Dell PowerScale vs NetApp Private Storage comparison

Why PeerSpot?

Dell Technologies and NetApp are both solutions in the NAS category. Dell Technologies is ranked #1 with an average rating of 8.8, while NetApp is ranked #9 with an average rating of 8.0. Dell Technologies holds a 12.9% mindshare in N, compared to NetApp’s 4.3% mindshare. Additionally, 97% of Dell Technologies users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of NetApp users who would recommend it.

Dell PowerScale

Read 114 Dell PowerScale reviews

20,036 Views
11,220 Comparison Views

97% willing to recommend

NetApp Private Storage

Read 15 NetApp Private Storage reviews

4,050 Views
4,050 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Dell PowerScale

NetApp Private Storage

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Download the report

Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 7, 2024

Dell PowerScale and NetApp Private Storage are prominent in the storage category, each offering notable benefits. Dell PowerScale stands out for its scalability and ease of management, providing enhanced features while requiring minimal IT resources. This advantage is highlighted by superior user feedback on scalability and support.

Features: Dell PowerScale offers key features such as policy-based file placement, SmartQuotas, and InsightIQ, enhancing storage utility and performance. The system supports scalable access from multiple hardware platforms, and continual OS improvements come without new licensing, making it a comprehensive storage solution. NetApp’s unified storage system is highly flexible with strong integration capabilities, providing backwards compatibility and robust cloud integration features.

Room for Improvement: Dell PowerScale could improve cloud integration with easier updates and more node options for smaller offices. Enhancements to the WORM feature and InsightIQ’s reporting are also needed, as well as expanding HTTP data protection. NetApp should focus on simplifying configuration and addressing support challenges. Making licensing less complicated would also be beneficial for user satisfaction.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Dell PowerScale and NetApp Private Storage primarily support on-premises deployment, with Dell PowerScale proving more adaptable to hybrid cloud environments. Dell’s technical support is generally well-regarded, though some users experience initial assistance challenges. NetApp support is inconsistent, often requiring escalation to resolve issues satisfactorily.

Pricing and ROI: Both Dell PowerScale and NetApp Private Storage are perceived as costly, but Dell's flexible licensing and comprehensive features offer a compelling ROI. Dell users find value in long-term cost efficiency and reduced administrative workload, while NetApp users appreciate reliability and integration, despite finding the pricing steep.

To learn more, read our detailed Dell PowerScale vs. NetApp Private Storage Report (Updated: November 2026).

Buyer's Guide

Dell PowerScale vs. NetApp Private Storage

November 2026

Download the complete report

Helped 921,028 peers since 2012

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

Dell PowerScale

Ranking in NAS

1st

Average Rating

8.8

Reviews Sentiment

6.9

Number of Reviews

114

Ranking in other categories

File and Object Storage (1st)

NetApp Private Storage

Ranking in NAS

9th

Average Rating

8.6

Reviews Sentiment

6.7

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of November 2026, in the NAS category, the mindshare of Dell PowerScale is 12.9%, down from 16.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of NetApp Private Storage is 4.3%, up from 2.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

NAS Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
Dell PowerScale	12.9%
NetApp Private Storage	4.3%
Other	82.8%

NAS

Featured Reviews

Santosh Bharadwaj Rangavajjula

Product Manager at a manufacturing company with 10,001+ employees

File sharing has supported collaboration and disaster recovery but security support still needs work

Dell PowerScale can improve specifically for AI workloads, particularly on the MCPs. I would add that we have not seen an official MCP from Dell PowerScale and are relying on open source. It would be valuable to have an MCP server that we can set up directly with them. Regarding Dell PowerScale's AI capabilities, I think its governance and security could be better. We have Superna that we buy along with Dell PowerScale, but we are seeing very big problems with integrating it. Superna is primarily for the security use case, as we want to prevent cybersecurity attacks and ransomware attacks. If Dell is providing this as a supplementary feature, it should provide better support. Regarding Dell PowerScale's AI capabilities, I do not see much accuracy and reliability of output. This is actually a security problem because Dell does not provide official MCP servers while most other vendors are providing it. This forces us to rely on open source, which is not secure. Dell PowerScale plays a role in my organization's AI initiatives as we want to use the Metadata IQ functionality from Dell PowerScale; however, there is not enough support and extensive documentation for us to be able to do this.

