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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
18th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
5.7
Number of Reviews
58
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
NIKSUN NetVCR
Ranking in Network Monitoring Software
99th
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 October 2025, in the Network Monitoring Software category, the mindshare of Meraki Dashboard is 1.1%, down from 1.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of NIKSUN NetVCR is 0.2%, up from 0.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Network Monitoring Software Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Meraki Dashboard1.1%
NIKSUN NetVCR0.2%
Other98.7%
Network Monitoring Software
 

Featured Reviews

MURALI NIDAMANURI - PeerSpot reviewer
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
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

"Everything is in a single pane and you can look at your network in one centralized place."
"The initial setup process is quite simple."
"The overall product rating is ten out of ten."
"There are some whitelist blacklist capabilities in the MX dashboard, which is very helpful."
"It is a reliable product. It provides a lot of information that is easy to read."
"The ability to view the entire project stack, including the camera, features, and routers, which I believe are the most important or relevant components."
"The most valuable feature for me is the cloud dashboard."
"What I found most valuable in Meraki Dashboard is that it's well-organized, easy to use, and practical."
"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."
"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."
 

Cons

"It's a very complex system. Customers have told me that sometimes there are lots of advanced features that are available and that you can change in the dashboard, but sometimes it's very hard to know what they are."
"There is a need for price reductions in developing countries, as the cost of Meraki is quite high."
"For instance, you should be able to see if something has been blocked by a firewall rule by looking at a live log of traffic moving through the device. It helps you troubleshoot issues and understand if your rules are working. You need to ensure the firewall is blocking the right things. That's unavailable in the Meraki Dashboard. You have to send the logs to a log server. We use SolarWinds locally, but it's not natively built into Meraki. We're also using Cisco ISA and another tool called Smoothwall."
"The downside to the simplicity is that you can't get as granular as you could with the Cisco APs."
"The pricing for this solution needs to be improved."
"The MDM, however, is bad. We're using another MDM now because Meraki was so bad."
"There needs to be more improvement on the device-connected interface."
"Price could be reduced."
"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."
"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

"My view is that it's expensive, but it's the best."
"The solution is currently the most expensive on the market."
"The price of Meraki Dashboard is not expensive because knowing that it is a cloud-based solution has its benefits."
"From a pricing perspective, they are still expensive."
"Typically, the license model is for one, three, and five years. They can just be a bit more flexible around it and look into providing an option for 24 months."
"You don't have to pay for the dashboard."
"Meraki Dashboard is a utility and portal that's part of the Meraki solution."
"It is said to be expensive."
"The price of the solution is high. There is an annual license costs."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
16%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Educational Organization
7%
Government
6%
No data available
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business22
Midsize Enterprise13
Large Enterprise25
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Meraki Dashboard?
We greatly utilize the network because we can plug it into the DNS, VPN, or equipment. It's very good. Meraki Dashboard enhances wireless network management. We appreciate its flexibility, as it al...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Meraki Dashboard?
The cost of the Meraki solution is high, which may not be affordable for smaller companies, especially in developing countries.
What needs improvement with Meraki Dashboard?
Improving the AI capabilities would be beneficial as the machine should learn more extensively. The future is AI-driven. Network availability is crucial based on machine understanding, so the machi...
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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: September 2025.
869,771 professionals have used our research since 2012.