F5 BIG-IP Virtual Edition vs LoadBalancer Enterprise comparison

F5 and Loadbalancer.org are both solutions in the Application Delivery Controllers (ADC) category. F5 is ranked #11 with an average rating of 8.8, while Loadbalancer.org is ranked #13 with an average rating of 9.0. F5 holds a 0.5% mindshare in ADC, compared to Loadbalancer.org’s 4.6% mindshare. Additionally, 100% of F5 users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of Loadbalancer.org users who would recommend it.

F5 BIG-IP Virtual Edition

Read 7 F5 BIG-IP Virtual Edition reviews

1,600 Views
80 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

LoadBalancer Enterprise

Read 23 LoadBalancer Enterprise reviews

1,138 Views
1,127 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

F5 BIG-IP Virtual Edition

LoadBalancer Enterprise

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 2, 2025

LoadBalancer Enterprise and F5 BIG-IP Virtual Edition compete in the load balancing and application security category. F5 BIG-IP Virtual Edition appears to have the upper hand due to its advanced security features.

Features: LoadBalancer Enterprise is highly reliable and easy to manage, with a straightforward setup and operation. F5 BIG-IP Virtual Edition offers advanced web application firewall protection, SSL offloading, and enhanced security and compliance features.

Room for Improvement: LoadBalancer Enterprise could simplify configuration and improve security features, and it lacks some integration capabilities. F5 BIG-IP Virtual Edition needs better resource efficiency and support for modern environments like Docker and Kubernetes.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: LoadBalancer Enterprise is easy to deploy in on-premises and private cloud environments, supported by responsive customer service. F5 BIG-IP Virtual Edition has positive support feedback but sometimes experiences inconsistencies in global support.

Pricing and ROI: LoadBalancer Enterprise is less expensive, offering affordable licensing options. F5 BIG-IP Virtual Edition is pricier but considered worth it for its capabilities. Both solutions contribute to ROI by enhancing network reliability and redundancy.

To learn more, read our detailed F5 BIG-IP Virtual Edition vs. LoadBalancer Enterprise Report (Updated: December 2025).

Buyer's Guide

F5 BIG-IP Virtual Edition vs. LoadBalancer Enterprise

December 2025

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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

F5 BIG-IP Virtual Edition

Ranking in Application Delivery Controllers (ADC)

11th

Average Rating

8.6

Reviews Sentiment

5.6

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

LoadBalancer Enterprise

Ranking in Application Delivery Controllers (ADC)

13th

Average Rating

8.8

Reviews Sentiment

7.1

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the Application Delivery Controllers (ADC) category, the mindshare of F5 BIG-IP Virtual Edition is 0.5%. The mindshare of LoadBalancer Enterprise is 4.6%, up from 3.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Application Delivery Controllers (ADC) Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
F5 BIG-IP Virtual Edition	0.5%
LoadBalancer Enterprise	4.6%
Other	94.9%

Application Delivery Controllers (ADC)

Featured Reviews

reviewer2716224

System Administrator at a non-tech company with 501-1,000 employees

Focuses on securing application access with dependable integration

I do not use the load balancing and traffic management features of F5 BIG-IP Virtual Edition. I use other container orchestration platforms, but they are not relevant to F5 BIG-IP Virtual Edition. I have utilized F5 BIG-IP Virtual Edition's ability to integrate with cloud platforms including AWS, Azure, GCP, and Salesforce. I have no idea how this integration has helped my organization manage hybrid or multi-cloud environments. The seamless integration of F5 BIG-IP Virtual Edition with existing F5 technologies is not important to me as I do not use other technologies from F5. Financially, we require F5 BIG-IP Virtual Edition because we need the product. We don't have anything else that performs the same functions, so we use it without trying alternatives. I just use and manage F5 BIG-IP Virtual Edition, though I didn't handle its deployment. I would recommend F5 BIG-IP Virtual Edition as a solution to others. I would rate F5 BIG-IP Virtual Edition an eight out of ten overall.

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Roger Seelaender

UCaaS Engineering Manager at EarthLink

Great WAF - low-maintenance solution that performs as advertised

The solution can be improved with the development of a SIP engine because it is difficult to manage SBCs. All SBCs are really tough to write rules for. If we could put this in front of an SBC to have the right rules to possibly block the traffic, that would be very helpful. The solution can also improve the relationship between Loadbalancer.org and Metaswitch, or now, Microsoft because Metaswitch was purchased by Microsoft. They both position themselves as certified but don't always talk to each other. I wish there would be closer integration between the solution and the vendors when either release new upgrades to their product line. Often we find issues on either end post upgrades.

