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Aviatrix vs Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

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

Aviatrix
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
7
Ranking in other categories
Software Defined Networking (SDN) (4th)
Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
97
Ranking in other categories
Network Management Applications (6th), Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions (2nd), WAN Edge (2nd)
 

Mindshare comparison

While both are Enterprise Networking solutions, they serve different purposes. Aviatrix is designed for Software Defined Networking (SDN) and holds a mindshare of 4.6%, up 4.6% compared to last year.
Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN, on the other hand, focuses on Network Management Applications, holds 2.8% mindshare, up 0.3% since last year.
Software Defined Networking (SDN) Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Aviatrix4.6%
Meraki SD-WAN18.8%
Cisco ACI13.0%
Other63.6%
Software Defined Networking (SDN)
Network Management Applications Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN2.8%
Cisco DNA Center19.5%
Cisco Catalyst Center9.8%
Other67.9%
Network Management Applications
 

Featured Reviews

Govinda Mengji - PeerSpot reviewer
Has multiple capabilities which are not present in other products in the market
This tool resolves the overlapping of CIDR’s IP addresses in a multi-cloud environment, which is its best feature. The product also gives packet-level details on the data that has been put from one cloud to another. Currently, no other solution in the market can give this kind of detail. There is also the high VPN connectivity which gives high throughput. Internet service providers have a limitation on large migrations like 10 Gigabytes or 2 to 2.3 GBPS. However, this tool gives you a functionality where you can bundle multiple tunnels into one tunnel. Thereafter, you can transfer the data from one environment to another or from on-prem to the cloud.
Henry Rosenstiehl - PeerSpot reviewer
Comprehensive support and ease of implementation enhance operational efficiency
With Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN, I have centralized orchestration and management. The transport independence of MPLS or connectivity and internet connectivity is another excellent feature. End-to-end segmentation is also provided. I use the application-aware routing feature. Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN supports dynamic police-based routing decisions based on application type or different performance metrics such as jitter or latency. The benefit of that feature is that it improves user experience. The principal benefit of application-aware routing is that critical applications are prioritized or routed over the best performing paths to reduce outages and service degradation. There is full visibility of applications. Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN has integrated security features which include base firewall, URL filtering, IPS, and secure segmentation, and it supports integration with other Cisco products such as Umbrella or Snort. This feature is beneficial for the client because the information is secure. It is important that Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN supports cloud, on-premises, and hybrid environments for my organization because it allows for scalability and faster deployment in the cloud. It reduces operational needs because I don't need to manage physical controller hardware, and updates and maintenance can be centralized and automated. The zero-touch provisioning feature is very important for the speed of deploying new branch locations. I can deliver the device to the branch, and it is important because simplified deployment makes the implementation start more easily since devices are auto-configured and authenticate without manual intervention.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The most valuable feature of Aviatrix is that it saves us a lot of time."
"The connections are seamless, and we can access the static clouds on the platform itself. We are also able to trace the issues. The most valuable features of the solution are security, user interface, and performance."
"This tool resolves the overlapping of CIDR’s IP addresses in a multi-cloud environment, which is its best feature. The product also gives packet-level details on the data that has been put from one cloud to another. Currently, no other solution in the market can give this kind of detail. There is also the high VPN connectivity which gives high throughput. Internet service providers have a limitation on large migrations like 10 Gigabytes or 2 to 2.3 GBPS. However, this tool gives you a functionality where you can bundle multiple tunnels into one tunnel. Thereafter, you can transfer the data from one environment to another or from on-prem to the cloud."
"Within the Aviatrix ecosystem, you could connect different clouds, and the intricacies of low-level commands and configurations were abstracted away."
"The product has greatly improved our organization by saving costs for multiple direct connections and simpler cloud configurations."
"Its exceptional capability to seamlessly integrate with various cloud services makes it the preferred choice for multi-cloud deployments."
"If I have to give a neutral view of all the SD-WAN platforms that I have known so far, Cisco is good in routing."
"Cisco SD-WAN's best features are the development of network links, application control, and bandwidth monitoring."
"Installation is easy."
"This solution comes with comprehensive technical support."
"The scalability is the most valuable feature."
"The solution provides good consolidation, centralization, and manageability for edge routers."
"There have been no issues with stability."
"The deployment is quite simple and straightforward."
 

