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Arista Campus LAN Switches vs Cisco FabricPath comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Apr 6, 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

Arista Campus LAN Switches
Ranking in LAN Switching
8th
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
8
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Cisco FabricPath
Ranking in LAN Switching
4th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
31
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2026, in the LAN Switching category, the mindshare of Arista Campus LAN Switches is 5.6%, up from 2.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Cisco FabricPath is 4.9%, up from 2.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
LAN Switching Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Cisco FabricPath4.9%
Arista Campus LAN Switches5.6%
Other89.5%
LAN Switching
 

Featured Reviews

DM
Chief Technology Officer at ictbit
Unified monitoring has transformed campus deployments and provides rapid EVPN-VXLAN rollouts
Regarding improvements to Arista Campus LAN Switches, nothing comes to mind about the switches themselves; they are really fast and have all the technologies and protocols that exist in the market. However, on the management system, I would improve it because as a network engineer, I want a chatbot that can communicate in a native language with the monitoring system to get answers regarding my network faults. There are no problems particularly with the product, but there is room for improvement regarding licensing and the chatbot for all Arista products.
AF
Technical Project Manager at Cairo International Airport Co.
Offers seamless integration and boosts operational efficiency with minimum downtimes
I find stability to be the most effective feature of Cisco FabricPath; it is stable. Cisco FabricPath has good scalability; I don't have any problems with scalability as I can add any switches or distributors without any problem. I utilize the multipath routing architecture feature in Cisco FabricPath, and it's good in load balancing. Cisco FabricPath's compatibility to support Dynamic Layer 2 multipath routing in complex virtualized environments is good; I don't have any problems with it. Nothing comes to mind regarding metrics for using the Layer 2 multipath routing feature; it was good, and there were no problems at all with Cisco FabricPath. Cisco FabricPath's integration with Cisco Nexus works with virtual port channel (VPC) and is good for dual home servers and edge switches. We are using VPC in every layer of the Nexus center. Implementing Cisco FabricPath positively impacted my organization by providing minimum downtimes as the service is always up; everything is working properly with the VPC and Cisco FabricPath. I have experienced operational efficiencies with Cisco FabricPath that are 200% better than the old legacy equipment and protocols.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"I use the solution for connectivity in data centers and LANs, providing Layer 2 and Layer 3 connectivity based on network needs."
"The technology is scalable as much as you want."
"The Software Defined switch architecture, runs optimized 2-tier network instead of traditional 3-tier network (Core, Distribution and Access) gives you efficiency and savings."
"The feature sets are pretty cool. They've got almost everything that the competition offers."
"The CloudVision Portal allows us to centrally manage all of our Arista products."
"Clients are very satisfied with the implementation process."
"QoS is the most valuable feature because our clients work with VOIP and Critical applications."
"The most winning feature of Arista Campus LAN Switches is their management, specifically CloudVision, along with features like comparing changes and diagnosing problems quickly with telemetry and network visualization."
"It is a stable solution...It is a scalable soltuion."
"I like the 10G ports and the modular uplink port."
"Cisco is the best choice in terms of cost, quality, and post-procurement services."
"Redundancies are in place to ensure service continuity if one switch is down, preventing significant customer access issues."
"One of the most valuable features of Cisco FabricPath is its protocol freedom, which allows me to use multiple protocols at a time, such as Spanning Tree to prevent loops in the network."
"Additional bandwidth is available when needed."
"Most of our customers are satisfied with the solutions from Cisco."
"Cisco FabricPath is very fast, stable, extendable, and scalable. It doesn't have issues with patches or problems because it's built on the stable NXOS operating system. In a scenario using FabricPath, the spin and leaf architecture is beneficial. For example, we can use two separate spine switches like 9980s and multiple leaf switches as access switches. These leaf switches are connected using VPC between them, with each switch separated and not directly connected to the spine. This setup improves data center architecture by allowing two ways to arrange destinations, connecting the first connection to the first spine and the second to the second spine. The spines are configured as a virtual chassis. In FabricPath, we can enhance VXLANs, VPNs, and integrate with Cisco ISE for user authentication. It can also be configured with WLC to manage wireless technology, depending on the client's architecture."
 