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Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"I have a specific issue with the network interface connector, the NIC. We're limited to a maximum of two NICs in a virtualized environment. It's a limitation of the tool."

"The integration capabilities of the product are easy to use, and there is no complexity involved in it."

"The tool's investment is less than a physical device."

"The features that I like include LTM and Global Traffic Manager (GTM)."

"It's easy to use, and they have good support."

"The advanced web application firewall protection and SSL offloading capabilities of F5 BIG-IP Virtual Edition have been utilized in my organization; these features are contributing to our application security and compliance posture."

"It has DoS layer 7 protection, which not many vendors have."

"For now, it's stable."

"It does what it’s supposed to do which is balancing an important intranet site we are using, so if one server dies, the second becomes active straight away."

"The features I find valuable in this solution are the ease of managing the logs on the WAFs, the ease to identify break-in attempts into the network, the front-end firewall, and a more specific firewall."

"We can more easily set up a test environment, because you can easily configure your forms. It makes it more flexible for us, to convert our test environment to a production environment, without having to change DNSs on the outside. You just configure the forms on the inside. So without changing the actual endpoint for the end user, we can create completely different networks in the background."

"We have about 30,000 connections going through at any one time and it's fine, it doesn't seem to sweat. It doesn't get overloaded."

"The support we have received from Loadbalancer.org has been good."

"We now get notifications when pool members go down, and we eliminate our downtime by not sending traffic to downed pool members."

"With basic network knowledge, our required system functionality can be configured and maintained."

More LoadBalancer Enterprise pros

Cons

"It's expensive and could be cheaper."

"F5 BIG-IP Virtual Edition is a heavy system that needs a lot of CPU, memory, and hard disk."

"On-the-go upgrades are an option that the tool currently lacks, making it an area where improvements are required."

"BIG-IP could improve in supporting microservices, for example, in Docker and Kubernetes environments."

"The tool has limitations with respect to code and RAM."

"I have a specific issue with the network interface connector, the NIC. We're limited to a maximum of two NICs in a virtualized environment. It's a limitation of the tool."

"Compared to the physical products, the solution's throughput is a little less."

"I would like it if Loadbalancer had the ability to make rules for specific shared bots."

"They're mostly designed to balance a particular type of traffic. I wanted to load balance DNS, and they just don't do it the way that we wanted to. So they're not used as DNS load balancers."

"Originally we had some stability issues with it, so they replaced it with a new box and it's fine."

"Possibly a more graphical overview page (with colors) to give a two second overview to see if everything is working fine."

"It doesn't have the bonding capability feature."

"You can run into an issue when one engineer passes the case over to another engineer after their shift and they don't know what the first engineer worked on up to that point."

"If I have to say something, I suppose they could add an automated configuration backup to an FTP location (or something similar) so you don’t have to manually do it. I don’t see this as a problem, of course, as the configuration rarely changes and we only need one backup, but maybe for other users that feature would be handy."

More LoadBalancer Enterprise cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"My company's customers need to make payments for the licensing charges attached to the product. It is an expensive product."

"The pricing is standard."

"I would rate the pricing a three out of ten, with ten being expensive."

"F5 BIG-IP Virtual Edition is an expensive solution, but it's worth the price."

"I think it’s very affordable."

"The costs associated with Loadbalancer.org depends on the technology. For some, we need to pay, but others are open, so they're free."

"It's worth the cost. It's not cheap, but it's a good solution. If you're looking for a good solution, this is a good solution. Is it cheap? No. Is it worth the money? Yes, I think it is."

"These guys make their pricing scheme really easy."

"I love that they do not price on some arbitrary throughput rating where you are guessing at what the load balancer is going to handle."

"For now, it's stable."

"We've got an unlimited license, which doesn't costs that much compared to other vendors, and we don't have to buy it again."

"It filled a requirement for our project, and it did so at lesser cost than their competitors."

More LoadBalancer Enterprise pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

12%

Financial Services Firm

12%

Comms Service Provider

Manufacturing Company

Computer Software Company

18%

Financial Services Firm

11%

University

Manufacturing Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	3
Midsize Enterprise	3
Large Enterprise	2

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	9
Midsize Enterprise	2
Large Enterprise	12

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about F5 BIG-IP Virtual Edition?

The integration capabilities of the product are easy to use, and there is no complexity involved in it.

See all answers

What needs improvement with F5 BIG-IP Virtual Edition?

I believe F5 BIG-IP Virtual Edition can be improved because the 25 megabits throughput cap is small.

See all answers

What advice do you have for others considering F5 BIG-IP Virtual Edition?