Read full review

Atilla Celiloglu

Broadcast Technology Director at tv8

Has supported continuous broadcasting with reliable performance and consistent operations

They can make more solutions for cloud integration in NetApp Private Storage. It should be easier to use the cloud S3 integration, maybe from a NetApp interface, where users can choose the type of storage before sending to S3. I would like to see more audit and performance logs via cloud integrations and ONTAP. Without the need for separate software.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The capacity and scalability are what I appreciate the most about it; that was huge for us. We saw its benefits immediately after we started using it."

"My favorite thing about Dell PowerScale is its scalability."

"The solution in general has allowed us to move off of multiple Windows boxes where they had huge data stores, and we migrated it to the Isilon, making it easier and more cost-effective with just one point of contact."

"Dell has been great with everything."

"The system is robust, has had a big impact on the efficiency of our organization, and serves as storage for our core application, which is a revenue-generating application that plays a key role in our business."

"PowerScale helped free up our employees' time to focus on other business priorities. There are now automated jobs such as backing up and replicating data, that reduce the footprint we have. Those types of tasks were previously done manually."

"My experience when deploying Dell PowerScale (Isilon) was very straightforward, as we had Dell come on site to do all the actual setup, which was a big help."

"The ease of use of this solution has been the most valuable aspect as well as the SyncIQ and snapshot features."

More Dell PowerScale pros

"The most valuable feature of NetApp Private Storage is out-of-the-box integration with the SAN switches. They are much easier compared to Dell solutions. Additionally, the connector that comes with the solution that allows connection back to the Cisco SAN switches is very good. In Dell, I would need to use an FCIP or CIP port that is required."

"They have the scalability that we need, that we ask for, and I think it is a very, very good solution."

"Really, I sell only NetApp because I know it and it's really good and very predictable."

"For recording and stability, NetApp Private Storage is the best."

"The solution scales well."

"Disaster recovery. And I like the security very much. I think they have the needed options for security. Can manage NPS using the same tools and process that we use today."

"Integration with other NetApp solutions and merging them is manageable."

"As opposed to cloud, we have full control over security, use, who uses it. We own a number of different companies, so we can partition however we want."

More NetApp Private Storage pros

Cons

"My experience with customer service and technical support has been challenging. The reason is that it is difficult to find subject matter experts around the solution."

"The solution lacks a cloud version."

"We're still fairly new with it. It's been a pretty positive experience thus far. However, they could improve implementation, as we had to rack and stack it ourselves."

"Dell's customer service needs improvement."

"To improve Dell PowerScale, the user interface could be polished to meet new standards."

"The solution’s interface and pricing could be improved."

"We have had a few performance issue calls, particularly from a group that does file transfers who noted that it is somewhat slow, but I do not think it is on the Isilon side."

"Data storage performance needs to be improved."

More Dell PowerScale cons

"The hardware does not last as long as it could with new software."

"They can make more solutions for cloud integration in NetApp Private Storage. It should be easier to use the cloud S3 integration, maybe from a NetApp interface, where users can choose the type of storage before sending to S3."

"There is room for improvement in the support. It has been a problem for our team."

"The users find the new version's GUI complicated to use."

"The documentation could be improved."

"I'm not sure how easy it is to use on the cloud versus on-prem. If they have different user experiences, they should work to make the two as similar as possible to make it easy for a user to understand both even if they only deal mainly with one."

"NetApp Private Storage is still integrated into the ISCSI connectivity and the FC protocol. I would recommend them to migrate to the FCIP because the SAN switches are moving further to an FCIP, and are scaling out of the ISCSI connectivity. Sooner or later, that will be an issue for NetApp Private Storage. An NFCIP should be available to them moving three years down the line."

"The price could be lower."

More NetApp Private Storage cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"This solution is priced slightly higher than others on the market but does offer good quality. With this solution's data reduction and compression, we were able to purchase less. Costs have dropped because of the data rate of compression and deduplication."

"We use the TNA approach which is a great opportunity for us to better manage the licenses based on how much consumption is available for the different customers so we can use that approach and scalability."

"The solution is expensive; it is not the cheapest solution out there. If you look at it from a total cost of ownership perspective, then it is a very compelling solution. However, if you're looking at just dollar per terabyte and not looking at the big picture, then you could be distracted by the price. It is not an amazing price, but it's pretty good. It is also very good when you consider the total cost of ownership and ease of management."

