Cisco Wireless vs Ruckus Wireless comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide
Executive Summary
Updated on Mar 17, 2022

We performed a comparison between Cisco Wireless and Ruckus Wireless based on our users’ reviews in five categories. After reading all of the collected data, you can find our conclusion below.

  • Ease of Deployment: Users of Cisco Wireless say that the initial setup is straightforward and simple. Ruckus Wireless users provide mixed reviews; some mention that it is not straightforward while others found it to be easy to deploy.
  • Features: Users of Cisco Wireless mentioned that valuable features include stability, reliability, scalability, solid functionality, security, easy management, good application visibility, control integration for other analysis software, and ease of configuration. Some users of Cisco Wireless state that the software can sometimes be very clunky, and others would like to see cloud-based support and management as well as some AI capabilities and the introduction of a dashboard.

    Ruckus Wireless reviewers say some of the best features include amazing performance, great compatibility with other solutions, fantastic guest onboarding, a rock-solid stability, excellent scalability, and fast wireless. Other users see value in these features: mesh technology, switching LANs, Bonjour Gateway, Cloudpath, the hardware antenna array, and its ease of management. The areas users mention are lacking revolve around the physical device in terms of its quality and construction as well as that it is lacking in some hardware stratification.
  • Pricing: Users of Cisco Wireless find that it is expensive, with a rigid pricing model in place. The majority of Ruckus Wireless users feel that the product is not expensive, and even cheaper than some of their competitors’ pricing.
  • Service and Support: Cisco Wireless reviewers confirm that the service and support they receive is excellent, stating that support is responsive and knowledgeable, and that ample documentation is available online. Similarly, Ruckus Wireless reviewers say that overall the support is very good.
  • ROI: Cisco Wireless users mention that they have yet to see an ROI while users of Ruckus Wireless say that as soon as the product is implemented, you begin to see an ROI.

Comparison Results: As competitors, Cisco Wireless and Ruckus Wireless come in at a close tie. Both products offer a really strong set of features. However, their pricing is where each stands out, with Cisco being more expensive and Ruckus being affordable. In addition, users of Ruckus Wireless report seeing an immediate ROI.

To learn more, read our detailed Cisco Wireless vs. Ruckus Wireless Report (Updated: March 2023).
688,618 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Q&A Highlights
Question: Which is better - Ruckus Wireless or Cisco Wireless?
Answer: 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 manage. There are no tricks involved when rolling it out for use. This straightforwardness is not limited to the initial point of setup. It continues on and applies to all of the time thereafter when it is being put to use. The user interface seems to have been designed with the ease of the user in mind. Everything about it is straightforward, which makes this product ever more valuable to those for whom time is money. Additionally, the Wi-Fi coverage that Ruckus Wireless provides is of excellent quality, is long-lasting, and is supported by a team that provides great technical support. Their Wi-Fi service is the kind that is mostly employed in industries like resorts, which have to cater to large volumes of people over extended periods of time. These systems hold their integrity and allow for people to enjoy powerful coverage that at least appears to be constant. The industrial quality and strength of Ruckus Wireless makes it the sort of service that immediately deserves consideration. The teams that are tasked with supporting those who use Ruckus Wireless are professionals of the highest level. They are possible to reach without difficulty and are highly responsive to problems and work quickly to find solutions. Cisco Wireless provides a very robust service that will continue to run over long periods of time and under heavy usage. Furthermore, the teams that are responsible for assisting users and resolving any potential issues that may arise are highly professional. Setting up this service is not intuitive, though, and can be difficult. Conclusion The prices of these services are unlikely to be the deciding factor as to which of these services is better. They are both expensive. They both do a good job and have excellent tech support but the user-friendly setup and easy-to-use interface give Ruckus Wireless the clear advantage over Cisco Wireless.
Featured Review
Quotes From Members
We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use.
Here are some excerpts of what they said:
Pros
"In terms of reporting, in terms of all the user reports, it's very rich.""The most useful feature of Juniper Wireless AP is the reporting Marvis.""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.""The simplicity is great.""The solution is pretty generic and easy to use."

More Juniper Mist Wireless Access Points Pros →

"I'm very satisfied with Cisco's technical support.""Cisco has good support services.""Cisco Wireless is scalable.""Cisco Wireless always has the latest technology that supports WiFi 5 and 6.""Cisco Wireless is highly stable.""The product offers educational licenses that are priced very reasonably.""The most valuable features of Cisco Wireless are the level of control and management. I am happy with it.""It integrates with Cisco Adaptive Security Appliance (ASA)."

