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Cisco Catalyst Center vs Fortinet FortiManager comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jan 2, 2025

Review summaries and opinions

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

ROI

Sentiment score
5.5
The Cisco Catalyst Center offers cost-effective, high-performance network management, valued for easy deployment and stable, tailored solutions.
Sentiment score
5.6
Fortinet FortiManager offers cost savings, improved visibility, and effective management, though pricing complexity varies with deployment size.
They have a long life.
Network Administrator at a healthcare company with 501-1,000 employees
The best feature is its availability, easy deployment, and good support for the solution.
Consultant at TECVA
Fortinet provides a strong ROI for organizations focused on comprehensive security.
Network Security Engineer/ Firewall Engineer at Charter Communications
The cost has been reduced for us by 24%.
Global Head of IT Infrastructure at EPL Americas
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
7.3
Cisco Catalyst Center provides highly-rated customer service with dedicated support, though some report delays in hardware replacement.
Sentiment score
6.9
Fortinet FortiManager's customer support varies, with responsive teams but inconsistent service quality and regional disparities in expertise.
I had a situation where they were present with us overnight to fix an issue for a customer, demonstrating their dedication.
Cyber Security Architect at Spie Ics
I would rate technical support nine to nine and a half out of ten.
Lead Network Engineer at a energy/utilities company with 5,001-10,000 employees
The software platform is very easy to use.
Consultant at TECVA
The people are very good, and they are very attentive.
Engineer of Preventa Sir at InterNexa S.A
Fortinet's support has proven to be reliable, particularly as we've been engaged with them since the project's initiation.
ICT Project Management Office Manager at PINS
They are responsive and resolve issues quickly when I raise a ticket.
Senior Associate at City Union Bank Ltd
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.6
Cisco Catalyst Center offers scalable, flexible solutions for businesses, excelling in control, automation, and infrastructure robustness despite some limitations.
Sentiment score
7.1
Fortinet FortiManager is praised for scalability and central management, suitable for medium to large enterprises despite some cost concerns.
They have a feature that allows stacking switches together.
Network Administrator at a healthcare company with 501-1,000 employees
Cisco Catalyst Center is scalable and quite flexible, allowing for specific model choices like the 9,000 or 2,000 series based on the clients' performance requirements and bottlenecks.
Solution Architect at HCLSoftware
It effectively manages all the devices I have, demonstrating its capability to scale.
Lead Network Engineer at a energy/utilities company with 5,001-10,000 employees
Whenever you are monitoring or managing more than 10 or 20 firewalls, it is evident that you need a single pane of glass, which Fortinet FortiManager is offering.
Global Head of IT Infrastructure at EPL Americas
You can raise the capacity as you go, and there is no limit for hardware.
Security Architect at Bouygues Telecom Mobile
The problem is cloud connectivity and roaming profiles are not working, as there is no option for them.
Network engineer at JOYALUKKAS
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.9
Cisco Catalyst Center is highly regarded for stability and reliability, despite occasional bugs and security concerns.
Sentiment score
7.9
Fortinet FortiManager is generally stable and reliable, with improvements in recent updates, though occasional bugs may occur.
They are very stable, not power cycling, and basically maintaining their stability.
Network Administrator at a healthcare company with 501-1,000 employees
They provide a robust and secure solution for critical workloads.
Product Manager at Uop Ipl
Cisco Catalyst Center is stable, and I would rate it a nine out of ten for stability.
Data Center Admin at Sysnet Global Technologies
I rate the solution's stability ten out of ten.
CISO at a financial services firm with 1,001-5,000 employees
95% of the time, there are no problems interacting with other devices.
Security Architect at Bouygues Telecom Mobile
It is an absolutely very stable product, and we have not encountered any kind of disruption as far as the product is concerned.
Global Head of IT Infrastructure at EPL Americas
 

Room For Improvement

Cisco Catalyst Center needs enhancements in management, interface ease, security, support, flexibility, speed, bugs, and documentation clarity.
Fortinet FortiManager needs better documentation, GUI improvements, simplified configuration, enhanced integration, and more accessible pricing and support.
Current pricing is too expensive for features that users may not be sure they will use, pricing the company out of the market.
Network Engineer at Edmonton Catholic School Board
My customers often complain about numerous software bugs requiring frequent software patches and updates to resolve these issues.
Cyber Security Architect at Spie Ics
In the current setup, incidents are always reactionary, and it would be beneficial if Cisco Catalyst Center could proactively handle issues such as bandwidth crunches and packet drops.
Product Manager at Uop Ipl
FortiManager is a good tool, but there is a lack of really advanced documentation.
Security Architect at Bouygues Telecom Mobile
In such cases, their CPE or other devices on-site may become unreliable, leading to occasional configuration discrepancies.
ICT Project Management Office Manager at PINS
The graphical user interface could use improvement as it appears complex and not user-friendly.
Senior Network Engineer at SP SYSNET PTE. LTD.
 

