Try our new research platform with insights from 80,000+ expert users

Cisco Ethernet Switches vs Ubiquiti UniFi Switches comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Mar 9, 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

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
Ubiquiti UniFi Switches
Ranking in Ethernet Switches
3rd
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
54
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of March 2025, in the Ethernet Switches category, the mindshare of Cisco Ethernet Switches is 16.3%, down from 18.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Ubiquiti UniFi Switches is 6.2%, down from 7.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Ethernet Switches
 

Featured Reviews

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…
John Balogh - PeerSpot reviewer
Centrally managed solution makes it easy to build one configuration and apply it to new devices
We have one or two UniFi switches, but they don't really compete with the Ciscos. It's a nice environment as far as keeping track of things and being able to manage ports, turn off rogue users, and stuff like that. The access points have been pretty convenient compared to Meraki, Lucent, Cisco, or any of the other bigger vendors that I used to deal with for other consulting projects. Ubiquiti is one step above the consumer level. They cost a little bit more, but they just seem to be drop-dead reliable, and they're keeping up with the latest standards. Their latest versions of access points are all Wi-Fi 6, and they don't take very much power when there aren't a lot of users. It's really easy to build one configuration and just apply it to new devices. It's a check mark box: Do I want this to be the staff VLAN, or the public VLAN, or the Voice over IP VLAN, or the security VLAN, or the house wiring VLAN, or the building logistics VLAN? You just check things off and then you make groups, so if you click on it, it applies all the appropriate things automatically. It makes it very easy. This solution is good for the prosumer, small office, medium office, under 500 people range, but probably over 50 people and maybe distributed around five or 10 sites. That's a pretty good sweet spot as far as the price for the equipment and the configurability, and it's just drop-dead reliable. It's been boring, which is what I love because I don't get any calls in the middle of the night that something isn't working.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"It's for industry products, so it's easy to use."
"The most valuable features of Cisco Ethernet Switches for our network are speed, latency, and reliability."
"You can tap into all of the features for your virtual workload environment."
"The product is pretty much reliable and stable."
"Remote access is a valuable feature."
"We have found it to be scalable. We have approximately three million subscribers."
"The product offers very good customer support. It's likely the best in the industry."
"Cisco Ethernet Switches are scalable, much more than Jupiter."
"It is great size-wise and the user interface is easy to use. You don't need to be a pro to use this solution."
"The price of Ubiquiti is worth it because the integration of the switches is seamless. It's like they just talk to each other."
"The ability to manage firmware revisions."
"The most valuable feature of UniFi Switches is the simple management via the UniFi console."
"Ubiquiti UniFi Switches are stable and support Layer 3. They come with a user-friendly interface. If you're not familiar with the command-line interface or you wouldn't like to configure it by using the command line, they have a user-friendly interface that you can use. They also have good documentation about how to use these switches."
"I would recommend Ubiquiti UniFi switches to others, especially for smaller environments."
"The product’s most valuable features are stability and scalability."
"I can see which ports are connected and which ones are disconnected."
 

Cons

"The technical support has room for improvement."
"Network setup is quite complicated, particularly if you're implementing in a non-technical environment."
"Location of customers to connect clients to the servers and transport the data and VoIP in parallel with QoS and NBAR with 802.1X."
"Its management should be improved."
"The interface and dashboard could look better."
"Setting up Cisco Ethernet Switches is not very easy; I'd rate it around four out of ten in terms of ease."
"The price could be better."
"One thing we did have to work around is, on the broadcast side, we're reliant on the PTP protocol, precision time protocol, and the Cisco switches in general, don't support that."
"They could integrate artificial intelligence for more advanced network traffic analysis and optimization features into the product."
"We've had issues with the power supply. I've had to change the power supply twice. I'm not sure what the issue is. We're still trying to work out why we're having problems with the switches and the cutting of the power supply. The solution should look into this to see if there is something wrong with the product."
"Ubiquiti tends to end-of-life things faster than other companies do. Cisco tends to be in the 8-, 10-, 12-year time frame, and Ubiquiti tends to be in the 4- or 5-year time frame."
"It's expensive."
"I'd like there to be better reporting for the solution."
"I had some initial problems with the configuration that necessitated contacting technical support."
"We have been having issues with non-homogeneity."
"I would like to see improvements in their PBX-related features. The current setup is closed and does not allow for integration with non-Ubiquiti VoIP devices or providers outside their ecosystem."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The equipment might be more expensive, but when you take total ownership of the configuration, maintenance, and analysis, then it's a large benefit. Sometimes customers see only the first cost of the switches and don't look any further. This is a weak point of Cisco."
"We are happy with the pricing from Cisco."
"I pay a fixed price on it. I'm not the person on the pursing, so I don't really compare."
"The price of this solution is high."
"There are different licensing based on the model of the solution."
"The price is on the higher side."
"It is an expensive product since it is used in a large network where you cannot rely on some cheaply priced solution."
"Cisco Ethernet Switches are expensive, and you have to pay for a warranty and technical support."
"The price is reasonable."
"The price of this product is cheap."
"Everything was bought in a one-time buy as a capital investment, so there isn't any licensing."
"Ubiquiti UniFi Switches is one of the most cost-effective solutions in the market"
"The solution's pricing in the marketplace would probably be about three out of ten."
"I rate the tool's pricing a five out of ten."
"The price is good, and it doesn't require additional licenses."
"The solution only offers one-year warranties but should offer three-year or limited-loss warranties."
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Ethernet Switches solutions are best for your needs.
842,296 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

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
14%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Government
7%
Computer Software Company
11%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Educational Organization
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

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...
Which switches are better - Ubiquiti Unifi or Netgear?
Ubiquiti Unifi offers a great set of features. For starters, it is easy to configure and implement, and also doesn’t require a learning curve because it is easy to use. It is also simple to reconfi...
Which are better - Ubiquiti UniFi switches or MikroTik routers and switches?
Ubiquiti Unifi is a great solution. For starters, it is easy to configure and implement, and doesn’t require a learning curve because it is easy to use. It is also simple to reconfigure an AP or ga...
What do you like most about Ubiquiti UniFi Switches?
We have integrated the tool for PoE switches and non-PoE switches. Its most valuable feature is SD-WAN. UniFi SD-WAN can access all statistics and performance data in one interface, enabling us to...
 

Also Known As

Cisco Industrial Ethernet Switches
UniFi Switches
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Linz AG
Staypineapple
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco Ethernet Switches vs. Ubiquiti UniFi Switches and other solutions. Updated: March 2025.
842,296 professionals have used our research since 2012.