Aviatrix vs Meraki SD-WAN comparison

Aviatrix and Cisco are both solutions in the Software Defined Networking (SDN) category. Aviatrix is ranked #4 with an average rating of 7.8, while Cisco is ranked #1 with an average rating of 8.7. Aviatrix holds a 5.1% mindshare in SDN, compared to Cisco’s 22.5% mindshare. Additionally, 83% of Aviatrix users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 97% of Cisco users who would recommend it.

Aviatrix

Read 6 Aviatrix reviews

358 Views
131 Comparison Views

83% willing to recommend

Meraki SD-WAN

Read 79 Meraki SD-WAN reviews

1,364 Views
597 Comparison Views

97% willing to recommend

Aviatrix

Meraki SD-WAN

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Mar 4, 2025

Meraki SD-WAN and Aviatrix are competitors in the SD-WAN sector, each offering unique advantages. Although Meraki SD-WAN is appreciated for its cost-effectiveness and exceptional customer support, Aviatrix stands out with its advanced features, making it preferable for businesses requiring sophisticated functionalities despite a higher price point.

Features: Meraki SD-WAN provides centralized management, seamless cloud integration, and robust security protocols. Aviatrix offers extensive multi-cloud networking capabilities, advanced traffic engineering, and comprehensive analytics.

Room for Improvement: Meraki SD-WAN could enhance its capabilities in handling complex multi-cloud environments and improve its analytics offerings. Aviatrix might benefit from streamlining its deployment process to reduce the learning curve and enhancing cost-efficiency for smaller enterprises.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Meraki SD-WAN offers a simple deployment process coupled with strong customer service, making ongoing management straightforward. Aviatrix provides a flexible, highly customizable deployment model suited for complex environments, supported by customer service that aligns with its architectural flexibility.

Pricing and ROI: Meraki SD-WAN is attractive for its lower initial expenses, offering significant ROI through efficient resource utilization. Aviatrix requires a larger investment, justified by enhanced network performance and agility, delivering a solid ROI despite its higher setup costs.

To learn more, read our detailed Aviatrix vs. Meraki SD-WAN Report (Updated: June 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Aviatrix vs. Meraki SD-WAN

June 2025

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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

Aviatrix

Ranking in Software Defined Networking (SDN)

4th

Average Rating

7.6

Reviews Sentiment

7.4

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Meraki SD-WAN

Ranking in Software Defined Networking (SDN)

1st

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

7.2

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2025, in the Software Defined Networking (SDN) category, the mindshare of Aviatrix is 5.1%, up from 3.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Meraki SD-WAN is 22.5%, down from 24.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Software Defined Networking (SDN)

Featured Reviews

Bharadhwaj Bathini

System Engineer at a tech services company with 201-500 employees

Seamless integration features for multi-cloud environments with significant challenges regarding security and support

There is room for improvement regarding enhancing its security features in response to modern cybersecurity challenges. This includes implementing advanced security measures like multi-factor authentication when connecting with various technologies and during login processes. Additionally, the user experience could be improved by offering more practical training courses, helping users understand the purpose and capabilities of Aviatrix, especially in scenarios like archiving systems. Offering temporary subscriptions to external users could boost adoption and usage. Clear communication of policies, terms, and conditions is also recommended to ensure users are well-informed about what can and cannot be done. These enhancements would provide a more user-friendly experience.

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Mageshwaran S

Solution Architect at airtel

Experienced streamlined network management with enhanced usability and room for improved security features

On the security features, when compared to Fortinet, they have more patterns and AI-generated ones. Meraki SD-WAN is slowly implementing AI, but it is not yet full-fledged. If AI comes into the picture, it will be helpful. I work with Fortinet where with a single command you can deploy the entire SD-WAN along with FortiGuard within minutes. For AI, it can discover and connect, but currently, we are doing it manually. In Meraki SD-WAN, some features require additional licenses and subscriptions. If these were bundled together, such as 10 or 20 licenses, it would be very helpful for a mini branch or small campus area coverage.

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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

"Its exceptional capability to seamlessly integrate with various cloud services makes it the preferred choice for multi-cloud deployments."

"This tool resolves the overlapping of CIDR’s IP addresses in a multi-cloud environment, which is its best feature. The product also gives packet-level details on the data that has been put from one cloud to another. Currently, no other solution in the market can give this kind of detail. There is also the high VPN connectivity which gives high throughput. Internet service providers have a limitation on large migrations like 10 Gigabytes or 2 to 2.3 GBPS. However, this tool gives you a functionality where you can bundle multiple tunnels into one tunnel. Thereafter, you can transfer the data from one environment to another or from on-prem to the cloud."

"The connections are seamless, and we can access the static clouds on the platform itself. We are also able to trace the issues. The most valuable features of the solution are security, user interface, and performance."

"Within the Aviatrix ecosystem, you could connect different clouds, and the intricacies of low-level commands and configurations were abstracted away."

"The product has greatly improved our organization by saving costs for multiple direct connections and simpler cloud configurations."

