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MikroTik Routers and Switches vs NETGEAR Switches comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 3, 2024
 

Categories and Ranking

MikroTik Routers and Switches
Ranking in Ethernet Switches
6th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.5
Number of Reviews
65
Ranking in other categories
Routers (1st)
NETGEAR Switches
Ranking in Ethernet Switches
4th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
56
Ranking in other categories
LAN Switching (5th), AV Over IP Switching (2nd)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of December 2024, in the Ethernet Switches category, the mindshare of MikroTik Routers and Switches is 4.1%, down from 5.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of NETGEAR Switches is 9.7%, up from 9.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Ethernet Switches
 

Featured Reviews

AnikIslam - PeerSpot reviewer
Cost-effective protocol support and a straightforward setup with room for login enhancements
In the network operations center, I manage our client's bandwidth. We connect with our clients through BGP and OSPF based on client demands. We also manage routing protocols, policies, internal firewalls, and other details like QE bandwidth, client manage bandwidth management, PoE, PPPoE, and DNS…
Beenish Khan - PeerSpot reviewer
Helps with infrastructure planning and provides flexibility to leverage and connect more devices
The solution helps with infrastructure planning. If you have a point-of-sale system, you can use these switches to connect the internet devices through the right Ethernet cable.  That gives more flexibility instead of trying to get the Ethernet cable in the infrastructure wall. We use these…

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"MikroTik Routers and Switches are stable"
"MikroTik Routers and Switches support every protocol, making them suitable for a wide range of routing policies."
"One of the primary advantages is its competitive pricing in the market."
"The most valuable feature is that you can do anything on all platforms."
"It's pretty stable."
"The deployment process of MikroTik routers and switches is very convenient since it is not command-driven and comes with a graphical user interface, making it much easier to operate."
"I use the tool to block external attempts."
"The best part about MikroTik Routers is the price."
"The most valuable feature to me is the modular side of things, being able to replace a module and a transceiver at our beck and call. If something goes down, or a piece of equipment is broken, I don't have to replace the whole switch. I can just replace the part that's broken or the part that is no longer working. I can get them back up and working within a matter of minutes, versus having to replace everything and reprogram everything. It's a huge time-saver."
"The remote management tools are fantastic. The combination of the webpage as well as the app makes life so much easier. I don't need to go and visit sites to do upgrades or any sorts of changes. The firmware can all be deployed remotely. I can see the traffic on each of the switch ports remotely as well, so I can see if we've got problems, down to an individual port. It's very granular."
"NETGEAR Switches has valuable cybersecurity features."
"The tool is crucial in our network setup, especially in our bank's customer service operations. It connects ATMs and links different branches and service centers. Each branch and service center has its network node connected through these switches."
"The ability to mix and match is invaluable. So, we didn't have to run massive super extensive switches in the data closets where it wasn't necessary. Being able to manage it all from one place, as all your network configuration settings went live across your entire building from one management console was really handy."
"Their online portal is one of the most useful features. The portal is very user-friendly, so even someone with not a lot of tech experience can go in and see what's going on with the switch."
"Its setup, usage, and access are most valuable. It is a very easy switch to set up."
"The solution is very powerful and versatile."
 

