Data center networking · October 2026 Edition
HPE Aruba vs Cisco Nexus
One of fourteen models named HPE Aruba first on the direct prompt; one named Cisco Nexus. HPE Aruba was named by eight of the fourteen models and Cisco Nexus by ten and HPE Aruba carries 12 labels and Cisco Nexus 16, so the shares are not directly comparable.
HPE Aruba
accepted challengerNamed in three categories this edition.
Named in one category this edition.
First-choice share2%2%Of first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts, 0 to 100.
Negative rate8%19%Negative labels as a share of the product's labels, 0 to 100.
Rank in category#3#4A position in a field of 7; printed, not drawn.
Labels1216A count; the two differ.
The two percentage rows are drawn on one 0 to 100 track, HPE Aruba reading right to left. Rank and label count are printed, not drawn.Arista Networks vs HPE Aruba · Arista Networks vs Cisco Nexus · Cisco vs HPE Aruba
Share is the count of first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts over all fourteen models, for a mid-market B2B company; rank is within the category; every quote names the model and the prompt it came from. Both figures come from the data center networking page.
By framing
How many of the fourteen models made each the first choice, per way of asking, and how many argued against it.
HPE ArubaFirst choices, of fourteen modelsCisco Nexus
Direct11
Paraphrase00
Comparative01
Budget-constrained001 against HPE Aruba · 2 against Cisco Nexus
Scale-constrained00
Negative001 against Cisco Nexus
Bars are first choices, 0 to 14 each sideModels that argued againstA model can name both, so the two sides of a row do not sum to fourteen.
Every model, every framing
The eighty-four answers behind the chart above, one cell each: where HPE Aruba and Cisco Nexus stood in it.
| Model | DirectHA | ParaphraseHA | ComparativeHA | Budget-constrainedHA | Scale-constrainedHA | NegativeHA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Claude Haiku 4.5 | ||||||
| GPT-5.4 mini | | |||||
| Gemini 3.5 Flash | | |||||
| Perplexity Sonar | | HA | HA | |||
| Grok 4.1 Fast | | | | HA | ||
| Mistral Small | ||||||
| DeepSeek V4 Flash | HA | | HA | |||
| Llama 4 Maverick | ||||||
| Qwen 3.7 Flash | HA | HA | ||||
| Kimi K2 | HA | |||||
| GLM 4.7 FlashX | | |||||
| MiniMax M2.5 | HA | |||||
| GPT-6 Luna | | | ||||
| Muse Glimmer 30B |
HA HPE Aruba Cisco NexusHA first choiceHA named as an alternativeHA argued againstblank: not namedEach cell is one answer, HPE Aruba on the left and Cisco Nexus on the right.
Cisco NexusHA first choiceHA named as an alternativeHA argued againstblank: not namedEach cell is one answer, HPE Aruba on the left and Cisco Nexus on the right.The direct prompt
The plain question, one answer per model, grouped by where HPE Aruba and Cisco Nexus stood in it.
HPE Aruba first, Cisco Nexus not the choice
1 of 14 modelsCisco Nexus was named in the answer but not as the choice, or not at all.Qwen 3.7 FlashCisco, HPE Aruba alternatives: Juniper EX Series
Cisco Nexus first, HPE Aruba not the choice
1 of 14 modelsHPE Aruba was named in the answer but not as the choice, or not at all.Perplexity SonarCisco Nexus alternatives: Arista Networks, HPE Data Center Switches
Neither was the first choice, one was named
2 of 14 modelsThe answer put something else first and named one of the two as an alternative.GPT-5.4 miniArista Networks alternatives: Cisco Nexus, Juniper QFX
Grok 4.1 FastHPE Aruba Networking CX Series alternatives: Cisco Nexus, Juniper Networks
Neither was named
10 of 14 modelsThe answer made no first choice from these two in this category.Claude Haiku 4.5no first choice
Gemini 3.5 FlashArista Networks alternatives: Dell Technologies, HPE Juniper Networking
Mistral SmallCisco alternatives: Arista Networks, Huawei Data Center Networking, Juniper Networks
DeepSeek V4 FlashHPE Aruba CX Series alternatives: Extreme Networks, Juniper QFX Series
Llama 4 Maverickno first choice
Kimi K2HPE Aruba Networking CX Series alternatives: Cisco Nexus 9000, Juniper QFX Series
GLM 4.7 FlashXHPE Aruba Networking CX Series alternatives: Cisco Catalyst 9200/9300 Series, Cisco Nexus 9300 Series, Dell PowerSwitch S Series
MiniMax M2.5no first choice
GPT-6 LunaArista EOS alternatives: Cisco Nexus 9000, CloudVision, HPE Juniper QFX + Apstra
Muse Glimmer 30BHPE Aruba EdgeConnect alternatives: Arista Networks, Juniper Networks
Bold names in an answer are the products the judge labeled a first choice; a model naming several gives each of them that label. The full answer text for every row is in the record.
By buyer segment
The same question asked on behalf of a different buyer. Each standing is computed within its segment and they are never added together. The figures above are the mid-market standing, which is the one the category orders by.
Small business
Cisco Nexus leads by five points.
Cisco Nexus5%#3 of 9HPE Aruba0%#– of 9
The full small business standing →Mid-marketThe figures above
Level: the same share of first choices.
HPE Aruba2%#3 of 7
Cisco Nexus2%#4 of 7Enterprise
Cisco Nexus leads by eleven points.
Cisco Nexus11%#3 of 7HPE Aruba0%#– of 7
The full enterprise standing →What the models said about HPE Aruba
Every negative label with a quote, up to three, then the highest-weighted positives, up to three. Four of four in this category shown.
“HPE Aruba is presented as more budget-friendly, though the result emphasizes campus/edge more than data center.” Perplexity Sonar · budget prompt · soft negative
“HPE Aruba (AOS-CX) and Cisco (Catalyst 9000/Nexus) are generally considered the top two contenders” Qwen 3.7 Flash · direct prompt · first choice
“Good for integrated campus+DC, competitive pricing | Less established in pure data center switching use cases” DeepSeek V4 Flash · scale prompt · alternative
“If you need campus + data center: Consider Aruba for campus and Arista for data center” MiniMax M2.5 · budget prompt · alternative
What the models said about Cisco Nexus
Every negative label with a quote, up to three, then the highest-weighted positives, up to three. Six of seven in this category shown.
“Specific examples to avoid for a new build: Cisco Nexus 6000, whose support ended April 30, 2022” GPT-6 Luna · negative prompt · hard negative
“buying brand-new, top-tier platforms (like Cisco Nexus) with heavy multi-year licensing and support contracts is usually out of the question” Gemini 3.5 Flash · budget prompt · soft negative
“Significantly cheaper than big names (e.g., Cisco Nexus 9300 equivalents discounted 80%+ on resellers” Grok 4.1 Fast · budget prompt · soft negative
“Cisco holds the largest overall market share (~18-76% in segments)... Cisco for enterprise stability” Grok 4.1 Fast · comparative prompt · first choice
“the strongest default choice is usually Cisco Nexus if you want the safest all-around platform” Perplexity Sonar · direct prompt · first choice
“If you need enterprise support and can stretch slightly: Get a used/refurbished Cisco Nexus 93180YC-FX3” DeepSeek V4 Flash · budget prompt · alternative
Also compared
Comparisons are drawn for the top eight products in each category, each against each. The output is the models' output; nothing here is a recommendation by the index.