F5 BIG-IP LTM is used for delivering applications and protecting the application from web attacks.
Network Security Consultant at a consultancy with 51-200 employees
Simple to implement, good support, and scalable
Pros and Cons
- "The support from F5 BIG-IP LTM is good."
- "F5 BIG-IP LTM can improve on the SSL loading which includes the authentication of certificates. Although, most of these issues have been solved there are still some issue that persists."
What is our primary use case?
What needs improvement?
F5 BIG-IP LTM can improve on the SSL loading which includes the authentication of certificates. Although, most of these issues have been solved there are still some issue that persists.
In a feature release, it would be helpful to have real-time packet features in the GUI.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using F5 BIG-IP Local Traffic Manager (LTM) for approximately two years.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
I have clients that have approximately 5,000 users using the solutions and others with 40,000 users.
When we increase the services we have to then increase the usage of the solution, we put more virtual F5 devices in the cloud.
Buyer's Guide
F5 BIG-IP Local Traffic Manager (LTM)
February 2026
Learn what your peers think about F5 BIG-IP Local Traffic Manager (LTM). Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: February 2026.
881,821 professionals have used our research since 2012.
How are customer service and support?
The support from F5 BIG-IP LTM is good.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup of F5 BIG-IP LTM is straightforward. The full deployment took approximately two to three days.
What about the implementation team?
I used one person for the deployment of F5 BIG-IP LTM because it is easy to do.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
There are a few licensing options available for F5 BIG-IP LTM. You can have a perpetual license which is a lifetime license. You then only need to renew the support, if you choose to open a ticket with the support.
The second option is a subscription model on the cloud. When I have a project that will only one year. I purchase a subscription for one year only. It would work for the whole year and after we can shut it down because there is no need for it.
What other advice do I have?
My advice to others is to have a good staff who understand the technology. If someone understands the technology, that will make life easy for them or their organization. I cannot say that technology is difficult, but technology is very critical when you put it in your environment. Having good staff who can manage that solution makes life a lot easier.
I rate F5 BIG-IP LTM a nine out of ten.
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer. Partner
Technical Solutions Architect at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Capability is good but integration and scalability need improvement
Pros and Cons
- "The capability is at a seven or eight out of ten."
- "In terms of native integrations, there is a lot of instability. Also, integration is not robust with F5."
What is our primary use case?
We use it to publicly deliver applications.
What is most valuable?
The capability is at a seven or eight out of ten.
What needs improvement?
In terms of native integrations, there is a lot of instability. Also, integration is not robust with F5.
We need a very large team to manage the solution. Had it been cloud native, it would have been very seamless, but because it's not cloud native, it does not integrate really well.
For how long have I used the solution?
We've been using it for a few years.
It's a cloud solution.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
From a scalability point of view, this solution is not really up to the mark. The on-demand requirements or on-demand scalability options are not good.
We have close to 5,000 applications hosted on F5 that are delivered.
How are customer service and support?
The technical support is very poor. They do not deliver on their SLAs, and even when we escalate the issue, we do not get a good response in 24 hours.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup is straightforward. For a very basic, standard F5 setup, the best practices based deployment will work fine. However, for very large scale deployment models, the recommendations that come in from F5 may not really meet your requirements.
For a typical setup, you would like to mimic how it's been set up on-premises, but this is not the way you would set it up on the cloud. You will end up hitting limitations on the cloud, and you would have to rearchitect your overall design or configurations when you deploy it. As a result, the setup for the hybrid model is not straightforward.
What other advice do I have?
We strongly recommend not to go with F5 when internal teams or verticals want to mimic the same architecture.
In terms of the capability, I would rate F5 BIG-IP Local Traffic Manager (LTM) at seven or eight, on a scale from one to ten, and in terms of scalability at four or five. Overall, I would rate it at six.
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Buyer's Guide
F5 BIG-IP Local Traffic Manager (LTM)
February 2026
Learn what your peers think about F5 BIG-IP Local Traffic Manager (LTM). Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: February 2026.
881,821 professionals have used our research since 2012.
COO at a retailer with 501-1,000 employees
Reliable and good support, but ease of use could improve
Pros and Cons
- "F5 BIG-IP Local Traffic Manager is a stable and reliable solution."
- "F5 BIG-IP Local Traffic Manager could improve by having an FNI feature for a single source to multi-domain load balancing."
What is our primary use case?
I am using F5 BIG-IP Local Traffic Manager for load balancing. For example, I create the virtual server, and in there we have a pool and member server. This is used for simple load balancing.
We are using the on-premise and cloud versions of the solution.
