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.
"These switches help to build the best network, the way we want it."
"The features that I have found most valuable are the core reliability and the switching group. All the features are very generic switching features with high reliability. That is the main key point I can highlight."
"Technical support is excellent. They are very helpful."
"It is a scalable solution."
"The queue functionality is the solution's most valuable feature, specifically because we are delivering a lot of Layer 2 services. Layer 2 protocol tunnels work well on Cisco switches."
"The performance of Cisco Ethernet Switches is better."
"The most valuable features of this solution are the auto-complete functionality and the end-to-end functionalities such as routing with the channel."
"The greatest advantage of Cisco switches is their reliability. For example, we bought some 500 series switches back in 2002 or 2003, and they ran 24/7. I never had an issue for seven years."
"The solution is easy to use."
"These switches are simple and easy to configure."
"There are many good points about this product. Number one, they are very stable, and easy to configure and manage."
"It's plug-and-play. There is no configuration necessary."
"It is a stable solution."
"The initial setup is straightforward."
"It is very stable and reliable."
"These switches are very easy to install because there is no configuration."
"Cisco could definitely work on delivering improved pricing to its customers."
"We are less in the Cloud because the Cloud technologies didn't work so well. That happened in all of the companies where I've been engaged."
"The price could be lower. It's quite expensive."
"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."
"Better manageability and ease of use would be an improvement."
"The enterprise-level switches should have a simpler deployment. They should make it possible for lower-skilled workers to be able to deploy the product."
"The user interface, the UI, could be better."
"To keep up with the market, the solution should have better evolution and innovation."
"In a future release, the solution could improve by being more secure and allowing the configuration of each port."
"The solution needs better local support."
"The solution needs to improve layer 2 switches."
"It could be easier to scale on managed devices."
"The solution could be cheaper."
"I'd like to see a central management system included as part of their license, not as a separate purchase. Currently, we have to manage switches independently. A central portal for managing all switches and providing visibility would be great."
"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."
"This solution is not good for distribution at the core."
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.
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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.