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Cisco Nexus 9000 Series vs Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Mar 1, 2026

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 Nexus 9000 Series
Ranking in Ethernet Switches
16th
Average Rating
9.2
Reviews Sentiment
4.6
Number of Reviews
6
Ranking in other categories
Data Center Networking (7th)
Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secu...
Ranking in Ethernet Switches
10th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
48
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Featured Reviews

Fakhar Mahmood - PeerSpot reviewer
Sr. Network Administrator at i2c
Has consistently supported high availability with reliable performance and minimal disruption
Cisco Nexus 9000 Series and the routers are good, but the FMC or FTDs still need some improvement. We have Palo Alto firewalls and Next-Generation Firewalls in our environment. In comparison to the main firewall, we moved from Cisco FTDs to Palo Alto. We still have FTDs in our environment, but the majority of the firewalls have been moved to Palo Alto. They are more user-friendly, give more visibility, and are more efficient. The performance is better than Cisco. With the new features, Cisco is having some improvement for the FTD. I am currently evaluating the FTDs. The new version has better features like the encrypted visibility engine and user-based changes in FMCs, and other things are quite useful for us. FTDs do have limitations and other issues. We communicated that limitation and feature support to the Cisco account manager. We do have support for the devices. We currently have a weekly call with Cisco and they are making progress regarding new versions of the FMCs and introducing new features. The performance of deployment has improved quite a bit compared to four or five years ago.
Uri Harf - PeerSpot reviewer
Technical Presales at A.G.A.S. מחשוב ותקשורת לעסקים
Integration with cloud management simplifies network expansion
Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access is expensive, and this initial cost can be a barrier, especially for new businesses setting up from scratch. Although the machine is robust and lasts for years with rare technical issues, the initial price can be high. Sometimes, I have to offer alternatives like Aruba or HP, which might be cheaper.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The stability and reliability of Cisco Nexus 9000 Series are robust, and once you put it on, it does not just fail; that takes a long time, maybe even years."
"Cisco Nexus 9000 Series is very durable and very reliable, and there has never been any issue with it."
"RealPresence works effectively."
"We are using the core capabilities of Cisco Nexus 9000 Series Ethernet switches, and it is performing well."
"Cisco Nexus 9000 Series is quite a complex machine, but we are using a very simple configuration with basic Nexus switching, and we don't have many issues with Cisco Nexus 9000 Series at the moment in our present infrastructure."
"Performance has been great with no abnormal behaviors detected, and the network remains stable even in failover scenarios, supporting vast environments with high availability."
"It's easy to be configured and powerful in terms of performance."
"If you want to run full integration with the secure network architecture from a single point, you can use Fortinet."
"The most valuable feature would be network management, separating the network management component from security. It can do both but we promote it on its own. It's a good solution to do network management."
"My advice for anybody who is considering this product is that it's a secure and stable device."
"The most valuable feature of FortiSwitch is its user-friendly interface, which facilitates easy management and propagation of rules throughout the network."
"The most valuable feature is the security switch."
"The tool's setup was very easy."
"What I actually use in this deployment are Forti APs (Fortinet Access Points). So, I can see all my office infrastructure from a single console, which is handy. One FortiGate, one FortiSwitch, and five access points, everything under good control. It's really nice to see it all together like this."
 

Cons

"Cost-wise, Cisco Nexus 9000 Series is very expensive."
"For Cisco Nexus 9000 Series switches, I think we need to work on the HSRP. Whenever it flaps or something happens, it creates an issue."
"I would rate the technical support for Cisco Nexus 9000 Series an eight out of ten. This rating is not because of their lack of expertise, but just the assignment period."
"We find that Cisco has been left behind by the other vendors. The other vendors have adopted new technology, and we find Cisco lagging behind."
"The SFP modules we are using have had issues. We have Cisco modules, but they frequently heat up or there are packet error issues."
"The technical support team is slow to respond and the responses are not always complete."
"The product must improve its prices."
"It could be simpler but compared to the competition, it's not so bad."
"It would also help if they lowered the cost of their service."
"One of the main challenges was integrating FortiSwitch with FortiGate, as the switches are managed through FortiGate rather than independently."
"I don't like the way it's managed."
"Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access is expensive, and this initial cost can be a barrier, especially for new businesses setting up from scratch."
"The solution doesn't support other switches."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available
"The solution has reasonable pricing. The firewall costs around 500$ annually."
"The price of the solution could improve, it is expensive."
"Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access requires a license and the price is expensive."
"The product's pricing is good."
"We have to pay for the solution's subscription."
"Licensing is billed annually and contracts are either one or three years in length."
"The product's pricing is less compared to other enterprise solutions."
"We have to renew and pay for the licenses."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Comms Service Provider
27%
Construction Company
15%
Outsourcing Company
12%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Computer Software Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business37
Midsize Enterprise7
Large Enterprise7
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with Cisco Nexus 9000 Series?
At this point, not much could be improved about Cisco Nexus 9000 Series. Automation GUI based is not the core of the 9000, so this is a different device or a different solution. I do not find anyth...
What is your primary use case for Cisco Nexus 9000 Series?
My usual use cases for Cisco Nexus 9000 Series involve various companies, particularly when they are in need of a new automation solution or just an upgrade of the data center.
What advice do you have for others considering Cisco Nexus 9000 Series?
I am very satisfied with this solution. However, it is more about whether it is actually possible to do the solutions, and normally people already know what they want. They only need to have the ri...
Which would you choose - Fortinet Fortiswitch secure access or Cisco Ethernet Switches?
We researched Cisco but ultimately chose Fortinet FortiSwitch Secure Access, mostly because of the price. Fortinet FortiSwitch is an ethernet switch solution that provides security and performance...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access?
The initial cost of Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access is high compared to other options. Although robust and rarely needs replacement, it can be overqualified for some jobs, which affects the re...
What needs improvement with Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access?
I would appreciate the ability to create an independent switch. I am aware of the pricing and licensing of Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access, and I previously rated it a six because I wanted the...
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
Black Gold Regional Schools, Amadeus Hospitality, Jefferson County, Chunghwa Telecom, City of Boroondara, Dimension Data
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco Nexus 9000 Series vs. Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access and other solutions. Updated: June 2026.
900,838 professionals have used our research since 2012.