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Meraki Dashboard vs NIKSUN NetVCR comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Oct 10, 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

Meraki Dashboard
Ranking in Network Monitoring Software
19th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
5.7
Number of Reviews
59
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
NIKSUN NetVCR
Ranking in Network Monitoring Software
95th
Average Rating
0.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.3
Number of Reviews
2
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2026, in the Network Monitoring Software category, the mindshare of Meraki Dashboard is 0.7%, down from 1.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of NIKSUN NetVCR is 0.4%, up from 0.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Network Monitoring Software Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Meraki Dashboard0.7%
NIKSUN NetVCR0.4%
Other98.9%
Network Monitoring Software
 

Featured Reviews

MURALI NIDAMANURI - PeerSpot reviewer
Managing Director at a manufacturing company with 10,001+ employees
Dashboard provides comprehensive network security and management capabilities
I don't have specific handy names. Meraki Dashboard uses multiple functions where we can configure SSIDs, firewall policies, DHCP, multiple VLANs and DHCP configurations, VLAN configurations, access control policies, MAC binding, client access based on MAC authentication and certificate-based authentication. We have configured SSO for Windows Active Directory by configuring the RADIUS services. We have implemented many customer requirements in Meraki Dashboard. With the detailed visibility feature of Meraki Dashboard, I get connected clients information, including how much data each client downloaded and what applications they accessed. I can obtain detailed data including ISP links level monitoring and speed. I can perform speed tests, generate analytics reports, convert to Excel based on each user for each department, create dashboards, monitor and limit bandwidths, and restrict specific URLs. The advanced security configuration in Meraki Dashboard is useful for network security. Substantial security can be achieved within Meraki Dashboard itself, eliminating the need for additional firewalls to protect your network. You can configure WAN monitoring, users' ACLs, URL filtering, web filtering, and department-wise access configuration for specific client applications. It's completely cloud-managed, and in a simplified way, you don't need to visit any physical infrastructure to monitor activities. Apart from access points, everything is in the cloud. We have monitored IoT solutions, CCTV monitoring, and can detect and control intrusions. When people connect IoT devices to your network, Meraki Dashboard can detect what device it is and control those access controls, even with different operating systems.
Himanshu Shah - PeerSpot reviewer
Partner at Opticom Data Products
High performance, quick packet monitoring, and helpful support
The solution could improve by having automatic mitigation. For example, as soon as a problem occurs the solution alarms and mitigates the situation immediately. In a feature release of the solution they should add features related to automation and remediation. Automation would help increase level of security the solution provides.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"For small businesses, I would recommend Meraki over pretty much anything else on the market."
"It's an easy-to-use product; it's really user-friendly, with a great, simple user interface and a very stable platform, and the initial implementation process is simple."
"The initial setup was easy."
"We like how Meraki Dashboard lets you manage all the devices in a single pane of glass. The dashboard is intuitive and easy to use. They are constantly updating the functionality. Switches from other vendors have the same features for the life of the device, but Meraki is always improving."
"The ability of the product to perform with simplicity of deployment make it a valuable solution."
"I would say the ease of use is the most valuable feature. It's very easy to set up and get up and running."
"The most valuable feature is ease of use."
"Some of the features I have valuable are ease of access, simple configuration, and monitoring."
"The unique selling point of NIKSUN is its ability to scale and its reporting capabilities. NIKSUN captures the packets at a very high speed, from one GB to 160 Gbps also. It offers report granularity in nanoseconds."
"NIKSUN provides you with the why, what, when and where type of answers to all your network problems."
"The most valuable features of NIKSUN NetVCR are its performance and forensic capabilities. Additionally, the information that the solution provides is highly detailed and useful. When dealing with network traffic packets can be sent at a high speed causing some security issues, but this solution is able to rapidly monitor the packets providing security."
 

Cons

"There needs to be more improvement on the device-connected interface."
"I am concerned about the fact that once your licensing expires the devices stop working and become a brick."
"The MDM, however, is bad. We're using another MDM now because Meraki was so bad."
"It would be helpful to have the ability to create a floor plan based on an existing PDF or JPEG, which is automatically converted into a usable network map."
"I’d like the product to allow for other solutions to be integrated with the dashboard as well."
"They can improve the landing page in Meraki Dashboard. When I go into an organization, they can include a lot more infographics."
"There is a bit of a problem when you try to log in and you don't have a fixed IP address."
"Some features could be added."
"NIKSUN is a passive solution. It provides you with you data, alerts, reports and the root cause of issues. However, it requires a person to make use of this functionality. If an event is happening and nobody attends to it, the effects of the event could be severe."
"NIKSUN is a passive solution. It provides you with you data, alerts, reports and the root cause of issues, however, it requires a person to make use of this functionality."
"The solution could improve by having automatic mitigation. For example, as soon as a problem occurs the solution alarms and mitigates the situation immediately."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The licensing fees are $180 USD, per AP, for three years."
"My view is that it's expensive, but it's the best."
"Licensing is around under 1000 pounds. The licensing is either one year, three years, five years or ten years and during the licensing, we can choose to renew it per year or per every three years. We've got a license for three years. It's about 160 or about 200 pounds each."
"The pricing of the tool is relatively high compared to other solutions. It comes with a premium that exceeds that of its competitors by approximately 25 percent."
"The pricing for a small setup is only a few hundred dollars a year. The fee is subscription-based."
"Licensing for Meraki Dashboard is paid every year, and it's on a per-device model that costs roughly $300 to $400 per device, but that comes with full support and troubleshooting, etc. Compared to similar products, Meraki Dashboard is quite high-end, but the costs you pay are all-in."
"The price of Meraki Dashboard is not expensive because knowing that it is a cloud-based solution has its benefits."
"Licensing fees are paid on a yearly basis."
"The price of the solution is high. There is an annual license costs."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
8%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Healthcare Company
7%
Educational Organization
7%
No data available
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business23
Midsize Enterprise13
Large Enterprise26
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with Meraki Dashboard?
Regarding Meraki Dashboard, I would suggest improvements to Cisco ISE integration. I have used Cisco ISE for port security and I never liked the GUI because it is difficult. If I need to check the ...
What is your primary use case for Meraki Dashboard?
My main use case for Meraki Dashboard is as a NOC engineer for the MSP, where we have three sites. We add all the sites to Meraki Dashboard for live monitoring. I am the one who uses LogicMonitor, ...
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Also Known As

No data available
NetVCR
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Coop eG, Peet's Coffee & Tea, Priefert Manufacturing, Century Care Management, Clifton College, Zürs Ski Resort, Capital FM Arena, MAXI Autohöfe
Visa, FedEx, CitiGroup, IDC
Find out what your peers are saying about Meraki Dashboard vs. NIKSUN NetVCR and other solutions. Updated: April 2026.
894,738 professionals have used our research since 2012.