Cons

"The tool needs to add more tutorials and documentation for new functions."
"A central management platform would be great."
"MikroTik Routers and Switches needs to improve stability."
"The CPU load is too high. This causes the Internet to lag."
"There are limitations to how many users you have simultaneously."
"If the client wants bigger capacity, there may be some issues. That is, there may be issues with scalability."
"The solution needs to offer better documentation."
"We'd like for them to improve the UI and improve on speed."
"What I'd like to see is more compatibility with virtual stacking, so that 4300-series switches and 3300-series switches will actually stack together and that virtual switch stacks, themselves, are not limited to just six devices, so that they can create larger loops with more bandwidth and more redundancy."
"I'd like to see a little bit of slowdown on the firmware updates. They've been doing a lot of them. I don't know if that's just because it's such a new product line, but the firmware updates have been a little annoying because they've been coming once a week. For a switch, that's a little extreme."
"Lacks switches with additional ports that provide room for new protocols of communications."
"The IGMP specifics of the web management console could use a bit of clarification."
"The product's stability has certain shortcomings that need improvement."
"They can improve on the commercial part, specifically the cost, as it is higher than other brands."
"The tool is good, but we probably need another model with PoE connections. Our office plans to switch from analog phone lines to VoIP next year, and we need a model that supports this transition and can handle the required technology. Additionally, improved support for newer technologies like Wi-Fi would be beneficial."
"If they could come up with ways to look at metrics on it while the video is capping through the system, that would be nice. There could be some interesting uses for that, but it's a long way off."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The tool's pricing is competitive."
"The pricing of the solution is significantly lower than other solutions. There are no additional costs involved."
"In our last project, we used two hundred units and the price was approximately 500 Shekels ($140 USD)."
"Pricing is not an issue."
"MikroTik Routers and Switches' pricing is reasonable."
"The main reason we use this solution is for the price — it's very cheap."
"The tool offers a one-time buying option."
"A license is not required."
"In terms of the NETGEAR stuff, there weren't any surprises. The costs were definitely fair, especially considering what we were replacing. For the equivalent performance from a non-AV over IP solution, it would have been easily been in the $40,000 range. Comparing it to standard AV video switching, the price was very good, especially considering now they can add-on without any massive additional costs."
"The pricing for what you get with the Insight product line is very fair and the value is there, including the annual licensing fees for the Insight Pro for each device... the Insight Pro level, which is their highest level, where you get a lot of features with the Insight, is a bargain. You get a lot of good features for what you're paying there annually."
"The pricing is phenomenal. It's not only good for the company providing the solution, but the customer gets a good deal too. There's a good profit margin for the business to be able to resell it to a client or to offer a good price to the client. It's a win-win for both the company providing this particular equipment to the customer and for the customer."
"The price-to-performance of the solution is very good. You get very performance for a low cost per port. Compared to standard AV switching, NETGEAR is probably the best value out there."
"From a price perspective, the solution comes in higher than a small business product from their competitors. The solution is a bit higher, but it's a fraction of the cost compared to an enterprise switch. For example, a Cisco Catalyst can run approximately $13,000, where their Small Business Series may run $800 on the Cisco side. With NETGEAR, it falls in around the $1,000 to $2,000 range for most of what we use it for. Essentially, at this price point, you're getting a lot of enterprise grade features (e.g., that you would on a Catalyst) on an M4300."
"You get what you pay for. From a price comparison, there are cheaper switch makers on the market that are definitely less expensive than NETGEAR. They give you the same functionality, but they don't come with a name. There are solutions like Ubiquiti that are very good. They have the ease of setup, and I find NETGEAR battling a little bit in comparison to Ubiquiti."
"The product has the best price in the market."
"NETGEAR's new product is definitely more expensive than their standard product line. It's a new product line for them, so I'm hoping with the maturity of the product that those costs will come down. The standard product line is considerably cheaper."
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Ethernet Switches solutions are best for your needs.
824,053 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
17%
Comms Service Provider
11%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Government
6%
Computer Software Company
13%
Manufacturing Company
8%
University
7%
Government
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

How do Cisco Enterprise routers compare with Mikrotik routers and switches?
Cisco Enterprise Routers are very stable and easy to use. They offer a very solid performance and are very secure. They also have a very good, long lifespan. We feel the command configuration is ve...
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 MikroTik Routers and Switches?
The price is a big factor. They are very affordable, and the quality is high.
How do NETGEAR switches compare with Cisco ethernet switches?
NetGear switches have a lot to offer. They have high availability, zero-downtime stacking, L2 and L3 functionality, and are AV-over-IP ready. NetGear switches also have a command line interface and...
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...
What do you like most about NETGEAR Switches?
Stability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten. I have not faced any issues with the product whatsoever.
 

Also Known As

No data available
NETGEAR Insight Managed Switches, NETGEAR GC Series, NETGEAR M Series
 

Learn More

 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

ABB, Boingo Wireless, JPL, HP, Allied Telesis, iPass, Mips Technologies, MicroAge, Matsushita, Telia, undp, WFP, NASA
Blaze Networks
Find out what your peers are saying about MikroTik Routers and Switches vs. NETGEAR Switches and other solutions. Updated: December 2024.
824,053 professionals have used our research since 2012.