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Cisco Catalyst Switches vs Huawei Ethernet 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:
 

Categories and Ranking

Cisco Catalyst Switches
Ranking in Ethernet Switches
3rd
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.3
Number of Reviews
187
Ranking in other categories
LAN Switching (1st), Data Center Networking (1st), AV Over IP Switching (1st)
Huawei Ethernet Switches
Ranking in Ethernet Switches
13th
Average Rating
7.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
60
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2026, in the Ethernet Switches category, the mindshare of Cisco Catalyst Switches is 4.5%, up from 2.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Huawei Ethernet Switches is 3.2%, up from 3.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Ethernet Switches Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Cisco Catalyst Switches4.5%
Huawei Ethernet Switches3.2%
Other92.3%
Ethernet Switches
 

Featured Reviews

MS
Electrical control system engineer at Dangote petroleum refinery and petrol chemicals
Reliable switching has delivered long‑term uptime, strong PoE support, and predictable performance
Cisco Systems Catalyst Switches are highly regarded for their performance, reliability, and enterprise-grade capabilities. My main reservation, however, is the pricing. The cost of Cisco Catalyst Switches—and Cisco products in general—is relatively high, especially in many African markets where organizations often need to balance budget constraints with required functionality. There are alternative vendors that offer comparable features at a lower price point. While they may not always match Cisco’s ecosystem, stability, or full feature depth, many businesses still choose them because of the significant cost savings. Another consideration is licensing, which can add to the overall total cost of ownership depending on the deployment model and required features. Overall, Cisco Catalyst Switches remain premium enterprise solutions, but when compared with other OEMs, their higher acquisition and licensing costs can be a major deciding factor for cost-conscious organizations.
Muhammad Kabir Salihu - PeerSpot reviewer
Deputy Director at NITDA
Cost-effective performance enhanced by security features with easy configurations
I mainly use Huawei Switches and also work with Huawei Wireless. I deal with both Huawei and Cisco Switches, and I find Huawei to be more cost-effective Huawei has helped to save costs and is cost-effective, which also helps save time for the company. The performance of Huawei is good, and it…

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Its implementation is quite simple as there's good documentation you can reference."
"Cisco Catalyst Switches has been very useful in my organization because we do a lot of videos."
"The warranty and continued firmware support are most valuable."
"The solution has high performance and we do not have to troubleshoot the network."
"These products help me dissect my network based on the users within a particular location."
"The platform significantly improved our organization by addressing latency issues in our network."
"The stability and performance are extremely good."
"Cisco delivers when it comes to business value."
"Huawei Ethernet Switches are both scalable and stable."
"What I like about Huawei is that it has a very fast response to troubleshooting problems and regulates reports with very great production."
"The functionality is basically the same as Cisco."
"Huawei Ethernet Switches allow your devices and the network to connect with one another and can also provide internet access."
"The tool’s pricing is reasonable. It has a high throughput capacity."
"I was using Cisco Aruba HP Engine previously and switched because Huawei Ethernet Switches are user-friendly."
"Huawei is very cost-effective and they have all the features, so I would not have a problem recommending it to anybody."
"I use it on a daily basis and I find it to be quite stable."
 

Cons

"There were issues with the maximum stackable switches per site and monitoring setup."
"They need to implement sFlow."
"In terms of performance, Juniper switches have a more user-friendly interface and more features than Cisco switches."
"I would like to see the integration of the 2960 SX switches. I would also like to see more information about them."
"Cisco forces end-users to accept billing for some capabilities or services that they may not want."
"The current catalyst is probably outdated so we will most likely move to the newer version of the solution soon."
"To make it a ten they should simplify the licensing, add the cloud-managed feature, and it should be more cost-effective."
"The tool is not user-friendly."
"One of the problems with Huawei is that when you receive a product quote from one of the vendors, you cannot get prices from the other ones because they register your request with Huawei."
"The interoperability of the devices, in general, on the Huawei switches is not good and is known to be not good. Maybe they can improve this a bit."
"In the future, incorporating AI features into Ethernet switches, particularly in the controller base, would be beneficial."
"If I have one potential issue, it is that the technical support does not understand English so well."
"I had issues with patching the IOS."
"The tech support is not very good. It's a bit hard to get tech support for Huawei products."
"I've found that the Huawei switches around the core fail, or at least the 9300 series do. I've had to move to Cisco."
"It wasn't that stable at all. We had lots of issues due to the definitions, or due to the way they set up VLANs or the types of VLANs."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Cisco products are not that cheap."
"Could always be cheaper."
"The price must be reduced."
"They are a little bit expensive. We are a public institution, so we go through other traders, and sometimes, they put in their own surplus price because it is a government contract. Cisco products are expensive, especially when you compare them to Huawei."
"We are a large company and the price is reasonable because we have received a discount. However, the full price is expensive."
"Pricing could be better."
"It would be great for the user if Cisco lowered the prices for their routers and switches."
"We have a contract for service with this partner, meaning we don't purchase the license or equipment directly."
"Huawei has the same licensing model as Cisco, so both are working on the subscription model."
"We only pay one-off instead of paying recurring license fees."
"Huawei Ethernet Switches are very competitively priced, almost 4 out of 10.However, the low price point may sometimes raise concerns about quality for some companies."
"Huawei comes with a lot of features out of the box that you have to pay extra for with other products. They do charge extra in the licensing for certain additional features."
"Compared to other brands, I think that the price is quite fair."
"The exact pricing varies based on how many units you purchase."
"The price is one of the only issues I have regarding this solution."
"The licensing costs depend on the negotiations that a user has with Huawei...There is a need to make some additional payments apart from the licensing costs attached to the solution."
report
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
10%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Construction Company
9%
Computer Software Company
7%
Financial Services Firm
14%
Comms Service Provider
11%
Construction Company
9%
Computer Software Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business83
Midsize Enterprise29
Large Enterprise85
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business30
Midsize Enterprise13
Large Enterprise20
 

Questions from the Community

Would you recommend replacing a Cisco Catalyst Switch by a D-link one?
Hello Mesfin It depends on the real scenario, the cisco 2960 is a very good device and they usually have routing functions but there are many different models within the same 2960 line, and on the ...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco Catalyst Switches?
Those aspects regarding pricing, setup, cost, and licensing are managed by management, so I am not directly involved.
What needs improvement with Cisco Catalyst Switches?
I believe that Cisco Catalyst Switches could be improved by being given AI capability and advanced licensing, which would be beneficial.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Huawei Ethernet Switches?
Huawei Ethernet Switches offer very competitive and aggressive product pricing compared to other brands.
What needs improvement with Huawei Ethernet Switches?
Huawei should focus more on security. They need more products on the security side to improve the security portion.
What is your primary use case for Huawei Ethernet Switches?
The primary use case for Huawei Ethernet Switches is for network purposes, including SaaS services.
 

Also Known As

Cisco Catalyst, Catalyst
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Afni, Anilana Hotels and Resorts, Baylor Scott & White Health, Beachbody, Bellevue, Del Papa Distributing, Explorer Pipeline, Mindtree, Omaha World Herald, Radio 538, Sony Corporation, Telecom Italia, Telenor Arena
Newcastle University, Jingyang District of Deyang City in Sichuan Province, Southwest China, Glasgow Rangers Soccer Team, RMIT, Insurance Industry Association of Zhejiang Province, China, APT Satellite Holdings Limited (APT)
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco Catalyst Switches vs. Huawei Ethernet Switches and other solutions. Updated: June 2026.
900,838 professionals have used our research since 2012.