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Cisco Catalyst Center vs HPE Intelligent Management Center comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jan 2, 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 Catalyst Center
Ranking in Network Management Applications
2nd
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.2
Number of Reviews
18
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
HPE Intelligent Management ...
Ranking in Network Management Applications
9th
Average Rating
7.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
7
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2026, in the Network Management Applications category, the mindshare of Cisco Catalyst Center is 5.1%, down from 6.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of HPE Intelligent Management Center is 4.5%, down from 6.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Network Management Applications Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Cisco Catalyst Center5.1%
HPE Intelligent Management Center4.5%
Other90.4%
Network Management Applications
 

Featured Reviews

AR
Network Engineer at Edmonton Catholic School Board
Has improved infrastructure management with customizable reporting and automated deployment
Cisco Catalyst Center's reporting is one of the best features, providing graphs and quick hit analysis in one place instead of having to search elsewhere. Historical data can be stored in Cisco Catalyst Center, and dashboards and widgets can be configured to personal preference. Device deployment can be automated to the point where all someone needs to do is plug it in. Zero Touch Provisioning, while requiring some initial work to set up properly, provides significant benefits. Once configured, it reduces the need for travel by specific network personnel, allowing on-site or other staff to handle device deployment by simply plugging in the cable.
Muhammad_Faisal - PeerSpot reviewer
Manager ITSM at Lucky Cement Limited
Achieve seamless network and link monitoring with comprehensive device management
The most valuable function is that the IMC takes an entire backup of my network devices, and I can also redeploy them. The really beneficial feature is the link monitoring. I had checked Check Point's product, however, my requirements are better fulfilled by IMC. The main feature is that IMC automatically configures the device for my use. I have over 200 features in my network, and IMC manages the complete environment. Automation is good, but I mainly use it for monitoring. I am too satisfied with this product.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"One of the most significant features of Cisco Catalyst Center that has improved our network performance is the wireless assurance, which helped us identify issues in the wireless; thanks to the help of Cisco Catalyst Center, we migrated from 2.4 to 5G as we understood where the maximum service interruptions were happening, leading to significant improvement in customer satisfaction, better connectivity, better strength, and better onboarding."
"Cisco performs well in the network space, especially in areas like switching, DNA Center, and wireless, where it is known for its stability."
"Cisco Catalyst Center's reporting is one of the best features, providing graphs and quick hit analysis in one place instead of having to search elsewhere."
"The integration of Cisco Catalyst Center is fine"
"The most valuable feature of Cisco Catalyst Center is automation."
"Cisco tech support is one of the best in the industry, which is a strong feature available across their products."
"Cisco Catalyst Center allows me to manage all the fabric SD Access from one location."
"Customer service has been excellent."
"It's a very complete product with a lot of functionality."
"We chose HPE for its interoperability with non-Cisco equipment, interoperability with non HP equipment, and customizable, and a deep feature set that Cisco Prime just didn't have because it's focused on Cisco stuff only."
"One of the notable advantages is its ability to provide quick responses, especially in critical situations."
"The most useful feature is infrastructure monitoring including switches and servers."
"The most valuable feature is the interface and its ease of use."
"This is far and away the best tool of this type I have ever used."
"The most valuable feature is the interface and its ease of use."
"The most valuable function is that the IMC takes an entire backup of my network devices, and I can also redeploy them."
 

Cons

"The retention period of data could be improved from seven days to 30 days."
"There is room for improvement in introducing auto-heal AI capabilities. In the current setup, incidents are always reactionary, and it would be beneficial if Cisco Catalyst Center could proactively handle issues such as bandwidth crunches and packet drops."
"The price to get in the door is quite high."
"Current pricing is too expensive for features that users may not be sure they will use, pricing the company out of the market."
"For someone new, the documentation is not very clear."
"Some documentation or use cases are not clear enough."
"It is a little more expensive."
"There should be tighter cohesion between the web-based GUI and the command line configuration."
"One notable deficiency is the lack of online support for the product."
"It's horrible. 90% of the time we're figuring out the solution ourselves."
"I face the issue with the integration with links on Fortinet Firewall."
"The integration with other network devices needs improvement."
"I face the issue with the integration with links on Fortinet Firewall."
"HPE Intelligent Management Center is a bit slow."
"I would like to see additional modules included."
"I would like to see additional modules included."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available
"There are licensing costs and they are quite expensive."
"The price of this solution is not at all cheap, but it's reasonable compared to SolarWinds."
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893,438 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Manufacturing Company
14%
Government
13%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Energy/Utilities Company
7%
Government
10%
Computer Software Company
10%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Comms Service Provider
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business3
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise13
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business3
Midsize Enterprise1
Large Enterprise3
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco Catalyst Center?
I am totally satisfied with the functionality, but we cannot discuss prices with Cisco.
What needs improvement with Cisco Catalyst Center?
My feedback about the web-based interface of Cisco Catalyst Center is that it is very good with no issues, but for some reasons, it is working poorly in Google Chrome, so I must use Firefox for bet...
What is your primary use case for Cisco Catalyst Center?
Cisco Catalyst Center is used for monitoring, troubleshooting, and management as the core of the network, and everything we do is in Catalyst.
What needs improvement with HPE Intelligent Management Center?
I face the issue with the integration with links on Fortinet Firewall. This will be sorted out with the help of IMC, and now I have a modem dialing as per my needs.
What is your primary use case for HPE Intelligent Management Center?
I am using this solution for network monitoring, links monitoring, and complete monitoring of my infrastructure. I also deploy FortiVAF, FortiAnalyzer, and FortiManager as part of a complete securi...
 

Also Known As

No data available
HPE IMC
 

Overview

Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco Catalyst Center vs. HPE Intelligent Management Center and other solutions. Updated: April 2026.
893,438 professionals have used our research since 2012.