What needs improvement?
F5 BIG-IP Local Traffic Manager could improve by having an FNI feature for a single source to multi-domain load balancing.
When I was using the solution I was using the basic functions and I found it difficult to handle some of the more advanced features. I needed assistance from my IT department or the vendors themself. There should be more workshops are places to gain knowledge on how to use the solution. You need specific skill sets to use it.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have used F5 BIG-IP Local Traffic Manager(LTM) within the past 12 months.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
F5 BIG-IP Local Traffic Manager is a stable and reliable solution.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Our whole IT department is using the solution with some application teams. We have approximately 50 people using the solution in the IT department.
How are customer service and support?
When there is an issue it is first looked at by our internal team rather a ticket being opened directly with the vendor. I open the tickets to our internal team and if they cannot solve the issue, they will escalate to the vendor. The technical support from F5 BIG-IP Local Traffic Manager is good.
What about the implementation team?
We did not do the implementation ourselves.
What other advice do I have?
It is important to know how the solution works. For example, how to set up the interface, routing, pools, and the implementation steps. After the basic configurations, you will understand you may need or want to try to learn more of the features, such as the layers of the SNI. It is ideal to start with the very basic implementation first. We have been doing the day-to-day operation.
When it comes to troubleshooting, it is important to know how to isolate the problem, analyze it, and be fast to solve them when it appears.
I rate F5 BIG-IP Local Traffic Manager a six out of ten.
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Network and Security Engineer at a logistics company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Network traffic management tool for faster applications; offers a good setup experience, stability, and scalability
Pros and Cons
- "Stable and scalable network traffic management solution for applications. It has good performance."
- "The price for F5 BIG-IP Local Traffic Manager is very high. This aspect could be improved."
What is our primary use case?
We use F5 BIG-IP Local Traffic Manager for our applications. We have six applications and 16 servers currently. We make all our applications and utilize this tool. Some applications are published on LSM.
What needs improvement?
The price for F5 BIG-IP Local Traffic Manager is very high. This aspect could be improved.
For how long have I used the solution?
I've used F5 BIG-IP Local Traffic Manager (LTM) for one year, within the last year.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
We find this tool stable. We are sensitive to changes, and for us, F5 BIG-IP Local Traffic Manager is stable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
F5 BIG-IP Local Traffic Manager is scalable.
How was the initial setup?
We had a good setup experience with this tool, but we had to raise a ticket with support for assistance.
What about the implementation team?
We implemented F5 BIG-IP Local Traffic Manager ourselves. We didn't use a consultant or integrator for implementation, but we contacted their support team.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
F5 BIG-IP Local Traffic Manager is a high-priced tool. We pay for its license yearly.
What other advice do I have?
F5 BIG-IP Local Traffic Manager has good performance.
Your success with F5 BIG-IP Local Traffic Manager will depend on how much you understand how the application is working.
Deployment of this tool took two hours.
We have 600 users of this tool, and currently, there's no requirement for increasing its usage.
We have one manager and two technical staff who takes care of the deployment and maintenance of this tool. They're building applications, and they're using this tool.
I'm recommending F5 BIG-IP Local Traffic Manager to others who want to start using it.
On a scale from one to ten, with one being the worst and ten being the best, I'm rating F5 BIG-IP Local Traffic Manager (LTM) an eight.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Network & Security Consultant at a tech services company with 51-200 employees
Enhanced server efficiency with trusted performance and SSL capabilities
Pros and Cons
- "Features such as SSL offloading, various balancing methods, and the ability to work with HTTP, HTTPS, or TCP protocols are beneficial."
- "The setup is a little bit complex."
What is our primary use case?
The primary use case includes load balancing to serve application servers and basic web application firewall solutions. Our customers use it for that purpose.
How has it helped my organization?
It takes the load off the application servers allowing them to operate efficiently.
What is most valuable?
The solution is trusted as it has too many customers and has been in operation for many years, enabling users to feel comfortable and perform at a high level.
Additionally, features such as SSL offloading, various balancing methods, and the ability to work with HTTP, HTTPS, or TCP protocols are beneficial. Another feature of note is its high stability and reliable performance.
What needs improvement?
There are no specific areas for improvement as it is already well-resolved and doesn't require further enhancements.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using the BIG-IP LTM solution for almost two years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The solution is highly stable and reliable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
With the new version, the solution is scalable.
How are customer service and support?
The technical support team is really good.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Positive
How was the initial setup?
The setup is a little bit complex. That said, the documentation is helpful.
What about the implementation team?
I am a part of the implementation team.
What was our ROI?