Cons

"I think there's still room for improvement. Arista Campus LAN Switches are not highly scalable as they are hardware-based. If hardware requirements exceed capacity, the product needs to be changed, which can impact service."
"It would be ideal if the solution was less expensive."
"I do think they could improve their licensing model. Today, I need to pay for a license, for a switch, for support, and it costs money; it is not cheap."
"I would like to see a version available with eight or sixteen ports."
"We have to renew the license every three years, which can be a challenge for customers. Arista, like other vendors, now follows a license-based system."
"One of the issues that we have been faced with here in Brazil is that we don't have any list times for delivery."
"The licensing cost is pretty heavy. That is something that they need to definitely work upon."
"One of the issues that we have been faced with here in Brazil is that we don't have any list times for delivery."
"The GUI and OpSys would be better."
"We are phasing off Cisco FabricPath due to outdated protocols."
"The solution is quite expensive."
"The prices for FabricPath are very high, and Cisco also takes a long time to deliver products (in Mexico, the delivery time is eight months)."
"The main issue I face is the cost. Cisco networks are flexible yet expensive."
"It's important to note that the graphical interface often relies on Java, and compatibility with different versions of Java can be a factor."
"There is room for improvement in terms of pricing for the Cisco solution. They are somewhat good at the starting point, but when you get the license and such, it becomes very expensive."
"In terms of the series, I find that the integration with other teleconferencing applications needs to be more seamless. I have suggested to Cisco that the endpoint device should allow joining calls from Microsoft Teams, Zoom, and other teleconferencing applications. Additionally, I appreciate the recent inclusion of breakout sessions in the Cisco Webex application, which enhances its relevance in the networking field."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The price is not that good, but our clients value the solution despite the price."
"The only licensing costs are for CloudVision, although the upfront price of the device is not cheap."
"I rate the product's pricing a ten out of ten. Cisco switches cost around 15,000 dollars, and DNS licenses cost around 25,000 dollars. The total amount is 45,000 dollars, which is too expensive."
"The solution falls under the pricier category, but it provides value for the price charged."
"FabricPath is very reasonably priced."
"I rate it seven out of ten on pricing as it's a bit expensive. It would be better if the price were lower, but we prioritize quality over cost."
"The pricing of Cisco FabricPath can be quite high depending on the architecture, but it's justified by the stability it offers."
"The pricing for this product is good."
"It is very expensive."
"Cisco is expensive but offers good-quality features, so I would rate it high on the pricing scale."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
14%
Manufacturing Company
13%
Marketing Services Firm
9%
Real Estate/Law Firm
7%
Healthcare Company
12%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Construction Company
8%
University
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business6
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise1
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business11
Midsize Enterprise6
Large Enterprise14
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Arista Campus LAN Switches?
Regarding pricing, it is not cheap. While it is an enterprise solution, comparing it to low-level switches like Fortinet and Netgear, it is much more expensive. However, comparing it to Cisco and J...
What needs improvement with Arista Campus LAN Switches?
Regarding improvements to Arista Campus LAN Switches, nothing comes to mind about the switches themselves; they are really fast and have all the technologies and protocols that exist in the market....
What is your primary use case for Arista Campus LAN Switches?
I work as a consultant and integrator, using Arista Networks platform in my customers' networks. I deal with switches by Arista, which is mostly what we use Arista for. I am familiar with Arista Ca...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco FabricPath?
Cisco is somewhat expensive, but it provides good quality products and operations, so I can't complain about licensing cost and setup costs. There is room for improvement in terms of pricing for th...
What needs improvement with Cisco FabricPath?
In future updates, I would prefer to see features such as more AI functionality or better integration added to Cisco FabricPath; more AI would be useful.
What is your primary use case for Cisco FabricPath?
The typical use cases for Cisco FabricPath in my environment is that it's better than STP spanning tree protocols, doesn't block redundant links, and gives us active-active links that increase our ...
 

Also Known As

No data available
FabricPath
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

University of Winchester, AWE, picturemaxx, Medical Mutual, Leonix, CloudEra, National Physical Laboratory, Tri-State G&T, AIS, Morph, SingTel, SDSC, BBC
Bellevue, Calligaris, Electricity Authority of Cyprus, Management Science Associates, Multi-Customer, Oediv, Roper St. Francis, SNAM
Find out what your peers are saying about Arista Campus LAN Switches vs. Cisco FabricPath and other solutions. Updated: April 2026.
893,244 professionals have used our research since 2012.