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Arista Networks Platform vs Cisco Ethernet 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
6.3
Arista Networks Platform offers cost-effective solutions with high ROI, saving time and resources in global data center deployments.
Sentiment score
5.7
Cisco Ethernet Switches offer high ROI with low maintenance, uptime, but some face renewal, scalability challenges affecting profitability.
I saved between five to six hours using Arista Networks Platform, as it takes less time to actually add your APs to the dashboard and deployment is quite fast and easy.
Network Engineer at Castlenet Consulting Limited
I have seen a return on investment from using Arista Networks Platform in terms of fewer employees needed during installation and deployment.
Network Engineer at Castlenet Consulting Limited
In the data center, there is no comparison in terms of technicality or return of investment.
A VP Enterprise Sales at Ashtech Infotech (India) Pvt.Ltd.
It has saved considerable time for engineers to troubleshoot and perform related tasks.
Network & Security Engineer at Arrow PC Network Pvt.Ltd.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
7.6
Arista Networks' support is fast, highly rated, responsive, and effective, though documentation could improve, with positive pricing feedback.
Sentiment score
6.1
Cisco Ethernet Switches are praised for strong support, yet experience variability, especially with complex issues and response times.
They provide instant support and maintain commitments regarding replacement products.
CEO/Consultant at CIL
We would rate the customer support as a nine to 9.5 out of ten.
Technical project manager at Castlenet Consulting Limited
All network engineers from the organization were present in the program, and the Arista engineer provided a solution in less than five minutes.
Network Engineer at Castlenet Consulting Limited
Customer support for Cisco Ethernet Switches is really good.
Network & Security Engineer at Arrow PC Network Pvt.Ltd.
It takes two to three days for Cisco support to address issues.
Asst IT Manager at Ultra Engineers
Currently, we don't have any technical support because our license doesn't allow for direct support.
Commercial Experience Supervisor at Jazz (previously known as Mobilink)
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.9
Arista Networks Platform is scalable, user-friendly, future-proof, but cost-effectiveness varies by deals and regions.
Sentiment score
8.1
Cisco Ethernet Switches are scalable, adaptable, and support efficient network expansion across diverse environments, suitable for all company sizes.
Arista Networks Platform's focus on GPU-based and high-speed switches is a smart move for next-generation AI-based data center solutions.
Network Architect at a tech services company with 201-500 employees
Scalability is a key feature of Arista, owing to the possibilities to manage the entire data center network from a single console.
A VP Enterprise Sales at Ashtech Infotech (India) Pvt.Ltd.
We can easily scale up with Arista Networks Platform, as it is not difficult, and they have a platform that encourages scalability.
Technical project manager at Castlenet Consulting Limited
Cisco mainly provides security, patch management, hardware reliability, durability, scalability, and security features supporting my organization's expansion.
Head of the Solutions Department at BIM Group of Companies
The latest products do not allow integration with the earlier environment.
Asst IT Manager at Ultra Engineers
The scalability depends on the model.
Commercial Experience Supervisor at Jazz (previously known as Mobilink)
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
8.1
Arista Networks Platform is praised for its stability and reliability, with minimal downtime and vulnerabilities, especially in consistent configurations.
Sentiment score
8.9
Cisco Ethernet Switches are highly regarded for their durability and reliability, with users praising their long-lasting performance and support.
Arista is the only IT product that has the minimum vulnerabilities, so it is a very stable product.
A VP Enterprise Sales at Ashtech Infotech (India) Pvt.Ltd.
The amount of failure is low because we have tested a Huawei platform of the same grade beside Arista Networks Platform, and Arista Networks Platform always won.
Director at a tech company with 11-50 employees
I have not had any downtime using Arista Networks Platform.
Network Engineer at Castlenet Consulting Limited
The switches are very stable, rated ten out of ten.
Senior System Engineer & Project Manager at TechnoPeak
 

Room For Improvement

Arista Networks Platform faces high costs, a complex interface, stability issues, unclear documentation, and needs better integration and features.
Cisco Ethernet Switches face challenges with complexity, costs, inadequate support, and demand improvements in scalability, security, integration, and usability.
Using AI, I can understand how my entire organization operates and what kind of applications are being used, what the peak times are, where there is a bottleneck if any exists.
A VP Enterprise Sales at Ashtech Infotech (India) Pvt.Ltd.
Scalability at every single step has a huge upgrade cost which is required for port mapping, connectivity, and transceivers certified by Arista Networks Platform, then the fabric upgrades from a software firmware level.
Director at a tech company with 11-50 employees
Feature-wise, it addresses most customer requirements.
A VP Enterprise Sales at Ashtech Infotech (India) Pvt.Ltd.
The pricing and hardware warranty renewal costs are more expensive than other products.
Asst IT Manager at Ultra Engineers
FortiGate switches are considered more valuable because they have firewall capabilities.
Commercial Experience Supervisor at Jazz (previously known as Mobilink)
For example, on switches, filtering specific sections isn't supported, whereas, on routers, you can do 'show run' with additional commands to filter.
Senior System Engineer & Project Manager at TechnoPeak
 