Cons

"The solution needs to improve the onboarding architecture."
"There is room for improvement regarding enhancing its security features in response to modern cybersecurity challenges."
"The tool has a very limited local presence in the GCC market. I am based in Dubai, UAE and it would be very difficult for me to reach out to US staff for technical discussion during the tool’s implementation. The tool needs to focus on the GCC market which includes UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, etc. There is nobody to help you out in this region."
"There could be an easy availability of multiple features in the profile."
"Aviatrix should include more integrated security features like intrusion detection and lateral movement detection."
"There can be a steep learning curve for users who are not familiar with it or multi-cloud networking concepts"
"The solution should be more user-friendly."
"Cisco SD-WAN is not as easy to deploy as the Meraki and FortiGate solutions. The zero-touch deployment could be a lot better. The deployment and initial setup are complicated and could be better."
"I would like to see revision cycles to be more stable."
"Integration with other OEMs and the API part needs improvement to be more user-friendly, especially in terms of GUI."
"The solution is a bit complicated."
"The durability of the switches could be improved. In the past, Cisco devices had a longer lifespan."
"The inexpensive Viptela hardware may be replaced with overpriced Cisco routers. This would be a tragic mistake for Cisco as the lightweight commodity platform built by Viptela is the reason to own this solution."
"All of the configurations are based on templates, and we need to spend a lot of time doing the templates. It's good because that means that all of the configurations will be equal in the network. However, we need to spend a lot of time implementing the templates and doing the customizations."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Aviatrix is a pretty expensive solution."
"During the initial phase, it operates as an open-source and it's a free tool."
"The tool is quite expensive."
"It operates on a consumption-based model and the expenses depend on factors such as the number of virtual machines you use and the resources consumed."
"I give the price a seven out of ten."
"The product's license is expensive."
"The license model is too complex with too many flavors and options. You might not be able to see it from an end user's point of view, but from a telco point of view, their license model is too complex. They should have a flexible license model. If you want to have good pricing, you need to buy it for a two-year, four-year, or five-year license immediately. Some other vendors have much more flexible license models."
"The price of the solution is the only negative factor, it is much more expensive compared with the Cisco Meraki SD-WAN solution."
"It is expensive. The license limitation is there in terms of bandwidth. Basically, Cisco is always good in terms of performance and related things. However, if you want to have a license, for example, for 100 Mbps, they charge you because of their 100 Mbps. If you want to go without the license of 300 Mbps, it is a bandwidth license as well. This is not happening with other vendors. That is the reason why we moved away from Cisco. The bill gets a little bit high. I do remember that one time we were trying to increase the bandwidth for at least five devices, and the license got as high as 20-grand for five devices, only for the license. It was expensive for us at the time. Our company is not a big company, but it is a solid company. The price was very high, and we moved away from Cisco because of the price."
"When purchasing, there are so many features available that it's quite confusing deciding which to choose. And some of the devices force you to buy licenses you don't want."
"Cisco's pricing is not entirely satisfactory when you compare the SD-WAN solutions in Asian markets — like the South Asian market in Sri Lanka — because there are several competing brands including Fortinet and Citrix, who provide much the same product for a generally lower price. And when it comes to firewall vendors like Palo Alto and SonicWall, they're also selling here. It's the same with VMware, too; they have much the same features."
"This is not a cheap option but if you move from Capex to Opex, I expect you should have lower costs."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Manufacturing Company
12%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Computer Software Company
10%
Outsourcing Company
10%
Computer Software Company
14%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Comms Service Provider
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business1
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise4
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business44
Midsize Enterprise15
Large Enterprise43
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Aviatrix?
The most valuable feature of Aviatrix is that it saves us a lot of time.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Aviatrix?
The cost should be compared to the pricing of native services, which often include a data processing component.
What needs improvement with Aviatrix?
One area that could use improvement is IPv6 support.
What do you like most about Cisco SD-WAN?
When considering the most valuable features of Cisco SD-WAN, the decoupling of self-monitoring stands out significantly.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco SD-WAN?
The pricing of Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN is rated between eight and nine out of ten, where ten is the most expensive.
What needs improvement with Cisco SD-WAN?
More or less, it's the same with Cisco in terms of complexity and pricing, so there's not much of a difference. They might want to consider incorporating features seen in Versa or other competitors...
 

Also Known As

Aviatrix Enterprise Contract
Cisco SD-WAN
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Hyatt, Robert Half, GREE
Doyle Research, Ashton Metzler & Associates
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco, TP-Link, Aviatrix and others in Software Defined Networking (SDN). Updated: October 2025.
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