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Cisco DNA Center vs NetCrunch 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:
 

Categories and Ranking

Cisco DNA Center
Ranking in Network Monitoring Software
13th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.3
Number of Reviews
41
Ranking in other categories
Network Management Applications (1st), Network Automation (2nd)
NetCrunch
Ranking in Network Monitoring Software
85th
Average Rating
8.0
Number of Reviews
3
Ranking in other categories
Server Monitoring (26th), IT Infrastructure Monitoring (63rd), Log Management (77th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2025, in the Network Monitoring Software category, the mindshare of Cisco DNA Center is 1.4%, up from 0.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of NetCrunch is 0.2%, down from 0.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Network Monitoring Software
 

Featured Reviews

AvrahamSonenthal - PeerSpot reviewer
Efficiently manages our wireless network and provides valuable monitoring features
The platform's biggest benefit has been in managing our wireless network. Having a single pane of glass to control all wireless controllers and access points and to monitor activity has been a significant advantage. We're a small federal agency with around 300 network devices, so automation is a minor focus. It's more relevant for larger networks. The main benefits we've seen are in inventory management and the potential for configuration automation. However, I recommend using the DNA Centre only for larger networks with over a thousand devices; otherwise, it may not be cost-effective. Before proceeding, ensure that your devices are compatible with DNA Center, as not all Cisco devices are supported. Also, investing in proper training is different from plug-and-play. I rate it an eight.
RP
A network monitoring platform with a useful reporting feature, but permission-based options could be better
The initial setup is fairly easy. Most of it's wizard-based. You don't have to be a rocket scientist to set it up. But if you don't know certain things related to protocols and everything else, it might be difficult. If you know how SNMP works, it'll be fairly simple to set up.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"It enables monitoring of various components such as access points, switch cards, and other elements within the company's solutions."
"What's most valuable in Cisco DNA Center is the ability to manage any Cisco infrastructure and device through it. Setup was straightforward."
"The solution helps with the management and orchestration of campaigns. It helps with visibility and analytics. I also like its SDA configuration."
"The product offers an intuitive and automated way to manage user networks. It gives me an insight into the network health."
"We can monitor all devices and get the required information using the product."
"I like that we can easily configure any new hardware. It's also easy to deploy and easy to troubleshoot."
"The most valuable features of Cisco DNA Center are wireless assurance and visibility."
"The monitoring features are very useful for network engineers."
"Reporting on NetCrunch is pretty good. It's very similar to SolarWinds. It's just a different interface. The majority of everything there was beneficial."
 

Cons

"When it comes to deploying wireless fields, integrating defaults into the DNS interface can be challenging."
"The solution needs to improve the dashboard."
"An area that needs improvement is the integration with other vendors."
"One area that needs improvement is the upgrade process."
"DNA Center has been on the market for a few years and they need to update it."
"The network, data center, and SD-WAN are all being treated as different services, but I would like to have only one solution to manage all of them."
"Cisco DNA Center should improve its configuration management. It is better to have a dev version before pushing it."
"As a user, it would be good if I could plug in controllers, suites, and devices from other vendors to Cisco DNA Center."
"I didn't care for the role-based, permission-based options, which were not the best."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The product is very costly."
"I would rate the pricing a six out of ten, with ten being expensive."
"Affordability is a problem because it's created for large enterprises only. So, some customers, even if their engineers want the solution, might have problems with budget limitations."
"Our licensing agreement is for three years."
"The partnership price is notably high, but it ultimately depends on the chosen business model."
"The price could be better. It's a very expensive tool."
"The tool's licensing may not come across as something that may be friendly for users."
"The solution is a little bit expensive but depends a lot on the customer's usage. If you use it in the right place, you can easily pay for it."
Information not available
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
16%
Government
10%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Financial Services Firm
6%
Computer Software Company
19%
Financial Services Firm
13%
Comms Service Provider
9%
Educational Organization
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Cisco DNA Center?
The most valuable feature of the solution stems from the fact that it gives some kind of ease in operations, especially since our company is moving from CLI to GUI-based configuration.
What needs improvement with Cisco DNA Center?
The system is working fine for me currently.
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Also Known As

DNA Center
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
AER Kooperation, AON Corpration, Advance Financial services, Airbus SAS, Bauer Net consult, Banco Soal, Bertelsmann, Burke County public, COF training services
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco DNA Center vs. NetCrunch and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.
851,042 professionals have used our research since 2012.