Cisco Catalyst Switches are pretty straightforward. They offer LAN and internal networking. They are for network segmentations and LAN and WAN perimeter networks.
Head Cyber Security at a retailer with 10,001+ employees
Straightforward, scalable and stable solution
Pros and Cons
- "They are pretty good. They are stable. Cisco has been around in the industry for a long time, so they are reliable, as well."
- "Cisco Catalyst Switches are quite scalable, stable, and reliable, and our organization strength is around 15,000 using it."
- "In terms of what could be improved, more integration is the main thing they should be focused on."
- "In terms of what could be improved, more integration is the main thing they should be focused on."
What is our primary use case?
What needs improvement?
In terms of what could be improved, more integration is the main thing they should be focused on.
For how long have I used the solution?
I believe the sets of Cisco Catalyst Switches are being used in our company for more than five to seven years.
I myself have been using this for the last two years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
They are pretty good. They are stable. Cisco has been around in the industry for a long time, so they are reliable, as well.
Buyer's Guide
Cisco Catalyst Switches
April 2026
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886,426 professionals have used our research since 2012.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Cisco Catalyst Switches are quite scalable.
Our organization strength is around 15,000 using it.
How are customer service and support?
We are pretty happy with customer service. As far as my experience with Cisco is concerned, they are pretty up-to-date in terms of their responses.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup was easy. They are very easy to install.
What about the implementation team?
We generally do a first model and we have an execution team. They take care of the implementation and everything.
What other advice do I have?
On a scale of one to ten, I would give Cisco Catalyst Switches around an eight.
I think they're pretty okay. Cisco is pretty straightforward.
I would absolutely recommend Cisco Catalyst Switches for others.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
IT Production Engineer at a consultancy with 201-500 employees
Highly scalable, helpful technical support, and installation reasonable
Pros and Cons
- "The solution highly scalable."
- "The solution is highly scalable, and we have approximately 650 users using this solution in my organization."
- "The solution was stable 10 years ago, there is room for improvement in this area."
- "The solution was stable 10 years ago, there is room for improvement in this area."
What is our primary use case?
We use Cisco Catalyst Switches to connect devices to a network.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Cisco Catalyst Switches for approximately 10 years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The solution was stable 10 years ago, there is room for improvement in this area.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The solution highly scalable.
We have approximately 650 users using this solution in my organization.
How are customer service and technical support?
The technical support experience has been mixed, it depends on the subject. There are occasions when we have a quick resolution and for others, there can be long discussions to receive a resolution.
How was the initial setup?
The installation was not difficult for me but I have been working with these types of solutions for a long time. It could be difficult for those with limited experience.
What about the implementation team?
We have a team of 10 engineers that do the implementation and maintenance of the solutions.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The cost of this solution could be less expensive, and we are on an annual license.
What other advice do I have?
I would recommend this solution to others.
I rate Cisco Catalyst Switches an eight out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Buyer's Guide
Cisco Catalyst Switches
April 2026
Learn what your peers think about Cisco Catalyst Switches. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: April 2026.
886,426 professionals have used our research since 2012.
DevOps System Engineer at Monash University
Good technical support, stable, and scalable
Pros and Cons
- "The solution is very stable."
- "The solution is very stable."
- "The solution could improve security."
- "The solution could improve security."
What is our primary use case?
The solution can be used to connect the internet and servers, such as databases.
What needs improvement?
The solution could improve security.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using this solution for approximately 10 years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The solution is very stable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Cisco Catalyst Switches is scalable.
How are customer service and technical support?
We are satisfied with the technical support from Cisco.
How was the initial setup?
The installation is easy and takes approximately 10 minutes.
What about the implementation team?
I did the implementation myself.
What other advice do I have?
I would recommend this solution to others.
I rate Cisco Catalyst Switches a ten out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Video conferencing Admin at Akshara Enterprises India Pvt Ltd
Stable, reliable, and overall good functionality
Pros and Cons
- "Cisco Catalyst Switches are the best overall."
- "Cisco Catalyst Switches are the best overall."
