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Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller (Formerly DCNM) vs Meraki Dashboard comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Oct 10, 2024

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
1.0
Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller delivers consistent connections and high ROI, benefiting diverse sectors over a decade.
Sentiment score
1.0
Organizations struggle to quantify ROI but report time savings and efficiency from Meraki Dashboard, anticipating future returns.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
6.4
Customer service is praised for responsiveness and expertise, though some operational cases take longer to resolve.
Sentiment score
6.3
Meraki Dashboard's customer service is praised for quick, knowledgeable support, though occasional delays occur; users rate it highly.
Cisco's support I would rate as a 10 compared to all other vendors.
Network Engineer at a healthcare company with 1,001-5,000 employees
When our site went down, Cisco's technical support was very responsive and effective, so I would rate them nine out of ten for their support.
System Analyst II at IT solutions consultings
The support response time can be slow, sometimes taking up to fifteen hours.
Senior Assistant Director Information Technology at a non-tech company with 10,001+ employees
They are instantly available for technical support from Meraki Dashboard.
Managing Director at a manufacturing company with 10,001+ employees
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.3
Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller is scalable, supporting integration and expansion, with varied user experiences on upgrading and compatibility.
Sentiment score
4.8
Meraki Dashboard is scalable, supporting diverse environments, easy expansion, global networks, and receives high user satisfaction ratings.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.8
The Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller is praised for its stable performance and reliability, especially in managing data centers.
Sentiment score
5.8
The Meraki Dashboard is highly stable with minimal disruptions, offering reliable performance and quick resolutions for occasional issues.
We have not encountered any downtime related to the Meraki cloud feature in the last five years.
Senior Assistant Director Information Technology at a non-tech company with 10,001+ employees
 

Room For Improvement

Cisco Nexus Dashboard needs easier configuration, better integration, improved performance, intuitive reporting, and competitive pricing to enhance user experience.
Meraki Dashboard requires improvements in licensing, user interface, scalability, support, third-party integration, and enhanced AI capabilities.
I do not believe it integrated well with different infrastructures for hybrid environments.
Network Engineer at a healthcare company with 1,001-5,000 employees
I appreciate the security that has been provided by Meraki, but they specifically require port 80 which is highly vulnerable towards Meraki domain itself, so I would like to remove it.
Network Technology Project Manager at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
It provides many insights out of the box without any need to search for them.
CTO at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
I would like to enhance my expertise on Cisco Umbrella and Cisco M, which is an endpoint security management tool.
System Analyst II at IT solutions consultings
 

Setup Cost

Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller is costly but offers high value, transparent pricing, and excellent support and service.
Meraki Dashboard pricing is high but valued for quality and management ease, with costs varying by duration and features.
The cost of the Meraki solution is high, which may not be affordable for smaller companies, especially in developing countries.
Senior Assistant Director Information Technology at a non-tech company with 10,001+ employees
If we involve a third-party vendor, the price will definitely go up.
IT Manager at Fawaz
I would rate the pricing for Meraki Dashboard as one.
Network Technology Project Manager at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
 

Valuable Features

The Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller offers stability, ease of use, integration, and real-time insights for optimized network management.
Meraki Dashboard is favored for its user-friendly management, efficient device control, insightful analytics, and seamless scalability for businesses.
People typically understand north-south traffic flows but usually miss the east-west traffic flows in data centers.
Network Engineer at a healthcare company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Meraki Dashboard positively impacts my organization by enabling live monitoring. If someone unplugs the power cable, if the switches are down, if there is an outage, or if there is any misconfiguration, we get an alert from Cisco in our mailbox.
System Analyst II at IT solutions consultings
Substantial security can be achieved within Meraki Dashboard itself, eliminating the need for additional firewalls to protect your network.
Managing Director at a manufacturing company with 10,001+ employees
It summarizes everything in one place, which is very important for our organization.
CTO at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
 

Categories and Ranking

Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabri...
Ranking in Network Monitoring Software
25th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.2
Number of Reviews
26
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Meraki Dashboard
Ranking in Network Monitoring Software
20th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
5.7
Number of Reviews
60
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of February 2026, in the Network Monitoring Software category, the mindshare of Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller (Formerly DCNM) is 0.6%, up from 0.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Meraki Dashboard is 0.8%, down from 1.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Network Monitoring Software Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Meraki Dashboard0.8%
Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller (Formerly DCNM)0.6%
Other98.6%
Network Monitoring Software
 