"The most valuable feature of Aviatrix is that it saves us a lot of time."

"The solution is very stable."

"The solution is easy to use."

"The product does have a variety of features we can work with."

"I can manage it very well and in a very easy way."

"The real-time visibility and analytics capabilities of Meraki SD-WAN are very good for troubleshooting ports, especially when viewing traffic running on these ports in real time."

"The most interesting feature is the amount of information you can get from overseeing the system from a centralized place."

"The management system is one of the best available."

"This is a high availability solution that is easy to configure and has a nice GUI."

More Meraki SD-WAN pros

Cons

"There can be a steep learning curve for users who are not familiar with it or multi-cloud networking concepts"

"Aviatrix should include more integrated security features like intrusion detection and lateral movement detection."

"The tool has a very limited local presence in the GCC market. I am based in Dubai, UAE and it would be very difficult for me to reach out to US staff for technical discussion during the tool’s implementation. The tool needs to focus on the GCC market which includes UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, etc. There is nobody to help you out in this region."

"The solution needs to improve the onboarding architecture."

"There is room for improvement regarding enhancing its security features in response to modern cybersecurity challenges."

"There could be an easy availability of multiple features in the profile."

"The solution could be improved if it added more features, especially monitoring and reporting features."

"Technical support could be more knowledgeable and responsive."

"There could be more options for integration between other devices — sort of being able to more easily make everything integrated in one solution."

"I would like to see more flexibility in our choices of customization for our needs."

"Meraki offers the client basic security, it is not the same as what FortiGate is offering."

"The solution needs to enact more advanced protections."

"I'm not too familiar with the Meraki environment, but I suppose more automation is always a good thing."

"I would like improved stability in Meraki SD-WAN."

More Meraki SD-WAN cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"During the initial phase, it operates as an open-source and it's a free tool."

"It operates on a consumption-based model and the expenses depend on factors such as the number of virtual machines you use and the resources consumed."

"The tool is quite expensive."

"Aviatrix is a pretty expensive solution."

"The price can vary depending on the challenges that you need to address. When you look at the stability and reliability against the price, you absolutely get the value for the price."

"The price of this solution is good, it is not expensive."

"The product's price falls under the mid-range category, especially if we consider the new licensing model. The tool is not cheap anymore."

"Any license you buy until January 2021 gets you an extra year for that purchase."

"Our clients pay Meraki an annual licensing fee and the pricing is not too bad when compared to other products in the Cisco portfolio."

"They have a baseline software license, and then they've got an SD-WAN software license, and then they've got an advanced security software license. They're low cost, and they'll provide any amount of flexibility that you want from a modeling perspective for payment. Typically, it's either annually or multi-year, but they are a lower-cost company. They're not the most expensive by far."

"I don't have information on the exact cost of Meraki SD-WAN, but I'd rate it a three out of five just because the licensing model is very much associated with the Meraki solution."

"Meraki's pricing is on the higher side, which may limit who can afford to use them."

More Meraki SD-WAN pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

21%

Financial Services Firm

15%

Manufacturing Company

11%

Insurance Company

Computer Software Company

18%

Manufacturing Company

Comms Service Provider

Financial Services Firm

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

No data available

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Aviatrix?

The most valuable feature of Aviatrix is that it saves us a lot of time.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Aviatrix?

Aviatrix is a pretty expensive solution. Users have to pay a yearly licensing fee for the solution and the support. You can't buy the product without support.

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What needs improvement with Aviatrix?

Aviatrix should include more integrated security features like intrusion detection and lateral movement detection.

See all answers

What do you like most about Meraki SD-WAN?

The auto VPN feature is important because it automates many tasks, making things simpler and faster. It helps with setting up devices and changing configurations without manual effort.

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Meraki SD-WAN?

The price is a little bit higher than local vendors, for example, Huawei ZTE or H3C. However, some customers require the best quality and performance, thus needing solutions and products from Cisco.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Meraki SD-WAN?

They have to ask us many questions about configurations. It could be improved with some automation to trigger, for example, telemetry data, so we can determine the state of the deployment as of day...

See all answers

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Compared 3% of the time

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Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Software Defined Networking (SDN)

June 2025

Download Aviatrix product report

Buyer's Guide

Meraki SD-WAN

June 2025

Download Meraki SD-WAN product report

Overview

The Aviatrix solution consists of two components: the Aviatrix Gateway, which is deployed on-premises or in the cloud; and the Aviatrix Cloud Controller, which orchestrates and manages one or more Gateways.

Aviatrix

Software-defined WAN is a new approach to network connectivity that lowers operational costs and improves resource usage for multi-site deployments, allowing network administrators to use bandwidth more efficiently and ensure the highest possible level of performance for critical applications without sacrificing security or data privacy. For more information on deploying and configuring SD-WAN on the Meraki MX Security Appliance, see the Meraki SD-WAN Deployment Guide.

Cisco

Sample Customers

Hyatt, Robert Half, GREE

École Jeannine Manuel

Buyer's Guide

Aviatrix vs. Meraki SD-WAN

June 2025

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