Setup Cost

Arista Networks is costlier than alternatives like Cisco, with high hardware and licensing expenses, challenging budgets, especially in developing regions.
Cisco Ethernet Switches offer high quality and reliability but come with high prices, inflexible licensing, and potential hidden costs.
Compared to Cisco, Arista routers are significantly cheaper.
CEO/Consultant at CIL
You get a 48 gigs, a 25 Gbps or a 40 Gbps switching fabric at a price of $30-40,000 from Netgear super-fast clusters, whereas Arista Networks Platform is going to cost you three times that.
Director at a tech company with 11-50 employees
Arista products are perceived as costly, especially compared to competitors like Cisco.
A VP Enterprise Sales at Ashtech Infotech (India) Pvt.Ltd.
Cisco Ethernet switches are priced at a rating of nine, indicating they are expensive.
Asst IT Manager at Ultra Engineers
We need to pay for the subscription, as there are extra expenses after purchasing the product.
Head of the Solutions Department at BIM Group of Companies
Regarding the cost, Cisco Ethernet Switches have a competitive price.
IT Manager at Decorgel
 

Valuable Features

Arista Networks Platform is favored for its low latency, scalability, and efficient management, ideal for data centers.
Cisco Ethernet Switches provide performance, reliability, security, scalability, advanced management features, customization, energy efficiency, and extensive support.
Features include plug-and-play auto-discovery, allowing centralized configuration and management.
CEO/Consultant at CIL
The best features Arista Networks Platform offers are the dashboards where you can see all your APs that have been deployed and installed across all locations, making it quite unique to access, manage, and monitor performance from that dashboard.
Technical project manager at Castlenet Consulting Limited
Arista Networks Platform is known for ultra-low latency, having the fastest backplane ever built.
Director at a tech company with 11-50 employees
Their stability and durability are essential features we've been looking for many years, and they are still working fine.
IT Manager at Decorgel
It provides a high layer of enterprise security via 802.1X port-based authentication, DHCP snooping, ARP inspection, IP Guard, ACLs, and integration with Cisco ISE.
Network & Security Engineer at Arrow PC Network Pvt.Ltd.
The Cisco Ethernet switches are sturdy products that do not require any kind of maintenance.
Asst IT Manager at Ultra Engineers
 

Categories and Ranking

Arista Networks Platform
Ranking in Ethernet Switches
8th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
34
Ranking in other categories
Data Center Networking (3rd)
Cisco Ethernet Switches
Ranking in Ethernet Switches
2nd
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
138
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2026, in the Ethernet Switches category, the mindshare of Arista Networks Platform is 3.2%, up from 3.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Cisco Ethernet Switches is 8.8%, down from 14.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Ethernet Switches Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Cisco Ethernet Switches8.8%
Arista Networks Platform3.2%
Other88.0%
Ethernet Switches
 

Featured Reviews

Dibyendu Das - PeerSpot reviewer
Director at a tech company with 11-50 employees
Ultra-low latency networking has delivered reliable video workflows and critical operations
The support of Arista Networks Platform is quite complex; it is not very easy to configure. It needs a lot of network expertise for token sheddings and different kinds of configurations. It is very difficult to configure because Arista Networks Platform does not have a flexible GUI like Huawei or Netgear; everything is a very CLI kind of mainframe architecture. Scalability at every single step has a huge upgrade cost which is required for port mapping, connectivity, and transceivers certified by Arista Networks Platform, then the fabric upgrades from a software firmware level. Arista Networks Platform should improve commercial aspects to be affordable. There is no path for growth with a perfect score because the focus is more on reducing costs globally.
Myint Aung - PeerSpot reviewer
Head of the Solutions Department at BIM Group of Companies
Exceptional network support and AI integration drive performance while suggesting enhancements for future use cases
I work with both HyperFlex and other Cisco products. I prefer to make online support available because I can utilize my CCIE architect, solution consultant, and engineer team along with our account manager and product sales team. We can clarify requirements and decide how to support you. We should arrange a conference call about Cisco Ethernet Switches where I can invite my architect and consultant to clarify more about the features that are most beneficial for improving network efficiency. Today is AI day, and all the new firmware includes AI to optimize the performance, traffic, and security of Cisco Ethernet Switches. It's performing very well. With many solutions and vendors available, you have to decide on one. I am extremely satisfied with the licensing cost for Cisco Ethernet Switches. For the price of Cisco Ethernet Switches, I would rate it a 7. My overall rating for Cisco Ethernet Switches is 10 out of 10.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
11%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Computer Software Company
7%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Computer Software Company
8%
Construction Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business16
Midsize Enterprise7
Large Enterprise12
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business60
Midsize Enterprise35
Large Enterprise55
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Arista Networks Platform?
As for the licensing model of Arista Networks Platform, I would describe it as moderate—neither too expensive nor too cheap compared to Cisco.
What needs improvement with Arista Networks Platform?
I found that Arista Networks Platform could improve by introducing a feature that combines configuration for both switches and access points into a single portal. Currently, you need to juggle betw...
What is your primary use case for Arista Networks Platform?
I currently use Arista products, including Arista wireless solutions like CVQ and Agni solutions, which come with a AAA server, as well as ClearPass from Aruba. I am using Arista Networks Platform ...
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 ...
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...
In terms of ethernet switches, would you go with Cisco or Juniper?
Our organization ran comparison tests to determine whether Cisco or Juniper Ethernet switches were the better fit for us. We decided to go with Juniper. Juniper ethernet switches are a lesser-known...
 

Also Known As

7000 Series
Cisco Industrial Ethernet Switches
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

American Internet Services
Linz AG
Find out what your peers are saying about Arista Networks Platform vs. Cisco Ethernet Switches and other solutions. Updated: April 2026.
892,611 professionals have used our research since 2012.