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Alcatel-Lucent OmniSwitch LAN Switches vs Cisco Catalyst Switches comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Apr 6, 2025

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

Alcatel-Lucent OmniSwitch L...
Ranking in LAN Switching
10th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
4.5
Number of Reviews
7
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Cisco Catalyst Switches
Ranking in LAN Switching
1st
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
181
Ranking in other categories
Ethernet Switches (5th), Data Center Networking (2nd), AV Over IP Switching (1st)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2026, in the LAN Switching category, the mindshare of Alcatel-Lucent OmniSwitch LAN Switches is 4.4%, up from 4.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Cisco Catalyst Switches is 18.5%, down from 28.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
LAN Switching Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Cisco Catalyst Switches18.5%
Alcatel-Lucent OmniSwitch LAN Switches4.4%
Other77.1%
LAN Switching
 

Featured Reviews

reviewer2048676 - PeerSpot reviewer
App. Manager at a political organization with 501-1,000 employees
Reliable network access has improved daily connectivity and simplified graphical management
The specific network design is done by another company, and we just manage the access switches, in fact, the local access switches on the LAN. I don't think there is much prioritization in our network for the moment. I don't think that the users see much about it; it's transparent for users. Whether there is a Cisco switch or an Alcatel-Lucent OmniSwitch LAN Switch, the user doesn't care. We are not expert users, but we are users for maintaining and keeping the situation alive, not experts of network switch programming. I'm not an expert of the switches to say what's missing. For smaller sites with 10 persons or so, it's sometimes not so easy to choose Alcatel-Lucent OmniSwitch LAN Switches.
MS
Electrical control system engineer at Dangote petroleum refinery and petrol chemicals
Reliable switching has delivered long‑term uptime, strong PoE support, and predictable performance
Cisco Systems Catalyst Switches are highly regarded for their performance, reliability, and enterprise-grade capabilities. My main reservation, however, is the pricing. The cost of Cisco Catalyst Switches—and Cisco products in general—is relatively high, especially in many African markets where organizations often need to balance budget constraints with required functionality. There are alternative vendors that offer comparable features at a lower price point. While they may not always match Cisco’s ecosystem, stability, or full feature depth, many businesses still choose them because of the significant cost savings. Another consideration is licensing, which can add to the overall total cost of ownership depending on the deployment model and required features. Overall, Cisco Catalyst Switches remain premium enterprise solutions, but when compared with other OEMs, their higher acquisition and licensing costs can be a major deciding factor for cost-conscious organizations.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The most valuable feature is the ease of configuration."
"These OmniSwitches are very manageable and easy to configure."
"These OmniSwitches are very manageable and easy to configure."
"Overall, this is a good product and there are many benefits to using Alcatel-Lucent."
"OmniSwitch LAN Switches' performance is very good."
"OmniSwitch LAN Switches' performance is very good."
"Alcatel-Lucent OmniSwitch LAN Switches provide stable work with no issues, with less downtime and fewer maintenance windows."
"We have been selling for eight or ten years, and the customer is satisfied, and the entire Qatar army project is powered by the Alcatel-Lucent network."
"It is very scalable; you can almost do any new thing that is coming."
"The hardware is the most reliable, I saw some Catalyst in hot and dusty racks, working hard and with no issues from a lot of years."
"The most valuable features include the redundancy one and the spanning tree."
"Rather than spending one or two hours configuring a switch, I can easily do that in one minute on the cloud."
"I like everything about Cisco Catalyst Switches; it's both stable and scalable."
"The most valuable features of the solution are BGP, VPN, and spine-leaf architecture."
"Cisco Switches are more stable in terms of hardware and firmware, rather than Juniper Switches."
"In general, this is a good product with a long lifespan and easily managed."
 