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"What I like best about Ruckus Wireless is that it's a controller-based product, so it's easy to configure.""The setup is very straightforward.""Ruckus Wireless is a valuable solution. It's both scalable and reliable.""Ruckus Wireless is a reliable solution.""The product can scale.""All IPs can be managed and monitored by the customer from a single console.""Ruckus Wireless is more of a plain Wi-Fi solution where it does the basic job well. Additionally, it has good conductivity, easy to use, simple to manage, and its access points can be used as standalone devices which gives flexibility in the SMB market.""Easy to configure and user-friendly."

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

More Juniper Mist Wireless Access Points Cons →

"The interface could be better.""In the next release, they should add a better reporting feature. The reporting will tell you if you have a problem. That will make the diagnostics easier.""We've recently had hardware issues which have caused us some problems.""Cisco won't work with any other vendors. That is a significant problem with Cisco.""Room for improvement wise, the wireless coverage of Cisco's equipment could be better for the price position. That is, I think that the radius for the coverage could be better to make it worth the price that we pay for it.""Its licensing model and cost should be improved.""The reporting tool in Cisco Wireless could improve. If I am trying to receive information about a client or user, it's cumbersome to retrieve the information on the controller system. If I'm trying to find out where a client's been, it's cumbersome. You need another tool for Historical logs, but it should be all in one.""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."

More Cisco Wireless Cons →

"The solution lacks a lot of features other solutions provide. If you are an organization that is more focused on security or you need a lot of other features, such as location tracking then Ruckus Wireless may not be the right choice. If you want a solution with more than basic security I would choose Arista or Aruba.""The solution is sensitive with reference to power fluctuations. This sensitivity should be improved. Additionally, the solution should have more security features integrated.""Their support has been lacking a little bit and needs to be improved. I have had a ticket open for a month, and it is really hard to get a resolution out of them. They haven't really come out with anything that is much of an improvement in a long time. It has mostly just been fixes and things like that. We used to have a ZoneDirector or a physical controller for the wireless network, and that was kind of end of life. It was very old, and at the time, we were expanding the wireless network, and we didn't want to rely on one piece of hardware that was pretty old. So, we went to SmartZone Cluster, which has two VMs in a cluster. Unfortunately, we lost the feature ability for guest networks and other things that we were using before, and Ruckus just kind of told us that they weren't supporting that feature in the newer product, which is not really great. I was told initially that SmartZone was an upgrade to ZoneDirector. It is the logical thing to think that it is going to have all the same features, but it didn't. The issue that we have right now is onboarding BYOD devices. It is not really great for us, and we're looking for a new product to make that easier. We did have Cloudpath, which was a product that Ruckus purchased from another company that was an onboarding solution, but it just didn't really work very well for us. So, we discontinued using it, and it actually created more confusion for people. They should make BYOD or guest network portals a lot easier and better. In some areas, we have been having issues because there are just so many WAPs that are so close that we had to manually turn down the radio of power because the automatic feature of the AP wasn't really doing it right. It should also have a little bit better RF analysis capability to be able to see on the controller side. The front end for our staff, students, and guests has also not been quite as good as we had hoped.""Some customers have issues with the price because it's more expensive than Ubiquiti, but they can accept the cost because it's reliable and has more features.""It would be better if there were more visibility on the cloud. We have some lack of visibility because of wireless interference, and you have to do some troubleshooting for the packet capture. They have a built-in packet capture, and we can monitor the application. You can see all things over the cloud. They also provide an on-premise solution, so they need to improve the on-premise version and ensure an output with more visibility. Live monitoring in a live environment should be good. What is happening with wireless is that the wireless client is not connected due to interference, and there should be a shield zone on their wireless cloud. If they give us more features on both Ruckus Cloud or on-premises, that will be best. Nowadays, security is more important for everyone using wireless technology. If they implement a little bit of reduction and prevention features for some packets on the wireless cloud, some features like web filtering and some prevention for blocking will be good for the network.""I wish that Ruckus Wireless were more affordable for customers.""It would be ideal if the solution offered more features.""The solution should have more analytics capabilities."

