on the company size - how many employees, how big the building is. If it's wireless, and you have only 50 employees but you're using a large building floor, in that case you need many access points. But if you have 50 employees using two or three rooms, then you probably don't need it and it's going to be high density, so there is a different design. So you need to talk to a subject matter expert. Talk to them and design accordingly."
"I think that the solution is expensive because the customer has to pay for a full year, at a minimum, in up-front costs."
"Its price is a bit high. It is more expensive than its competitors, but when I look at the return on investment, it is worth it."
"The licensing system is very rigid. I work for a school and we are just treated like big companies. At some point, there's a limit to what we can do about that."
"The product could be priced better."
"From a pricing point of view, it's a little bit expensive compared to competitors like Aruba and others."
"D-Link Wireless is cheaper than Ruckus or Cisco."
"This solution is more affordable than others on the market."
"There is no licensing fee for the solution."
"D-Link Wireless' price is the same as Aruba's. You need to pay one-time costs for the product."
"The product is affordable."
"On a scale of one to ten, where one is very cheap and ten is very expensive, I rate the pricing an eight out of ten."
"D-Link pricing is very competitive when you consider other OEMs."
"The cost can range from $100 to $400."
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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
13%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Educational Organization
7%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Construction Company
12%
Comms Service Provider
12%
Educational Organization
11%
Computer Software Company
10%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business76
Midsize Enterprise41
Large Enterprise74
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business8
Midsize Enterprise7
Large Enterprise2
 

Questions from the Community

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 be very reliable and to consistently run very efficiently. Cisco Wireless helpe...
Which is better - Ruckus Wireless or Cisco Wireless?
Ruckus Wireless offers users the benefit of being both easy to set up and get running as well as being very user friendly. This user-friendly quality also renders it easy to learn how to use and ma...
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 hours, the basic framework can be set up. Step-by-step instructions are availabl...
Which wireless solution would you choose - Huawei or D-Link?
Huawei wireless is a strong and solid product that has a lot of features - and for all that it offers, it happens to be very cost effective. As a wireless solution, it is simple and its user interf...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for D-Link Wireless?
D-Link Wireless is notably more affordable than Cisco and Juniper. It suits SMB needs without the financial burden of purchasing additional licenses for extended APs.
 

Also Known As

Cisco WLAN Controller
D-Link WLAN
 

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)
Metropolitan Public Defender, Mission Motorcycles
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco Wireless vs. D-Link Wireless and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.
872,846 professionals have used our research since 2012.