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Cisco Catalyst Center vs HPE Intelligent Management Center 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:
 

Categories and Ranking

Cisco Catalyst Center
Ranking in Network Management Applications
2nd
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
5.9
Number of Reviews
25
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
HPE Intelligent Management ...
Ranking in Network Management Applications
9th
Average Rating
7.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
7
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2026, in the Network Management Applications category, the mindshare of Cisco Catalyst Center is 4.4%, down from 8.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of HPE Intelligent Management Center is 3.9%, down from 6.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Network Management Applications Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Cisco Catalyst Center4.4%
HPE Intelligent Management Center3.9%
Other91.7%
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.
Muhammad_Faisal - PeerSpot reviewer
Manager ITSM at Lucky Cement Limited
Achieve seamless network and link monitoring with comprehensive device management
The most valuable function is that the IMC takes an entire backup of my network devices, and I can also redeploy them. The really beneficial feature is the link monitoring. I had checked Check Point's product, however, my requirements are better fulfilled by IMC. The main feature is that IMC automatically configures the device for my use. I have over 200 features in my network, and IMC manages the complete environment. Automation is good, but I mainly use it for monitoring. I am too satisfied with this product.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Catalyst provides a reliable and mature network solution, which has stabilized all features and improved productivity."
"Customer service has been excellent."
"Cisco Catalyst Center has significantly reduced travel time for our organization, which has approximately 60 locations across our state."
"Cisco Catalyst switches are reliable and stable."
"Cisco Catalyst Center was flexible in terms of scalability, offering advanced security features and reliable performance."
"The main benefits I receive from Cisco Catalyst Center include management, monitoring, and troubleshooting of the network, and these are very good benefits."
"Cisco performs well in the network space, especially in areas like switching, DNA Center, and wireless, where it is known for its stability."
"The analytics feature is quite good, and the hardware is very performant."
"It's a very complete product with a lot of functionality."
"This is far and away the best tool of this type I have ever used."
"One of the notable advantages is its ability to provide quick responses, especially in critical situations."
"We chose HPE for its interoperability with non-Cisco equipment, interoperability with non HP equipment, and customizable, and a deep feature set that Cisco Prime just didn't have because it's focused on Cisco stuff only."
"The most useful feature is infrastructure monitoring including switches and servers."
"The most valuable function is that the IMC takes an entire backup of my network devices, and I can also redeploy them."
"The most valuable feature is the interface and its ease of use."
 

Cons

"My customers often complain about numerous software bugs requiring frequent software patches and updates to resolve these issues."
"The integration of Cisco Catalyst Center is fine, but the deployment process can be pretty complex, involving some irrelevant or uncertain information during setup."
"The price to get in the door is quite high."
"The initial setup for Cisco Catalyst Center is not a simple process."
"I would assess the stability and reliability of Cisco Catalyst Center as very unreliable. I have experienced plenty of downtime and crashes."
"If they can add a layer of portable hotspots with some licensing flexibility for 20 to 50 users, it would be a great feature."
"My experience with pricing, setup costs, and licensing is that the hardware is probably a good price, but it feels like the license is always too expensive."
"To improve Cisco Catalyst Center, I think the dashboard and UI experience is inferior to what I used previously with Ubiquiti equipment."
"The integration with other network devices needs improvement."
"I would like to see additional modules included."
"One notable deficiency is the lack of online support for the product."
"HPE Intelligent Management Center is a bit slow."
"I face the issue with the integration with links on Fortinet Firewall."
"It's horrible. 90% of the time we're figuring out the solution ourselves."
"Technical support is the one area where I have to rate HPE fairly poorly; when we have encountered issues, particularly around inconsistencies in the topology views, getting them fixed can be a cumbersome process."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available
"There are licensing costs and they are quite expensive."
"The price of this solution is not at all cheap, but it's reasonable compared to SolarWinds."
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908,877 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Manufacturing Company
14%
Government
12%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Outsourcing Company
8%
Comms Service Provider
10%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Government
10%
Computer Software Company
9%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business3
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise18
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business3
Midsize Enterprise1
Large Enterprise3
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco Catalyst Center?
My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing is that licensing is always a pain, as everything involves levels of licensing, so when there are specific features I am looking for, they are ...
What needs improvement with Cisco Catalyst Center?
I would say Cisco Catalyst Center's PNP functionality is not as good as it could be. When the switches come out of the box and we try to configure it, the onboarding is kind of hard where I assign ...
What is your primary use case for Cisco Catalyst Center?
The main use case for us is to centralize managing our switches in one spot. We have a lot of switches to manage, so it's very easy to find that useful.
What needs improvement with HPE Intelligent Management Center?
I face the issue with the integration with links on Fortinet Firewall. This will be sorted out with the help of IMC, and now I have a modem dialing as per my needs.
What is your primary use case for HPE Intelligent Management Center?
I am using this solution for network monitoring, links monitoring, and complete monitoring of my infrastructure. I also deploy FortiVAF, FortiAnalyzer, and FortiManager as part of a complete securi...
 

Also Known As

No data available
HPE IMC
 

Overview

Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco Catalyst Center vs. HPE Intelligent Management Center and other solutions. Updated: August 2026.
908,877 professionals have used our research since 2012.