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Cisco Catalyst Switches vs Cisco N9300 Series Smart Switches comparison

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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

Cisco Catalyst Switches
Ranking in Ethernet Switches
3rd
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.4
Number of Reviews
193
Ranking in other categories
LAN Switching (1st), Data Center Networking (1st), AV Over IP Switching (1st)
Cisco N9300 Series Smart Sw...
Ranking in Ethernet Switches
26th
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
8.1
Number of Reviews
4
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Featured Reviews

Md Rafique - PeerSpot reviewer
it support at a outsourcing company with 51-200 employees
Reliable switching has improved segmentation and reduces downtime with faster troubleshooting
One area I would like to see improvement is making configuration and troubleshooting more straightforward, especially for engineers managing a large number of switches. Some tasks can require multiple CLI commands and checking different outputs to identify an issue. Better centralized visibility, more intuitive automation tools, and clearer troubleshooting information would make day-to-day operations more efficient. That said, the CLI gives experienced network engineers a lot of control, so I would see these improvements as making the existing capabilities easier and faster to use rather than replacing them. For on-premises deployment, I would like to see easier centralized management and more automation for larger switch environments. Firmware upgrades, configuration changes, and troubleshooting can take significant time when they have to be handled across many physical devices. Better zero-touch provisioning, simplifying firmware management solutions, stronger integration with monitoring and IT management platforms, and more proactive hardware health alerts would make operations easier. I would also like better visibility into hardware capabilities and lifecycle status from a single dashboard so we can identify potential issues before they affect users.
Thu Al-Faqar Salah - PeerSpot reviewer
Network Engineer at V2X
Modern data center fabric has delivered zero packet drops and simplified traffic control
Regarding improvements for Cisco N9300 Series Smart Switches, I think the only issue that could prevent users from using these devices is the smart licensing, as the license model could be much simpler and more cost-effective. Managing Cisco licensing and tiered subscriptions involves unnecessary operational overhead for deployment and renewal. Also, if you are planning to use ACI mode, most of the concepts such as VRF, EPG, and tenant will change. When deploying in ACI mode, the architecture has a steep learning curve, as the policy-driven model requires expensive and specialized training, and many concepts will change for traditional network engineers, requiring them to adapt and learn. Additionally, most of the issues I faced are related to hardware cost specifically, so if we could get a model that is less costly and more cost-effective with simpler licensing, it would be much better. Regarding further improvements, I remember something about the upgrade process. When we did the upgrade for the N9300, changing the image took us around 12 to 15 minutes, which was really a long time. This happened for more than one switch, so I do not know if it is a bug or if this is something normal, but I think they need to address it.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"We heavily use the SmartPort features; it has really helped us, and the U.S. policies are handled by the auto SmartPort feature."
"The solution is very stable."
"Technical support is very responsive and helpful."
"It works well."
"The product is very strong, much stronger than other options on the market, for example, Dell and HPE, and the software is excellent."
"Their technical support is very good. They know what to do and if they don't know what to do, they give me the person who does know."
"Catalyst switches are highly stable and easy to use, and it's a technology well known by most engineers."
"The solution is perfectly stable; there are no bugs or glitches, it doesn't crash or freeze, and it's reliable."
"When you buy a Cisco device, you are going to forget about it after plugging it in because the device is powerful."
"Performance-wise, Cisco N9300 Series Smart Switches is a great machine to work with."
"Cisco products are very strong and stable."
"The integration is very good, and there is very low CPU utilization, so multiple users can work without any problem."
 

Cons

"I would like to see hosting multiple applications on the existing IOS."
"I wouldn't recommend this product because it's overpriced."
"In the next release, they should lower the price. It's too expensive."
"It has too many options. Therefore, there is a reasonably high barrier to entry in terms of learning about this stuff."
"Pricing mainly is the only issue."
"In an upcoming release, adding SD-WAN capabilities would be a big advantage for our company."
"There were issues with the maximum stackable switches per site and monitoring setup."
"Reporting could be improved as well as integration possibilities with other platforms."
"It is expensive. Compared to Aruba and Dell, it is a little bit costly."
"The price is something negative for Cisco that I see."
"Regarding improvements for Cisco N9300 Series Smart Switches, I think the only issue that could prevent users from using these devices is the smart licensing, as the license model could be much simpler and more cost-effective."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I rate the product price a nine on a scale of one to ten, where one is low price and ten is high price."
"Not one of the cheapest switches in the market. There are a lot of other cheaper switches, but in terms of availability and reliability, Cisco Catalyst Switches meet all requirements."
"The licensing, and maintenance fees are paid on a yearly basis."
"It has a very high cost, but understandably, due to its very good quality."
"It's very pricey. Compared to competitors, it's a lot more expensive."
"It is expensive."
"It is very pricey. You have to pay for support."
"Pricing from Cisco is expensive but we pay for the reliability."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Outsourcing Company
14%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Construction Company
8%
No data available
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business85
Midsize Enterprise31
Large Enterprise87
No data available
 

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 ...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco Catalyst Switches?
The price is very high. Compared to others, I find the price a bit high when compared to Juniper and Allied Telesis.
What needs improvement with Cisco Catalyst Switches?
I cannot identify specific disadvantages with the product. However, the areas that have potential to be better are the timeline for the system and switch delivery. The delivery timelines for the pr...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco N9300 Series Smart Switches?
Cisco N9300 Series Smart Switches is expensive. Compared with Aruba and Dell, it is a little bit costly.
What needs improvement with Cisco N9300 Series Smart Switches?
As for any negative points, I think there is nothing significant. The only thing that Cisco may focus on commercially is the SmartNet. From my experience, I have worked with many MNCs where SmartNe...
What is your primary use case for Cisco N9300 Series Smart Switches?
The major use case that we have with Cisco N9300 Series Smart Switches is that our current switches are old and getting into end of life from Cisco. This is the reason we started looking for the ri...
 

Also Known As

Cisco Catalyst, Catalyst
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Afni, Anilana Hotels and Resorts, Baylor Scott & White Health, Beachbody, Bellevue, Del Papa Distributing, Explorer Pipeline, Mindtree, Omaha World Herald, Radio 538, Sony Corporation, Telecom Italia, Telenor Arena
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Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco Catalyst Switches vs. Cisco N9300 Series Smart Switches and other solutions. Updated: September 2026.
915,341 professionals have used our research since 2012.