Dell PowerVault vs NetApp AFF A-Series comparison

Dell Technologies and NetApp are both solutions in the Enterprise SAN category. Dell Technologies is ranked #2 with an average rating of 8.1, while NetApp is ranked #5 with an average rating of 8.7. Dell Technologies holds a 24.6% mindshare in ES, compared to NetApp’s 2.2% mindshare. Additionally, 100% of Dell Technologies users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of NetApp users who would recommend it.

Dell PowerVault

Read 29 Dell PowerVault reviews

2,720 Views
1,550 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

NetApp AFF A-Series

Read 8 NetApp AFF A-Series reviews

446 Views
156 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Dell PowerVault

NetApp AFF A-Series

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Dell PowerVault and NetApp AFF A-Series based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out in this report how the two Enterprise SAN solutions compare in terms of features, pricing, service and support, easy of deployment, and ROI.

To learn more, read our detailed Dell PowerVault vs. NetApp AFF A-Series Report (Updated: January 2026).

Buyer's Guide

Dell PowerVault vs. NetApp AFF A-Series

January 2026

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Helped 881,082 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 PowerVault

Ranking in Enterprise SAN

2nd

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

6.5

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Fibre Channel (1st)

NetApp AFF A-Series

Ranking in Enterprise SAN

5th

Average Rating

8.8

Reviews Sentiment

6.6

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

All-Flash Storage (18th)

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the Enterprise SAN category, the mindshare of Dell PowerVault is 24.6%, up from 21.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of NetApp AFF A-Series is 2.2%, up from 1.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Enterprise SAN Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
Dell PowerVault	24.6%
NetApp AFF A-Series	2.2%
Other	73.2%

Enterprise SAN

Featured Reviews

Erhan Parlaz

Sr. Sales Consultant at Teccle Group

Reliable midmarket backups have supported disaster recovery while centralized management needs work

Areas where I feel Dell PowerVault could be improved include especially the enterprise area and multiple interfaces in other areas, for example, backup software solutions and their integration. Handling extensive storage management functions such as snapshots, replication, and provisioning with Dell PowerVault is very well suited for the midmarket or even smaller midmarket environments. Only when environments become more complex, especially in the enterprise area, does Dell PowerVault struggle in the software area, including centralized management. I would welcome it if Dell PowerVault were a bit easier to manage in centralized management via the GUI, as it was in the past, because at the moment mid-sized companies find it not so straightforward to clearly calculate things such as how and where to use something, especially in the snapshot area. There is still room for improvement due to the missing interfaces and also the flexibility.

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MartinSandell

Senior Storage Engineer at Orange Business

Efficient data management leads to significant cost savings through advanced inline deduplication

NetApp's inline deduplication and compression are unmatched compared to other vendors. With both deduplication and compression inline, we experience no cost in terms of performance on the systems, however, we have huge savings on the storage side. We can turn it on for everyone and save storage space, allowing us to sell more to customers. NetApp also provides us with an interface for VLAN separation that no other vendor can provide, allowing our customers distinct, separated network layers in between.

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 storage has been good."

"Stability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten."

"Dell PowerVault offers valuable full flash storage."

"The stability is quite good. Once you deploy all the equipment, it's very stable."

"The most valuable feature of Dell PowerVault is its ability to provide small to medium-range storage. It doesn't have any specific standout features, but it's great for applications, such as surveillance where a large number of videos need to be recorded and performance isn't a priority."

"The most valuable feature of Dell PowerVault is its performance."

"The solution is easy to configure and reliable; the performance is very good, and storage consolidation is quite easy to configure on it."

"For the video use case where expansion is sometimes required quickly, Dell PowerVault proves to be an excellent solution due to its significant capacity and scalability over time."

More Dell PowerVault pros

"NetApp AFF A-Series is faster and more robust compared to the all-flash storage of NetApp."

"The amazing thing is that whenever we have come up with an issue where we need to get something done, and it wasn't necessarily available, they could do things for us, usually within the next revision of the software."

"The deduplication and compression options from NetApp AFF A-Series are good to use for efficient storage capacity."

"NetApp support is fantastic."

"NetApp helps us get the fastest output."

"MetroCluster is the best product on the market. It synchronizes the storage. NetApp's update packages are a huge advantage because the firmware and server updates are in one package."

"We've reduced downtime. Without all of NetApp's benefits, we would have had to reconfigure parts of storage that would have required downtime. We have dramatically reduced our downtime through successive generations of NetApp, allowing us to get Five 9s availability."

"NetApp's inline deduplication and compression are unmatched compared to other vendors."

More NetApp AFF A-Series pros

Cons

"Sometimes integrating into a cluster can be difficult as you have to do it manually."

"We need higher performance and more reliable storage."

"The tool needs to improve its UI."

"Areas where I feel Dell PowerVault could be improved include especially the enterprise area and multiple interfaces in other areas, for example, backup software solutions and their integration."

"The scalability is present but it is a bit complex to scale to the desired level. When we needed to increase the performance, we faced some issues."

"I would like to see improvements made to the user interface."

"The product could support an NVMe hard disk."

"In most instances, clients are using Dell PowerVault with tape drives, but we want to transition them away from tape drives due to the risk of data loss."

More Dell PowerVault cons

"NetApp is shifting to the cloud and adopting AI, but it is not improving its core technology to deliver faster storage. We're still waiting to see if it improves speed with solutions like the 90 series."

