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Aruba Instant vs WatchGuard Secure Wi‑Fi comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Oct 31, 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

Aruba Instant
Ranking in Wireless LAN
11th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.2
Number of Reviews
52
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
WatchGuard Secure Wi‑Fi
Ranking in Wireless LAN
23rd
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.4
Number of Reviews
7
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of February 2026, in the Wireless LAN category, the mindshare of Aruba Instant is 2.3%, up from 2.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of WatchGuard Secure Wi‑Fi is 0.9%, up from 0.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Wireless LAN Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Aruba Instant2.3%
WatchGuard Secure Wi‑Fi0.9%
Other96.8%
Wireless LAN
 

Featured Reviews

SreejeshSoman - PeerSpot reviewer
Technical Consultant at Vertex Techno Solutions (B) Pvt Ltd
Has supported mid-market deployments with cloud-based centralized management and reliable wireless performance
I faced challenges earlier with a limitation of 50 APs in single sites, but that has enhanced to 100 numbers, eliminating that challenge for Aruba Instant On team. Additionally, some features are not listed in the cloud management platform and still require offline access, so enhancing the cloud management features would be better for us.
reviewer2562924 - PeerSpot reviewer
IT System Support Administrator at a non-profit with 501-1,000 employees
Configuration offers flexibility but response to incidents needs improvement
We recommend using WatchGuard Secure Wi-Fi, but when incidents occur, it can be very difficult to identify why they happen. Normally, the issues are simple to fix, but we recently faced a major incident. We are still trying to identify the cause, which is why I would rate it seven out of ten. Without this incident, I might have rated it eight to nine. Overall, I give the solution a rating of seven.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Allows network monitoring through mobile devices"
"The access it grants to wifi is the solution's most valuable feature."
"The products offer a lot of flexibility. Almost everything can be configured. It works very well for providing remote services."
"The product is easy to configure."
"The most valuable features of Aruba Instant are management and performance."
"I like that the solution is not complex."
"The central management of multiple devices is the solution's most valuable aspect."
"It's practical. It does what it needs to do."
"The Wi-Fi security features of this solution have been great for our customers who need to strictly control access to their network."
"They're very easy to set up and get running."
"It makes it easy to obtain all information about the client experience."
"The solution has been stable."
"Cloud analytics that provide all its attributes."
"The configuration part of WatchGuard is very flexible."
"We like that WatchGuard works and integrates directly with the firewalls we use."
 

Cons

"The captive portal through Facebook doesn't work."
"Aruba Instant should not have a limit on users for future releases."
"The meshing could use improvement but aside from that nothing else really needs improvement."
"The product is a little expensive."
"It is not powerful enough and lacks features recommended for larger dimensions, making it unsuitable for big companies with requirements like 100 access points."
"My biggest problem with Aruba Instant was the DHCP implementation. The DHCP server needs to ping an IP address to connect to the internet. In some cases, we don't have a DHCP server in the network, and it was really a problem."
"The only issue we've had is getting equipment supplies. The availability of the APs that I want to use has been an issue. It took almost two months to get them the first time. I've ordered a few more for another client, and they're still on back order. It has been over a month now."
"I believe there's room for improvement in monitoring, especially when troubleshooting issues. Currently, there's limited intelligence around monitoring. It needs to improve stability and scalability."
"The solution can be scaled but it has limitations from my experience."
"Inability to import a user with one click."
"I don't think they're available at the best price."
"The support response can be time-consuming because sometimes issues are very sensitive and require instant attention."
"The price of this solution needs to reviewed, as it is currently high enough to deter customers from trying it."
"If a client device had issues with authentication due to out of date browser or similar difficulties, it would be nice to have the ability to migrate the client onto the portal via one click."
"One of the things is if you buy it with a certain subscription, you can't easily change the subscription level."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"We only pay for the support and the contract licenses from Aruba Instant."
"The tool's pricing is neither cheap nor expensive."
"The solution's pricing is reasonable."
"Some in the hospitality industry use the solution because it's cheaper and doesn't require licenses."
"Aruba Instant is affordable."
"The setup cost varies based on each organization's requirements but it is within reason."
"There’s no licensing required to use the tool."
"The customers do not have to pay for licensing."
"WatchGuard is on the upper scale for pricing."
"The solution is priced high compared to competitors. However, for the features that are included in the solution, the price becomes more reasonable."
"Your licensing and cost, as would be required for many other solutions, being considered for eighty to two hundred and eighty different physical locations, is just about the same amount per access point."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Comms Service Provider
11%
Computer Software Company
9%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Healthcare Company
6%
Computer Software Company
10%
Non Profit
8%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Outsourcing Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business31
Midsize Enterprise7
Large Enterprise14
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business5
Midsize Enterprise2
 

Questions from the Community

Which is better - Ubiquiti WLAN or Aruba Instant?
We researched Ubiquiti and Aruba when looking for a WLAN solution. Ubiquiti offers good WLAN access both indoors and outdoors. It provides an enterprise-level WIFI while remaining cost-effective. U...
What do you like most about Aruba Instant?
I find network management features related to monitoring Wi-Fi usage and visited sites particularly valuable. Content filtering is also important to prevent access to malicious or inappropriate web...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Aruba Instant?
In my experience, Aruba Instant's price is reasonable compared to premium products like Ruckus, Cisco, or Juniper. However, when compared to entry-level market segments, the price is higher. Overal...
What needs improvement with WatchGuard Secure Wi‑Fi?
The support response can be time-consuming because sometimes issues are very sensitive and require instant attention. Also, when an incident occurs, the impact can be significantly huge. A recent p...
What is your primary use case for WatchGuard Secure Wi‑Fi?
We use WatchGuard Secure Wi-Fi because we have used different tools as well, like Ubiquiti. The complexity of Ubiquiti is much more compared to WatchGuard, which provides more flexibility and is ea...
What advice do you have for others considering WatchGuard Secure Wi‑Fi?
We recommend using WatchGuard Secure Wi-Fi, but when incidents occur, it can be very difficult to identify why they happen. Normally, the issues are simple to fix, but we recently faced a major inc...
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Purdue University, Orlando Magic, Brussels Airport Company, Molecaten Holiday Parks
Portsmouth Grammar School, HILOTEC
Find out what your peers are saying about Aruba Instant vs. WatchGuard Secure Wi‑Fi and other solutions. Updated: February 2026.
881,757 professionals have used our research since 2012.