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Juniper QFX Series Switches vs Meraki MS Switches 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:
 

ROI

Sentiment score
4.9
Upgrading Juniper QFX Series Switches is costly, with potential miscommunication and missed discounts complicating the long-term financial strategy.
Sentiment score
7.6
Meraki MS Switches offer increased manageability, reduced costs, and efficient performance, despite initial cost concerns and incomplete cloud transitions.
The normal ROI customers work with is five years unless there is a major change in technology.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
7.3
Juniper QFX Series customer service is professional and effective, but part availability can delay resolution; overall rated 7.5/10.
Sentiment score
8.6
Meraki MS Switches support is praised for expertise and reliability, but needs improvement in response times and local support.
Sometimes parts are not available in stock, then you have to wait for replacement time.
If the devices are licensed, the support team will assist you depending on the severity level of the case.
The support is excellent and rated ten out of ten.
Cisco's tech support is pretty good, and I would rate it an eight out of ten.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.8
Juniper QFX Series Switches offer high scalability and performance, supporting varied environments and extensive growth without frequent upgrades.
Sentiment score
7.7
Meraki MS Switches are praised for scalability and flexibility but may lack features for larger enterprise needs.
When building a fabric, you can add multiple leaf switches and multiple spine switches if required.
They're quite scalable for my environment.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.4
Juniper QFX Switches offer reliable performance and security, with upgrade issues resolved swiftly by responsive support, rated 8/10 stability.
Sentiment score
8.6
Meraki MS Switches offer reliable performance, minimal downtime, and strong support, with occasional firmware and reboot challenges reported.
Juniper has better performance than any other networking product as far as performance is concerned in the router area.
If something happens to the device or hardware, Cisco will automatically change the device by the next business day.
We faced issues following firmware updates, which we now handle by performing updates outside of working hours.
 

Room For Improvement

Improving pricing, user interface, and features can enhance the experience and expand Juniper QFX Series Switches' market share.
Meraki MS Switches are criticized for high costs, cloud dependency, limited configurations, and need better management, compatibility, and stability.
My personal opinion is that if anyone wants to work with a Layer 3 fabric in a data center, they should choose Juniper because working with ACI and APIC is very complex in the Cisco part.
Meraki should also consider improvements in stacking features, particularly in the lower-end models like NS130, where stacking isn't supported, unlike with Cisco traditional switching.
Most people are familiar with the Cisco commands, and it would be beneficial if the switch could be accessed by GUI configuration and by normally accessing the console.
There are compatibility issues with certain Power over Ethernet (PoE) devices, which we would like to see resolved.
 

Setup Cost

Juniper QFX Switches offer better affordability than Cisco or HPE, yet Fortinet excels in cost-effective security solutions with discounts.
Meraki MS Switches are costly but valued for their cloud management, stability, and support, despite high hardware and licensing fees.
We are a number one, tier-one partner of Juniper. Therefore, we normally get better discounts than with Cisco because we don't have the level one partnership with Cisco.
Meraki MS Switches, including their licensing, are somewhat expensive, particularly when compared with competitor solutions like HP.
Pricing is affordable, and licenses for the cloud need to be purchased every three to five years.
Meraki pricing is a little premium compared to other vendor products.
 

Valuable Features

Juniper QFX Series Switches excel in VxLAN, feature high port density, low power use, and efficient data center scalability.
Meraki MS Switches excel in cloud management, ease of use, proactive monitoring, security, and reliability with advanced features and scalability.
They work with EVPN solutions, providing a Layer 3 fabric, which is a very good capability.
The control plane is in the cloud, and the data plane is local, allowing manageability from anywhere.
The most valuable feature is the ability to access devices from anywhere in the world through the cloud.
One of the most valuable features of Meraki MS Switches is its precise traffic analytics capabilities, allowing us to query the system for any place at any time.
 

Categories and Ranking

Juniper QFX Series Switches
Ranking in Ethernet Switches
18th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.5
Number of Reviews
8
Ranking in other categories
Data Center Networking (2nd)
Meraki MS Switches
Ranking in Ethernet Switches
8th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.3
Number of Reviews
96
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2025, in the Ethernet Switches category, the mindshare of Juniper QFX Series Switches is 0.3%, up from 0.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Meraki MS Switches is 3.6%, down from 4.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Ethernet Switches
 

Featured Reviews

RafaelTorres - PeerSpot reviewer
Offers automation capabilities and good customer support
Juniper QFX Series Switches offer several features that contribute to improved efficiency. One key advantage is the automation capabilities. This allows us to automate network configuration and management tasks using scripting languages. In our case, at the bank, we use a script for automation to confirm the switch's scalability in the local data center. We expanded the environment to utilize the environment feature with AWS, creating connections between both data centers. This setup allowed us to extend our operations to another data center in Latin America, using AWS and Juniper together.
MajidKhan - PeerSpot reviewer
Remote access enhances troubleshooting with potential for more intuitive interface
We are working with Citrix and router, but in Cisco for Cisco vendor only. We are taking from them since 2015.  The main use case involves some small business customers needing one router, one switch, and two to three access points. It is easy to handle the devices with just a small knowledge of…
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
22%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Government
8%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Computer Software Company
17%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Financial Services Firm
6%
Educational Organization
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Juniper QFX Series Switches?
The price depends heavily upon the level of relationship you have with the OEM. We are a number one, tier-one partner of Juniper. Therefore, we normally get better discounts than with Cisco because...
What needs improvement with Juniper QFX Series Switches?
Juniper, specifically if observed, four routers are much more efficient than their counterparts. Cisco does not have the capabilities that Juniper routers, big routers such as PTX and MX have. In t...
What do you like most about Meraki MS Switches?
The most valuable features of Meraki MS Switches are their reliability and simplicity.
What needs improvement with Meraki MS Switches?
What could be improved is that when a switch disconnects from the internet, you can't make any changes to that switch. Sometimes the switches lose internet connectivity, and we can't do anything to...
 

Also Known As

No data available
MS220, MS320, MS420
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Linode, VPRO, West Chester University
Cisco Live Milan, Hyatt
Find out what your peers are saying about Juniper QFX Series Switches vs. Meraki MS Switches and other solutions. Updated: June 2025.
859,129 professionals have used our research since 2012.