Difference between LAN and MAN

Prerequisite – Types of area networks – LAN, MAN and WAN

Local Area Network (LAN):
LAN is a group of network devices which allow the communication between connected devices. The private ownership has the control over the local area network rather than public. LAN has short propagation delay than MAN as well as WAN. It covers the smallest area such as: College, School Hospital and so on. 

Metropolitan Area Network (MAN):
MAN covers the largest area than LAN such as: Small towns, City etc. MAN connects 2 or a lot of computers that area unit apart however resides within the same or completely different cities. MAN is expensive and should or might not be owned by one organization. 

Difference between LAN and MAN

S.NO	LAN	MAN
1.	LAN stands for Local Area Network.	Whereas MAN stands for Metropolitan Area Network.
2.	LAN’s ownership is private.	But MAN’s ownership can be private or public.
3.	The speed of LAN is high(more than MAN).	While the speed of MAN is average.
4.	The propagation delay is short in LAN(less than MAN).	Whereas the propagation delay in MAN is average or moderate.
5.	There is less congestion in LAN(local area network).	While there is more congestion in MAN(Metropolitan Area Network).
6.	There is more fault tolerance in LAN.	While there is less fault tolerance.
7.	LAN’s design and maintenance is easy.	While it’s design and maintenance is difficult than LAN.
8.	LAN’s cost is high but less than MAN.	Whereas MAN’s cost is higher than LAN.
9.	LAN operates in a small geographic area upto few  kilometers such as office, building, or campus.	MAN operates in a large geographic area such as a  city or metropolitan area.
10.	The various equipment used in LAN are repeators,  hubs, Network Interface Cards.	The various equipment used in MAN are routers, telephones.
11.	LAN have higher bandwidths than MAN	MAN have comparatively less bandwidths.
12.	LAN can support limited number of devices	MAN can support larger number of devices.
13.	LAN can use twisted pair, coaxial cable, and fiber optic  cable for transmission.	MAN usually rely on fiber optic cables.