NetApp EF-Series All Flash Arrays vs Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) comparison

NetApp and Nutanix are both solutions in the All-Flash Storage category. NetApp is ranked #24 with an average rating of 9.0, while Nutanix is ranked #6 with an average rating of 8.7. NetApp holds a 0.9% mindshare in AFS, compared to Nutanix’s 0.8% mindshare. Additionally, 97% of NetApp users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 98% of Nutanix users who would recommend it.

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Sep 18, 2024

NetApp EF-Series All Flash Arrays and Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) are two leading solutions in the data storage market. NetApp EF-Series seems to have the upper hand in performance and support, while Nutanix excels in advanced features and overall value.

Features: NetApp EF-Series offers high performance, simplicity, and reliability. Nutanix Unified Storage provides scalability, integrated infrastructure, and advanced management tools.

Room for Improvement: NetApp EF-Series users suggest improvements in scalability, integrations, and cost management. Nutanix users point out the need for enhanced documentation, better cost management tools, and more seamless integrations.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: NetApp EF-Series is known for straightforward deployment and responsive customer service. Nutanix Unified Storage offers seamless deployment and excellent customer support, with some complexity in initial setup.

Pricing and ROI: NetApp EF-Series is seen as cost-effective with solid ROI, despite high initial setup costs. Nutanix Unified Storage provides strong ROI but is often perceived as more expensive upfront.

To learn more, read our detailed NetApp EF-Series All Flash Arrays vs. Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) Report (Updated: December 2025).

Buyer's Guide

NetApp EF-Series All Flash Arrays vs. Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS)

December 2025

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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

Pure FlashArray X NVMe

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the All-Flash Storage category, the mindshare of Pure FlashArray X NVMe is 1.4%, up from 0.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of NetApp EF-Series All Flash Arrays is 0.9%, up from 0.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) is 0.8%, up from 0.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

All-Flash Storage Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS)	0.8%
Pure FlashArray X NVMe	1.4%
NetApp EF-Series All Flash Arrays	0.9%
Other	96.9%

All-Flash Storage

Featured Reviews

Jaehoon Oh

Chief Technology Officer at Lambda256

Supports efficient storage management through volume snapshots and offers reliable non-disruptive upgrades

I have no specific improvements to suggest for Pure FlashArray X NVMe at this time. The performance statistics could be enhanced. I can see the performance statistics in the Pure Storage console, but it does not show the performance by 4K byte unit. It displays IOPS and bandwidth, but IOPS is about real use, and I want to know how many IOPS are currently running in 4K byte units. I cannot see that IOPS because most storage systems report their performance by 4K byte unit. I want to see Pure Storage performance by 4K byte unit to compare with other storage or other internal NVMe SSD.

Read full review

Tayo Olubanke

Managing Director at GCET

Offers flexibility and top-notch technology

You can go to bed peacefully if you have a NetApp. If you have NetApp within your data center, you get to know about power failure if you are using it. Your NetApp will still come alive. Even if it does not come alive, I can say that it is not like other tools when it comes to dealing with power failure. The tool is affordable, and the technology is top-notch. It is the only technology that has software for what we call inline compression and deduplication. All the products under NetApp are aiming to use AI. I know that you can achieve whatever you want to do with NetApp EF-Series All Flash Arrays. I rate the tool a nine out of ten.

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Amarnath Charugundla

System Engineer at Tata Consultancy

Unified management and cost-effectiveness lead to positive experiences and future savings

Improvement is necessary wherein the memory or storage should not breach 90%, because if breached, it becomes unmanageable. We have to set alerts or CPU triggering for 95% for the first warning. Other activities on nodes or file systems should be properly maintained. We must monitor the dashboard for P1, P2 alerts in the Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) file share system including SMB, NFS, objects, and blocks. Attention should be maintained for any alerts such as CPU, memory, and RAM alerts, as exceeding these creates issues within teams. If triggered to 95% and forgotten, it crosses the SLA breach, causing disturbances to application, web, and platform teams. Continuous monitoring on the Nutanix dashboard is essential. Even a highly experienced person in Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) cannot provide a 10 rating out of 10 because it is a vast system. I would rate it eight from my perspective.

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Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Offers excellent features like efficient data reduction, a reliable SafeMode, and a great support model for continuous assistance and updates."

"The latency is good."

"The high availability of the product is the most valuable feature."

"The standout features for us in Pure FlashArray X NVMe are its robust DDoS protection, seamless transparent failover, and failback capabilities ensuring high availability."