"It is an expensive product with a high storage capacity suitable for large data requirements."

"Dell PowerScale is an expensive solution compared to other products like Qumulo."

"The general cost for a system like this is expensive. The total cost depends on your use case. You need to pay for every additional feature that you use."

"Our company finds the pricing high, but it decreases over time."

"Dell PowerScale (Isilon) is an expensive solution."

More Dell PowerScale pricing and cost advice

"It is an expensive solution."

"The price of NetApp Private Storage is similar to other solutions. There is typically an annual license required for this solution."

"The product is costly."

"In general, I am pleased with the pricing, though it is a little high."

"We negotiate whatever deal we can get on the type of storage that it is, but it's totally under our control,."

"The price could be lower."

"NetApp Private Storage is cheaper here in India compared to other solutions, such as Dell."

See which vendors are best for you

Use our free recommendation engine to learn which NAS solutions are best for your needs.

See recommendations

921,028 professionals have used our research since 2012.

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Manufacturing Company

11%

Outsourcing Company

10%

Financial Services Firm

Government

Outsourcing Company

11%

Construction Company

11%

Comms Service Provider

11%

Financial Services Firm

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	32
Midsize Enterprise	24
Large Enterprise	70

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	6
Midsize Enterprise	2
Large Enterprise	7

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Dell EMC PowerScale (Isilon)?

When it comes to pricing for Dell PowerScale, I find it reasonable. As you may expect, it is a high-end enterprise solution, so it comes with a price that is not expensive but not cheap. However, i...

See all answers

What needs improvement with Dell EMC PowerScale (Isilon)?

I believe Dell PowerScale can be improved by advancing its AI capabilities further. For instance, when we fetch data, it could potentially display multiple options of how the data looks in differen...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Dell EMC PowerScale (Isilon)?

Dell PowerScale serves as a premier scale-out network-attached storage solution that I primarily use for data storage and managing mass volumes of unstructured data. I use it to handle different do...

See all answers

What needs improvement with NetApp Private Storage?

See all answers

What is your primary use case for NetApp Private Storage?

It consists of a large production company and national television channels broadcasting 24/7. We wanted to choose a stable product with flawless SLA levels for an organization that broadcasts 24/7....

See all answers

What advice do you have for others considering NetApp Private Storage?

I believe it will deliver the expected performance and stability for television channels and production studios. On a scale of 1-10, I rate NetApp Private Storage an 8.

See all answers

Comparisons

NetApp FAS Series vs Dell PowerScale

Compared 15% of the time

Everpure FlashBlade vs Dell PowerScale

Compared 8% of the time

Qumulo vs Dell PowerScale

Compared 4% of the time

HPE 3PAR StoreServ vs Dell PowerScale

Compared 3% of the time

Dell PowerStore vs Dell PowerScale

Compared 3% of the time

More Dell PowerScale Competitors

NetApp FAS Series vs NetApp Private Storage

Compared 12% of the time

FreeNAS vs NetApp Private Storage

Compared 7% of the time

QNAP NAS Storage vs NetApp Private Storage

Compared 7% of the time

HPE 3PAR StoreServ vs NetApp Private Storage

Compared 6% of the time

Buurst SoftNAS vs NetApp Private Storage

Compared 6% of the time

More NetApp Private Storage Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Dell PowerScale

November 2026

Download Dell PowerScale product report

Buyer's Guide

NetApp Private Storage

October 2026

Download NetApp Private Storage product report

Also Known As

PowerScale, Dell EMC Isilon

NPS

Overview

As a storage engine in Dell AI Data Platform, Dell PowerScale is the world's #1 scale-out NAS platform for enterprise unstructured data. Trusted by more than 25,000 customers, including more than 1,500 customers running GPU workloads, PowerScale uses OneFS operating system to provide a single namespace and unified file and object access for AI/ML training, RAG pipelines, analytics, media production, and life sciences, and other demanding workloads. PowerScale F710 was the world’s first Ethernet-based storage appliance certified with NVIDIA DGX SuperPOD. Selected configurations support NVIDIA GPUDirect Storage, pNFS, and NFS over RDMA for high-throughput parallel AI data access. PowerScale supports near-linear, non-disruptive scaling from terabytes to petabytes. Available in all-flash, hybrid, and archive configurations for on-premises and cloud deployment options, including AWS and Azure. Supported next-generation configurations deliver up to 35 GB/s read throughput per node.