- "The price of a Cisco Catalyst Switches license is expensive. There is a big problem with their pricing structure."
What is our primary use case?
We use Cisco Catalyst Switches for networking.
What is most valuable?
Cisco Catalyst Switches are the best overall.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using this solution for approximately six years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Cisco Catalyst Switches is stable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The solution is scalable.
We have approximately 25 customers using the solution.
How are customer service and technical support?
The technical support from Cisco is very good.
How was the initial setup?
The installation is easy if you understand the Ciscos CLA interface and your infrastructure is correct.
What about the implementation team?
We have CCNA and CCNP certified engineers that do the implementation and maintenance of the solution.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The price of a Cisco Catalyst Switches license is expensive.
There is a big problem with their pricing structure. For example, there is a system called first come first serve metric for integrators. The person who logs the case gets a better price than what I receive. They give discounts to other people, such as those with certifications, and what happens is people go away from this solution because of it. I do not receive a better price which puts me in a position to promote other solutions.
I lost a large contact because of their pricing structure. Cisco should give the same pricing to everybody.
What other advice do I have?
I recommend this solution to others.
I rate Cisco Catalyst Switches an eight out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer. Integrator
Presales Consultant at a tech services company with 51-200 employees
Stable, flexible, easy to install, and the support is fair
Pros and Cons
- "I like the flexibility of this product."
- "I like the flexibility of this product."
- "Cisco is a bit complex."
- "There is a complexity with Cisco. They should have unified software that includes all of the licenses."
What is our primary use case?
We use this solution for our network.
I am a system engineer, and we sell the products to our customers.
What is most valuable?
I like the flexibility of this product.
What needs improvement?
There is a complexity with Cisco.
They should have unified software that includes all of the licenses. We should not have to pay for different software on the same platform. Each one has a specific use or a specific feature.
If you need dynamic routing then you have to purchase the software, if you need basic IP routing, you need different software. Why do you need this type of complexity?
They have their own propriety protocols while other competitors go with other standards and are easy. Cisco is a bit complex.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Cisco Catalyst Switches for 15 years.
We use several different versions, not just one. If they have different software for universal enterprise services, they will have specific features to use for the specific use case.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Cisco Catalyst Switches is a stable product.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The scalability of this solution needs to be improved. It is not very scalable. For example, if you want to enable the features such as VSS, you have to add other modules and hardware.
Other competitors have this feature available from the beginning.
How are customer service and technical support?
Technical support is fair.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup is straightforward. It is easy to install.
I was not involved in the installation but it is approximately five or ten minutes to deploy.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
There is no licensing fee. All of the features are available on the switch from day one.
It's not a complicated license; you have to buy a license for different services or features. This is different.
Most of the features are available without additional hardware.
What other advice do I have?
I would recommend Cisco to other users, along with several other products.
I would rate Cisco Catalyst Switches a nine out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer. Partner
Network Administrator
Beneficial conductivity for different devices, stable, and easy installation
Pros and Cons
- "The solution is beneficial for interconnecting POE telephones, computers, printers, and buffering networks."
- "The solution is beneficial for interconnecting POE telephones, computers, printers, and buffering networks."
- "The solution could improve by allowing administrators to create scripts to help automate processes to make tasks easier."
- "The solution could improve by allowing administrators to create scripts to help automate processes to make tasks easier."
What is our primary use case?
We are using this solution as a network LAN switch in a financial company.
What is most valuable?
The solution is beneficial for interconnecting POE telephones, computers, printers, and buffering networks.
What needs improvement?
The solution could improve by allowing administrators to create scripts to help automate processes to make tasks easier.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Cisco Switches for approximately eight years and I have been using this particular Cisco Catalyst Switch for six months.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The solution is stable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Cisco Catalyst Switches are highly scalable.
How are customer service and technical support?
I have not used technical support from Cisco. However, I have used online documentation that has been helpful.
How was the initial setup?
The installation is easy, the whole process takes approximately one week.
What other advice do I have?
I would advise those to make sure they understand the requirements before they purchase Cisco Catalyst Switches because they are an entry-level solution.
