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Cisco Ethernet Switches vs Fortinet FortiSwitch - Data Center vs Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access comparison

 

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:
 

ROI

Sentiment score
7.5
Cisco Ethernet Switches offer reliability and efficiency, resulting in higher uptime, cost-effectiveness, and substantial long-term investment returns.
Sentiment score
1.0
Fortinet FortiSwitch offers cost-effective integration and ease of use, with Cisco providing better long-term returns for higher budgets.
Sentiment score
7.9
Fortinet FortiSwitch is cost-effective, efficient in network security, and ideal for growing businesses, but not large enterprises.
The integration of Fortinet infrastructure, including FortiSwitches, is cost-effective compared to Cisco, especially when paired with Fortinet wireless solutions.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
6.6
Cisco customer service is praised for responsiveness and efficiency, though support quality varies globally and integration issues exist.
Sentiment score
7.9
Fortinet FortiSwitch support is highly rated for responsiveness and reliability, though some users suggest better speed and consistency.
Sentiment score
7.9
Fortinet FortiSwitch support is praised for knowledge and problem-solving, but response speed and direct solutions need improvement.
It takes two to three days for Cisco support to address issues.
Currently, we don't have any technical support because our license doesn't allow for direct support.
Cisco support is quick and responsive, often answering within an hour.
Technical partners provide responses within a day for any technical queries.
Customer support needs improvement in terms of speed and reliability.
On a scale from one to 10, I would rate the technical support of Fortinet an eight.
They are knowledgeable, professional, and assist with any issues.
My local support is working fine, and I have my connection with my account manager in the public company of Fortinet.
It's a potential area for improvement, possibly in terms of response time or quality.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
8.0
Cisco Ethernet Switches offer flexibility and scalability, but some users are concerned about high costs and limited scalability.
Sentiment score
8.5
Fortinet FortiSwitch - Data Center is scalable and cost-effective, ideal for enterprises, with some fiber port limitations noted.
Sentiment score
8.0
Fortinet FortiSwitch offers scalable, reliable networking for various organizations, with seamless FortiGate integration, despite occasional pricing challenges.
Cisco mainly provides security, patch management, hardware reliability, durability, scalability, and security features supporting my organization's expansion.
The latest products do not allow integration with the earlier environment.
The scalability depends on the model.
When used in a dedicated Fortinet infrastructure, FortiSwitch scalability is better than some other switches, like Cisco, Meraki, or Arista.
Scalability is generally good, with transitions from gigabit to ten giga, twenty-five giga, and forty giga.
For enterprise solutions, it's extendable easily with options for edge connectivity or stackable devices.
You just need to connect another switch or replace the current one, and it integrates well with the existing setup.
With uniform Fortinet FortiGate switches, adding or removing switches without reconfiguring individually is straightforward.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
8.9
Cisco Ethernet Switches are praised for stability, reliability, and durability, offering minimal disruptions and consistent low-maintenance performance.
Sentiment score
7.4
Fortinet FortiSwitch - Data Center is highly stable and reliable, with minor issues mainly due to vendor integration challenges.
Sentiment score
8.7
Fortinet FortiSwitch offers reliable performance and security, receiving high ratings despite occasional setup and power issues in enterprises.
The switches are very stable, rated ten out of ten.
There is room for improvement as it sometimes takes over an hour to push configurations onto the devices from the management tool.
The tool is robust and lasts for three to four years without needing replacement.
The stability has been good overall.
I would give it a nine out of ten for stability.
 

Room For Improvement

Cisco Ethernet Switches need improved usability, security, pricing, support, integration, stability, scalability, and enhanced management features.
Pricing is high; improvements needed in automation, integration, user interfaces, management, certifications, features, support, and performance.
Fortinet FortiSwitch needs better pricing, support, management, security, interoperability, interface, port variety, and warranty options.
The pricing and hardware warranty renewal costs are more expensive than other products.
FortiGate switches are considered more valuable because they have firewall capabilities.
For example, on switches, filtering specific sections isn't supported, whereas, on routers, you can do 'show run' with additional commands to filter.
There is room to improve the integration between FortiSwitch and other third-party solutions, as challenges arise when integrating with different vendors.
Sometimes, customer support does not provide prompt assistance, leaving projects hanging.
The commercial aspect presents challenges, particularly with pricing, as customers often ask for Juniper or Cisco, brands they are more aware of, which makes awareness about Fortinet FortiSwitch - Data Center another weak point.
The introduction of AI integration could be valuable for detecting abnormal traffic directly on the switch.
The machine is robust and lasts for years with rare technical issues.
 

Setup Cost

Cisco Ethernet Switches are considered expensive but valued for quality and reliability, despite cheaper alternatives and licensing costs.
Fortinet FortiSwitch is competitively priced, sometimes seen as expensive, offers no extra licensing with FortiGate, and occasional discounts.
Fortinet FortiSwitch offers secure access with higher costs but is valued for its reliability compared to competitors.
Cisco Ethernet switches are priced at a rating of nine, indicating they are expensive.
We need to pay for the subscription, as there are extra expenses after purchasing the product.
Regarding the cost, Cisco Ethernet Switches have a competitive price.
The Fortinet switches come with no additional cost as they are open source, with only hardware warranties applicable.
Pricing is competitive, although it's not the cheapest option.
It has increased by about two hundred percent over the past three years.
The initial cost of Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access is high compared to other options.
 