"We have several problems with the limitations of NetApp systems in terms of volume shares. We have a brick in a 700 or a controller, and we sometimes make small volumes, but Kubernetes container volumes don't allow us."

"NetApp AFF A-Series should work on cost. The solutions, especially enterprise-level storage, should be more affordable to improve their appeal to businesses."

"Pricing could always be lower."

"The solution's ransomware protection could be improved."

"I really don't have a lot of complaints. In the past, there were issues, however, they've really done a great job of reaching out."

"It would be helpful if our partner organized a yearly session with my team to discuss the new feature sets on our current solutions and other ways NetApp can help us. Perhaps we are missing some information to help us make the right decision."

Pricing and Cost Advice

"They are offering a wide range of support models for the customers such as basic support that is budget-friendly, but they also provide a professional support solution that is a bit costly"

"The solution is more cost-effective than the competitors. It’s an affordable option for small businesses."

"Dell PowerVault's price is the tool's main attraction."

"I rate the price of Dell PowerVault a nine out of ten."

"The cost, compared to other solutions, is on the higher end."

"I rate the product price a nine on a scale of one to ten, where one is low, and ten is high."

"I rate the solution's pricing a seven to eight out of ten."

"The price is reasonable and we are satisfied with it."

More Dell PowerVault pricing and cost advice

Information not available

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Manufacturing Company

15%

Computer Software Company

11%

Comms Service Provider

Government

No data available

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	12
Midsize Enterprise	8
Large Enterprise	12

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Large Enterprise	8

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Dell PowerVault?

Dell PowerVault offers valuable full flash storage.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Dell PowerVault?

I don't get involved in the negotiations for price for Dell PowerVault. We get a pretty good discount. I don't think it's terribly priced, but Pure Storage is cheaper.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Dell PowerVault?

See all answers

What needs improvement with NetApp AFF A-Series?

NetApp is doing great with cloud integration; however, there may be room for improvement in integrating with existing VMware devices for better support, especially since many companies are looking ...

See all answers

What advice do you have for others considering NetApp AFF A-Series?

It would be great to see some automation from NetApp. I rate NetApp AFF A-Series a nine out of ten.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for NetApp AFF A-Series?

With respect to pricing, NetApp can be competitive but hasn't been explored to a large extent.

See all answers

Comparisons

Dell PowerStore vs Dell PowerVault

Compared 58% of the time

HPE StoreOnce vs Dell PowerVault

Compared 9% of the time

Dell PowerProtect Data Domain vs Dell PowerVault

Compared 9% of the time

Lenovo Storage V Series vs Dell PowerVault

Compared 5% of the time

ExaGrid EX vs Dell PowerVault

Compared 4% of the time

More Dell PowerVault Competitors

Dell PowerStore vs NetApp AFF A-Series

Compared 36% of the time

NetApp AFF C-Series vs NetApp AFF A-Series

Compared 35% of the time

Fujitsu Eternus AF Series vs NetApp AFF A-Series

Compared 15% of the time

NetApp ASA vs NetApp AFF A-Series

Compared 14% of the time

More NetApp AFF A-Series Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Dell PowerVault

January 2026

Download Dell PowerVault product report

Buyer's Guide

All-Flash Storage

January 2026

Download NetApp AFF A-Series product report

Also Known As

PowerVault

No data available

Overview

PowerVault MD3 storage arrays help you cost-effectively address the challenges of data growth with versatile solutions that are optimized for smaller-scale storage consolidation, flexible virtualization projects and high business continuity.

Dell Technologies

NetApp AFF A-Series is ideal for high-performance storage in enterprise environments. It efficiently handles large-scale data and provides reliable storage for virtual machines, databases, and critical applications.

NetApp AFF A-Series stands out for its speed, reliability, and robust data protection features. Users find its management easy and appreciate the efficiency in handling large workloads. Its seamless integration with cloud services and high data transfer speeds with reduced latency enhance its appeal. Scalability and support for various applications make it a top choice for enterprises. However, there is room for improvement in documentation, technical support response time, and third-party application integration.

What are the standout features of NetApp AFF A-Series?

High Performance: Delivers fast data transfer speeds and reduces latency.
Data Protection: Robust features ensure data integrity and security.
Ease of Management: Simplified administration enhances efficiency.
Cloud Integration: Seamless integration with cloud services.
Scalability: Easily handles growing data and application demands.

What benefits should users look for?

Enhanced Efficiency: Streamlined management processes save time.
Increased Reliability: High reliability ensures continuous operation.
Improved Data Security: Advanced data protection features safeguard information.
Cost-Effective Scaling: Efficiently scales to meet growing storage needs.
Better Cloud Utilization: Leverages cloud capabilities for more flexibility.

NetApp AFF A-Series is implemented across industries to support virtual machines, large databases, and critical applications. It's particularly valuable in financial services for fast transaction processing, in healthcare for managing extensive patient records and imaging data, and in tech companies for supporting development environments and big data analytics.

NetApp

Sample Customers

Dayco, FAW Foundry, University of Cambridge, Finder, Stadtwerke Pforzheim GmbH & Co.

Information Not Available

Buyer's Guide

Dell PowerVault vs. NetApp AFF A-Series

January 2026

Free Report: Dell PowerVault vs. NetApp AFF A-Series

Find out what your peers are saying about Dell PowerVault vs. NetApp AFF A-Series and other solutions. Updated: January 2026.

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