Try our new research platform with insights from 80,000+ expert users

Cisco Ethernet Switches vs MikroTik Cloud Router Switch comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 3, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

Cisco Ethernet Switches
Ranking in Ethernet Switches
1st
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.7
Number of Reviews
137
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
MikroTik Cloud Router Switch
Ranking in Ethernet Switches
17th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.3
Number of Reviews
25
Ranking in other categories
Routers (5th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the Ethernet Switches category, the mindshare of Cisco Ethernet Switches is 10.3%, down from 17.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of MikroTik Cloud Router Switch is 1.8%, up from 1.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Ethernet Switches Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Cisco Ethernet Switches10.3%
MikroTik Cloud Router Switch1.8%
Other87.9%
Ethernet Switches
 

Featured Reviews

PM
IT Manager at Decorgel
Reliable equipment offers seamless integration and management simplicity
I really appreciate Cisco Ethernet Switches and currently don't have any improvements to recommend. The switches have technology that has worked fine over the years. An improvement for all players in the market would be to have a website or service to manage all equipment from all brands, not just Cisco. There should be a platform to manage all the equipment.
Andriejus Artamonovas - PeerSpot reviewer
IT Specialist at a outsourcing company with 501-1,000 employees
Has supported deeper configuration through traffic mirroring and advanced VLAN setup
The main reason why MikroTik Cloud Router Switch is usually chosen is its raw performance to price ratio. In comparison to UniFi switches, MikroTik Cloud Router Switch can mirror all ports for traffic inspection for further traffic analysis, which UniFi cannot do. VLANs in MikroTik Cloud Router Switch are always useful. The way MikroTik implements VLAN-aware switching at the bridge level is hidden in the configuration. Making CRS work as a simple VLAN-aware switch requires deeper configuration, which is not intuitive. VLANs support individual interfaces not part of the bridge, allowing for double VLANing. You can create a VLAN interface in the interfaces context and also create a bridge interface, add physical ports, create VLANs for that bridge interface, and assign tagged and untagged ports and VLANs. Load balancing is one of the key components. The feature itself is quite efficient and works reliably on MikroTik Cloud Router Switch. The very basic setup is one of my favorites because they have their protocol where I can connect through the MAC address right on Layer 2, and I don't lose connectivity to the switch if I mess up with bridging or IP addressing.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"Good and stable operational experience with nearly no loss of hardware and very few software bugs."
"We use Cisco Ethernet Switches to configure VLANs in the VPN network."
"The main features of this solution are performance and ease of use."
"The solution's valuable features are the speed of network transfer, it can transfer four to six gigabits per second."
"The solution can scale."
"This solution is overall a high-grade solution compared to others."
"It's all-encompassing and can help you in all these different areas. If people realize that they want something that's going to work, that's pretty foolproof, then Cisco's always worth the investment."
"When it comes to switching routing, we have no doubts about Cisco."
"I like that it's quite flexible and addresses different issues. It's quite easy to use, and the pricing is great. We find them to be very capable switches."
"It's a well-rounded solution for routing."
"The GUI is easy to use."
"The best aspect is that it remains affordable."
"The most valuable feature is that it has better throughput than its competitors."
"The router power is the most valuable aspect."
"The traffic monitoring capabilities are excellent."
"The wiki page that describes the scripting and other features is very good."
 