The solution brings a significant return on investment as it allows the use of many servers with high performance.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The pricing should be more flexible.
What other advice do I have?
I recommend F5 BIG-IP LTM because it works stably, the support is good, and the local team is helpful.
I'd rate the solution ten out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer. Reseller
Vice President of It Operations at a computer software company with 51-200 employees
Stable solution with good security features
Pros and Cons
- "It is a scalable solution."
- "The solution's hardware quality needs improvement."
What is our primary use case?
We use the solution for its load balancing and web application firewall features.
What is most valuable?
The solution's valuable features are flexibility, stability, security, and performance.
What needs improvement?
The solution's hardware quality needs improvement. Also, its cloud-based anti-DDoS has limitations. It could be better.
For how long have I used the solution?
We have been using the solution for four years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
It is a stable solution. I rate its stability a ten out of ten.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
It is a scalable solution. I rate its scalability an eight out of ten.
How are customer service and support?
The solution's technical support is good in some areas. Although, it could be faster.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Positive
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
In comparison with Barracuda, the solution has better performance.
How was the initial setup?
The solution is easy to install. It takes a day to configure and requires three engineers to execute the process. Also, it requires one executive to maintain it.
What was our ROI?
The solution is good in terms of investment.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The solution is more expensive than Barracuda. We pay yearly for its support services. There are no additional costs involved apart from the standard license.
What other advice do I have?
One must check the performance capacity of internal applications while using the solution, as wrong configurations lead to failure in accessing them.
I rate the solution an eight out of ten.
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Presales at a tech company with 11-50 employees
Valuable combination of ADC and WAN available
Pros and Cons
- "The combination of ADC and WAN is the most valuable feature."
- "There is room for improvement in the user interface."
What is our primary use case?
The use case for F5 includes ADC, WAF (Web Application Firewall), network firewall, and CGNAT in one platform.
What is most valuable?
The combination of ADC and WAN is the most valuable feature.
What needs improvement?
F5 is a bit expensive in comparison. Moreover, there is room for improvement in the user interface. It can be more user-friendly.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using this solution for three years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
It is a stable solution. I would rate it a ten out of ten.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The scalability is good. I would rate it a ten out of ten. There are over 50 users in our organization using the solution. Mostly the manager and the person in charge use this solution, but we usually work with the security and network teams as well.
How are customer service and support?
The customer service and support team is quite good.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup is quite complex. It took us around one to two months to deploy the solution.
What about the implementation team?
For the deployment process, we have to perform an assessment because it's quite complex. There are a lot of parameters that need to be counted before redeployment. So, an assessment is recommended before the deployment process.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
We use the yearly-based license. I have personally not seen any additional costs.
What other advice do I have?
I would definitely recommend it. I would advise them to check their requirements thoroughly in order to load balancing and also to protect their data.
Overall, I would rate the F5 BIG-IP Local Traffic Manager a ten out of ten.
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer. Reseller
Presales at a tech company with 11-50 employees
With good technical support in place, the tool also ensures stability and allows for scalability
Pros and Cons
- "Stability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten."
- "The solution's initial setup process was quite complex. I"
What is our primary use case?
F5 BIG-IP Local Traffic Manager (LTM) has EC, WAF, firewall, network firewall, and CGNAT in one platform.
What is most valuable?
I like the combination of ADC and WAN in the solution. F5 BIG-IP Local Traffic Manager (LTM) could be a bit better in regards to the pricing.
What needs improvement?
Kemp Loadmaster is cheaper compared to F5 BIG-IP Local Traffic Manager (LTM). Also, the solution's UI needs improvement.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using F5 BIG-IP Local Traffic Manager (LTM) for three years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Stability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The solution's scalability is good. Scalability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten. Around 50-100 of our customers use the solution.
How are customer service and support?
The technical support is very good.
How was the initial setup?
The solution's initial setup process was quite complex. It took around a month to two for the deployment process.
Regarding the deployment process, we have to do an assessment first because it's very complex. There are so many parameters that we have to count the deployments. So, an assessment could be better before the deployment process. We have a manager and a person in charge of technical maintenance, but we usually talk to security and work with the network team.
What was our ROI?
Though I have not seen a return on investment, I can say that it is a good solution.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
Our company pays for the licensing cost on a yearly basis. Also, there are no extra costs in addition to the standard licensing fees.
What other advice do I have?
Before choosing the solution, I suggest others check their requirements to ensure work and protect your data. I rate the overall solution a ten out of ten.
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Buyer's Guide
Download our free F5 BIG-IP Local Traffic Manager (LTM) Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros
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Updated: February 2026
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