Featured Reviews

Jagdev Dhaliwal - PeerSpot reviewer
Network Engineer at a healthcare company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Flow monitoring has improved planning for east-west traffic and real-time capacity decisions
Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller (Formerly DCNM) helps to understand the flows and data plane capacities, which are the primary use cases. Usually, people struggle with east-west traffic flow when they need to decide on firewalls or products. People typically understand north-south traffic flows but usually miss the east-west traffic flows in data centers. I was focusing more on this so that people can accordingly plan, such as after F5, the number of servers, the number of sessions needed, and whether we need to plan the interface for groups from the line capacity perspective. This kind of information was valuable to us. The real-time telemetry feature was beneficial. When experiencing performance issues, I could determine if there were any issues related to flows or areas where bottlenecks were occurring.
MURALI NIDAMANURI - PeerSpot reviewer
Managing Director at a manufacturing company with 10,001+ employees
Dashboard provides comprehensive network security and management capabilities
I don't have specific handy names. Meraki Dashboard uses multiple functions where we can configure SSIDs, firewall policies, DHCP, multiple VLANs and DHCP configurations, VLAN configurations, access control policies, MAC binding, client access based on MAC authentication and certificate-based authentication. We have configured SSO for Windows Active Directory by configuring the RADIUS services. We have implemented many customer requirements in Meraki Dashboard. With the detailed visibility feature of Meraki Dashboard, I get connected clients information, including how much data each client downloaded and what applications they accessed. I can obtain detailed data including ISP links level monitoring and speed. I can perform speed tests, generate analytics reports, convert to Excel based on each user for each department, create dashboards, monitor and limit bandwidths, and restrict specific URLs. The advanced security configuration in Meraki Dashboard is useful for network security. Substantial security can be achieved within Meraki Dashboard itself, eliminating the need for additional firewalls to protect your network. You can configure WAN monitoring, users' ACLs, URL filtering, web filtering, and department-wise access configuration for specific client applications. It's completely cloud-managed, and in a simplified way, you don't need to visit any physical infrastructure to monitor activities. Apart from access points, everything is in the cloud. We have monitored IoT solutions, CCTV monitoring, and can detect and control intrusions. When people connect IoT devices to your network, Meraki Dashboard can detect what device it is and control those access controls, even with different operating systems.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Government
13%
Computer Software Company
9%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Computer Software Company
10%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Educational Organization
8%
Government
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business10
Midsize Enterprise6
Large Enterprise16
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business23
Midsize Enterprise13
Large Enterprise26
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Cisco Data Center Network Manager?
It uses push technology, which pushes the changes to all relevant devices to ensure they are updated accordingly.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco Data Center Network Manager?
The tool is always expensive, but their service, product quality, and support are good. We're happy with it, but it's still an expensive solution. There are cheaper alternatives but no similar plat...
What needs improvement with Cisco Data Center Network Manager?
I do not believe it integrated well with different infrastructures for hybrid environments. I am uncertain because we have never attempted that in our environment, so they could perform better in t...
What do you like most about Meraki Dashboard?
We greatly utilize the network because we can plug it into the DNS, VPN, or equipment. It's very good. Meraki Dashboard enhances wireless network management. We appreciate its flexibility, as it al...
What needs improvement with Meraki Dashboard?
Regarding the functionality part, I would appreciate clarification on what core functionality means. I appreciate the security that has been provided by Meraki, but they specifically require port 8...
 

Also Known As

Cisco Data Center Network Manager
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Banco de Guayaquil, Cox Communications, Kuwait Petroleum Italia, Roper St. Francis, University of British Columbia
Coop eG, Peet's Coffee & Tea, Priefert Manufacturing, Century Care Management, Clifton College, Zürs Ski Resort, Capital FM Arena, MAXI Autohöfe
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller (Formerly DCNM) vs. Meraki Dashboard and other solutions. Updated: February 2026.
881,757 professionals have used our research since 2012.