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Networking · head to head

Catchpoint vs Cisco Meraki

Catchpoint logo

Catchpoint

Networking

Internet and digital experience monitoring, with a genuinely published entry price through its WebPageTest product line

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Cisco Meraki logo

Cisco Meraki

Networking

Cloud-managed networking hardware where the licence is mandatory and the hardware stops passing traffic if it lapses

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Catchpoint has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Catchpoint its flagship enterprise Internet Performance Monitoring product reverts to custom Enterprise pricing beyond the Quick Start package, so full-scale deployment cost is not knowable from the public site; Cisco Meraki the licence is mandatory and recurring for the life of the hardware; after a 30-day grace period past expiry, devices stop forwarding traffic entirely, which is an operational outage risk unlike almost any other hardware purchase
  • They diverge on capability: Catchpoint covers Global vantage point network, Cisco Meraki covers Cloud dashboard management.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Catchpoint and Cisco Meraki actually diverge.

Attributes where Catchpoint and Cisco Meraki differ
AttributeCatchpointCisco Meraki
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelFree tier plus published entry tiers, enterprise quote-onlyquote, hardware plus mandatory recurring licence
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWebWeb, iOS, Android

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Networking).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Catchpoint

  • Global vantage point network
  • WebPageTest integration
  • BGP and DNS monitoring
  • Real user monitoring
  • Token-based points model

Only in Cisco Meraki

  • Cloud dashboard management
  • Zero-touch provisioning
  • Co-termination licensing
  • Unified hardware line
  • API and integrations

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Catchpoint

  • A web performance engineer wanting a fuller-featured, paid version of WebPageTest with longer retention and more locationsnot Cisco Meraki
  • An enterprise SRE or network team monitoring internet-dependent application delivery, DNS and CDN performance at scalenot Cisco Meraki
  • An organisation wanting BGP-level visibility into internet routing issues affecting its servicesnot Cisco Meraki
  • A team wanting real user monitoring with session replay alongside synthetic testing from one vendornot Cisco Meraki

Cisco Meraki

  • A multi-site retail or education organisation that wants one dashboard to manage networking hardware across many locations without local IT staff at each sitenot Catchpoint
  • An IT team that values zero-touch provisioning for rapid rollout of new sites over local configuration controlnot Catchpoint
  • An organisation that has already standardised on Cisco and wants Meraki's simplified cloud management alongside existing Cisco infrastructurenot Catchpoint
  • A managed service provider running Meraki across client sites who bills the licence cost through to clients as part of a managed contractnot Catchpoint

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Catchpoint

  • Its flagship enterprise Internet Performance Monitoring product reverts to custom Enterprise pricing beyond the Quick Start package, so full-scale deployment cost is not knowable from the public site
  • The token-based points model, while flexible, requires understanding point consumption per test type to budget usage accurately, which is not always intuitive upfront
  • The IPM Quick Start Package carries a 12-month minimum commitment, so there is no genuinely short-term way to trial the enterprise product at scale
  • WebPageTest's published tiers are aimed at web performance testing specifically; the broader enterprise IPM feature set (BGP, DNS, CDN monitoring) is not available at those lower published prices
  • As with ThousandEyes, meaningful internet path visibility depends on a large distributed vantage point network that only the vendor controls, so coverage gaps in specific regions are not something a buyer can fix themselves
  • Session replay and RUM features are gated to the Expert tier and above, so lower tiers give synthetic testing only, without the real user data many teams actually want

