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Cisco Ethernet Switches vs Cisco Nexus 9000 Series comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Mar 1, 2026

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 Ethernet Switches
Ranking in Ethernet Switches
2nd
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
138
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Cisco Nexus 9000 Series
Ranking in Ethernet Switches
9th
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
5.3
Number of Reviews
11
Ranking in other categories
Data Center Networking (6th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2026, in the Ethernet Switches category, the mindshare of Cisco Ethernet Switches is 9.4%, down from 11.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Cisco Nexus 9000 Series is 1.1%, up from 0.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Ethernet Switches Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Cisco Ethernet Switches9.4%
Cisco Nexus 9000 Series1.1%
Other89.5%
Ethernet Switches
 

Featured Reviews

Sachin-Yadav - PeerSpot reviewer
Network & Security Engineer at Arrow PC Network Pvt Ltd
Network segmentation has improved security and performance across all departments
Cisco Ethernet Switches offer various features such as L3 capable models which help me with my routing requirements, OSPF, EIGRP, and VRF for segmentation, as well as policy-based routing. Additionally, it provides a high layer of enterprise security via 802.1X port-based authentication, DHCP snooping, ARP inspection, IP Guard, ACLs, and integration with Cisco ISE. I have been using Cisco Ethernet Switches for more than four years, and they have provided me stability, better connectivity, and higher speed. My organization values these switches greatly.
AS
Technical Marketing Engineer Hybrid Cloud Infrastructures at NetApp
Policy-driven data centers have delivered low-latency connectivity for critical applications
The most critical and important feature in Cisco Nexus 9000 Series is VPC. Apart from VPC, there are many other features in Cisco Nexus 9000 Series that stand out as advantages. You can apply access control lists on that. You can do Layer 3 capabilities. You can configure HSRP. You can implement VRFs. You can isolate the L3 network within your data center. It has a lot of features including network segmentation capabilities. You can apply a lot of security hardening and manage the access on the switches through auditing to see who is doing what and restrict access based on the network admin role. These are great features. The overlay technology support in Cisco Nexus 9000 Series is good for large-scale deployment where you are going to build something like a hyperscaler. You need more network segments, and with VXLAN, you can definitely build a large fabric with those Nexus switches.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The features that I have found most valuable with Cisco switches are that once you get your configuration you can rest assured that it will work. The OS is not going to be failing intermittently or anything like that. Once you get your configuration end-goal right, the firmware and the OS are usually very stable enough to work a long time without support. Support is needed once in a while. My experience is that the Cisco switches are usually rocket."
"The scalability is pretty good, all you need to do is add more racks."
"It has improved the network reliability, it has improved the network availability which results to improved productivity of the users (Increased ROI)."
"It is very scalable."
"I recommend this solution, it's very dependable."
"Cisco technical support on the backend, from the OEM, is very good."
"When it comes to switching routing, we have no doubts about Cisco; it's a robust solution and really stable, even taking into account Africa's infrastructure."
"The tool is stable."
"The features for manageability and visibility are impressive."
"RealPresence works effectively."
"We are using the core capabilities of Cisco Nexus 9000 Series Ethernet switches, and it is performing well."
"There has been improvement in our connectivity with Cisco Nexus 9000 Series, and there is less drag."
"The performance in data center operations with Cisco Nexus 9000 Series is excellent; we have never faced any performance issues."
"Cisco Nexus 9000 Series is very durable and very reliable, and there has never been any issue with it."
"The stability and reliability of Cisco Nexus 9000 Series are robust, and once you put it on, it does not just fail; that takes a long time, maybe even years."
"Performance has been great with no abnormal behaviors detected, and the network remains stable even in failover scenarios, supporting vast environments with high availability."
 