Cons

"The NX-API REST is not very good and should be improved."
"Switches should be made stackable, even if they are not of the same model."
"Cisco's pricing can be a concern, particularly with support fees."
"The solution is expensive."
"The solution should offer a method for user-based load balancing."
"There is a need for improvement on the ordering and delivery side for Cisco Ethernet switches."
"There are instances where the commands you are familiar with might change or be replaced with newer syntax."
"Location of customers to connect clients to the servers and transport the data and VoIP in parallel with QoS and NBAR with 802.1X."
"In medium to large sectors, there's a necessity for managing aspects like proxy firewalls."
"If MikroTik had a marketing team and support team in India then it would be much easier for us to get the product, as well as support."
"There has to be more development in the OS. It's complex for this switch as compared to others like Cisco. For NetGear and Cisco, it's easy to adapt the VLAN concept but it should be simplified for MikroTik."
"The initial setup is complex."
"The user interface could improve and they should allow a license for IBS."
"The packet filtering, user log data, and user access log could all be improved."
"The RAM capacity offered by the product needs to be increased, as it is one area where the tool currently has some shortcomings."
"The port isolation and VLAN need to be improved."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The price is a bit on the high side."
"Its price is a bit higher than other brands. Indian customers are price-conscious. They should improve its price."
"It is expensive. There are additional costs besides the license cost."
"We are happy with the pricing from Cisco."
"The price of this solution is fair."
"We get the SMARTnet and one of the switches has that Cisco ONE licensing. It's probably running about $12,000 a year right now."
"Price is a pain point for us. We've lost a lot of bids, and the reason has been that we majorly quoted Cisco devices. Some of our competitors quoted other devices like Ubiquity or Microchip. Some even quoted this Chinese product TP-Link, and they won the bid over us because we quoted Cisco. Meanwhile, the major reason why we quoted Cisco is reliability and stability from day one. They also last longer. The prices could be worked on so that they become more affordable. We had to deploy a city-wide WiFi network, and we were working in conjunction with Google. Because of the price, even Google recommended a product called Ruckus, so we used Ruckus over Cisco. Its price and license were the main reasons. You have to pay to renew the license every year. Even though you also renew the licenses for Ruckus, but they are much cheaper than Cisco. So, while I would recommend Cisco any time, the trouble remains with the pricing."
"It is an expensive product since it is used in a large network where you cannot rely on some cheaply priced solution."
"I believe the price of the tool is high, but it is okay for the services we get from it."
"I consider it to be a cost-effective solution."
"This product has a one-time cost and there is no licensing fee."
"In Pakistan, if you buy this cloud router, it's approximately $700 for the device."
"They came with the licensing when we purchased them."
"MikroTik is really cheap compared to the competitors."
"The licensing for MikroTik is great. It's easy to enter, especially for small businesses. Their model is great."
"The price of the solution is fair and there is a one-time license purchase only."
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Ethernet Switches solutions are best for your needs.
880,901 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Comparison Review

it_user82779 - PeerSpot reviewer
Engineer at a comms service provider with 10,001+ employees
Jan 29, 2014
Benefits of Juniper vs Cisco
Both are decent products. I prefer Juniper for the following reasons: 1) Cleaner separation of data plane from control plane. Higher end Cisco devices are better at this but most of the lower end products still seem to be more integrated than I like. 2) The Hierarchical config design means I can…
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Manufacturing Company
11%
Computer Software Company
10%
Financial Services Firm
7%
University
7%
Comms Service Provider
14%
Educational Organization
14%
Computer Software Company
8%
Manufacturing Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business59
Midsize Enterprise35
Large Enterprise55
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business19
Midsize Enterprise5
Large Enterprise2
 

Questions from the Community

Would you recommend replacing a Cisco Catalyst Switch by a D-link one?
Hello Mesfin It depends on the real scenario, the cisco 2960 is a very good device and they usually have routing functions but there are many different models within the same 2960 line, and on the ...
Which would you choose - Fortinet Fortiswitch secure access or Cisco Ethernet Switches?
We researched Cisco but ultimately chose Fortinet FortiSwitch Secure Access, mostly because of the price. Fortinet FortiSwitch is an ethernet switch solution that provides security and performance...
In terms of ethernet switches, would you go with Cisco or Juniper?
Our organization ran comparison tests to determine whether Cisco or Juniper Ethernet switches were the better fit for us. We decided to go with Juniper. Juniper ethernet switches are a lesser-known...
What do you like most about MikroTik Cloud Router Switch?
The tool has impacted our company's network costs and productivity in a perfect manner and percentage-wise, I can say it is 120 percent.
What needs improvement with MikroTik Cloud Router Switch?
It can be difficult to identify key functions for MikroTik Cloud Router Switch. I experience functionality limitations, particularly when trying to find specific features. It would be beneficial to...
 

Also Known As

Cisco Industrial Ethernet Switches
MikroTik CRS Series
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Linz AG
Information Not Available
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco Ethernet Switches vs. MikroTik Cloud Router Switch and other solutions. Updated: December 2025.
880,901 professionals have used our research since 2012.