"It is very easy to install and configure. It has got excellent diagnostics. If you really need to see how the box is performing, the console gives you a lot of information. You can set thresholds as well as alerts based on the thresholds, which is a very powerful functionality. They are very proactive. They know how to monitor and manage the systems. They see a problem, and they are all over it before us. They see the problem before we see it, which is very good."

"The system allows for seamless learning experiences, facilitating quick and easy cloning of environments within minutes."

"We are satisfied with the performance as it is significantly faster compared to traditional storage options."

"The most valuable feature of this solution is reliability."

More Pure FlashArray X NVMe pros

"The benefits are better up-time, better response time."

"The management of it is very simple. that is the most valuable feature."

"The initial setup is pretty straightforward."

"The speed is the most valuable feature."

"Its performance is most valuable. This solution is much faster than other as well as older storage solutions. The performance of the system is very good. We are getting 50 times better experience than the older storages. We are using AFF 300. It also has native cloud integration and most of the features."

"The most valuable feature of this solution is its speed."

"The replication and mirroring features are very good."

"One of the most valuable features is the overall performance it provides. You're able to throw a pile of IOPS at it and it will handle that without much issue."

More NetApp EF-Series All Flash Arrays pros

"It gives more security that the data isn't going to get lost."

"My experience with pricing, setup costs, and licensing of Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) is that compared to other vendors, Nutanix is very reasonable."

"The simplicity of management is valuable because, in more traditional environments, the platform updates are much more complex."

"One of the main features of Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) that I find most valuable is the flexibility and scalability of it, as well as the ability to perform replication for our Disaster Recovery environment."

"Nutanix support deserves a rating of nine out of ten."

"We appreciate how Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) performs very well. We appreciate being able to have the duplication of the data to a secondary location."

"The solution is easy to use, share, and manage."

"The management interface is great and you have handy access to several details about your file shares."

More Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) pros

Cons

"Managing data isn't difficult for me. The performance is usually perfect, but we sometimes have capacity problems."

"Many options to check performance, like read, writes, random writes, and random reads, are missing in Pure FlashArray X NVMe."

"In the next release, I would like to see real-time analytics for further insight into consumption models."

"It is on the expensive side."

"It feels more suitable for small and medium-sized businesses rather than enterprises."

"The tool's pricing is higher than competitors."

"In the future, I would like to see integration with enterprise backup systems."

"I want to see Pure Storage not only be for fast storage, but I want to see it be for the entire data center."

More Pure FlashArray X NVMe cons

"The price of the All Flash solution is very high."

"The solution's technical support is not as good as it is supposed to be since you have to push them to get support."

"The management interface, while very reliable, it seems a little old now and could maybe use a little modernization."

"The initial setup phase of NetApp EF-Series All Flash Arrays is not straightforward and needs improvement."

"The pricing could be cheaper and it should have documentation in more languages, specifically, Russian."

"This solution does not have any compression or deduplication."

"I've observed an issue when creating a new storage solution with NetApp EF-Series All Flash Arrays."

"There could be better integration with some of our Cisco products."

More NetApp EF-Series All Flash Arrays cons

"The documentation on the support site needs to be improved."

"The solution should increase its storage capabilities."

"There should be more automation. Going deeper, I would appreciate seeing out-of-the-box automation for storage provisioning and maybe some more customer-facing, web portal-type or API functionality to Jira or ServiceNow."

"A more consistent flow of information would improve the solution, as I've noticed some inconsistencies, mostly stemming from the coordination between the hardware vendor and Nutanix."

"For P1 and P2 alerts in the Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) file share system, including SMB, NFS, objects, or blocks, we must maintain vigilant monitoring. This is crucial because system downtime can disturb the entire ecosystem and impact all applications."

"A centralized file share permissions console might be useful for Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS). Getting in and directly managing permissions instead of using the snap-in from Windows itself might be something to consider, but that's a small thing."

"For future updates, I think Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) should look at features similar to what ONTAP of NetApp is doing, such as tiering to the public cloud."

"For me, personally, it's a little bit slow because there's so much stuff in the underlying layers that even after talking with Nutanix support, I couldn't really grasp it."

More Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The tool is an investment that we've budgeted for. While the prices may be higher than those of other vendors, we see it as a market leader with benefits. We don't regret purchasing it."

"Our licensing fees are $500,000+ USD."

"The product is expensive."

"Pure FlashArray X NVMe’s pricing is cheaper than other products."

