What users are saying about
21 Ratings
<a href='https://www.trustradius.com/static/about-trustradius-scoring' target='_blank' rel='nofollow noopener'>trScore algorithm: Learn more.</a>Score 9.5 out of 100
Based on 21 reviews and ratings
20 Ratings
<a href='https://www.trustradius.com/static/about-trustradius-scoring' target='_blank' rel='nofollow noopener'>trScore algorithm: Learn more.</a>Score 9.7 out of 100
Based on 20 reviews and ratings
Attribute Ratings
- Cisco Catalyst 6800 Series Switches is rated higher in 1 area: Likelihood to Recommend
Likelihood to Recommend
9.4
Cisco Catalyst 6800 Series Switches
94%
16 Ratings
8.9
Cisco Catalyst 9600 Series Switches
89%
11 Ratings
Likelihood to Renew
9.1
Cisco Catalyst 6800 Series Switches
91%
3 Ratings
Cisco Catalyst 9600 Series Switches
N/A
0 Ratings
Usability
8.6
Cisco Catalyst 6800 Series Switches
86%
2 Ratings
Cisco Catalyst 9600 Series Switches
N/A
0 Ratings
Support Rating
9.1
Cisco Catalyst 6800 Series Switches
91%
4 Ratings
Cisco Catalyst 9600 Series Switches
N/A
0 Ratings
Likelihood to Recommend
Cisco Catalyst 6800 Series Switches
Cisco Catalyst [6800 Series] Switches provide good selection of models with various port densities and capabilities. We use Catalyst switches in most location in various functional setups. Chassis switches in Data Centers, stacks of multiple switches at many locations within campus, 24-48 port models at larger branches for routing and switching.
IT Infrastructure Planner/Architect
FortisBC Energy Inc.Utilities, 1001-5000 employees
Cisco Catalyst 9600 Series Switches
Even with the higher price point compared to other vendors, we highly recommend [Cisco Catalyst 9600 Series Switches] to all of our clients. These switches are built to last. [They] make network management very easy and will benefit any business in the long run. Cisco stands behind its product. It is very easy to add additional switches as a network grows.

Verified User
Technician in Information Technology
Information Technology & Services Company, 11-50 employeesPros
Cisco Catalyst 6800 Series Switches
- In general Cisco Catalyst Switches are a nice piece of kit both in hardware and software.
- You can keep these guys running for years without nary a reboot necessary.
- Even if you have to reboot you have multiple fail overs and redundancies.

Verified User
Manager in Information Technology
Government Administration Company, 501-1000 employeesCisco Catalyst 9600 Series Switches
- Cisco Catalyst Switches are very easy to use and manage.
- Cisco support it top notch.
- Very easy to scale up as [the] network infrastructure grows.
Lead Systems Engineer
Nettology, LLCInformation Technology and Services, 11-50 employees
Cons
Cisco Catalyst 6800 Series Switches
- There are some known bugs that cause interface errors and are listed as "cosmetic" and they do not plan to address them. This makes troubleshooting very difficult to determine what are real errors and what are cosmetic.
- We have had a few batches that get stuck in random reboots.
- Cisco foolishly has discontinued R&D for this line of Catalyst when they were finally showing some innovation that set them apart from other vendors.
Sr. System Engineer
Kent Intermediate School DistrictEducation Management, 501-1000 employees
Cisco Catalyst 9600 Series Switches
- Programming is different from other providers; this has caused some issues with staffing
- The training opportunities do not provide the basics of programming or migration from other vendors' products.
- Unless you are willing to purchase renewed switches, cost can be out of line with other vendors

Verified User
Executive in Information Technology
Government Administration Company, 201-500 employeesPricing Details
Cisco Catalyst 6800 Series Switches
General
Free Trial
—Free/Freemium Version
—Premium Consulting/Integration Services
—Entry-level set up fee?
No
Starting Price
—Cisco Catalyst 9600 Series Switches
General
Free Trial
—Free/Freemium Version
—Premium Consulting/Integration Services
—Entry-level set up fee?
No
Starting Price
—Likelihood to Renew
Cisco Catalyst 6800 Series Switches
Cisco Catalyst 6800 Series Switches 9.1
Based on 3 answers
Because they work well at what they do. They are highly innovative with their hub and spoke firmware deployment. Once again Cisco was extremely stupid to stop R and D on them.
Sr. System Engineer
Kent Intermediate School DistrictEducation Management, 501-1000 employees
Cisco Catalyst 9600 Series Switches
No score
No answers yet
No answers on this topic
Usability
Cisco Catalyst 6800 Series Switches
Cisco Catalyst 6800 Series Switches 8.6
Based on 2 answers
Cisco Catalyst switches are the standard for usability. The Cisco command line is 1 of 2 formats for a command line interface in the computer networking industry. They literally define the standard for the industry, so naturally the usability is going to be high -- simply because that's what everyone uses. I rated them as 9 because they have some consistency issues within the IOS for different versions/platforms.

Verified User
Engineer in Information Technology
Government Administration Company, 1001-5000 employeesCisco Catalyst 9600 Series Switches
No score
No answers yet
No answers on this topic
Support Rating
Cisco Catalyst 6800 Series Switches
Cisco Catalyst 6800 Series Switches 9.1
Based on 4 answers
They are easy to get a hold of and are very effective.

Verified User
Manager in Information Technology
Banking Company, 5001-10,000 employeesCisco Catalyst 9600 Series Switches
No score
No answers yet
No answers on this topic
Alternatives Considered
Cisco Catalyst 6800 Series Switches
The Juniper lineup offers better pricing versus the Cisco line up but you do definitely lose some hardware prowess, and stability that you can count on with Cisco devices. Also the support is not as robust from Juniper as it can take longer and be more frustrating getting a support ticket going with them.

Verified User
Administrator in Information Technology
Government Administration Company, 501-1000 employeesCisco Catalyst 9600 Series Switches
Cisco is top of the class when it comes to comparing them to other vendors in the network hardware environment. They may have a higher price-point, but they justify it with great support and a very long lifecycle.
Lead Systems Engineer
Nettology, LLCInformation Technology and Services, 11-50 employees
Return on Investment
Cisco Catalyst 6800 Series Switches
- It's all about making the right choice in the right time. Let's face it - CISCO Catalyst switches are not cheap. But if you take the time to research and design your network the ROI rate will be faster than you imagine. Having a stable and scalable network is the most important aspect of Catayst - upgrading the core and backbone infrastructure allows you to push the older devices to the outer edges of the network or to new, under/undeveloped regions.
CIO (Chief Information Officer)
UltraNET LtdInformation Technology and Services, 51-200 employees
Cisco Catalyst 9600 Series Switches
- [There is a] high price point, but [Cisco Catalyst Series Switches] will save [you] in the long run because these switches are reliable and last a very long time.
- Cisco offers very good support so you can depend on them to keep everything running smoothly.
- Once techs are trained on Cisco devices, they will be able to save time making changes to networks.
Senior Help Desk Technician
NettologyInformation Technology & Services, 11-50 employees