Meraki Dashboard vs WhatsUp Gold comparison

Why PeerSpot?

Cisco and Progress Software are both solutions in the Network Monitoring Software category. Cisco is ranked #11 with an average rating of 8.6, while Progress Software is ranked #25 with an average rating of 7.0. Cisco holds a 0.8% mindshare in NMS, compared to Progress Software’s 2.0% mindshare. Additionally, 98% of Cisco users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 85% of Progress Software users who would recommend it.

Meraki Dashboard

Read 69 Meraki Dashboard reviews

6,994 Views
5,036 Comparison Views

98% willing to recommend

WhatsUp Gold

Read 25 WhatsUp Gold reviews

16,207 Views
8,752 Comparison Views

85% willing to recommend

Meraki Dashboard

WhatsUp Gold

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Oct 10, 2024

WhatsUp Gold and Meraki Dashboard compete in the network monitoring and management space. Meraki Dashboard holds a competitive advantage with its superior features and centralized cloud-based management.

Features: WhatsUp Gold provides extensive network monitoring capabilities, customizable notifications, and comprehensive reporting tools. Meraki Dashboard offers centralized cloud-based management, seamless integration, and advanced security features.

Room for Improvement: WhatsUp Gold could benefit from a simplified interface, enhanced cloud integration, and scalable solutions for larger networks. Meraki Dashboard may improve by offering more cost-effective pricing models, expanding offline management capabilities, and providing enhanced customization options.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: WhatsUp Gold employs an on-premise deployment model with responsive customer support for swift setup and issue resolution. Meraki Dashboard's cloud-based model simplifies deployment and offers remote management capabilities, providing quicker and more flexible system management.

Pricing and ROI: WhatsUp Gold is generally more cost-effective with a lower initial setup cost, appealing to budget-conscious buyers. Meraki Dashboard, while having a higher upfront cost, offers better long-term ROI through its comprehensive feature set and enhanced management capabilities.

To learn more, read our detailed Meraki Dashboard vs. WhatsUp Gold Report (Updated: November 2026).

Buyer's Guide

Meraki Dashboard vs. WhatsUp Gold

November 2026

Download the complete report

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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

Meraki Dashboard

Ranking in Network Monitoring Software

11th

Average Rating

8.6

Reviews Sentiment

6.2

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

WhatsUp Gold

Ranking in Network Monitoring Software

25th

Average Rating

7.8

Reviews Sentiment

6.2

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Application Performance Monitoring (APM) and Observability (44th), Server Monitoring (18th), IT Infrastructure Monitoring (23rd), Configuration Management (22nd), Log Management (41st), Cloud Monitoring Software (27th), Network Traffic Analysis (NTA) (13th)

Mindshare comparison

As of November 2026, in the Network Monitoring Software category, the mindshare of Meraki Dashboard is 0.8%, down from 1.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of WhatsUp Gold is 2.0%, up from 1.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Network Monitoring Software Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
Meraki Dashboard	0.8%
WhatsUp Gold	2.0%
Other	97.2%

Network Monitoring Software

Featured Reviews

NicolasFigaro

IT Network Manager at a tech services company with 10,001+ employees

Cloud-based management has simplified global Wi-Fi operations and improved daily troubleshooting

What I would like to improve in Meraki Dashboard is the template part, which is really helping me to manage at large scale. Integration with AI or native AI functionality would be interesting depending on the price, how far it goes, and how far it shares the information I have. For the rest, it is quite straightforward. The next tool maybe to be integrated, which I do not know if it exists today within Meraki, is IPAM management for IP address management. I do not know if it is part of the roadmap, but it is something I have to use on a dedicated platform, so integrating this would be interesting as well. Finally, I would rate Meraki Dashboard overall as a 9 out of 10. There are still some missing features, but there are also some considerations. I am familiar with the Chinese situation where there is a dedicated portal for China, so if I need to deploy access points in China, I have to connect to a dedicated portal due to the regulations in that country. However, this is not due to Cisco or company policy.

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Erik Cheng

Technical Manager at Quan Hung Gourmet

Efficient monitoring with detailed customization, yet complexity remains

The best feature of WhatsUp Gold is the automatic generation of topology and its integration with virtualization and wireless. I have used the automated device discovery with this topology feature. The interactive map feature helps me manage the topology because sometimes we cannot draw the topology correctly, so we need to manually edit the connections. The alerting system is very tunable and customizable, but it's a little complicated to use. Many customers cannot manage it by themselves and need support from us, the provider. We always use the dashboards in the SOC, where we constantly display a dashboard or multiple dashboards. This allows us to know immediately if the connection or bandwidth is full or if the connection is broken.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"This product saves me time and I am very happy using it."

"Cisco Meraki is the best solution."

"The initial setup was easy."

"The feature I find most valuable is the single pane of glass where you can configure a monitor view, all from one dashboard. For example, on the wireless side, you can configure it under the configuration panel, and then view statistics like location analytics, user analytics, etc."

"The most valuable feature of Meraki Dashboard is we can manage our switches and access point in one place."

