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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:
 

Categories and Ranking

Arista Networks Platform
Ranking in Ethernet Switches
10th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.3
Number of Reviews
27
Ranking in other categories
Data Center Networking (2nd)
Cisco Ethernet Switches
Ranking in Ethernet Switches
1st
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
134
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2025, in the Ethernet Switches category, the mindshare of Arista Networks Platform is 3.2%, down from 4.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Cisco Ethernet Switches is 15.6%, down from 18.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Ethernet Switches
 

Featured Reviews

MarekSzafrański - PeerSpot reviewer
Affordable for enterprise-sized companies
Speaking about whether the product enhanced our company's data center scalability, I would say that it was a solution that was used in a banking company, where it served as a replacement for Cisco. Though Arista Networks Platform is similar to Cisco IOS CLI, I feel that the former product offers better prices compared to the latter tool. Arista Networks Platform office is more efficient at a lower cost. I recommend the product to those who plan to use it. The tool is stable and cheaper than Cisco. I would say that Arista Networks Platform is 100 percent compatible with the existing infrastructure in my company. The impact of the tool's network telemetry on our company's troubleshooting practices was just good for the scope for which I need the product. I rate the overall tool a nine out of ten.
Pradeep Adhav - PeerSpot reviewer
Network security enhancement with sturdy switches despite high costs
The Cisco Ethernet switches are primarily used as regular core switches for networking, distribution, and access levels. We also utilize Cisco Wi-Fi, VPN, and Wi-Fi controllers The Cisco Ethernet switches have improved our network's security, ensuring it is 100% secure by not allowing any…

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 Linux shell, which is useful for troubleshooting or capturing traffic."
"The most valuable features of the Arista Networks Platform are the EVPN and VXLAN. It has comprehensive features."
"The solution has good load latency. They're the market leader in this aspect right now."
"Arista's customer service is excellent."
"The configuration capabilities were good."
"The solution is very stable."
"They support open standard features."
"We find the CloudVision switching feature of this solution really useful."
"Cisco Ethernet Switches are scalable, much more than Jupiter."
"Cisco Ethernet Switches are very reliable and work like a clock once configured."
"I think the VMA architecture is valuable."
"The stability is 100%."
"For me, the initial setup was easy and straightforward, but for some of our customers who are not as familiar with networking, it can be complicated."
"This product is widely available and the warranty is very good."
"Cisco Ethernet Switches have a lot of valuable features. One that stands out to me is its ease of implementation."
"The installation is very straightforward."
 

Cons

"The overall price of the Arista Networks Platform is expensive. It should be reduced."
"An area for improvement in Arista Networks Platform is its integration, e.g. it needs to have more integration with its new products. Incorporating more security and cloud is also another area for improvement in the platform."
"The stability of this solution needs to be improved as part of the next upgrade."
"The solution is a bit pricey."
"They need to enhance their code and their EOS. They need to improve some security features, and there are quite a number of bugs in their system. So, they need to work on that piece. In the next release, we need to have a modular feature. Instead of providing an integrated solution, they should go for something modular. They need to come up with modular highly scalable models. Even at the chassis layer, I want to see some improvement."
"A weakness would be that in our company, we don't have many people within our team who support the product because there are different vendors, and most of them are not tier-one vendors, so the skills required sometimes are just not there."
"Something that you will often hear about Arista products is that the price is a bit too high and, like with Cisco, we sometimes have problems with our customers because of its pricing."
"Arista Networks Platform should focus on improving the compatibility or integration with Cisco solutions."
"I think the price should be cheaper to be able to afford more."
"I don't like that you have to have a license of 10 years to use the switch. I don't understand that policy."
"We'd like the pricing to be lowered."
"You have to be Cisco-certified to work on Cisco products, so we can't get into Cisco to do even basic configurations."
"The solution really should offer better pricing. It would help them stay competitive."
"The price could be improved by being reduced."
"Cisco has a licensing procedure that is very complicated and it changes every six months."
"An improvement would be to change their market intention. Almost all the Cisco switches are now coming with a license called DNA. D for Delta, N for number and A for apple. That feature is required, he must purchase it and it is a mandatory thing that has been introduced. This is not matching with the Asian market."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Network devices are generally expensive. However, during the evaluation, Arista was the most inexpensive vendor."
"I remember that when our customers were offered the Arista Networks Platform, they used a checklist to compare the prices between Arista and Cisco for their requirements, and found that the prices were almost the same."
"The price of the Arista Networks Platform could be less expensive for the hardware and license."
"The customer price for an Arista router is approximately $7,000 USD, while Cisco's is around $18,000."
"Arista is very expensive. Not everybody is in a position to spend $70,000 to $80,000 for one switch."
"I rate the product price a seven on a scale of one to ten where ten is high price and one is low price."
"Cost wise, Arista Networks Platform is more expensive than other networking solutions."
"There is an annual license required to use the Arista Networks Platform."
"The solution can be comparatively cheaper."
"Not inexpensive. Price will vary widely depending on the chosen product and size of the deployment."
"It is expensive. There are additional costs besides the license cost."
"The price is a bit on the high side."
"There are different licensing based on the model of the solution."
"The pricing for individual use is expensive but partners receive discounts of 70-80 percent for high-end use."
"The price of Cisco Ethernet Switches here in India is too high. There are other cheaper solutions available."
"The pricing is reasonable, and for small business it is acceptable."
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Comparison Review

it_user82779 - PeerSpot reviewer
Jan 29, 2014
Benefits of Juniper vs Cisco
Both are decent products. I prefer Juniper for the following reasons: 1) Cleaner separation of data plane from control plane. Higher end Cisco devices are better at this but most of the lower end products still seem to be more integrated than I like. 2) The Hierarchical config design means I can…
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
17%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Manufacturing Company
10%
University
7%
Computer Software Company
14%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Government
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Arista Networks Platform?
Stability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Arista Networks Platform?
Arista products are perceived as costly, especially compared to competitors like Cisco.
What needs improvement with Arista Networks Platform?
Currently, Arista is too costly for its customers. Feature-wise, it addresses most customer requirements. However, we sometimes face challenges when integrating with proprietary protocols and solut...
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 2025.
848,716 professionals have used our research since 2012.