"Pretty much everything that you need is licensed when you buy the product. Licensing to me is different than the maintenance cost, but they can bleed into one another. We buy the product, and we expect three years of support bundled into what we negotiate on our storage arrays. I would start to see maintenance costs going into the fourth year, but we're not there yet."

"With Pure Storage, we would like to continue seeing price reductions with flash storage. I don't think we're any different than anybody else when we continue to look to the industry for price reductions of both NVMe and traditional SSD storage. We would like to see these prices continue to decline and erode, even displacing large spinning disks."

"The support cost per array is about $20,000 a year for 24/7 support."

"They can tout the functionality and cutting edge technology that they have, but that's where the price tag comes in. The cost is high, but I think as they grow their business and get more customers that it will probably go down a little bit."

More Pure FlashArray X NVMe pricing and cost advice

"Most of my customers pay for the license on a yearly basis. It can be expensive depending on the capacity number."

"Adding more capacity will increase the cost."

"It's a way to get relatively low-cost, very high-performance, low-latency block storage as a point solution."

"Price-wise, NetApp EF-Series All Flash Arrays is costlier than Dell. You have to buy a lot of licenses separately."

"They provide licenses upon purchase, so there's no need for additional licenses. Regarding additional expenses apart from the standard licensing fees, such as for support or maintenance, there aren't any. Updates take around twenty to thirty minutes, including rebooting the systems, and we haven't faced any problems with the NetApp EF-Series All Flash Arrays. We utilize various other storages like Fujitsu, IBM, and Dalian SIP, but the NetApp EF-Series stands out as we've had no issues throughout the entire year of usage."

"The pricing of the solution is expensive, considering the initial investment required...At the end of the product's life cycle, it could get cheaper, but the initial investment in NetApp makes it one of the most expensive solutions."

"Its cost-effectiveness is a major selling point. Compared to other storage vendors, the EF-Series offers excellent value for its price. It's truly a leading product in the industry."

"They need to improve its pricing. The storage market is dying. So, they need to improve the price because it should reach all people. NetApp is one of the top ones, and they are charging a little bit of royalty as compared to other storage solutions."

More NetApp EF-Series All Flash Arrays pricing and cost advice

"I assume Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) has helped reduce our total cost of ownership."

"The cost of Nutanix Unified Storage can be prohibitive for some small and medium-sized businesses, making it challenging for them to adopt the product."

"The product has an annual licensing fee."

"Nutanix is priced a bit higher than some of its competitors. A lot of Chinese companies like Huawei are entering the Saudi Arabian market trying to provide similar solutions for a lower price. It offers a good value, especially the support. Nutanix has a highly competent team. The after-sales support is excellent."

"The solution's pricing is better compared to other products."

"Nutanix's pricing is definitely much better when compared to other storage providers. That was one of the main reasons we switched to this platform."

"It is competitive with other vendors, but you get more for your dollars. It is fairly priced, but not cheap."

"With all of the Nutanix equipment, the licensing is expensive. We operate in the enterprise space, but we're a midsized company. At times, the price tag is a little bit shocking for a company with only 35 employees. We're not a Fortune 500 company, but we deal with Fortune 500 drug and energy companies. We have to play in that enterprise space if we're going to have enterprise customers. I'm very price-conscious, but I understand that if I want the best, I've got to pay the price."

More Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

12%

Manufacturing Company

11%

Financial Services Firm

11%

Government

Computer Software Company

14%

Performing Arts

11%

Manufacturing Company

Comms Service Provider

Computer Software Company

21%

Manufacturing Company

13%

Educational Organization

Financial Services Firm

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	15
Midsize Enterprise	11
Large Enterprise	12

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	12
Midsize Enterprise	10
Large Enterprise	18

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	26
Midsize Enterprise	30
Large Enterprise	64

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Pure FlashArray X NVMe?

Pure FlashArray X NVMe helps to improve our processing speed. It is user-friendly and easy to use.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Pure FlashArray X NVMe?

The price of Pure FlashArray X NVMe is very expensive, though I do not know the actual price because I am using the E...

See all answers

What needs improvement with Pure FlashArray X NVMe?

I have no specific improvements to suggest for Pure FlashArray X NVMe at this time. The performance statistics could ...

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for NetApp EF-Series All Flash Arrays?

One has to opt for a perpetual-based licensing model for one year or three years. After three years, you need to rene...

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What needs improvement with NetApp EF-Series All Flash Arrays?

The support of the product is an area with certain shortcomings where improvements are required. I want NetApp's supp...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for NetApp EF-Series All Flash Arrays?

There are so many things to talk about around the use cases associated with the tool. There are so many reasons why I...