My advice for others looking into using F5 BIG-IP Virtual Edition is to be aware of the throughput cap and how complex it can be. I would rate this product a 9 overall.

See all answers

Do you recommend Loadbalancer.org?

Since Loadbalancer.org is an open-source solution, I would recommend this solution for smaller businesses that don’t have major scaling requirements and don’t have the budget for a commercial solut...

See all answers

What do you like most about Loadbalancer.org?

Existing customers are trying to migrate from the physical F5 load balancer to the AVI load balancer because it is scalable and easily managed.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Loadbalancer.org?

Pricing of Loadbalancer.org is something to consider.

See all answers

Comparisons

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SOCKS5 Proxy Server with Web Panel vs F5 BIG-IP Virtual Edition

Compared 17% of the time

UBIKA WAAP Cloud vs F5 BIG-IP Virtual Edition

Compared 17% of the time

Kemp LoadMaster vs F5 BIG-IP Virtual Edition

Compared 13% of the time

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NetScaler vs LoadBalancer Enterprise

Compared 20% of the time

F5 BIG-IP Local Traffic Manager (LTM) vs LoadBalancer Enterprise

Compared 17% of the time

HAProxy vs LoadBalancer Enterprise

Compared 14% of the time

Fortinet FortiADC vs LoadBalancer Enterprise

Compared 14% of the time

Kemp LoadMaster vs LoadBalancer Enterprise

Compared 13% of the time

More LoadBalancer Enterprise Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

F5 BIG-IP Virtual Edition

January 2026

Download F5 BIG-IP Virtual Edition product report

Buyer's Guide

LoadBalancer Enterprise

December 2025

Download LoadBalancer Enterprise product report

Overview

When you need to move faster than hardware allows, BIG-IP Virtual Editions (VEs) deliver the application services you need in a more agile and flexible form factor. Get the scalability, security, and automatability BIG-IP products are known for—all in software designed for use in single-, hybrid-, or multi-cloud architectures.

LoadBalancer Enterprise offers a reliable, high-availability solution designed for efficient load distribution and a user-friendly interface, catering to teams with foundational network expertise.

LoadBalancer Enterprise enhances network performance through effective traffic routing, monitoring, and high availability. Users benefit from SSL termination with SNI and Layer 7 load balancing, ensuring seamless connections with reduced complexity compared to alternatives. While known for its user-friendly approach, improvements in configuration simplicity, scalable hardware upgrades, and enhanced notification systems are often discussed for better user experience. Additional demands include HTTP API access, automated configuration backups, DNS load balancing, and enhanced graphing data capabilities. Competitive pricing and heightened security for sensitive data are frequently requested. Interface refresh issues and Microsoft compatibility are noted among users, who deploy it for SSL/HTTP traffic management, redundancy, failover capabilities, web filtering, and cloud migration support.

What are LoadBalancer Enterprise's key features?

Ease of Use: Accessible interface for team members with basic network knowledge.
Reliability and High Availability: Ensures consistent service with effective load distribution.
SSL Termination with SNI: Supports secure connections with Server Name Indication.
Layer 7 Load Balancing: Enhanced functionality for better traffic management.
Scalability and Performance: Offers strong performance with low latency.

What benefits or ROI can users expect?

Quick Remote Support: Fast assistance for issue resolution.
Low Complexity: Streamlined operations compared to competitors.
Traffic Routing and Monitoring: Efficient management aids in decision-making.
Flexibility in Deployment: Suitable for diverse traffic scenarios and server needs.

LoadBalancer Enterprise is implemented across industries for managing SSL/HTTP traffic, enhancing network reliability, and providing failover capabilities. It supports web filtering, balances Exchange and application servers, facilitates cloud migration, and manages multiple ISP lines for optimal traffic distribution across web applications and services, including SIP provisioning. Industries also use it for enhancing security with web application firewalls, DNS sharing, and application publishing.

Loadbalancer.org

Sample Customers

Information Not Available

Vodafone, NASA, Mercedes, NBC, Siemens, AT&T, Barclays, Zurich, Penn State University, Fiserv, Canon, Toyota, University of Cambridge, US Army, US Navy, Ocean Spray, ASOS, Pfizer, BBC, Bacardi, Monsoon, River Island, U.S Air Force, King's College London, NHS, Ricoh, Philips, Santander, TATA Communications, Ericcson, Ross Video, Evertz, TalkTalk TV, Giacom, Rapid Host.

Buyer's Guide

F5 BIG-IP Virtual Edition vs. LoadBalancer Enterprise

December 2025

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