I rate Cisco Catalyst Switches a nine out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Software Engineer at a comms service provider with 51-200 employees
Easy to install, simple to configure, and user-friendly
Pros and Cons
- "We find the product very easy to use."
- "The solution is very stable and the performance is good."
- "The product is expensive."
- "The product is expensive."
What is our primary use case?
We primarily use the solution for both corporate and data centers.
What is most valuable?
The solution is very stable and the performance is good.
It's easy to configure.
We find the product very easy to use.
The solution can scale.
The installation process is easy.
What needs improvement?
You need to predict your scaling considerations at the outset.
The product is expensive.
For how long have I used the solution?
I've been using the solution for five years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The solution is very stable. There are no bugs or glitches and it doesn't crash or freeze. It's reliable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The solution is scalable, however, you need to plan for future scaling at the outset, otherwise, you will be limited.
How are customer service and technical support?
We are quite satisfied with technical support. They are helpful and responsive.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup is very straightforward and simple. It's not overly complex or difficult at all.
What about the implementation team?
We handled the implementation ourselves in-house.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The solution could be cheaper. It's a bit expensive.
There aren't any extra costs for licensing or customization.
What other advice do I have?
I'd rate the solution at a nine out of ten. We're quite happy with its capabilities.
I would recommend the solution to other users and companies.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Network System Specialist at a tech services company with 51-200 employees
Great technical support with very good scalability capabilities and good stability overall
Pros and Cons
- "Technical support is always very helpful and fast to respond."
- "The product is very strong, much stronger than other options on the market, for example, Dell and HPE, and the software is excellent."
- "The product should work on its pricepoints. It's an expensive solution."
- "The product should work on its pricepoints. It's an expensive solution."
What is our primary use case?
We use the solution for its switches. It's very similar to Dell or HPE - only much stronger.
What is most valuable?
The product is very strong. It's much stronger than other options on the market, for example, Dell and HPE.
The software is excellent.
Overall, the solution works very well and we don't have any real complaints in terms of its capabilities.
The product has been very stable and extremely reliable over the years.
You can scale the product quite well.
Technical support is always very helpful and fast to respond.
The stability has been great over the years.
What needs improvement?
The product should work on its pricepoints. It's an expensive solution. It's the main complaint I hear from people.
For how long have I used the solution?
At this point, I've been working with the solution for seven or eight years. It's been quite a while.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The solution is quite stable. There are no bugs or glitches. It doesn't crash or freeze. It's very reliable. We've been happy with its performance and its stability.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The product can scale very well. When it comes to doing something like stacking - for example, stacking switches, of course, it is very simple to accomplish. It's very easy to stack two or more switches in order to expand the solution out. A company shouldn't have any issues with doing so.
We have a client that has 800 users and up on the solution.
We do plan to continue to use the solution into the future.
How are customer service and technical support?
Technial support responds quickly. They're very good at being timely. They also have a very good forum where you can ask your questions if you want to.
Overall, it's very easy to get in touch with them and to find the answers you need to resolve issues. We're quite satisfied with eh level of support they provide to us.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
Veeam Backup and Replication High-Rated Course
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup is not too complex. It's pretty straightforward. For setting up the access layer, it takes about half an hour, which isn't that long. However, for the correlator - and that includes designing and drawing the map of the network and tasks such as that, it takes a few days.
What about the implementation team?
We're actually consulting and doing a project for a state company in Tehran, for more than 800 switches. We can assist clients in the implementation process if they would like s to.
What was our ROI?
Veeam Backup and Replication High-Rated Course
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The solution is quite expensive. There are less expensive options on the market. The pricing can be a pain point for some companies.
What other advice do I have?
I work often with the 3,000 and 4,000 series versions. It's not necessarily the latest version all the time.
I'd recommend this solution to other organizations.
Overall, we've been quite satisfied with their level of service. I would rate them ten out of ten. They've worked perfectly over the years.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Buyer's Guide
Download our free Cisco Catalyst Switches Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros
sharing their opinions.
Updated: April 2026
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