Cisco Access Manager

Name: Cisco Access Manager
Brand: Cisco
Rating: 5 (4 reviews)

Leader

We securely connect everything to make anything possible.

Est 1984|Valuation $449.2B|Raised $49.2B

LinkedIn 7.6M|Website|Web traffic 11.8M|FTEs 95,663|HQ San Jose, California, US

MarketsNetwork Access Control (NAC)Enterprise Networking

01Competitive Landscape

Top competitors comparison (3)

| Aspect | Cisco Access Manager | Aruba ClearPass Policy Manager | Portnox Cloud NAC | |--------|----------------------|-------------------------------|------------------| | Starting Price | Not transparently published; commonly quote-based/EA. Public reseller unit prices exist but context is unclear. | Public store examples for small endpoint counts exist, but full deployment costs vary by modules and appliances/VMs. | Contact vendor for pricing; vendor provides trial options. | | Best For | Organizations standardized on Meraki switching/wireless seeking a cloud-integrated NAC managed via the Meraki Dashboard. | Heterogeneous access-edge environments requiring mature policy, guest, and BYOD workflows. | Cloud-first, vendor-agnostic NAC deployments seeking a SaaS option and faster deployments. | | Key Strength | Integration with Meraki Dashboard, SaaS delivery model, and use of ISE technology for identity modeling. | Feature-rich NAC functionality with broad multivendor integrations and long market history. | Cloud-native deployment model and vendor-agnostic positioning; trials available. | | Key Weakness | Dependence on Meraki access-edge; product maturity is more recent; some access policy behaviors are unsupported. | Can be complex and involve appliance/VM management; licensing and module choices can increase cost and complexity. | Pricing often requires a quote; feature parity with mature NAC suites depends on deployment requirements. | Pricing/source notes: - Public store examples for ClearPass may show small-scale pricing, but do not reflect full deployment costs (appliances/VMs, additional modules, support). - Portnox and similar vendors commonly require direct sales engagement for enterprise pricing.

Narrative analysis

Where Access Manager is positioned to be advantageous: - For organizations standardized on Meraki switching and wireless, the product's integration with the Meraki Dashboard can consolidate management and may simplify operational workflows. - The product aims to provide NAC functionality without requiring on-premise ISE clusters, addressing historical operational complexity associated with on-prem NAC infrastructure. Where competitors may be stronger: - Multivendor access-edge environments: ClearPass and other multivendor NACs are typically deployed where the access layer includes non-Meraki equipment. - Mature NAC feature depth: Established NAC platforms often provide more comprehensive guest workflows, profiling, posture assessment, and failure-mode handling. - Reference base and independent market signals: Access Manager has limited independent review coverage relative to longer-established solutions. Adoption trends: - Vendor communications position Access Manager as part of a broader secure enterprise network approach centered on the Meraki Dashboard. - Community discussions indicate pilot activity and interest alongside caution regarding early maturity.

01Competitive Landscape

Top competitors comparison (3)

Aspect	Cisco Access Manager	Aruba ClearPass Policy Manager	Portnox Cloud NAC
Starting Price	Not transparently published; commonly quote-based/EA. Public reseller unit prices exist but context is unclear.	Public store examples for small endpoint counts exist, but full deployment costs vary by modules and appliances/VMs.	Contact vendor for pricing; vendor provides trial options.
Best For	Organizations standardized on Meraki switching/wireless seeking a cloud-integrated NAC managed via the Meraki Dashboard.	Heterogeneous access-edge environments requiring mature policy, guest, and BYOD workflows.	Cloud-first, vendor-agnostic NAC deployments seeking a SaaS option and faster deployments.
Key Strength	Integration with Meraki Dashboard, SaaS delivery model, and use of ISE technology for identity modeling.	Feature-rich NAC functionality with broad multivendor integrations and long market history.	Cloud-native deployment model and vendor-agnostic positioning; trials available.
Key Weakness	Dependence on Meraki access-edge; product maturity is more recent; some access policy behaviors are unsupported.	Can be complex and involve appliance/VM management; licensing and module choices can increase cost and complexity.	Pricing often requires a quote; feature parity with mature NAC suites depends on deployment requirements.

Pricing/source notes:

Public store examples for ClearPass may show small-scale pricing, but do not reflect full deployment costs (appliances/VMs, additional modules, support).
Portnox and similar vendors commonly require direct sales engagement for enterprise pricing.

Narrative analysis

Where Access Manager is positioned to be advantageous:

For organizations standardized on Meraki switching and wireless, the product's integration with the Meraki Dashboard can consolidate management and may simplify operational workflows.
The product aims to provide NAC functionality without requiring on-premise ISE clusters, addressing historical operational complexity associated with on-prem NAC infrastructure.

Where competitors may be stronger:

Multivendor access-edge environments: ClearPass and other multivendor NACs are typically deployed where the access layer includes non-Meraki equipment.
Mature NAC feature depth: Established NAC platforms often provide more comprehensive guest workflows, profiling, posture assessment, and failure-mode handling.
Reference base and independent market signals: Access Manager has limited independent review coverage relative to longer-established solutions.

Adoption trends:

Vendor communications position Access Manager as part of a broader secure enterprise network approach centered on the Meraki Dashboard.
Community discussions indicate pilot activity and interest alongside caution regarding early maturity.