Cons

"There is no OEM support in India so RMAs need to be sent to France, which takes a long time if the hardware is faulty."
"A customer expressed dissatisfaction with the color of the switches, preferring black over the current color, which is close to white. While the color is not a personal concern, my earlier preference was for all products to be extendable in one large stack since some equipment limits stacking to four elements instead of eight."
"For smaller sites with 10 persons or so, it's sometimes not so easy to choose Alcatel-Lucent OmniSwitch LAN Switches."
"n general, the way the product is put together is not well done."
"There is no OEM support in India so RMAs need to be sent to France, which takes a long time if the hardware is faulty."
"There are some issues with the network firmware being deleted from the switches."
"There are some issues with the network firmware being deleted from the switches."
"I would like to see better third-party integration with third-party systems."
"We'd like Cisco to integrate with other solutions, including their own."
"The solution is expensive."
"The user interface needs improvement. Meraki has a much nicer UI. Cisco could learn a lot by looking at them. It might make them a bit more user friendly."
"The product could offer more integrations with other solutions."
"Their centralized management could be better. There should be some kind of software for centralized management so that I don't need somebody else to manage it."
"Out of the competition, Cisco switches are easily the most expensive."
"The solution could improve security."
"Cisco switches are expensive."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The solution’s price is at a moderate level."
"The price is okay. It's comparable to similar switches."
"The license is purchased one time only, it is a perpetual license with no renewal."
"OmniSwitch LAN Switches are cheaper than Cisco's switches."
"The price could be improved."
"Cisco Catalyst Switches is an affordable solution."
"There is a one-time license, but we pay for the smart net license every three years for support."
"Cisco Catalyst Switches is an expensive solution."
"Try to buy everything you need in bulk purchases and ask Cisco for volume discounts."
"The licensing, and maintenance fees are paid on a yearly basis."
"They are expensive."
"It would be great for the user if Cisco lowered the prices for their routers and switches."
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which LAN Switching solutions are best for your needs.
895,272 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
22%
Computer Software Company
15%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Retailer
8%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Computer Software Company
7%
Healthcare Company
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business3
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise2
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business81
Midsize Enterprise29
Large Enterprise79
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with Alcatel-Lucent OmniSwitch LAN Switches?
The specific network design is done by another company, and we just manage the access switches, in fact, the local access switches on the LAN. I don't think there is much prioritization in our netw...
What is your primary use case for Alcatel-Lucent OmniSwitch LAN Switches?
I still work with Alcatel-Lucent OmniSwitch LAN Switches. We work with internet switches, but we also use LAN switches from Alcatel-Lucent. All the switches on the sites or across sites are Alcatel...
What advice do you have for others considering Alcatel-Lucent OmniSwitch LAN Switches?
Alcatel-Lucent OmniSwitch LAN Switches work well for us. I would rate this solution a 9 out of 10.
Would you recommend replacing a Cisco Catalyst Switch by a D-link one?
Hello Mesfin It depends on the real scenario, the cisco 2960 is a very good device and they usually have routing functions but there are many different models within the same 2960 line, and on the ...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco Catalyst Switches?
For deployment costs, we handled the network infrastructure setup internally, so there was little to no external implementation cost. One major advantage of Cisco Systems products is the strong ava...
What needs improvement with Cisco Catalyst Switches?
Cisco Systems Catalyst Switches are highly regarded for their performance, reliability, and enterprise-grade capabilities. My main reservation, however, is the pricing. The cost of Cisco Catalyst S...
 

Also Known As

Alcatel Lucent OmniSwitch LAN Switches, OmniSwitch, OmniSwitch LAN Switches
Cisco Catalyst, Catalyst
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Advocate Health Care, Al-Farabi Kazakh National University, Azienda Ospedaliera della Provincia di Lodi, Centre Hospitalier Carcassonne, Certis Cisco Security, China Tianchen Engineering Corporation Co. LTD, City of Frankfurt, Dongseo University
Afni, Anilana Hotels and Resorts, Baylor Scott & White Health, Beachbody, Bellevue, Del Papa Distributing, Explorer Pipeline, Mindtree, Omaha World Herald, Radio 538, Sony Corporation, Telecom Italia, Telenor Arena
Find out what your peers are saying about Alcatel-Lucent OmniSwitch LAN Switches vs. Cisco Catalyst Switches and other solutions. Updated: April 2026.
895,272 professionals have used our research since 2012.