Valuable Features

Cisco Ethernet Switches provide reliable performance, ease of management, advanced security features, scalability, and excellent support for diverse networking needs.
Fortinet FortiSwitch offers centralized management, enhanced security, and efficient integration with FortiGate for flexible, cost-effective network control.
Fortinet FortiSwitch offers centralized management, strong security, user-friendly administration, and seamless integration with Fortinet's security fabric for scalability.
Their stability and durability are essential features we've been looking for many years, and they are still working fine.
The Cisco Ethernet switches are sturdy products that do not require any kind of maintenance.
The most valuable features of Cisco Ethernet switches include plug-and-play capabilities.
This feature allows the switch's ports to be used as firewall ports, enhancing network security by enabling IPS and network profiling directly on the ports.
It allows me to create VLANs, implement security measures, and push configurations using a single tool.
The main actual benefit that Fortinet FortiSwitch - Data Center brought to my customer's environment is secure connectivity while minimizing downtime from unexpected traffic or broadcasting.
This centralized management saves time and ensures seamless scalability.
The powerful integration capabilities allow us to manage all devices from a single interface through the firewall.
One of the main features is the integration with FortiGate.
 

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2025, in the Ethernet Switches category, the mindshare of Cisco Ethernet Switches is 12.8%, down from 18.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Fortinet FortiSwitch - Data Center is 1.9%, up from 1.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access is 4.6%, down from 6.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Ethernet Switches Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Cisco Ethernet Switches12.8%
Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access4.6%
Fortinet FortiSwitch - Data Center1.9%
Other80.7%
Ethernet Switches
 

Featured Reviews

Myint Aung - PeerSpot reviewer
Exceptional network support and AI integration drive performance while suggesting enhancements for future use cases
I work with both HyperFlex and other Cisco products. I prefer to make online support available because I can utilize my CCIE architect, solution consultant, and engineer team along with our account manager and product sales team. We can clarify requirements and decide how to support you. We should arrange a conference call about Cisco Ethernet Switches where I can invite my architect and consultant to clarify more about the features that are most beneficial for improving network efficiency. Today is AI day, and all the new firmware includes AI to optimize the performance, traffic, and security of Cisco Ethernet Switches. It's performing very well. With many solutions and vendors available, you have to decide on one. I am extremely satisfied with the licensing cost for Cisco Ethernet Switches. For the price of Cisco Ethernet Switches, I would rate it a 7. My overall rating for Cisco Ethernet Switches is 10 out of 10.
Rutul SHah - PeerSpot reviewer
Provides seamless traffic control and secure connectivity while minimizing downtime and optimizing resource allocation
There is always room for improvement in Fortinet FortiSwitch - Data Center because with this switch, they can reduce downtime due to broadcasting issues by denying specific traffic on particular ports. Currently, I am not identifying any weak points of Fortinet FortiSwitch - Data Center because it meets the customer's use case. However, the commercial aspect presents challenges, particularly with pricing, as customers often ask for Juniper or Cisco, brands they are more aware of, which makes awareness about Fortinet FortiSwitch - Data Center another weak point.
Uri Harf - PeerSpot reviewer
Integration with cloud management simplifies network expansion
Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access is expensive, and this initial cost can be a barrier, especially for new businesses setting up from scratch. Although the machine is robust and lasts for years with rare technical issues, the initial price can be high. Sometimes, I have to offer alternatives like Aruba or HP, which might be cheaper.
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Comparison Review

it_user82779 - PeerSpot reviewer
Jan 29, 2014
Benefits of Juniper vs Cisco
Both are decent products. I prefer Juniper for the following reasons: 1) Cleaner separation of data plane from control plane. Higher end Cisco devices are better at this but most of the lower end products still seem to be more integrated than I like. 2) The Hierarchical config design means I can…
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
12%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Government
7%
Computer Software Company
17%
Government
10%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
6%
Computer Software Company
12%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Government
7%
Financial Services Firm
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business58
Midsize Enterprise36
Large Enterprise53
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business16
Midsize Enterprise5
Large Enterprise4
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business37
Midsize Enterprise6
Large Enterprise7
 

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 func...
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 F...
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...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Fortinet FortiSwitch - Data Center?
The Fortinet switches come with no additional cost as they are open source, with only hardware warranties applicable.
What needs improvement with Fortinet FortiSwitch - Data Center?
There is room for improvement in customer support and device speed. Sometimes, customer support does not provide prom...
What do you like most about Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access?
With FortiSwitch, you can easily identify who is connected to each port, disable ports as needed, and retrieve confi...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access?
The initial cost of Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access is high compared to other options. Although robust and rarel...
What needs improvement with Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access?
Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access is expensive, and this initial cost can be a barrier, especially for new busines...
 

Also Known As

Cisco Industrial Ethernet Switches
No data available
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Overview

 

Sample Customers

Linz AG
Black Gold Regional Schools, Amadeus Hospitality, Jefferson County, Chunghwa Telecom, City of Boroondara, Dimension Data
Black Gold Regional Schools, Amadeus Hospitality, Jefferson County, Chunghwa Telecom, City of Boroondara, Dimension Data
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Netgear and others in Ethernet Switches. Updated: August 2025.
866,088 professionals have used our research since 2012.