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Cisco UCS C-Series Rack Servers vs Lenovo ThinkSystem Rack Servers comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jun 3, 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 UCS C-Series Rack Ser...
Ranking in Rack Servers
7th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
4.3
Number of Reviews
32
Ranking in other categories
Density Optimized Servers (3rd)
Lenovo ThinkSystem Rack Ser...
Ranking in Rack Servers
5th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
27
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2026, in the Rack Servers category, the mindshare of Cisco UCS C-Series Rack Servers is 5.4%, up from 4.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Lenovo ThinkSystem Rack Servers is 8.9%, down from 15.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Rack Servers Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Lenovo ThinkSystem Rack Servers8.9%
Cisco UCS C-Series Rack Servers5.4%
Other85.7%
Rack Servers
 

Featured Reviews

reviewer1441011 - PeerSpot reviewer
Sr, Manager- Network Solution Architect at a energy/utilities company with 10,001+ employees
Comprehensive support and integration ensure smooth cloud infrastructure operations
I may not be the right person to comment on advanced improvements because we are just using basic functionalities. We are getting all the functionalities which we used to get in other OEM rack servers. Potential areas for improvement may include a more flexible pricing model, better technical support, or tutorials from the vendor for users.
Mike Bellemans - PeerSpot reviewer
Project manager at Sopraco NV
One of the products in the market that is the easiest to set up and maintain
Performance and scalability-wise, there are certain areas where the product lacks and needs improvement as it does not provide a lot of fancy features presently. In general, it is a normal product that is good enough for our company. For the time being, my company does not need any extra features.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The first advantage of Cisco UCS C-Series Rack Servers is that you don't need to buy physical hardware like I used to have to do for each application."
"The most valuable features of Cisco UCS C-Series Rack Servers are integration and customization."
"The support from Cisco UCS C-Series Rack has been very good."
"The solution is stable."
"The integration with IT infrastructure is seamless based on our experience."
"I would recommend this solution to others because it saves a lot of space and it's very scalable."
"The hardware customization capabilities are great."
"We've been quite happy with its capabilities so far."
"The installation and configuration are a bit difficult but the product's performance is unbeatable."
"Technical support has been very good and we've been satisfied with the level of service we get."
"It's very power-efficient and allows you to access the rack server directly without accessing the operating system on that server."
"One of the main advantages of this tool is its ease of use, as it is a GUI-based tool needing a simple and easy configuration...It is a stable solution."
"The initial setup of Lenovo ThinkSystem Rack Servers is straightforward. The process of implementation took me approximately two to three days. We only had to install the hardware for the installation."
"The server itself covers all of the bases — my clients are really happy with it."
"We have not experienced any issues with the Lenovo ThinkSystem Rack Servers' performance, as it is stable."
"We appreciate the stability and easy mountings of all the machines."
 

