Cisco 5500 Series Wireless Controllers Replacement — What Cisco Recommends
Cisco support for the Cisco 5500 Series Wireless Controllers has ended for some part numbers (last group runs to Jan 2025) — unsupported units need a plan. Cisco's own end-of-life bulletin names the successor below — quoted from the source, with the successor's live support status where EOSL.ai tracks it.
The Cisco-named replacement
per-part mapping in the bulletin (2 replacement parts listed) — named in the Cisco EOL bulletin ↗ as the migration path.
AIR-CT3504-K9 is not yet tracked on EOSL.ai — no vendor end-of-life notice has been captured for it, which is typical of current products.
Cisco 5500 Series Wireless Controllers lifecycle dates
| SKU group | End of sale | EOSL / last support | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Switch hardware | Dec 2021 | Jan 2025 | bulletin ↗ |
| Switch hardware | May 2018 | Jul 2023 | bulletin ↗ |
Per-part-number replacement mapping (14)
As listed in the Cisco bulletin's migration table for each part number.
| End-of-life part | Description | Bulletin-listed replacement |
|---|---|---|
| PROMOCT5508-1-K9 | AIR-CT3504-K9 | |
| AIR-CT5508-500-K9 | AIR-CT5520-K9 | |
| AIR-CT5508-100-K9 | Cisco 5508 Series Wireless Controller for up to 100 APs | AIR-CT3504-K9 |
| AIR-CT5508-12-K9 | Cisco 5508 Series Wireless Controller for up to 12 APs | AIR-CT3504-K9 |
| AIR-CT5508-25-K9 | Cisco 5508 Series Wireless Controller for up to 25 APs | AIR-CT3504-K9 |
| AIR-CT5508-250-K9 | Cisco 5508 Series Wireless Controller for up to 250 APs | AIR-CT5520-K9 |
| AIR-CT5508-50-K9 | 5508 Series Controller for up to 50 APs | AIR-CT3504-K9 |
| AIR-CT5508-500-2PK | 2x AIR-CT5508-500-K9 | AIR-CT5520-K9 |
| AIR-CT5508H-100-K9 | Cisco 5508 Series Wireless Ctlr, up to 100 APs, Hospitality | AIR-CT3504-K9 |
| AIR-CT5508H-250-K9 | Cisco 5508 Series Wireless Ctlr, up to 250 APs, Hospitality | AIR-CT5520-K9 |
| AIR-CT5508H-50-K9 | Cisco 5508 Series Wireless Ctlr, up to 50 APs, Hospitality | AIR-CT3504-K9 |
| AIR-CT5508H-500-2X | 2x AIR-CT5508-500-K9, Hospitality | AIR-CT5520-K9 |
| AIR-CT5508H-500-K9 | Cisco 5508 Series Wireless Ctlr, up to 500 APs, Hospitality | AIR-CT5520-K9 |
| C1-AIR-CT5508-K9 | Cisco ONE - 5500 series WLAN Controller w/ 0 AP lics | C1-AIR-CT5520-K9 |
Migration questions
What is the replacement for the Cisco 5500 Series Wireless Controllers?
Cisco's end-of-life bulletin names AIR-CT3504-K9 as the recommended migration path for the Cisco 5500 Series Wireless Controllers. The exact wording and any per-part-number mapping are in the linked bulletin.
Is the Cisco 5500 Series Wireless Controllers end of life?
Cisco support for the Cisco 5500 Series Wireless Controllers has ended for some part numbers (last group runs to Jan 2025) — unsupported units need a plan. Full lifecycle dates by part number: https://eosl.ai/system/cisco-5500-series-wireless-controllers/.
Is there a per-part-number replacement mapping for the Series Wireless Controllers?
Yes — the bulletin maps replacements at the part-number level for 14 SKUs (for example PROMOCT5508-1-K9 → AIR-CT3504-K9). The full table is on this page.
Do I have to buy the Cisco-recommended replacement?
No. The bulletin's named successor is Cisco's suggested path, not an obligation. Teams also keep Series Wireless Controllers units running under third-party maintenance after the support cutoff, migrate to a different vendor, or run low-criticality units to failure with the risk documented. See the support-options guide for the trade-offs.