LoadBalancer Enterprise vs NetScaler comparison

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LoadBalancer Enterprise

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Jul 27, 2025

NetScaler and LoadBalancer Enterprise compete in the load balancing and application delivery space. NetScaler has the upper hand due to its comprehensive feature set and flexible deployment options, especially for users seeking a robust and versatile solution with strong Citrix integration.

Features: NetScaler offers a versatile deployment model through its TriScale architecture, facilitating a "pay as you grow" approach that benefits users with flexibility and cost efficiency. It provides key capabilities like SSL offload, GSLB, and robust traffic management options such as load balancing and application security. The strong integration with Citrix products and a streamlined configuration process is often noted. LoadBalancer Enterprise focuses on reliability and ease of use, making it a great choice for essential load balancing needs with simple integration and functionality incorporated into its design.

Room for Improvement: NetScaler users often mention stability concerns and desire a simpler configuration process. Enhanced scripting capabilities, comprehensive documentation, and an improved interface are among their specific needs. Occasionally, bugs and calls for a more cost-effective licensing model are highlighted. LoadBalancer Enterprise could benefit from improved security features, enhanced scalability, and a more intuitive configuration system.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: NetScaler's variety of deployment options includes on-premises, cloud, and hybrid environments, adding substantial versatility. While technical support is viewed as knowledgeable by some, others report inconsistent service and require escalation for complex issues. LoadBalancer Enterprise is easily deployable within on-premises and private cloud settings but doesn't match NetScaler's range of environments. Its customer support generally meets expectations but can be slow during peak times.

Pricing and ROI: NetScaler frequently involves high licensing fees and requires significant upfront investment, especially when its full set of features is utilized. Despite the cost, many report favorable ROI due to its comprehensive capabilities. LoadBalancer Enterprise is cost-effective for smaller enterprises with tight budgets, providing substantial value for money, albeit with a more straightforward feature set limiting advanced functionality. Specific pricing details are not provided for either product.

To learn more, read our detailed LoadBalancer Enterprise vs. NetScaler Report (Updated: July 2025).

LoadBalancer Enterprise vs. NetScaler

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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

LoadBalancer Enterprise

Ranking in Application Delivery Controllers (ADC)

12th

Average Rating

8.8

Reviews Sentiment

7.1

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

NetScaler

Ranking in Application Delivery Controllers (ADC)

1st

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

7.0

Number of Reviews

107

Ranking in other categories

Network Management Applications (5th), Web Application Firewall (WAF) (14th)

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2025, in the Application Delivery Controllers (ADC) category, the mindshare of LoadBalancer Enterprise is 3.7%, up from 3.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of NetScaler is 14.6%, down from 16.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Application Delivery Controllers (ADC)

Featured Reviews

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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DEMİRHAN ÇAVUŞOĞLU

Cloud Consultant at Migros Ticaret A.Ş.

A tool for centralized management including inventory and sales tracking

Citrix ADM has the ability to implement policies to tighten security. For instance, you can restrict access to your network from outsiders or lack necessary security measures such as antivirus programs. Additionally, there's the Delivery Controller, which allows for comprehensive monitoring and management tasks such as remote restarts, maintenance, and registration. Another essential component is the Director, which provides detailed insights into sessions, including identifying session failures, connection issues, user lockouts, etc. It presents a list of problems to address, enabling you to click on them and resolve them efficiently.

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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

"Loadbalancer.org is less complex than Citrix."

"For now, it's stable."

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

"The most valuable features of Loadbalancer.org are related to its load balancing capabilities."

"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."

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

"The load balancers have an easy installation and a relatively simple, easy user interface to use."

"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."

More LoadBalancer Enterprise pros

"Available on any device and can be accessed on a wide area network."

"Citrix NetScaler offers robust security features, including SmartAccess and customizable policies, making it a reliable choice for safeguarding user data."

"The load balancing is one of the most valuable features."

"The most valuable feature is the content switching."

"I prefer this solution because of its user-friendly interface. I find it simple and close to what I am currently using, which is Citrix Fortiva Access for Multi-Factor Authentication. I appreciate the familiar user interface and troubleshooting tools it offers."

"It is a stable solution. It crashed only once, four years ago...There is a return on investment using the solution."