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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."
  • More Juniper Mist Wireless Access Points Pricing and Cost Advice →

  • "From a pricing point of view, it's a little bit expensive compared to competitors like Aruba and others."
  • "Its licensing is hard to understand."
  • "It's expensive. The pricing is an obstacle."
  • "It is expensive, and there are some costs in addition to the standard licensing fee. Its licensing model and cost should be improved."
  • "Because the Cisco architecture is quite complex, you may end up having to add more components and licenses. So, the cost could go up."
  • "I think it's affordable. Maybe there are little differences, but it's not very expensive. But with all Cisco products, you have to pay more for the power supply. You'll have to pay for the PoE converter."
  • "The solution does not come with a licensing fee."
  • "The license is a one-time purchase."
  • More Cisco Wireless Pricing and Cost Advice →

  • "It depends on the client. You have an initial license cost that you need to buy to bind the access point with the controller. This is a one-time fee. You also have to pay the support fee that, if I remember correctly, is about $25 per access point. Its pricing and licensing can be improved."
  • "It is decently priced."
  • "It is a pricey solution."
  • "We have a yearly license for our multiple mode 200 or 300 Ruckus Wireless systems. It's a good price."
  • "It's quite expensive, but that is what you get with these types of solutions."
  • "If you walk into any restaurant or hotel you will find Ruckus Wireless solutions because it is economical when it comes to pricing. There is a basic subscription for the license and support."
  • "The price of Ruckus Wireless is less expensive than other solutions, such as Cisco."
  • "Ruckus Wireless pricing is reasonable. On a scale from one to five, I would give Ruckus Wireless pricing a four."
  • More Ruckus Wireless Pricing and Cost Advice →

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    Answers from the Community
    Netanya Carmi
    Nuno Marques - PeerSpot reviewerNuno Marques
    User

    They both do a great job. But it depends on the application scenario. 


    For corporate environments probably Cisco will perform better not only because of Cisco Wi-Fi features but especially because you can be integrated with all Cisco infrastructure and manage it all.


    In heavy-duty environments, like public hot-spot, stadiums, exhibition centers, etc, Ruckus should be considered. In this type of applications, pure Wi-Fi performance is more important than management features or security, and therefore, it could be the better choice.

    Ender Kefoglu - PeerSpot reviewerEnder Kefoglu
    Real User

    If you care more about performance and stable communications, Ruckus Wireless is definitely better. 


    Ruckus Wireless APs have;


    - Adaptive antenna technology (called BeamFlex). This technology analyzes different paths to reach the client and electronically turns itself to a directional antenna, choosing the path that gives the best performance to reach each specific client. If the client is mobile or if the environment changes (such as a warehouse) the selection of paths/direction also changes instantly.


    Transmitting in a directional way allows a good Signal-to-Noise Ratio and also causes less interference for other nearby APs outside the path of the directional transmission.


    - ChannelFly technology. This technology chooses the best channel based on performance rather than background scanning for noise.


    - Polarization Diversity. This technology allows the clients not to lose signal strength when held at different angles (important for mobile devices such as tablets and telephones).


    - Better receive sensitivity compared to the competitors.


    All these features make Ruckus Wireless a better choice than any other competitor (better performance, better coverage area, more stable and surprise-free communication especially in not so easy conditions such as noise, too many clients, too much traffic). 

    Questions from the Community
    Top Answer:In terms of reporting, in terms of all the user reports, it's very rich.
    Top Answer:It is a very expensive product. Not every company could afford a device like this. The cost is around 1.2 lakhs, or… more »
    Top Answer:I haven't had any issues with the product. The solution is expensive. That is why we have a very minor deployment.
    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:Ruckus Wireless offers users the benefit of being both easy to set up and get running as well as being very user… more »
    Top Answer:On the most basic level, Cisco Wireless can offer a rather straightforward initial setup. In the span of about three… more »
    Top Answer:At my organization, we researched Ruckus Wireless among other solutions but ultimately chose Aruba wireless. What did… 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:Easy to configure and user-friendly.
    Comparisons
    Also Known As
    Juniper Wireless Access Points (AP Series), Mist Access Points
    Cisco WLAN Controller
    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.

    With Cisco Wireless you will successfully plan, deploy, monitor, troubleshoot, and report on indoor and outdoor wireless networks - all from a centralized location.

    Ruckus Wireless is part of Ruckus Networks/Commscope and provides reliable wireless network solutions and services to large venues, schools, hotels, hospitals, malls, and public spaces (and more) worldwide.

    Wireless access is an integral necessary part of today’s modern, fast-paced lifestyle. It is essential that dependable, safe wireless capabilities be available in most of today’s largely populated public spaces. Ruckus Wireless is the trusted industry leader in assisting organizations of all sizes to provide wireless access throughout their locations, both inside their physical structures and adjacent open outdoor areas.

