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Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access vs MikroTik Cloud Router Switch comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 3, 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

Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secu...
Ranking in Ethernet Switches
6th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.7
Number of Reviews
48
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
MikroTik Cloud Router Switch
Ranking in Ethernet Switches
18th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
21
Ranking in other categories
Routers (5th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2025, in the Ethernet Switches category, the mindshare of Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access is 5.0%, down from 5.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of MikroTik Cloud Router Switch is 1.3%, down from 1.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Ethernet Switches
 

Featured Reviews

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.
Josephat Magesa - PeerSpot reviewer
Easy to set up, user-friendly, and reliable
I'm also familiar with Cisco which I used at another company. Cisco is a little bit expensive to acquire. With MikroTik, came with the same solution and you can use so many features. In MikroTik, you can use maybe two routers or one router to cover all your requirements, which you can also do on Cisco. This product is also cheaper than Cisco. Cisco has a lot of complications even with the configurations. On the price issues or even support issues, you may need to have so many routers when using Cisco for a simple solution. If you can use only one switch to clear your solution, why don't you use MikroTik? You don't have to use Cisco to have more than one switch to solve your problem.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"What I really love in FortiSwitch: its usability, the graphical user interface, and the ability to be managed by FortiGate."
"This device is easy to use."
"The solution is easy to scale."
"It can integrate well with other Fortinet products."
"Stability and scalability for this product are very good. Setup is easy and deployment can be completed within minutes. The technical support for Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access is good."
"The policies are very good."
"With FortiSwitch, you can easily identify who is connected to each port, disable ports as needed, and retrieve configurations from FortiGate when required."
"Ability to manage FortiAP, FortiClient, and FortiGate all from a single console"
"There are a lot of features to control permitting or stopping packets in the network."
"The interface management and the user access management is pretty good."
"The router power is the most valuable aspect."
"The best aspect is that it remains affordable."
"The initial setup is easy."
"It's a well-rounded solution for routing."
"The performance has been good."
"It is user-friendly, reliable, and cheap."
 

Cons

"We had experienced downtime. I would like to see it to be improved."
"I give the stability a seven out of ten because we have noticed when we hook up phones the switching of ELANs et cetera doesn't work as it should."
"The solution could provide an active VPN."
"Renewing the annual licenses for Secure the Switch FortiSwitch can be cumbersome, especially considering the relatively high cost of Fortinet licenses."
"In Fortinet, the packet reconstruction in the SD-WAN solution needs a little bit of improvement. When it comes to the Secure Access to the switches or the mix of Fortinet solution, the very small ones do not have the capability to use fiber cables. So, the small FortiGates have to work with the copper cables and cannot use fiber cables. Even though they have the capacity and throughput on all technical connectors, they don't have the interfaces, which is one of the good things with Cisco. They just add models to it. You buy the independent models, and you add them."
"Technical support needs to take a different approach and pricing should appear more competitive."
"It could be simpler but compared to the competition, it's not so bad."
"If you contact Fortinet, it's a bit difficult. Most of the time, they send you just links and documents to read for troubleshooting. When you contact support, you don't need documents. You want someone that can understand your problem, give a hand, and help you. I'm not impressed by the support really."
"The bulk efficiencies and the control of traffic could be a bit better."
"Antispam and antivirus features should be included in the future."
"It happens that you may find your network is down, if you reboot the switch, they come up. However, sometimes, they reset themselves. That's a big issue."
"The solution does not yet offer a SaaS version."
"Technical support could be better."
"MikroTik Cloud Router Switch needs improvement in the area of security, although the recent models are addressing this."
"Stuff that I'd like to be improved is really just training and documentation because I think the feature set is full. Another improvement I'd suggest is that their new, bigger releases should be a bit more stable."
"The initial setup is complex."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The solution is cheaper than Cisco but more expensive than Huawei."
"The product's pricing is less compared to other enterprise solutions."
"The product is costly for SMB customers compared to other brands available in the market."
"Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access requires a license and the price is expensive."
"The product pricing seems to be mid-range."
"Price-wise, I find Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access to be an okay product. It is not an expensive product."
"I rate the product's pricing an eight out of ten."
"The solution has reasonable pricing. The firewall costs around 500$ annually."
"They came with the licensing when we purchased them."
"This product has a one-time cost and there is no licensing fee."
"I believe the price of the tool is high, but it is okay for the services we get from it."
"The price is competitive."
"I consider it to be a cost-effective solution."
"The licensing for MikroTik is great. It's easy to enter, especially for small businesses. Their model is great."
"In Pakistan, if you buy this cloud router, it's approximately $700 for the device."
"MikroTik is really cheap compared to the competitors."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
14%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Government
8%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Computer Software Company
15%
Comms Service Provider
12%
Educational Organization
8%
Hospitality Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

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...
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 configurations from FortiGate when required.
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 rarely needs replacement, it can be overqualified for some jobs, which affects the re...
What do you like most about MikroTik Cloud Router Switch?
The tool has impacted our company's network costs and productivity in a perfect manner and percentage-wise, I can say it is 120 percent.
What needs improvement with MikroTik Cloud Router Switch?
MikroTik Cloud Router Switch needs improvement in the area of security, although the recent models are addressing this. Additionally, the quality of the hardware, such as the processor, RAM, and he...
 

Also Known As

No data available
MikroTik CRS Series
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Black Gold Regional Schools, Amadeus Hospitality, Jefferson County, Chunghwa Telecom, City of Boroondara, Dimension Data
Information Not Available
Find out what your peers are saying about Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access vs. MikroTik Cloud Router Switch and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.
850,028 professionals have used our research since 2012.