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National Instruments (NI) Oscilloscopes vs Tektronix Oscilloscopes comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

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

National Instruments (NI) O...
Ranking in Oscilloscopes
7th
Average Rating
8.6
Number of Reviews
10
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Tektronix Oscilloscopes
Ranking in Oscilloscopes
3rd
Average Rating
8.4
Number of Reviews
23
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of February 2026, in the Oscilloscopes category, the mindshare of National Instruments (NI) Oscilloscopes is 2.5%, up from 0.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Tektronix Oscilloscopes is 17.8%, up from 15.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Oscilloscopes Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Tektronix Oscilloscopes17.8%
National Instruments (NI) Oscilloscopes2.5%
Other79.7%
Oscilloscopes
 

Featured Reviews

AA
Senior Technical Officer at a tech services company with 1,001-5,000 employees
I have saved almost 50 percent of my total budget for a project by using their products
The use of this solution does require a specific mindset. Some people are not tailored for it. Try it. The learning curve is really fast, so it's easy to use. We are measuring RF signals, one-sided analog signals, and control loops for system controls. We are not using this product to support connected devices nor are we planning to going forward.
HC
Sr Engineer at a tech company with 5,001-10,000 employees
B-scan is its most valuable feature. However, we are looking for an Intel platform with the newest chipset.
Try it if it is within your budget. It is a good product. The learning curve is very quick. It takes about one or two days. While we have plans to use this product to support connect devices, we are not currently doing so. We are currently measuring signals from 3.0 and 4.0, and looking for 5.0.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"It makes programming simpler."
"The learning curve was really fast, which was also the reason for saving a lot on the budget."
"It helps us to save on our investment with a lot of the stuff that we buy, as we can find defects quickly."
"The user interface is absolutely great. It creates an easy working environment because it has well-integrated hardware and software. So, it is easy to use."
"It took us less than a week to get integrated into the solution, which is very fast."
"I can automate a lot of testing very quickly. With just a push of a button, I can test hundreds of different scenarios without having to do all that manual testing myself."
"Most of the features are on the screen itself. The naming convention makes it very easy to understand what is needed."
"The user interface is very good, easy to understand, and easy to operate."
"When I was looking for a scope for that lab, that five subdivisions per division was important."
"Being able to monitor data from a CAN bus while the vehicle is running will cut down a lot of the feedback for the design mode."
"The user interface is good, not very complicated. It is very intuitive."
"Valuable features include that it's multi-channel... and has bandwidth filtering. The user interface is good."
"We have multiple systems for manufacturing tests, and it's critical for our support. The support increases our productivity."
"It has digital scopes with a high bandwidth and digitized signal. It can do whatever you want with the signal. Since its user-friendly software allows you to work with the signal, which is pretty cool."
"I haven't seen anything similar where it has a spectrum analyzer and regular scope together."
"It provides you the best way to view information without opening multiple applications, like a single solution."
 

Cons

"I would like more speed and a reduction in size."
"It took a good year until I felt proficient using the product, as It is a complex program. Their newest version has a less steep learning curve, but back closer to 15 years ago, it was a lot less user-friendly."
"The software has room for improvement."
"I would like to have more RF. They're going that way, but still there is some work that they have to do."
"There is a learning curve. It might take a year if you're not well-versed with it."
"I would like to see more of a tasking user base and documentation inside the instrument itself, rather than having to go online for it."
"National Instruments needs to be focusing on its 5G RF applications. They are aware of this, and that's where most of their R&D is going."
"I would like to see them increase the productivity and auxiliary functions."
"They need to add more memory to this machine."
"If you are dealing with time domain measurement, I strongly recommend using a vendor other than this company."
"I would like to see an app from this company for test fixtures."
"There was a learning curve, which was a little tricky at times. Getting used to the GUI took time because we had to learn the different features."
"I would like to see some WiFi capabilities. I would like to upgrade equipment, and if I was in the U.S., I could do that with WiFi capabilities."
"There is room for improvement when it comes to the screen size. I don't really have a lot of complaints but screen size would be the biggest thing."
"The power of the computer inside is weak. Sometimes I send a lot of data and I'll feel the lag... I would like to see them improve the processing power."
"There are other devices out there which are more capable, offering more features, with as good quality tech support."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"They have an initial investment cost, which is quite high. But, along the way, there is so much behind it that the product is really invaluable."
"The cost of the equipment has room for improvement. The pricing could improve."
"I would like more competitive pricing."
"It's a bit expensive. However, you get the entire package, not just the box. It's a box which supports older releases."
"The price is a little steep. A lot of people, like our customers, use a different machine because of the price. The price has to come down a bit so we can do other tests without paying the equipment's high costs."
"These products are a very low-cost, effective alternative to traditional Big Iron ATE hardware."
"The pricing was good. Compared to the others, it was very good."
"It's reasonably priced for what we spend our money on in the lab. It's one of the lower-end purchases."
"Tektronix Oscilloscopes are really expensive for small businesses. The low-end scopes don't really compare performance-wise to what the other companies provide, like RIGOL . Mostly that just has to do with the software options."
"It costs a quarter of a million. This technology is not cheap."
"The cost has room for improvement. Though compared to other companies, it's okay."
"The pricing is not too high and not too low."
"I would like to see a lower price."
"The pricing is okay. It was within our budget."
"We demoed the product before purchasing it."
"It's available on the low-end scopes for free, but on the higher-end scopes, it is expensive. Therefore, it's a bit more difficult to make stuff work."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
No data available
Manufacturing Company
14%
University
12%
Educational Organization
8%
Comms Service Provider
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business3
Large Enterprise7
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business2
Midsize Enterprise1
Large Enterprise19
 

Also Known As

NI Oscilloscopes
TBS Series, TDS Series, MDO Series, MSO Series
 

Overview

Find out what your peers are saying about National Instruments (NI) Oscilloscopes vs. Tektronix Oscilloscopes and other solutions. Updated: December 2025.
881,757 professionals have used our research since 2012.