"The most valuable features are the ease of use and a single-pane-of-glass that allows us to identify issues across the entire network from one dashboard."

"The Meraki solution was easy to use and allowed us to separate the traffic."

"The ability of the product to perform with simplicity of deployment make it a valuable solution."

More Meraki Dashboard pros

"WhatsUp Gold is very easy to deploy."

"It handles the basics of monitoring."

"It is very good at monitoring the network and keeps us up to date on the status of internal devices."

"NetFlow monitoring, real-time monitoring, and surveys have been the most valuable features for our business."

"The most valuable feature is the monitoring of resources."

"It's a good product, and if one has the expertise to use it, it will be a good investment and it will help IT to save and plan for the future."

"We've been using it for many years and we use it typically for early warning, as it notifies customers of problems prior to failure."

"Our local support team provides excellent service."

More WhatsUp Gold pros

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."

"Waiting until an incident happens before being notified is not sufficient."

"The price could be lower because the license for access points is expensive."

"What needs improvement in Meraki Dashboard is its configuration."

"While the visibility in Meraki Dashboard is good, the solution is too heavy and complex."

"Meraki Dashboard could improve the user interface by making it more user-friendly. The configuration can at times be difficult."

"An area for improvement in Meraki Dashboard is licensing management because it's a little complex. Product licensing can be made a little bit easier through license concurrency and a more straightforward approach to applying the license to products and services."

"It is not appropriate for large, enterprise businesses."

More Meraki Dashboard cons

"WhatsUp Gold should work on real-time monitoring and configuration management. If they succeed in doing this, the solution will cover all the network troubleshooting aspects and will be a benefit."

"I haven't had any issue with stability, except during the upgrade to 2017 when we encountered slow responses."

"Integrations with other devices. I want to have a product that has full integration with my active directory so I can track user activity. I want to track my complete user activity, so I'm looking for a product to implement in the near future, which will have full integration with my network and active directory users. It became very difficult to track user activity."

"One of the biggest things that made us start to look at another product is we're not able to have an end to end monitoring from a user perspective throughout the system and back to the user. All the monitoring is from inside out, we need something that also can give us from outside in."

"Importing the maps and being able to customize them could be easier."

"The new release cadence needs to be improved. It takes a while for them to add new features and functionality. There should be a quicker turnaround with new versions."

"We can never achieve or get a good picture of the network topology."

"My understanding is that there are better products out there that do a better job."

More WhatsUp Gold cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The price of Meraki Dashboard is not expensive because knowing that it is a cloud-based solution has its benefits."

"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."

"From a pricing perspective, they are still expensive."

"The solution is currently the most expensive on the market."

"Licensing fees are paid on a yearly basis."

"Meraki Dashboard's pricing is reasonable. It is sold yearly, typically for one, three, or five years. I rate its pricing a five out of ten."

"You don't have to pay for the dashboard."

"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."

More Meraki Dashboard pricing and cost advice

"There is a license needed to use WhatsUp Gold."

"I'm not sure, but it's expensive. We don't pay any additional fees."

"The price of WhatsUp Gold is good."

"It is per device, per year. The pricing is very clear. If you have a service agreement, you get all of your major upgrades and minor upgrades. It was under $10,000 to go all-in with all of the different add-ons for it."

"Pricing is reasonable compared to other products."

"The choice of version depends on the number of points, or devices, that you want to monitor, and this makes the product expensive."

"There are some subscription charges that are quite heavy. I need to pay for support every year and these charges can be quite expensive. Aside from the initial cost for the tool, you need to pay additionally for support."

"The pricing can be on the expensive side when considering competing products."

More WhatsUp Gold pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Outsourcing Company

12%

Construction Company

Financial Services Firm

Healthcare Company

Financial Services Firm

11%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Comms Service Provider

Outsourcing Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	24
Midsize Enterprise	14
Large Enterprise	35

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	9
Midsize Enterprise	5
Large Enterprise	14

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Meraki Dashboard?

I find the licensing model of Cisco Meraki acceptable; it seems reasonable to me.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Meraki Dashboard?

There will always be room for improvement. The AI capabilities will surely create a more proactive approach to incident reporting. AI capabilities present a significant opportunity for improvement ...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Meraki Dashboard?

We use Meraki Dashboard, which is a network monitoring software for Cisco Meraki, primarily to monitor Meraki activities, and we also have other monitoring devices across the network. We build a la...

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for WhatsUp Gold?

Clients find the licensing calculator confusing, but we simplify this for them by collecting relevant information first. The licensing is based on devices, providing better cost-effectiveness than ...

See all answers

What needs improvement with WhatsUp Gold?

It would be great if WhatsUp Gold could add features that simplify management with AI, as it is currently too complicated to manage.

See all answers

What is your primary use case for WhatsUp Gold?

My use case for WhatsUp Gold includes all device availability checks, bandwidth usage, CPU, and memory usage, as well as alarm notifications.