See all answers

What do you like most about Nutanix Unified Storage?

Nutanix has excellent product documentation available on their portals, written in simple, easy-to-understand language.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Nutanix Unified Storage?

It is very cost-effective compared to the traditional environment. With new hardware, it's a long-term investment but...

See all answers

What needs improvement with Nutanix Unified Storage?

To improve Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS), cost is always an issue for every company, especially when we talk about la...

See all answers

Comparisons

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Compared 18% of the time

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TrueNAS R-Series vs Pure FlashArray X NVMe

Compared 9% of the time

Pure Storage FlashBlade vs Pure FlashArray X NVMe

Compared 8% of the time

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Compared 16% of the time

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Compared 13% of the time

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Compared 10% of the time

NetApp ASA vs NetApp EF-Series All Flash Arrays

Compared 10% of the time

Dell XtremIO vs NetApp EF-Series All Flash Arrays

Compared 9% of the time

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Compared 8% of the time

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Compared 8% of the time

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Compared 8% of the time

Amazon S3 vs Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS)

Compared 5% of the time

MinIO vs Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS)

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Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Pure FlashArray X NVMe

January 2026

Download Pure FlashArray X NVMe product report

Buyer's Guide

NetApp EF-Series All Flash Arrays

January 2026

NetApp EF-Series All Flash Arrays report

Download NetApp EF-Series All Flash Arrays product report

Buyer's Guide

Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS)

January 2026

Download Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) product report

Also Known As

Pure FlashArray//X NVMe, Pure FlashArray//X, FlashArray//X

NetApp EF540, NetApp EF-Series

Nutanix Files Storage, Nutanix Volumes Block Storage, Nutanix Objects Storage

Overview

Pure Storage FlashArray//X is the world’s first enterprise-class, all-NVMe flash storage array. It represents a new class of storage – shared accelerated storage, which is a term coined by Gartner – that delivers major breakthroughs in performance, simplicity, and consolidation.

Pure Storage

The NetApp EF560 all-flash array is an all-SSD storage system for applications that demand extremely high levels of performance and reliability. Requiring just 2U of rack space, the EF560 all-flash array combines extreme IOPS, microsecond response times, and up to 12GBps of bandwidth with leading, enterprise-proven availability features.

NetApp

Nutanix Unified Storage offers seamless scalability and high availability with a user-friendly interface, supporting multi-protocol operations while integrating effortlessly with cloud platforms. It enhances performance and security with features like ransomware protection and advanced data management.

Nutanix Unified Storage streamlines storage management by consolidating infrastructure and optimizing virtualization. It reduces operational complexity and enhances performance across diverse workloads. Despite feedback on integration challenges and suggestions for improving pricing, API capabilities, and security, it remains a key choice for dependable storage solutions. Calls for streamlined implementation and enhanced AI capabilities reflect its potential to better support evolving organizational strategies, driving cost efficiency and data accessibility.

What are the key features of Nutanix Unified Storage?

Intuitive Interface: Simplifies management with easy navigation.
High Availability: Ensures minimal downtime and reliable performance.
Seamless Scalability: Adapts to increasing data requirements effortlessly.
Multi-Protocol Support: Facilitates comprehensive operations across different systems.
Advanced Security: Offers ransomware protection and secure data backup.
Cloud Integration: Allows smooth interaction with cloud platforms.

What benefits and ROI should users evaluate?

Operational Efficiency: Reduced complexity through streamlined management.
Cost Optimization: Achieved via data compression and consolidation.
Enhanced Data Visibility: Improved insights with advanced data lens.
Performance Improvement: Significant uplift in workload handling and database performance.
Scalable Infrastructure: Enables growth and adaptation to changing demands.

In industries, Nutanix Unified Storage is deployed to centralize storage needs, improve database efficiency, and enhance file sharing and security. Organizations use it to consolidate infrastructure, support virtualization, optimize costs, and facilitate virtual machine hosting. It's instrumental in scalable object storage, ransomware protection, integrating legacy systems, and catering to critical applications.

Nutanix

Sample Customers

Fremont Bank, Judson ISD, The Nielsen Company

RP Data, Western Oregon University, Toei Animation

JetBlue, International Speedway Corporation, Volkswagen SAIC, Brighton and Hove City Council, Foresters Financial, Janus International Group, Cloud Comrade, Serco

Buyer's Guide

NetApp EF-Series All Flash Arrays vs. Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS)

December 2025

Free Report: NetApp EF-Series All Flash Arrays vs. Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS)

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