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Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access vs Ubiquiti UniFi 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
7.9
Fortinet FortiSwitch is cost-effective, efficient in network security, and ideal for growing businesses, but not large enterprises.
Sentiment score
7.3
Ubiquiti UniFi Switches offer cost-effective, reliable performance with seamless integration and management, ideal for small-to-medium enterprises.
Another solution offered to us was more than double the price, making UniFi a cost-effective choice.
We saw a return on investment within a year, although I believe there's more potential to be leveraged.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
7.9
Fortinet FortiSwitch support is praised for knowledge and problem-solving, but response speed and direct solutions need improvement.
Sentiment score
7.0
Ubiquiti UniFi Switches have mixed support, often relying on third-party resources, with documentation aiding self-reliant users.
They are knowledgeable, professional, and assist with any issues.
It's a potential area for improvement, possibly in terms of response time or quality.
My local support is working fine, and I have my connection with my account manager in the public company of Fortinet.
The team is knowledgeable and efficient.
the manuals, installation videos, and resources on the website are very good and straightforward.
They have a large customer base that sometimes faces issues due to a lack of know-how in managing the devices.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
8.0
Fortinet FortiSwitch offers scalable, reliable networking for various organizations, with seamless FortiGate integration, despite occasional pricing challenges.
Sentiment score
7.6
Ubiquiti UniFi Switches offer scalable, reliable integration for small to medium businesses with fiber optic expansion options.
With uniform Fortinet FortiGate switches, adding or removing switches without reconfiguring individually is straightforward.
You just need to connect another switch or replace the current one, and it integrates well with the existing setup.
For enterprise solutions, it's extendable easily with options for edge connectivity or stackable devices.
I rate the scalability as nine out of ten.
If planning for future scalability, choosing switches that support extra modules for fiber optics is advisable.
While we are satisfied with its use in small environments, other products may be needed in very large companies with more than 30 users.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
8.7
Fortinet FortiSwitch offers reliable performance and security, receiving high ratings despite occasional setup and power issues in enterprises.
Sentiment score
8.6
Ubiquiti UniFi Switches are praised for reliable performance, with minor hardware issues occasionally in larger networks and specific conditions.
The tool is robust and lasts for three to four years without needing replacement.
The stability has been good overall.
I would give it a nine out of ten for stability.
I did not experience any problems the whole year.
The switches are stable and there have been no outages.
If the system is installed, it runs well, with no issues.
 

Room For Improvement

Fortinet FortiSwitch needs better pricing, support, management, security, interoperability, interface, port variety, and warranty options.
Users request better power reliability, pricing, support, simpler features, centralized management, documentation, security, deployment, and advanced functionalities.
The introduction of AI integration could be valuable for detecting abnormal traffic directly on the switch.
The machine is robust and lasts for years with rare technical issues.
The current setup is closed and does not allow for integration with non-Ubiquiti VoIP devices or providers outside their ecosystem.
Controlling and reducing network traffic directly from the controller would be beneficial.
The choice depends on the network architecture and planning for the future scalability requirements.
 

Setup Cost

Fortinet FortiSwitch offers secure access with higher costs but is valued for its reliability compared to competitors.
Ubiquiti UniFi Switches are budget-friendly for SMEs, offering no fees, but have limited features and availability issues.
It has increased by about two hundred percent over the past three years.
The initial cost of Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access is high compared to other options.
Our investment in Ubiquiti is about £30,000, and it's a cost-effective solution since there is no subscription fee.
Ubiquiti UniFi Switches are cost-effective, offering similar performance and features as higher-priced alternatives like Cisco or Ruckus.
Pricing is very favorable, with minimal licensing involved.
 

Valuable Features

Fortinet FortiSwitch offers centralized management, strong security, user-friendly administration, and seamless integration with Fortinet's security fabric for scalability.
Ubiquiti UniFi Switches provide centralized, intuitive management, seamless integration, and scalability, ideal for small and medium businesses.
This centralized management saves time and ensures seamless scalability.
The powerful integration capabilities allow us to manage all devices from a single interface through the firewall.
One of the main features is the integration with FortiGate.
The switches enable management from anywhere using the cloud controller, making configuration changes and management easier.
I can manage user connectivity, limit bandwidth, apply MAC address filtering, and it offers POE capabilities.
One of the most valuable features of Ubiquiti UniFi switches is their graphical interface and plug-and-play capability.
 

Categories and Ranking

Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secu...
Ranking in Ethernet Switches
6th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.7
Number of Reviews
48
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Ubiquiti UniFi Switches
Ranking in Ethernet Switches
4th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
56
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2025, in the Ethernet Switches category, the mindshare of Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access is 5.1%, down from 6.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Ubiquiti UniFi Switches is 6.4%, down from 7.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Ethernet Switches
 

Featured Reviews

Uri Harf - PeerSpot reviewer
Integration with cloud management simplifies network expansion
Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access is expensive, and this initial cost can be a barrier, especially for new businesses setting up from scratch. Although the machine is robust and lasts for years with rare technical issues, the initial price can be high. Sometimes, I have to offer alternatives like Aruba or HP, which might be cheaper.
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.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
14%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Government
8%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Computer Software Company
12%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Educational Organization
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

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...
What do you like most about Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access?
With FortiSwitch, you can easily identify who is connected to each port, disable ports as needed, and retrieve configurations from FortiGate when required.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access?
The initial cost of Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access is high compared to other options. Although robust and rarely needs replacement, it can be overqualified for some jobs, which affects the re...
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

No data available
UniFi Switches
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Black Gold Regional Schools, Amadeus Hospitality, Jefferson County, Chunghwa Telecom, City of Boroondara, Dimension Data
Staypineapple
Find out what your peers are saying about Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access vs. Ubiquiti UniFi Switches and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.
848,716 professionals have used our research since 2012.