Location analytics and guest WiFi, on any vendor’s network
Cisco Spaces delivers location intelligence on Cisco wireless. Purple delivers guest WiFi, a branded captive portal, footfall and dwell analytics and marketing on the access points you already run - Cisco Meraki, HPE Aruba, Ruckus, Juniper Mist or Ubiquiti UniFi - plus passwordless staff WiFi and enterprise compliance. One platform, not tied to a single hardware vendor.
- Runs on your existing access points - Cisco Meraki, HPE Aruba, Ruckus, Juniper Mist, UniFi
- Footfall, dwell and repeat-visit analytics across every site
- Guest and staff WiFi in one platform, passwordless WPA2/3-Enterprise for your team
- ISO 27001, GDPR, CCPA and B Corp certified
See Purple on your network
Book a 30-minute demo and we’ll show you Purple running on the access points you already own, with no hardware swap.
Join 80,000+ venues. We’ll never share your details.
Why teams move from Cisco Spaces to Purple
Cisco Spaces runs on Cisco wireless.
Purple runs on the access points you already own - Cisco Meraki, HPE Aruba, Ruckus, Juniper Mist or Ubiquiti UniFi - so you are not tied to one hardware vendor.
Cisco Spaces triggers location-based notifications and offers.
Purple adds full marketing automation - a branded captive portal, first-party data capture and automated email and SMS journeys.
Cisco Spaces focuses on indoor location and IoT services.
Purple pairs footfall and dwell analytics with guest and staff WiFi on one platform.
Cisco Spaces leaves secure network access to separate Cisco identity products.
Purple includes passwordless staff WiFi with WPA2/3-Enterprise and Entra ID, Okta or Google sync.
Cisco Spaces is licensed per Cisco access point.
Purple is one platform subscription that works across mixed-vendor hardware and multi-site estates.
Built for IT, marketing and the whole venue
Purple gives every team one platform. IT keeps the hardware it already runs, marketing gets first-party data and analytics, and the wider venue gets guest and staff WiFi that works together.
IT and network teams
Deploy as a cloud overlay on your existing access points - Cisco Meraki, HPE Aruba, Ruckus, Juniper Mist or UniFi - with passwordless staff WiFi and ISO 27001 compliance.
Marketing teams
A branded captive portal, first-party data capture and automated email and SMS journeys across 70+ CRM integrations.
Analytics and operations
Footfall, dwell time and repeat-visit insight across every site in one dashboard.
Security and compliance
ISO 27001, GDPR, CCPA, Cyber Essentials and B Corp certified, with passwordless WPA2/3-Enterprise staff access.
Why 80,000 venues choose Purple
See what Purple looks like running on your network.
Feature-by-feature comparison
| Feature | Purple | Cisco Spaces |
|---|---|---|
| Branded guest WiFi captive portal | ✓Customisable splash with social, SMS and email login and data capture | ✓Captive Portal app with social, SMS and email login |
| Footfall, dwell & visitor analytics | ✓Footfall, dwell time, visit frequency and repeat-visitor insight | ✓Deep indoor location, occupancy and density analytics (Detect and Locate) |
| Marketing automation (email/SMS, CRM) | ✓Purple Engage: automated email and SMS journeys, 70+ CRM integrations | –Engagements app sends location-triggered notifications, not a full marketing suite |
| Runs on your existing hardware, any vendor | ✓Vendor-agnostic: Cisco Meraki, HPE Aruba, Ruckus, Juniper Mist, UniFi | ✕Cisco wireless only - Catalyst, Aironet and Meraki access points |
| Passwordless staff WiFi (WPA2/3-Enterprise, RADIUS) | ✓Cloud RADIUS with EAP-TLS, iPSK and SAML/SSO for staff access | ✕Handled by separate Cisco identity products such as ISE |
| Passpoint / OpenRoaming | ✓Passpoint and OpenRoaming for passwordless guest onboarding | ✓OpenRoaming app for frictionless guest onboarding |
| Multi-tenant / iPSK WiFi | ✓Resident-isolated networks for BTR, student and coworking | ✕Not offered |
| Enterprise compliance (ISO 27001, GDPR, CCPA, B Corp) | ✓ISO 27001, GDPR, CCPA, Cyber Essentials and B Corp certified | –Part of Cisco’s enterprise portfolio; this guest-data certification set not published for Spaces |
Book a demo and we’ll map the switch from Cisco Spaces to your setup.
One platform for guest WiFi, analytics and your whole estate
Purple runs guest and staff WiFi, a branded captive portal, footfall and dwell analytics and marketing on the access points you already own, across Cisco Meraki, HPE Aruba, Ruckus, Juniper Mist and Ubiquiti UniFi. It serves 80,000+ venues and 350 million users at 99.999% uptime, with ISO 27001, GDPR, CCPA and B Corp certification, and is trusted by Manchester Airports Group, Chase and the University of Sheffield. Book a 30-minute demo to see it on your network.
Frequently asked
Does Purple work with non-Cisco access points?
Yes. Purple deploys as a cloud overlay on your existing access points across Cisco Meraki, HPE Aruba, Ruckus, Juniper Mist and Ubiquiti UniFi, so you are not tied to one hardware vendor. Cisco Spaces is designed for Cisco wireless.
What does Purple add beyond location analytics?
On top of footfall and dwell analytics, Purple adds a branded captive portal with first-party data capture, marketing automation across 70+ CRMs, passwordless staff WiFi with WPA2/3-Enterprise, and iPSK multi-tenant networks, all on one platform.
Do we need to replace our hardware to use Purple?
No. Purple runs as a cloud overlay on the access points you already own, so there is no hardware swap and you are live in weeks.
Where Purple beats Cisco Spaces
See the product hub and the industries where teams pick Purple over Cisco Spaces.