Dell PowerScale Isilon provides a comprehensive platform for unstructured data, excelling in scalability, management, and performance. With features like single-pane management, SyncIQ, and SmartQuotas, it handles large datasets with flexibility and robust security. Its multi-protocol support and seamless expansion improve operational efficiency. While it offers strong data protection, enhancements in cloud integration, cybersecurity, and performance are sought. Users note potential for cost reductions and streamlined configurations and mention desired improvements in object storage handling and NFS support.

What are the key features of Dell PowerScale Isilon?

Single-pane management: Simplifies data control and monitoring through a unified interface.
SyncIQ: Ensures efficient data replication for business continuity.
SmartQuotas: Provides intelligent quota management for optimized storage allocation.
Multi-protocol support: Facilitates cross-platform data access and integration.
Seamless storage expansion: Allows effortless scaling to accommodate growing data needs.

What benefits should users consider when reviewing Dell PowerScale Isilon?

Operational efficiency: Reduces workload with easy management and automation.
Enhanced security: Offers comprehensive data protection and recovery options.
Scalability: Supports large-scale data storage with flexible growth capabilities.
Performance: Delivers high-speed data processing for demanding applications.
Integration flexibility: Adapts to on-prem and hybrid cloud environments for diverse deployment needs.

Organizations across industries utilize Dell PowerScale Isilon for large-scale unstructured storage, supporting applications like video archiving, genomic data storage, and high-resolution imaging. Educational institutions, research centers, and media enterprises rely on its scaled-out storage capabilities, providing centralized, secure storage for diverse applications in hybrid, cloud, and on-prem environments.

Dell Technologies

NetApp Private Storage provides efficient, cost-controlled storage solutions with fast, seamless cloud integration, ensuring robust security and scalability for diverse applications.

NetApp Private Storage integrates smoothly with cloud platforms like Azure or AWS, offering a unified approach to storage through the ONTAP operating system. With SAN integration, disaster recovery, and strong security measures, it supports scalability and diverse use cases. Users appreciate its effective backup solutions and reliability, enhanced by Snapshot functionality. However, enhanced cloud integration tools and user-friendly interface improvements are desired. Users often confront configuration complexity and support access issues, along with costly upgrade cycles due to hardware limitations.

What are the key features of NetApp Private Storage?

ONTAP Operating System: Facilitates unified storage management across platforms.
Integration Capabilities: Ensures seamless connections with cloud providers like AWS and Azure.
Disaster Recovery: Provides robust options to safeguard data.
Security Measures: Offers strong protection against potential threats.
Scalability: Easily adapts to growing storage demands.

What benefits should users consider?

Cost Control: Allows efficient management of storage expenses.
Ease of Use: Simplifies complex storage management tasks.
Speed: Enhances data processing and access times.
Reliability: Ensures consistent performance across applications.
Flexibility: Adapts to a variety of storage environments and needs.

NetApp Private Storage is employed in industries requiring robust storage solutions, supporting OpenStack cloud backends, VMware environments, and media broadcasts. It aids in database server replication and hybrid flash storage, managing marketing data and facilitating ESXi backend solutions through NFS shares, SnapMirror, and file replication. Recognized for simplifying storage management and connectivity, it efficiently supports demanding applications across sectors.

NetApp

Sample Customers

OMRF, University of Utah, Translational Genetics Research Institute, Arcis, Geofizyka Torumn, Cyprus E&P Corporation, Colburn School, Columbia Sportswear, Harvard Medical School, University of Michigan, National Library of France,

ASE IT, Concerto Cloud

Buyer's Guide

Dell PowerScale vs. NetApp Private Storage

November 2026

Free Report: Dell PowerScale vs. NetApp Private Storage

Find out what your peers are saying about Dell PowerScale vs. NetApp Private Storage and other solutions. Updated: November 2026.

DOWNLOAD NOW

921,028 professionals have used our research since 2012.

See our Dell PowerScale vs. NetApp Private Storage report.

See our list of best NAS vendors.

We monitor all NAS reviews to prevent fraudulent reviews and keep review quality high. We do not post reviews by company employees or direct competitors. We validate each review for authenticity via cross-reference with LinkedIn, and personal follow-up with the reviewer when necessary.