We performed a comparison between Cisco Ethernet Switches vs D-link Ethernet Switches based on our users’ reviews in five categories. After reading all of the collected data, you can find our conclusion below.
Comparison Results: Cisco Ethernet Switches has better ratings because it has better stability and technical support than D-Link Ethernet Switches. D-Link does come out on top in the pricing category, however.
"We use Cisco Ethernet Switches to configure VLANs in the VPN network."
"Technical support has always been helpful."
"The solution can scale."
"In terms of most valuable feature, I would say the user interface."
"It is very scalable."
"Multicast is an advanced feature that helps alleviate some of our work challenges."
"The most valuable feature of the solution is the performance of the product."
"The technical support is good and they respond quickly. I haven't had any problems."
"The initial setup is straightforward."
"It's plug-and-play. There is no configuration necessary."
"The initial setup was very easy and user-friendly."
"Its integration is the most valuable."
"D-Link has a good VPN feature and quality of service."
"These switches are very easy to install because there is no configuration."
"The solution is easy to use."
"The initial setup of D-Link Ethernet Switches is very easy."
"There are some GUI configuration improvements that they can implement in the future for the product models."
"This may be something that they are already working on, but it would be an improvement if they could add a layer of security to layer two and layer three to protect the server and to protect the data."
"The cost is very prohibitive both for us as well as other organizations. It's very expensive to buy Cisco switches. Among our colleagues, we find that we're not alone in thinking it's too high. Everyone's complaining about this."
"Putting in a more complete management infrastructure would help when it comes to handling lower-end switches."
"Cisco is not user-friendly. It would be best if you had a technical expert. The graphical user interface is more like a command line, and most functionalities are on the command line."
"The technical support could improve, they are about average quality."
"Location of customers to connect clients to the servers and transport the data and VoIP in parallel with QoS and NBAR with 802.1X."
"It could be cheaper, especially the DNA license. One DNA license is around $3,000 for a three-year contract."
"The solution needs better local support."
"The solution needs to improve layer 2 switches."
"I would like an option to create different networks within the switch."
"The solution could be cheaper."
"The technical support needs a lot of improvement."
"The D-Link Ethernet Switches have to be replaced because they are difficult to manage and security is poor. They should add centralized manageability to make the solution better, it will allow administrators to better know what is happening on the network."
"There is room for improvement in terms of stability."
"The solution's web filtering feature could be improved."
Cisco Ethernet Switches is ranked 1st in Ethernet Switches with 128 reviews while D-Link Ethernet Switches is ranked 11th in Ethernet Switches with 24 reviews. Cisco Ethernet Switches is rated 8.6, while D-Link Ethernet Switches is rated 7.8. The top reviewer of Cisco Ethernet Switches writes "It's a solidly stable product from a leader in the field". On the other hand, the top reviewer of D-Link Ethernet Switches writes "Plug-and-play, zero maintenance, and reasonably priced". Cisco Ethernet Switches is most compared with Aruba Switches, Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access, Ubiquiti UniFi Switches, NETGEAR Switches and Juniper EX Series Ethernet Switches, whereas D-Link Ethernet Switches is most compared with NETGEAR Switches, Aruba Switches, MikroTik Routers and Switches, Ubiquiti UniFi Switches and Cisco Linksys Ethernet Switches. See our Cisco Ethernet Switches vs. D-Link Ethernet Switches report.
See our list of best Ethernet Switches vendors.
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I wholeheartedly agreee with everything Luis Apodaca has said. My additional comments are as follows:
What is the size of your network, and are you using any features of the Cisco switches?
How many switches are you trying to use and what is the total price difference between the two brands?
Most of the time, people are using cheap switches as plug-n-play equipment without any configuration and without any management. If that is also your case, you may use the cheapest alternative. After all, switch is a switch. And every brand will work with same performance values. Any switch will have most of the configurable/managerial features expected by a small to mid size network project.
However, Cisco support and Cisco durability is outstanding. Cisco didn't earn its reputation without these. Ofcourse, it comes with a slight price tag.
Hard to make a recommendation with zero details about your use case. But assuming your use case originally justified Cisco Catalyst switches (implying enterprise to medium-size business) I don’t recommend changing. The Cisco solution provides a greater feature set that can be very useful in larger environments. However, if the use case is a smaller/simple network there are more cost-effective options.
D-Link would not be at the top of my list though (Aruba, Netgear, Ubiquiti to name a few). I haven’t used a D-Link device in a long time though so I really can’t speak about their current product line which is why I wasn’t going to answer you until Evgeny Belenky called me out.
Hello Mesfin,
Luis has given good directions already.
Without much details, I could say that generally, I wouldn't recommend replacing a Cisco Switch with D-Link.
Thanks.