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Aruba Wireless vs Fortinet FortiAP 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:
 

ROI

Sentiment score
4.7
Aruba Wireless led to mixed financial outcomes, with enhanced efficiency and mobility, but had varying measurable savings and productivity impacts.
Sentiment score
5.2
Fortinet FortiAP offers enhanced security, cost-effectiveness, and reliability, yielding an 80% savings and boosting productivity and operational efficiency.
There is no need to buy additional controllers for managing access points.
Consultant at Lantec
There are significant time savings, around thirty to forty percent, due to minimal disconnections.
Manager ITSM at Lucky Cement Limited
I do not have to continuously manage them, and their reliability means they are consistently up and running.
Network Administrator at a educational organization with 501-1,000 employees
Fortinet FortiAP provides value for money, and I can quantify the savings at about 80%.
Senior Network Security Engineer at ITCG SOlutions Pvt Ltd
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
7.2
Aruba Wireless support is praised for responsiveness and knowledge, but experiences vary, especially with first-level and escalated cases.
Sentiment score
7.4
Fortinet FortiAP's customer service is efficient for some, but regional and service tier disparities affect user satisfaction.
I only needed support once or twice for a replacement, and it was handled smoothly without any difficulty.
IT Infrastructure at a tech services company with 501-1,000 employees
I would rate their technical support nine out of ten.
Sales Engineer at SGE
The customer support is good.
Manager ITSM at Lucky Cement Limited
We keep a support contract open with Fortinet, so we have instantaneous response from them.
Network Engineer III at a energy/utilities company with 1,001-5,000 employees
The RMA process is very good, with same-day replacement in our case.
Head Of Technical Operations at ITE
I am not satisfied with Fortinet FortiAP's technical support in India.
Senior Network Security Engineer at ITCG SOlutions Pvt Ltd
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
6.9
Aruba Wireless is praised for scalability and cloud capabilities, though model-specific limitations and hardware issues are noted.
Sentiment score
6.5
Fortinet FortiAP is praised for scalability, handling large volumes well, though it faces challenges, enhanced by ISPs and FortiManager.
The solution is scalable, as multiple sites connect seamlessly.
Manager ITSM at Lucky Cement Limited
It is easy to adapt and very scalable.
IT Infra Deputy Vice President at ESFB
There could be constraints where a product can't be scaled further without purchasing a new model.
Senior IT System Engineer at a tech services company with 1-10 employees
We have good scalability with Fortinet FortiAP because we have multiple ISPs connected to it through FortiManager.
Network Engineer III at a energy/utilities company with 1,001-5,000 employees
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
8.3
Aruba Wireless is reliable, stable, handles large deployments well, with minor issues quickly resolved and high user satisfaction.
Sentiment score
6.8
Fortinet FortiAP's stability receives mixed reviews, with users noting both reliable performance and occasional issues after updates.
I have been using the product for the last nine years without facing any issues post-installation.
Manager ITSM at Lucky Cement Limited
I believe it has been a stable product.
Network Administrator at Nippon Express Canada Ltd.
I don't remember it going down during the years it existed.
IT Infrastructure at a tech services company with 501-1,000 employees
I have not experienced any issues, outages, or problems and have not had to interfere with them at all.
Network Administrator at a educational organization with 501-1,000 employees
The stability of the solution is very high.
Network Engineer III at a energy/utilities company with 1,001-5,000 employees
 

Room For Improvement

Aruba Wireless needs better pricing, integration, troubleshooting, security, support, documentation, availability, and more intuitive interfaces and tools.
Fortinet FortiAP needs improvement in integration, wireless functionality, automation, support, easy deployment, and enhanced configuration for better performance.
The product should be more affordable, especially the cloud and console for the Aruba product as it is currently very expensive.
Sales Engineer at SGE
While the technical specifications are satisfactory, the access points are expensive.
Consultant at Lantec
At the time of purchase, the prices were moderate, but now they are quite expensive.
Manager ITSM at Lucky Cement Limited
Security is always a concern for any business, and the network should not be compromised easily.
Senior IT System Engineer at a tech services company with 1-10 employees
I know they're going up to six soon, which will enhance reliability.
Network Engineer III at a energy/utilities company with 1,001-5,000 employees
We earlier expected that Fortinet FortiAP could be managed through the cloud, which would be very good, but nowadays, FortiNet is providing FortiAPs with cloud management also.
Senior Network Security Engineer at ITCG SOlutions Pvt Ltd
 

Setup Cost

Aruba Wireless is often seen as expensive, but offers value and performance with manageable costs and favorable long-term investment options.
Fortinet FortiAP is competitively priced, with varied opinions on affordability compared to Cisco, Palo Alto, Meraki, and Aruba.
I think the price may be a little cheaper than other products.
Network Administrator at Nippon Express Canada Ltd.
The pricing seems reasonable compared to other brands; however, it is too expensive for smaller businesses.
Sales Engineer at SGE
The pricing can be expensive.
Consultant at Lantec
The license costs for Fortinet are more affordable when considering licensing costs with other leaders like Cisco.
Senior IT System Engineer at a tech services company with 1-10 employees
The pricing is a little bit high, and I would rate it a ten on the scale where ten is the highest price.
Network Administrator at a educational organization with 501-1,000 employees
The pricing is much better than Cisco pricing.
Network Engineer III at a energy/utilities company with 1,001-5,000 employees
 