Cons

"The pricing should be reduced so that they are more competitive."
"The problem with customer support is that they give you beginners. We need the experts after the first, second, or third call."
"I'd really like to see more programmability for the switches."
"Cisco has a licensing procedure that is very complicated and it changes every six months."
"The user interface could be improved."
"The management of the solution could improve."
"Cisco switches are good as they are, but it would be a major feature if they have built-in routers. Some of the Microchip switches have routers built in the same device. They have a router switch. For some of the sites, we deploy such switches because the client does not want a separate router and a separate switch. So, we go for a router switch with maybe 24 ports. Some of them are fiber, and some of them are ethernet. It would be a major improvement to what Cisco is already doing. Behind the scenes, a lot of scripting and stuff like this is happening. A lot of workload can be lifted if Cisco had a good GUI. If you look at Microchip switches, they have a good GUI in addition to the CLI."
"Integration with third-party products could be improved."
"I would rate the technical support for Cisco Nexus 9000 Series an eight out of ten. This rating is not because of their lack of expertise, but just the assignment period."
"For Cisco Nexus 9000 Series switches, I think we need to work on the HSRP. Whenever it flaps or something happens, it creates an issue."
"If I have a Juniper and want to uplink with Cisco, there could be some configuration challenges."
"Cost-wise, Cisco Nexus 9000 Series is very expensive."
"In terms of automation with Cisco Nexus 9000 Series, it could be better."
"Even though it is expensive, I am not sure about the return on investment. It is expensive, and you will need to pay for subscription fees that also are not cheap."
"The potential for improvement lies in the licensing aspect, which is somewhat confusing. The perpetual and subscription licensing is a concern."
"The SFP modules we are using have had issues. We have Cisco modules, but they frequently heat up or there are packet error issues."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The solution can be comparatively cheaper."
"The equipment might be more expensive, but when you take total ownership of the configuration, maintenance, and analysis, then it's a large benefit. Sometimes customers see only the first cost of the switches and don't look any further. This is a weak point of Cisco."
"The last time I bought a 24-port switch, which was a while ago, I paid about five or six thousand Euros. In this part of the world, that's quite expensive for us."
"Quality comes at a price. I've been around the block a bit, and I know that good quality comes at a price. However, some of the organizations don't have big budgets, so you have to develop different solutions for them. They don't have the budget to get some of the high-end features. Cisco can consider providing entry-level hardware to suit SMBs."
"Its price is a bit higher than other brands. Indian customers are price-conscious. They should improve its price."
"Cisco is an industry leader, but the price is very high."
"The price of this solution is good."
"The price of Cisco Ethernet Switches here in India is too high. There are other cheaper solutions available."
Information not available
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Construction Company
11%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Outsourcing Company
7%
Comms Service Provider
22%
Outsourcing Company
17%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Construction Company
11%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business60
Midsize Enterprise35
Large Enterprise55
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business7
Large Enterprise5
 

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 ...
Which would you choose - Fortinet Fortiswitch secure access or Cisco Ethernet Switches?
We researched Cisco but ultimately chose Fortinet FortiSwitch Secure Access, mostly because of the price. Fortinet FortiSwitch is an ethernet switch solution that provides security and performance...
In terms of ethernet switches, would you go with Cisco or Juniper?
Our organization ran comparison tests to determine whether Cisco or Juniper Ethernet switches were the better fit for us. We decided to go with Juniper. Juniper ethernet switches are a lesser-known...
What needs improvement with Cisco Nexus 9000 Series?
If we speak about the negative side, the prices are something that could be improved. It is expensive compared with other competitors, about 40% higher than any other vendor. This is the main point...
What is your primary use case for Cisco Nexus 9000 Series?
Cisco Nexus 9000 Series focuses on serving the data center primarily, not the endpoints. The focus is on how to serve your data center, perform the segmentation that you need inside your data cente...
What advice do you have for others considering Cisco Nexus 9000 Series?
The policy-driven approach in Cisco Nexus 9000 Series can be understood through the integration with Cisco DNA. One of the main features or strength points that Cisco Nexus 9000 Series has is the f...
 

Also Known As

Cisco Industrial Ethernet Switches
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Linz AG
Information Not Available
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco Ethernet Switches vs. Cisco Nexus 9000 Series and other solutions. Updated: September 2026.
915,341 professionals have used our research since 2012.