See all answers

Comparisons

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Compared 36% of the time

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Compared 4% of the time

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Compared 4% of the time

Cisco DNA Center vs Meraki Dashboard

Compared 3% of the time

NETSCOUT Network & Application Observability vs Meraki Dashboard

Compared 3% of the time

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Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform vs WhatsUp Gold

Compared 3% of the time

PRTG Network Monitor vs WhatsUp Gold

Compared 3% of the time

SolarWinds NPM vs WhatsUp Gold

Compared 3% of the time

SCOM vs WhatsUp Gold

Compared 2% of the time

Splunk Enterprise Security vs WhatsUp Gold

Compared 2% of the time

More WhatsUp Gold Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Meraki Dashboard

October 2026

Download Meraki Dashboard product report

Buyer's Guide

WhatsUp Gold

October 2026

Download WhatsUp Gold product report

Overview

Meraki Dashboard offers intuitive, cloud-based network management, simplifying tasks with centralized control, real-time monitoring, and comprehensive security.

Offering ease of use and a single-pane-of-glass view, Meraki Dashboard enhances network management through centralized monitoring and configuration. Its intuitive interface allows remote device management, policy configuration, and real-time alerts. Cloud-based access provides scalability and automatic updates, while detailed analytics and security measures ensure robust control over networks. Though some users mention complexity in certain configurations and third-party integration gaps, its continuous improvement and network management efficiency accommodate extensive business requirements.

What are the Key Features of Meraki Dashboard?

Ease of Use: Simplified interface that allows easy navigation and operations.
Single-Pane-of-Glass View: Centralized management of all network components from one platform.
Real-Time Monitoring: Provides up-to-date insights for proactive network management.
Cloud-Based Access: Accessible from anywhere, enabling remote management and updates.
Automatic Updates: Ensures the system is always up-to-date with the latest features and security patches.
Detailed Analytics: Offers insights into network performance and security analytics.
Comprehensive Security Measures: Features built-in security protocols and tools for enhanced protection.

What Benefits and ROI Should Users Consider?

Centralized Control: Streamlines network management across multiple sites.
Scalability: Grows with business needs, supporting a wide range of devices and configurations.
Integration Capabilities: Merges easily with existing systems, though improvements are desired for third-party devices.
Improved Network Efficiency: Enhances visibility and control, reducing downtime and improving performance.
Remote Management: Facilitates convenient configuration and monitoring from any location.

Enterprises deploy Meraki Dashboard for diverse network management purposes, including monitoring, access point deployment, security configuration, and VLAN and LAN management. In education, it provides centralized Wi-Fi management and ensures secure student access. Retail businesses utilize it for seamless device integration and analytics, while healthcare facilities employ its robust security and real-time monitoring to safeguard patient data and maintain network efficiency. Its cloud-based interface enhances control and visibility across numerous sites, simplifying management and configurations.

Cisco

WhatsUp Gold stands out with its comprehensive network monitoring, dynamic mapping, and real-time alerts, offering essential tools for managing extensive IT infrastructures.

WhatsUp Gold provides robust capabilities in network visibility through dynamic mapping and NetFlow analysis. The platform's interactive topology aids in pinpointing issues effectively. Auto-discovery ensures complete network device tracking. While offering an intuitive interface and integration with Cisco ServiceNow, users find server performance monitoring useful for incident handling. However, improvements are anticipated in application monitoring and Active Directory integration. The pricing model and customization options leave room for enhancement. Despite these, users benefit from its integrated dashboards for immediate device health checks and network updates, making it beneficial for large-scale infrastructure management.

What features does WhatsUp Gold offer?

Network Monitoring: Provides continuous oversight of network components
Dynamic Mapping: Offers visual representation of network topology
NetFlow Analysis: Delivers insights into bandwidth utilization
Threshold Alerts: Notifies users upon reaching set performance thresholds
Auto-Discovery: Detects devices automatically for complete network coverage

What benefits should users expect from reviews?

Comprehensive Visibility: Enhanced understanding of network elements
Real-Time Monitoring: Immediate insights into network and device status
Cost-Effectiveness: Competitive solution suitable for expansive networks
User-Friendly Interface: Simplifies the management of complex networks

Organizations in sectors like telecommunications, education, and healthcare utilize WhatsUp Gold for their network monitoring needs. Telecom companies track switches and routers, educational institutions manage bandwidth usage, and healthcare facilities monitor device availability to ensure seamless operations.

Progress Software

Sample Customers

Coop eG, Peet's Coffee & Tea, Priefert Manufacturing, Century Care Management, Clifton College, Zürs Ski Resort, Capital FM Arena, MAXI Autohöfe

Artoni Trasporti, Austin Independent School District, Banca Marche, Burke County North Carolina, Cambridge University School of Clinical Medicine, Clayco, Community Integrated Care, Desca, Deutsche Bergbau, Flexi-Van, Gropper, Hamleys, Hammonds Furniture, Knowledge IT, Idras S.P.A., Sibeg, Swann Engineering, Trivium Lindenhof

Buyer's Guide

Meraki Dashboard vs. WhatsUp Gold

November 2026

Free Report: Meraki Dashboard vs. WhatsUp Gold

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