Setup Cost

Cisco Catalyst Center is valued for quality but seen as expensive compared to competitors like Juniper and Fortinet.
Fortinet FortiManager is cost-effective for large deployments, despite higher costs for fewer devices and optional advanced features.
They are also facing competitive pricing challenges from Huawei.
Deputy Director at NITDA
Cost is a major factor when any company is buying, and Cisco's products are pricier even compared to other US-based solutions.
Sr. Executive Design Engineering Team at Wateen Telecom (pvt.)
For a hardware refresh, the site switched to Fortinet switching because the cost difference was approximately six thousand dollars per device compared to other solutions.
Network Engineer at Edmonton Catholic School Board
I hope that the prices will become more competitive in subsequent releases, as the current pricing is perceived as somewhat elevated.
ICT Project Management Office Manager at PINS
I would rate the price 8 out of 10 with 10 being the most expensive.
General Manager/ Owner at Security Parameter
Some competing solutions in the market, like Sophos and SonicWALL, offer lower costs of up to 40 percent.
Network administrator at PISystems
 

Valuable Features

Cisco Catalyst Center provides robust network management with automation, scalability, secure integrations, and user-friendly interfaces for enterprise environments.
Fortinet FortiManager offers scalable, centralized device management with automation and security features for efficient network administration in distributed environments.
There is a very wide user base providing support, so I almost never have to contact Cisco support due to the vast accessible knowledge base.
Network Administrator at a healthcare company with 501-1,000 employees
Their threat intelligence platform is excellent, including Talos Intelligence, which provides a good database and strong threat insights.
Analyst at a tech services company with 1-10 employees
This dual functionality is crucial for monitoring large enterprises, providing a robust solution for IT teams.
Product Manager at Uop Ipl
I can automate the installation of configurations using different programming languages like Python or HPE, and it's a GUI solution, so it's pretty easy to use, even for basic users.
Security Architect at Bouygues Telecom Mobile
Being able to push consistent firewall rules and configuration changes across multiple FortiGates saves a ton of time and reduces errors compared to managing each device individually.
Network Security Engineer/ Firewall Engineer at Charter Communications
FortiManager captures all devices and provides reports for security analysis.
Senior Network Engineer at SP SYSNET PTE. LTD.
 

Categories and Ranking

Cisco Catalyst Center
Ranking in Network Management Applications
2nd
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
5.9
Number of Reviews
17
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Fortinet FortiManager
Ranking in Network Management Applications
4th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
72
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of December 2025, in the Network Management Applications category, the mindshare of Cisco Catalyst Center is 8.9%, up from 1.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Fortinet FortiManager is 4.5%, down from 4.9% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Network Management Applications Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Cisco Catalyst Center8.9%
Fortinet FortiManager4.5%
Other86.6%
Network Management Applications
 

Featured Reviews

AR
Network Engineer at Edmonton Catholic School Board
Has improved infrastructure management with customizable reporting and automated deployment
Cisco Catalyst Center's reporting is one of the best features, providing graphs and quick hit analysis in one place instead of having to search elsewhere. Historical data can be stored in Cisco Catalyst Center, and dashboards and widgets can be configured to personal preference. Device deployment can be automated to the point where all someone needs to do is plug it in. Zero Touch Provisioning, while requiring some initial work to set up properly, provides significant benefits. Once configured, it reduces the need for travel by specific network personnel, allowing on-site or other staff to handle device deployment by simply plugging in the cable.
SudeepMaydeo - PeerSpot reviewer
Global Head of IT Infrastructure at EPL Americas
Ensures seamless integration and centralized visibility for network security operations
The version upgrade from a single dashboard for all the firewalls in one click is the beauty of Fortinet FortiManager as the most impactful feature in managing our network security. Fortinet FortiManager's policy management enhances our security protocols by enabling us and giving integrated centralized visibility, which has proven to be very healthy. Because of this, we have identified some of the vulnerabilities in our systems, and we mitigated them through Fortinet FortiManager. The central dashboards and the visibility are what appealed to us to go with Fortinet FortiManager. Fortinet FortiManager has adapted to changes in our network scale and complexity as we have geographically 18 international locations, all equipped with firewalls and some cybersecurity initiatives and IT infrastructure initiatives.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Manufacturing Company
16%
Government
13%
Financial Services Firm
6%
Energy/Utilities Company
6%
Computer Software Company
13%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Comms Service Provider
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business3
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise12
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business35
Midsize Enterprise16
Large Enterprise19
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco Catalyst Center?
During license renewal, the pricing for Catalyst licensing increased significantly. For a hardware refresh, the site switched to Fortinet switching because the cost difference was approximately six...
What needs improvement with Cisco Catalyst Center?
Cisco Catalyst Center would benefit from different licensing tiers instead of an all-or-nothing model. Some tiers could focus on monitoring and tracking licenses with minimal configuration automati...
What is your primary use case for Cisco Catalyst Center?
The product was used with Catholic schools because that was their primary infrastructure. This is an enterprise-level product rather than an SMB-grade solution.
What do you like most about Fortinet FortiManager?
The most valuable feature is the centralized management console.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Fortinet FortiManager?
I am satisfied with the licensing cost, and I would rate it an 8.5.
What needs improvement with Fortinet FortiManager?
I do not use Fortinet FortiManager daily, but I can speak with my security team and ask them what areas need future improvement for Fortinet FortiManager. When I installed it, I found it somewhat d...
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
Black Gold Regional Schools, Amadeus Hospitality, Jefferson County, Chunghwa Telecom, City of Boroondara, Dimension Data
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco Catalyst Center vs. Fortinet FortiManager and other solutions. Updated: December 2025.
879,259 professionals have used our research since 2012.