# NetApp AFF alternatives: what AI models name instead, October 2026

IT AI Recommendation Index, October 2026 Edition. 196 of the 252 answers in the 1 category where NetApp AFF holds a standing named it neither first nor as an alternative; these are the first choices those answers made. Page: https://it-ai-index.com/vendors/netapp-aff/alternatives/

## Named instead, most often (every category and segment added)

- Dell PowerStore: 11
- Pure Storage FlashArray: 11
- Synology NAS: 11
- Dell PowerVault ME5 Series: 5
- HPE MSA: 5
- NetApp ONTAP: 5

## Enterprise storage systems

**Small business**: 73 of 84 answers did not name NetApp AFF (NetApp AFF is #4 of 9 at 6%).

- Synology NAS: first choice in 11 of those 73
- HPE MSA: first choice in 5 of those 73
- QNAP: first choice in 5 of those 73
- Dell PowerStore: first choice in 4 of those 73
- Dell PowerVault ME4 Series: first choice in 3 of those 73
- HPE MSA 2060: first choice in 3 of those 73
- Dell PowerVault ME5: first choice in 2 of those 73
- Dell PowerVault ME5 Series: first choice in 2 of those 73

**Mid-market**: 63 of 84 answers did not name NetApp AFF (NetApp AFF is #3 of 8 at 9%).

- Dell PowerStore: first choice in 6 of those 63
- Dell PowerVault ME5 Series: first choice in 3 of those 63
- Pure Storage FlashArray: first choice in 3 of those 63
- HPE MSA Storage: first choice in 2 of those 63
- DataCore SANsymphony: first choice in 1 of those 63
- Dell EMC PowerStore: first choice in 1 of those 63
- Dell EMC PowerStore T series: first choice in 1 of those 63
- Dell PowerVault: first choice in 1 of those 63

**Enterprise**: 60 of 84 answers did not name NetApp AFF (NetApp AFF is #2 of 9 at 21%).

- Pure Storage FlashArray: first choice in 8 of those 60
- NetApp ONTAP: first choice in 5 of those 60
- Everpure: first choice in 3 of those 60
- Dell PowerStore: first choice in 1 of those 60
- Dell Technologies: first choice in 1 of those 60
- HPE: first choice in 1 of those 60
- HPE Alletra Storage MP B10000: first choice in 1 of those 60
- Infinidat InfiniBox: first choice in 1 of those 60

Published under CC BY 4.0. The output is the models' output; nothing here is a recommendation by the index.