Cons

"Cisco UCS C-Series Rack could improve by selling storage. Cisco doesn't sell storage, which is a problem because some customers ask for storage. There are several brands in the market, such as HPE, and Dell EMC. However, Cisco doesn't have any storage. This is where the tension comes from buying this solution."
"The scalability of the product is an area of concern where Cisco needs to focus on making some improvements."
"On the contact center and video conferencing, I would definitely like to see more AI features. The AI features are key for us. You will find a lot of them in the cloud-based solution, but in the on-premises solution, they're hardly there. I would like to see the same AI features that are there in the cloud-based Cisco UC."
"Its accessibility and manageability can be improved."
"Technical support could be more responsive."
"The capacity is quite small, so I need the CPU performance to be a bit higher. The memory is also limited, and we cannot upgrade more."
"Definitely the support area needs improving. Especially the time response in case of hardware failure."
"The only thing I would change is to provide more proactive support."
"I would like to see an automatic call home feature for IMM2."
"It should have tools for integration with the cloud. We should be able to transmit data from our on-premises server to the servers in the cloud."
"I have a few notification alerts about PCI cards but it's rare."
"The solution is not stable."
"It is too expensive. Because we are a university and we have to look for our money, many times we buy some refurbished machines or equipment at reasonable prices from IBM or Lenovo."
"The price of the solution is very expensive when compared to other solution like HP or Dell."
"Improvements could be made in the network cards, particularly by offering options for higher-speed cards beyond the current 10 GB."
"To be frank, the technical support from Lenovo's team needs improvement. There seems to be a lack of support, and it is important for Lenovo to address this issue."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The server itself isn't costly at all, but the CPU and the RAM can be pretty expensive. You can buy a UCS for $2,000, but the RAM and CPU can cost up to $80,000. The most expensive asset is the intel processor, but it depends on how many cores you want and the technology you want to use on your CPU, like Hyper-V, etc."
"My company has an agreement with Cisco to get discounted rates. It is one of the reasons why we chose the product."
"Licensing fees are paid on a yearly basis, which is only $2,000 or $3,000."
"The solution is moderately priced."
"The prices of Cisco UCS C-Series Rack Servers are higher compared to the competition. When we try and sell against the competition, then it becomes quite difficult to sell"
"This product is slightly more expensive when compared to others."
"The pricing is expensive."
"We have to pay for the VMware and Cisco licenses."
"I don't know the exact amount of money, but when I compared it to Dell or HPE, Lenovo was the best when it comes to price and equipment."
"In India, the solution is cheap compared to its competitors."
"Lenovo ThinkSystem Rack Servers can be categorized as a product falling under an affordable price range but more expensive than its competitors."
"It costs around $8,000. There is an additional cost for the support for a year."
"It is expensive compared to other vendors."
"The price of Lenovo ThinkSystem Rack Servers is highly competitive. Many customers prefer this solution because of the price. However, the price could be reduced."
"The cost of the solution depends entirely on the client. There are not any additional costs other than the standard licensing fee."
"It is too expensive. Because we are a university and we have to look for our money, many times we buy some refurbished machines or equipment at reasonable prices from IBM or Lenovo. We are a little bit limited in terms of money, and we buy as much as we can. If they were cheaper, we would buy more."
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Top Industries

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

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business12
Midsize Enterprise7
Large Enterprise14
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business18
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise9
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco UCS C-Series Rack Servers?
My experience with pricing, setup costs, and licensing for Cisco UCS C-Series Rack Servers is not troublesome, but it is confusing. It takes a lot of time to navigate licensing and to work through ...
What needs improvement with Cisco UCS C-Series Rack Servers?
I think Cisco UCS C-Series Rack Servers could be improved, but I'm not really a forward thinker; everything works pretty well with how we're using it. It's not really an improvement, but the soluti...
What is your primary use case for Cisco UCS C-Series Rack Servers?
My main use case for Cisco UCS C-Series Rack Servers is hypervisors, using them as a hypervisor.
How do Lenovo ThinkSystem rack servers compare with HPE ProLiant DL servers?
Lenovo ThinkSystem rack servers offer flexibility and efficiency in order to meet mission-critical demands. I like that Lenovo blends outstanding performance, reliability, and manageability. The bi...
When shopping for a rack server, would you go with Dell EMC Poweredge or Lenovo Thinksystem?
Our organization ran comparison tests to determine whether the Dell EMC Poweredge or Lenovo Thinksystem rack servers were the better fit for us. We ultimately decided to go with Dell EMC Poweredge....
 

Also Known As

Unified Computing System C-Series, Cisco UCS C-Series
SR Series, Lenovo SR Series, ThinkSystem Rack Servers, IBM Rack Servers, ThinkSystem SR Series, Lenovo Rack Servers,
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Advanced Medical Transport, Aegean Motorway, Anilana Hotels and Resorts, Artoni Transporti, BH Telecom, Bowling Green State University, City of Mississauga, Dualtec Cloud Builders, Electricity Authority of Cyprus, Grupo Industrial Saltillo (GIS), Kind en Gezin, Kuwait Petroleum Italia, Nationwide, Quest, Talbots, University of St. Gallen
immixGroup, Komsomolskaya Pravda, SRG Global, Seekr, Infiniti Red Bull Racing, jKool, Tennis Australia, VEKA, Netpoints, Gamma Powersports
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco UCS C-Series Rack Servers vs. Lenovo ThinkSystem Rack Servers and other solutions. Updated: June 2026.
900,838 professionals have used our research since 2012.