    Ruckus Wireless empowers users to design and create a wireless network across their organizational space to ensure that wireless coverage is available consistently to anyone who needs it. Ruckus can handle anything from homes and small to medium-sized businesses to hospitals, college campuses, airports, malls, stadiums and more. Ruckus also has excellent options for outdoor wireless networks. Many users choose Ruckus Wireless for broad extensive outdoor use. The solution offers excellent durable outdoor access points and a very robust, super fast, reliable Wi-Fi. Each and every access point is very powerful, and the outdoor access points can be very easily disguised to keep the network secure.

    Another strong point is that Ruckus technology is based on frequencies. If there is ever any type of wireless interference, Ruckus Wireless can change frequency automatically so there are never any interruptions. Users also have the option to block outside access points and signals that may interfere with their network and make their network the only one that people can see within the network. Users can additionally whitelist certain networks if desired.

    Ruckus uses the latest next-gen Wi-Fi, Wi-Fi 6, ensuring that more devices can be handled with greater speed and continuity. With Ruckus, users have great control over network traffic. They can also allocate the amount of bandwidth network users are granted based on their status - eg., guest, corporate, etc. - and give users priority on the network based on their status. Ruckus also has mesh and beamforming capabilities, which are recognized as a valued feature for many users.

    Ruckus Wireless is robust, extremely reliable, very easy to deploy, and offers amazing coverage and rock solid connectivity. It is very easy to add additional access points across the network. Ruckus Wireless is very easy to use and manage using an app on any mobile device.

    Reviews from Real Users

    A Director Engineering & New Business at a comms service provider says Ruckus “provides superior coverage and is very dependable”

    Sintayehu A., Director Of Information Communication Technology at Dire Dawa University, relates that "Ruckus Wireless supports the most recent technologies. We can trace every individual and what kind of traffic they're using on our campus. It is very helpful."

    Philip S., Independent Consultant - Wireless, says, "The solution is very stable. I've worked with it at a hospital before, where we deployed it all over the hospital. It worked everywhere and continuously worked flawlessly."

    Offer
    Learn more about Juniper Mist Wireless Access Points
    Learn more about Cisco Wireless
    Learn more about Ruckus Wireless
    Sample Customers
    Information Not Available
    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)
    American University of Sharjah, Baruch College, Centro Escolar Liceo Santo Tomšs, Chevalier College, Chico Unified School District, Colegio de Fomento El Prado, Columbia Public Schools, Delta School District, Dordt College, Douglas County School District, Drew University, Armonea, Central Utah Clinic, Grove Hill Medical Center, Inner South Community Health Service, Midwest Surgical, Satilla Regional Medical Center, Lyndoch Living, Polonus, Roaring Fork School District, Sonora State, Vivid, Sydney, Players Club, Sandals, Scandic Hotels, Sheraton LAX, Sunbird
    Top Industries
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Computer Software Company19%
    Government8%
    Educational Organization7%
    Manufacturing Company6%
    REVIEWERS
    Comms Service Provider15%
    Computer Software Company10%
    Government9%
    Manufacturing Company8%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Computer Software Company18%
    Comms Service Provider12%
    Government8%
    Educational Organization7%
    REVIEWERS
    Comms Service Provider45%
    Educational Organization11%
    University7%
    Manufacturing Company7%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Computer Software Company16%
    Comms Service Provider12%
    Government7%
    Educational Organization7%
    Company Size
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business30%
    Midsize Enterprise17%
    Large Enterprise53%
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business36%
    Midsize Enterprise26%
    Large Enterprise38%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business24%
    Midsize Enterprise16%
    Large Enterprise60%
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business57%
    Midsize Enterprise20%
    Large Enterprise23%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business34%
    Midsize Enterprise18%
    Large Enterprise48%
    Buyer's Guide
    Cisco Wireless vs. Ruckus Wireless
    March 2023
    Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco Wireless vs. Ruckus Wireless and other solutions. Updated: March 2023.
    688,618 professionals have used our research since 2012.

    Cisco Wireless is ranked 3rd in Wireless LAN with 55 reviews while Ruckus Wireless is ranked 4th in Wireless LAN with 41 reviews. Cisco Wireless is rated 8.2, while Ruckus Wireless is rated 8.6. The top reviewer of Cisco Wireless writes "Robust with a good level of performance and very helpful technical support". On the other hand, the top reviewer of Ruckus Wireless writes "Reliable with good performance, good backend, and good ability to provision the devices". Cisco Wireless is most compared with Aruba Wireless, Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN, Ubiquiti WLAN, Huawei Wireless and Alcatel-Lucent OmniAccess Stellar, whereas Ruckus Wireless is most compared with Aruba Wireless, Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN, Ubiquiti WLAN and Fortinet FortiWLM. See our Cisco Wireless vs. Ruckus Wireless 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.