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Big Switch Networks vs Cisco ACI comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

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

Big Switch Networks
Ranking in Software Defined Networking (SDN)
9th
Average Rating
9.0
Reviews Sentiment
8.6
Number of Reviews
1
Ranking in other categories
Network Packet Broker (NPB) (4th)
Cisco ACI
Ranking in Software Defined Networking (SDN)
2nd
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.2
Number of Reviews
104
Ranking in other categories
Network Virtualization (2nd), Cloud and Data Center Security (9th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2026, in the Software Defined Networking (SDN) category, the mindshare of Big Switch Networks is 4.2%, down from 4.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Cisco ACI is 9.1%, down from 15.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Software Defined Networking (SDN) Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Cisco ACI9.1%
Big Switch Networks4.2%
Other86.7%
Software Defined Networking (SDN)
 

Featured Reviews

Jason Best - PeerSpot reviewer
Data center network architect at Cloudwire
A flexible solution that can be integrated with third-party solutions whilst maintaining its automated nature
I think if I was to say something that could be improved, it would be a multi-data center nature of the implementation. Meaning, having an active-active data center with multiple entrance-exit points. I think that feature could be improved to provide a kind of anycast gateway solution into the functionality that would make it a lot more flexible and versatile. Maybe also making the solution a bit more like the NSX-T from VMware, more on the logical part of the solution, like micro-segmentation and the ability to have a distributed firewall across the whole solution, to implement it in an easier way than they currently do with the security aspect of the solution.
Rahul Khandelwal - PeerSpot reviewer
Network Technical Manager at KPMG
Enables streamlined data center management with automation and application-centric design
The main features of Cisco ACI that I really appreciate are the application-centric and network-centric designs, allowing you to create your network according to your application. That's helpful, and it's good for one-time implementation. The automation capabilities are really helpful. We deployed one data center using Terraform, and after deployment, many automation features are available, which can be very helpful. Based on my experience, Cisco ACI provides substantial capability; you can design your network accordingly and it's part of the SDN family, providing many benefits to the organization, especially when moving from traditional network infrastructure. Many organizations are actually using the old traditional Nexus infrastructure or some old data center devices. It gives you significant control and one-time implementation capabilities, and it also provides better performance and security. Functionality-wise, Cisco ACI provides integration using automation. We implemented it through Terraform, which was easy. Those features are available, so I don't think any new features are needed right now; something new could come up, but they have implemented many improvements over the years.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"I think it's an easy, versatile solution to implement."
"What I liked about the solution is the quick and easy way you can build a network data center fabric."
"With the stability so far we've had very few issues with Cisco ACI, other than a couple of routing problems that were glitches within ACI, and the environment is stable and we like it."
"The most useful feature in the ACI is a feature called Service Graph."
"Cisco ACI was the first product in the market, offering stability with a significant install base."
"Cisco ACI's best features include its network-centric approach and micro-segmentation."
"We are service providers; it has allowed us to serve some of our outsourced customers better than the previous generation of products."
"The centralized management of the entire network data center, in this case with ACI, is the most valuable feature."
"Cisco ACI is a hardware-level product that can support terabytes and petabytes of data at the same time, which VMware NSX can't do because it's a virtual environment with limited throughput and scalability."
"The basic functionality that is the most useful is creating a virtual network on a physical device."
 

Cons

"I think if I was to say something that could be improved, it would be a multi-data center nature of the implementation."
"It adds a layer of complexity that you can really do without."
"I would like to see more troubleshooting apps. There should be more and better SNMP monitoring."
"I would like them to simplify the way you configure the Fabric. The process is quite complex. This can be a barrier to entry. For anything, where it should take two or three steps, you have ten steps"
"We're still in the process of doing the migration. We haven't migrated completely all of our applications out of our legacy into it yet. It was challenging at first, but getting easier now that we're starting to get into it."
"The virtualization area needs improvement but I expect that to happen with the 4.0 version."
"The areas for improvement are automation and user-friendliness."
"Compared to VMware, it needs more virtualization technologies."
"The initial setup was very complex."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The licensing cost depends on the number of switches that are going to be licensed to run the software."
"It's expensive but the product is very good. I have never found another partner like Cisco with a solution like this and with great support."
"We used Cisco Professional Services for the deployment. They were outstanding, but very expensive."
"It saves time and resources."
"The thing that I like the most from Cisco is the support and all the documentation that they have. We do have to pay for it though."
"The pricing, including both hardware and licenses, is reasonable."
"We have seen time improvement using the product."
"The price could be improved. It is expensive, but then again, it is Cisco. The price is worth what you pay for."
"Price is always an issue."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
13%
Construction Company
12%
Healthcare Company
12%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
15%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Construction Company
8%
Computer Software Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business20
Midsize Enterprise20
Large Enterprise88
 

Questions from the Community

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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 is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco ACI?
Cost is one thing that could be improved, as it is heavy for an emerging market like ours.
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

A10 Networks, Edge-Core Networks, Blue Coat Systems, BlueData, Broadcom Corporation, Canonical, Check Point Software Technologies, Citrix, Dell, FireEye, Garland, Hortonworks, Mirantis, Nexenta, Riverbed
Bowling Green State University, du, Qatar University
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco, Aviatrix, Megaport and others in Software Defined Networking (SDN). Updated: May 2026.
900,747 professionals have used our research since 2012.