Cisco Meraki

  • The licence is mandatory and recurring for the life of the hardware; after a 30-day grace period past expiry, devices stop forwarding traffic entirely, which is an operational outage risk unlike almost any other hardware purchase
  • There is no perpetual or offline fallback mode, so fully depreciated hardware still requires an active subscription to function, meaning the true cost of ownership never drops to zero the way owned hardware normally would
  • Co-termination licensing ties all devices on an organisation to a single renewal date, so adding a device mid-cycle requires paying a prorated amount to align to that date rather than a clean incremental cost
  • Configuration and monitoring depend entirely on Cisco's cloud dashboard being reachable; a local network outage that also cuts cloud connectivity limits visibility into what is happening on-site
  • Pricing is quote-only and bundled with hardware, so a buyer cannot compare a straightforward per-device licence cost against competitors without going through a sales process
  • Switching away from Meraki after adoption means replacing hardware, not just software, since the devices are functionally useless without a Meraki licence and cannot be repurposed to run other firmware

Pricing, plan by plan

Catchpoint

Free
  • WebPageTest StarterFree
    • 150 monthly test runs
    • 60-day retention
    • 30 global locations
  • WebPageTest Professional$180/year
    • 1,000-20,000 monthly test runs
    • 13-month retention
    • 40 global locations
  • WebPageTest Expert$11988/year
    • Real user monitoring with session replay
    • Unlimited users with SSO
    • 3,000+ agents across 300+ cities
  • IPM Quick Start$10000/year
    • Single end-to-end journey monitoring
    • DNS, SSL, CDN and API monitoring

Cisco Meraki

On request
  • Meraki hardware plus licence$undefined/year
    • Device hardware purchase
    • Co-termed licence required for the device to function
    • Licence renewal required indefinitely for continued operation

Which should you pick?

Choose Catchpoint if

  • You need global vantage point network.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want webpagetest integration.
Catchpoint review

Choose Cisco Meraki if

  • You need cloud dashboard management.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want zero-touch provisioning.
Cisco Meraki review

Questions people ask

Is Catchpoint or Cisco Meraki better?
Neither clearly leads. Catchpoint starts at Free and Cisco Meraki at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Catchpoint or Cisco Meraki?
Catchpoint has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Catchpoint and On request for Cisco Meraki.
Does Catchpoint or Cisco Meraki run on more platforms?
Catchpoint runs on Web. Cisco Meraki runs on Web, iOS, Android.
Can I use Catchpoint for free?
Yes. Catchpoint has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Cisco Meraki starts at On request.
What is Catchpoint best used for?
Catchpoint is most often used for a web performance engineer wanting a fuller-featured, paid version of webpagetest with longer retention and more locations, an enterprise sre or network team monitoring internet-dependent application delivery, dns and cdn performance at scale, an organisation wanting bgp-level visibility into internet routing issues affecting its services, a team wanting real user monitoring with session replay alongside synthetic testing from one vendor. Of those, a web performance engineer wanting a fuller-featured, paid version of webpagetest with longer retention and more locations and an enterprise sre or network team monitoring internet-dependent application delivery, dns and cdn performance at scale are not what Cisco Meraki is typically brought in for.
What can Catchpoint do that Cisco Meraki cannot?
Catchpoint covers Global vantage point network, WebPageTest integration, BGP and DNS monitoring, Real user monitoring. Cisco Meraki covers Cloud dashboard management, Zero-touch provisioning, Co-termination licensing, Unified hardware line.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Catchpoint: Is there a free tier?

Yes, WebPageTest Starter is free with 150 monthly test runs.

Cisco Meraki: What happens if we stop paying for the licence?

After the licence reaches its co-termination date there is a 30-day grace period, after which the organisation is marked out of compliance, devices become unmanageable, and hardware stops passing traffic.

Catchpoint: Is enterprise IPM pricing published?

Only the entry Quick Start Package at $10,000/year with a 12-month minimum; full Enterprise pricing is custom.

Cisco Meraki: Can Meraki hardware run without the cloud dashboard?

No, Meraki devices require ongoing cloud connectivity and a valid licence to operate; there is no supported offline or perpetual mode.

Catchpoint: Does Catchpoint own WebPageTest?

Yes, Catchpoint operates WebPageTest as a productised offering with its own tiered pricing.

Cisco Meraki: Is pricing published?

No, Meraki hardware and licensing are quoted per deal rather than listed at fixed public prices.

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