Valuable Features

Aruba Wireless offers seamless mobility, robust security, centralized management, and cost-efficiency, making it ideal for diverse environments.
Fortinet FortiAP offers seamless integration, strong security, and simplified management with Zero-Touch Deployment and passwordless authentication for enterprises.
I do not need to buy a controller for the access point since the Aruba Access Point has a built-in virtual controller.
Consultant at Lantec
The Aruba Wireless solution has excellent roaming capabilities, ensuring seamless connectivity.
Manager ITSM at Lucky Cement Limited
It has many features and is integrated with Azure AD and multiple active directories, making authentication easy.
Senior Network Engineer at Zerone Technologies
Compatibility with Fortinet firewalls allows clients to set up new businesses with integrated firewalls and access points, offering a cost-effective solution while providing excellent wireless coverage.
Senior IT System Engineer at a tech services company with 1-10 employees
Fortinet FortiAP is effective in protecting against wireless threats.
Senior Network Security Engineer at ITCG SOlutions Pvt Ltd
Unlike other wireless controllers, the firewall is controlling the AP, so you have a much higher level of security.
Co Founder And Consultant at a tech services company with 1-10 employees
 

Categories and Ranking

Aruba Wireless
Ranking in Wireless LAN
1st
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.7
Number of Reviews
151
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Fortinet FortiAP
Ranking in Wireless LAN
4th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
17
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2026, in the Wireless LAN category, the mindshare of Aruba Wireless is 12.3%, down from 17.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Fortinet FortiAP is 4.7%, down from 5.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Wireless LAN Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Aruba Wireless12.3%
Fortinet FortiAP4.7%
Other83.0%
Wireless LAN
 

Featured Reviews

CK
Network Administrator at Nippon Express Canada Ltd.
Wireless network has supported long-term reliable access and simplifies RF optimization
I have experience with Cisco products and the Cisco brand. The product is mainly a hardware product. Regarding the software part, I don't have a lot of experience. Aruba Wireless was not too difficult to set up. When compared with other products such as Cisco, they also have products with wireless controllers, and it's similar to that. I think it should be recommended for both bigger and smaller companies based on the feedback and our experience. I believe there should be AI functions that might help us in some cases of cybersecurity matters, detecting threats regarding security would be better with AI. For this role, I have more than twenty years of experience. I would rate Aruba Wireless eight out of ten overall.
Shahnawaz Nusrat - PeerSpot reviewer
Head Of Technical Operations at ITE
Has simplified wireless integration while needing better throughput and captive portal features
The product can be improved depending on the model selected as per requirements. Support is good and throughput is good. What we need to do is select a better product as per our requirement and environment. If proper working is done in terms of wireless heat map or radio connectivity in our environment, I believe it's good. There is always a chance to improve. Throughput can be better in terms of other vendors, but currently, it's working fine. One feature that I still need to explore is the captive portal. When we deploy a unit in a public environment, users need to sign in with a pop-up box to connect.
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Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Wireless LAN solutions are best for your needs.
893,244 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Comparison Review

it_user212721 - PeerSpot reviewer
President at a tech services company with 51-200 employees
Mar 24, 2015
Cisco vs. Aruba Wireless Solutions
Cisco or Aruba Networks? If you are considering wireless access solutions, this is a common question that you are probably asking. You probably have sales people knocking at your door. How do you make sense of all the stories that you are presented with. If you have done any research, you are…
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Manufacturing Company
9%
Computer Software Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Computer Software Company
9%
Government
9%
Financial Services Firm
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business77
Midsize Enterprise47
Large Enterprise75
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business12
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise3
 

Questions from the Community

What are pros and cons of Aruba 515 Series AP vs. Cisco Meraki or Extreme Networks?
Depends. I have personally used both Cisco and Aruba so I am familiar with them. Extreme I am not, so unless they have some feature that I need or want, I wouldn't consider them. Do you have expe...
Aruba Wireless or Ruckus Wireless?
At my organization, we researched Ruckus Wireless among other solutions but ultimately chose Aruba wireless. What did we like about Ruckus? First, it was very easy to use, and anybody with minimal...
How does Cisco Wireless compare with Aruba Wireless?
On the most basic level, Cisco Wireless can offer a rather straightforward initial setup. In the span of about three hours, the basic framework can be set up. Step-by-step instructions are availabl...
What needs improvement with FortiAP?
A point for improvement for Fortinet FortiAP would be improvements in the GUI, which is adequate but could be improved. Additionally, wireless coverage and the mapping area are fairly static and co...
What is your primary use case for FortiAP?
Fortinet FortiAP is currently used mainly on branch deployments because of the single pane of management across the whole branch using the FortiGate, FortiAP, and FortiSwitch. I have utilized Forti...
 

Also Known As

Aruba WLAN, HP WLAN, HP Wireless, Aruba Instant On AP Series Access Point
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Consulate Health Care, Los Angeles Unified School District, Science Applications International Corp (SAIC), San Diego State University, KFC, ACTS Retirement-Life Communities
Information Not Available
Find out what your peers are saying about Aruba Wireless vs. Fortinet FortiAP and other solutions. Updated: April 2026.
893,244 professionals have used our research since 2012.