"The maintenance of the solution is not complex."

"The advantage of Citrix Web App and API Protection is just its graphic user interface for beginners. The solution is nothing special, but we have to use it for the corporation. Another advantage of Citrix Web App and API Protection is that we have our copy to test things and get the know-how of it."

More NetScaler pros

Cons

"Loadbalancer.org's complexity could be reduced."

"There is room for improvement in Loadbalancer.org in certain areas."

"I would like a notification when a new version of the software is available. They told me to sign up for their newsletter, but I have not received any notification for a newer software version."

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

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

"The solution can be a bit pricey."

"There are many features you can set in the backend of Loadbalancer. They should simplify the configuration. The administrator should be able to configure it more simply. How it is now, you can only configure it if you have a lot of experience."

"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."

More LoadBalancer Enterprise cons

"The technical support could be better. Whenever I contacted support, I rarely got the solution that we needed. And most of the time, I finished fixing the problem by looking on the internet or by finding documents about the problem on Google."

"We would like to see some fairly large scale improvement in the configuration process for this solution."

"It can be difficult to setup."

"The configuration for its web application firewall is complicated."

"I would like to see more integration for single sign-on."

"We would like the licensing model for this product to be improved, as it isn't currently very transparent. There isn't a standard package available, and each extra feature creates an additional cost."

"Security could be improved because then I can get rid of my Cisco firewalls. If they improve the security then I could run my security, my proxy, my firewalling and my SDN solution on one device instead of having to have multiple devices."

"Currently, the support team's responsiveness is lacking, and the technical personnel on calls often seem unfamiliar with the issues or inadequately trained."

More NetScaler cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"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."

"Licensing fees are paid annually."

"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."

"It is inexpensive, and even their “unlimited” version, the VA MAX is still far cheaper than competitors."

"These guys make their pricing scheme really easy."

"Loadbalancer.org is based on open-source products, but it requires money for support and other activities."

"They're not the cheapest, not the most expensive, but I think value-wise, they're 100%."

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

More LoadBalancer Enterprise pricing and cost advice

"Price-wise, I feel that the solution is a little bit expensive."

"The solution's pricing is very high compared to its competitors."

"NetScaler does the same thing as an F5 and it's cheaper."

"Its licensing cost is much higher than other products, but it is acceptable because it is a one-time investment, and we are getting our requirements fulfilled when we buy this product. So, there is no issue with the pricing."

"For partners, NetScaler is not as expensive price-wise versus F5."

"The firewall license is included by default, with no additional costs."

"The client pays for the Citrix NetScaler license annually."

"In Turkey, everything is good, but it seems expensive for us due to the currency exchange. I don't have a specific rating scale, but if I had to rate the price, I would say it's around a six out of ten."

More NetScaler pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

20%

Financial Services Firm

13%

University

Government

Computer Software Company

15%

Financial Services Firm

10%

Government

10%

Manufacturing Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

Questions from the Community

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...

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.

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

Pricing of Loadbalancer.org is something to consider.

What do you like most about Citrix ADC?

The most valuable feature for us is the application firewalling in Citrix NetScaler, ensuring only valid traffic enters our environment.

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Citrix ADC?

After deployment, Citrix Netscaler shifted to a subscription-based license scheme for support, which is slightly more expensive.

What needs improvement with Citrix ADC?

Citrix NetScaler is a robust product, but mastering it requires significant learning and training due to its complexity. While it could be easier to manage, it is like transitioning from driving a ...

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Product Reports

LoadBalancer Enterprise

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Also Known As

No data available

Citrix ADC, Citrix NetScaler VPX, NetScaler Console, NetScaler Web Application Firewall

Overview

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

One platform for a consistent application delivery and security experience because nobody has time to learn multiple systems to manage ADC deployments. NetScaler is built with a single code base using a software-based architecture, so no matter which ADC form factor you choose — hardware, virtual machine, bare metal, or container — the behavior will be the same.

Sample Customers

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.

ABB Schweiz, Aer Lingus, AIDS Healthcare Foundation, Amnet Technology Solutions, Aramex International, Ascenty, Atos, Autodesk

LoadBalancer Enterprise vs. NetScaler