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Arista Networks Platform vs VMware NSX comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary
 

Categories and Ranking

Arista Networks Platform
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.3
Number of Reviews
26
Ranking in other categories
Ethernet Switches (14th), Data Center Networking (2nd)
VMware NSX
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
101
Ranking in other categories
Network Virtualization (2nd), Cloud and Data Center Security (2nd), Network Traffic Analysis (NTA) (6th), Network Detection and Response (NDR) (8th), Network Automation (5th), Microsegmentation Software (1st)
 

Mindshare comparison

While both are Enterprise Networking solutions, they serve different purposes. Arista Networks Platform is designed for Ethernet Switches and holds a mindshare of 2.6%, up 2.3% compared to last year.
VMware NSX, on the other hand, focuses on Network Virtualization, holds 46.6% mindshare, up 45.8% since last year.
Ethernet Switches
Network Virtualization
 

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.
Santi-Lara Garcia - PeerSpot reviewer
Integrates perfectly but must be purchased as part of a bundle package
The solution is only sold as part of a bundle and not as an individual product. Some customers only need vSphere or NSX for their use cases, but account executives focus on bundles so this is a problem. Account executives need to talk with both systems and security staff to get a full picture of the environment's requirements. For example, systems staff have no need for the solution so they will never deploy it.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Arista Networks Platform offers straightforward deployment, and has good features. Support for the platform is also good."
"The product's implementation phase was easy."
"It is very stable. It has good hardware and very stable code. It provides good value for its price. They are a very lean type of organization, so they are very responsive, and they're able to focus more on their platform versus having multiple products out there."
"They support open standard features."
"I find the operational system used by Arista to be very valuable, and the hardware is exceptionally nice. Arista has a unified operational system called EOS that is easy to set up and replicate on other devices. The ease of configuration and transition between devices is a significant advantage for me."
"Stability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten."
"The product's initial setup phase was straightforward."
"What we like most is its performance to price ratio."
"To be able to do the DR and SRM migrations from datacenter to datacenter, we're able to do them with SRM with VXLAN, with the NSX product."
"The solution is easy to use and is good for management control."
"The ability to scale from different clouds. At the moment, the scalability of the product is the number one thing that I saw."
"The initial setup was straightforward. It follows a certain structure and you won't miss a step. It's all on the same level, step by step."
"One of the big improvements between the NSX-V and NSX-T is that in NSX-T you are no longer dependent on V-Center anymore."
"It operates on a logical level, providing a comprehensive and centralized way to manage your network resources."
"I have found the solution to be stable."
"The most valuable feature of VMware NSX is the DFW (distributed firewall)"
 

Cons

"The solution is a bit pricey."
"The solution is quite expensive. One of the negative aspects of it is the pricing."
"The solution needs to accommodate new features."
"Arista Networks Platform should focus on improving the compatibility or integration with Cisco solutions."
"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."
"Its price can be better."
"My company does face issues in terms of interoperability when it comes to the product, making it an area that needs to be fixed."
"They should have a more stable code."
"We have been satisfied with the technical support. They were able to solve our problems. However, they could be faster."
"I would rate NSX's stability eight out of ten - there's room for improvement."
"If there are other solutions already in place, it can be difficult to implement."
"Despite being somewhat behind in the cybersecurity field, VMware should develop a cloud and a red team to continuously monitor for new malware and ransomware."
"It takes time to do the initial setup. It is a bit slow, which is surprising."
"The solution could improve by having a more streamlined setup."
"Their licensing model should make it easier to purchase licenses."
"The training costs a minimum of $3,000, which is expensive and should be reduced."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is pretty pricey for a networking platform. It is on par with Cisco."
"I rate the product price a seven on a scale of one to ten where ten is high price and one is low price."
"Arista Networks Platform was cheaper than Cisco. I have heard that the product is affordable for enterprise-sized companies."
"Arista is very expensive. Not everybody is in a position to spend $70,000 to $80,000 for one switch."
"If one is cheap and ten is expensive, I rate the product price as seven out of ten."
"The customer price for an Arista router is approximately $7,000 USD, while Cisco's is around $18,000."
"Cost wise, Arista Networks Platform is more expensive than other networking solutions."
"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."
"This solution requires a licence."
"The implementation of VMware NSX can be cost-intensive, especially if an organization is looking for a comprehensive solution. The costs can vary based on factors like the level of conversation and discounts obtained during negotiations. Some government organizations, for instance, may find the prices relatively high, leading to concerns about budget hikes, especially when deploying the solution across the entire organization. Regarding maintenance and support, they are typically included in the standard licensing costs for enterprise-level businesses. While these costs can be significant, many companies opt for standard licensing to ensure they have access to necessary support and maintenance services."
"The price is significantly high and it can be a hurdle for many potential users."
"We are using a perpetual license to use the solution and we have support."
"There is a license required for this solution and there is also a support license available. The price of the solution could be better."
"VMware NSX isn't cheap."
"Pricing and licensing could be improved as we are a government entity. Lower pricing could always help."
"There is a license required for this solution, we pay annually."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
18%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Manufacturing Company
9%
University
7%
Computer Software Company
16%
Financial Services Firm
14%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Government
9%
 

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?
Compared to Cisco, Arista routers are significantly cheaper. The customer price for an Arista router is approximately $7,000 USD, while Cisco's is around $18,000.
What needs improvement with Arista Networks Platform?
Arista Networks is currently less popular as they were initially more focused on data centers than campus networks. They should expand further into campus networks.
What are the biggest differences between Cisco ACI and VMware NSX?
There are some very major differences between both the Products and to name a few. -Cisco ACI have physical network gear (9K Switches) where the Code runs in ACI Policy Mode & the UCS server wh...
What are the biggest differences between Cisco ACI and VMware NSX?
Once you know your way around the Cisco ecosystem, using Cisco ACI is not so difficult. It is a global product, so when you change one interface, changes are automatically reflected on every switch...
What do you like most about VMware NSX?
The product has valuable features for security and network extension.
 

Also Known As

7000 Series
VMware Nicira, Lastline Defender
 

Learn More

 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

American Internet Services
City of Avondale, Lumeta, Kroll Ontrack, Heartland Payment Systems, Baystate Heallth, Exostar, Tribune Media, iGATE, NTT Communications, Synergent, California Natural Resources Agency, Bloomington Public Schools, Columbia Sportswear, Join Experience S.A, Schuberg Philis
Find out what your peers are saying about Arista Networks Platform vs. VMware NSX and other solutions. Updated: February 2023.
825,399 professionals have used our research since 2012.