B2B SaaS Provider · vs · B2B SaaS Provider
Cisco vs Zscaler
Structured technology and market comparison · 2026
Direct Feature Comparison
Cisco · vs · ZscalerEnterprise networking, security and collaboration software and infrastructure provider.
Enterprise zero trust cloud security software and managed services.
Comparison Analysis
What is the main difference between Cisco and Zscaler?
When comparing Cisco and Zscaler, both platforms operate within the Measurement & Analytics Platform and B2B SaaS Provider ecosystem. Cisco is positioned as Enterprise networking, security and collaboration software and infrastructure provider, whereas Zscaler focuses on Enterprise zero trust cloud security software and managed services. Decision-makers evaluate both solutions when orchestrating their commercial monetization and technology stack.
What are the top alternatives to Cisco and Zscaler?
When evaluating Cisco and Zscaler, enterprise buyers also consider other platforms in Measurement & Analytics Platform and B2B SaaS Provider. You can discover the full competitive landscape and evaluate other alternatives by viewing their respective footprint profiles on Polaris7.
Market Signals
Recent Market Signals & Activity: Cisco vs Zscaler
Documented market movements, strategic partnerships, product releases, and regulatory developments mapped across Polaris7.
Cisco
Recent Signals
- ·Machine Learning PillsAI / Language Models
Small Language Models: When Smaller Is Better
This MLPills newsletter issue explains small language models (SLMs) — compact AI models designed to run under resource constraints such as limited memory, power, and latency budgets. It clarifies that 'small' is a comparative concept rather than a specific parameter count, and distinguishes SLMs from quantized frontier models and distillation. The article covers four main routes to building SLMs: curated data training, distillation, pruning, and quantization, and highlights examples including Microsoft's Phi-4 family, Google's Gemma 3n and Gemma 4 edge models, Hugging Face's SmolLM3, and Cisco's Antares vulnerability-localization models. It describes ideal use cases like classification, entity extraction, and tool selection, and recommends a layered architecture using deterministic code, small models, large models, and human oversight. The piece also cautions about evaluation, over-pruning, and privacy limitations of local inference.
- A 4B parameter model at 4-bit precision needs roughly 2 GB of memory; the same model at 16-bit needs roughly 8 GB.
- Microsoft's Phi-4 is a 14B parameter model, with a 3.8B Phi-4-Mini sibling and a Phi-4-Multimodal variant.
- Google's Gemma 3n models used per-layer embeddings, KV cache sharing, and activation quantization to reduce memory footprints.
Zscaler
Recent Signals
- ·CNBC InvestingFinancials
Cybersecurity stock Zscaler's charts turn bullish: Jay Woods
In a CNBC Pro segment, technician Jay Woods discusses Zscaler (ZS), a cybersecurity company that has underperformed its sector peers. While CrowdStrike, Fortinet, Okta, and Palo Alto Networks have gained over 100% year-to-date, Zscaler shares fell as much as 65% from 52-week highs and remain down 13% this year. However, Woods observes a bottoming formation on both daily and weekly charts, with a bullish crossover in MACD and a breakout above $195 resistance. He suggests upside targets of $250-$265, representing 25-30% potential upside, with support at $165. The analysis highlights relative rotation within the cybersecurity sector, indicating that laggards like Zscaler may see renewed strength.
- Zscaler (ZS) shares fell as much as 65% from 52-week highs and remain down 13% year-to-date.
- CrowdStrike, Fortinet, Okta, and Palo Alto Networks have each gained over 100% year-to-date.
- Jay Woods identifies a bullish double bottom formation on Zscaler's weekly chart.
- ·CNBC InvestingPlatform
Investor Steve Grasso buys Cloudflare stock on AI growth
CNBC Pro contributor Steve Grasso has purchased shares of Cloudflare, a cybersecurity and network services company, citing its superior growth rate and new opportunities from AI. Grasso notes Cloudflare's revenue grew 36% year-over-year to $696 million in the last quarter, outpacing competitors CrowdStrike and Zscaler. He highlights that existing customers are increasing spending by about 20%, and AI is creating new revenue streams, such as helping companies manage AI bot traffic and using OpenAI models for security. Despite the stock trading at a premium of 40 times sales and being up 68% year-to-date, Grasso believes momentum can continue, though he advises using stop orders to manage risk. The next catalyst is Cloudflare's third-quarter earnings report.
- Cloudflare's revenue grew 36% year-over-year to $696 million in the last quarter.
- Cloudflare's stock is up about 68% this year and recently hit an all-time high.
- Cloudflare trades at roughly 40 times sales, higher than cybersecurity peers.
- ·CNBC TechnologyFinancials
Zscaler stock rises on earnings beat and upbeat guidance
Zscaler reported fiscal fourth-quarter 2026 earnings that beat Wall Street expectations, sending its stock higher. The cloud security company posted adjusted EPS of $1.19, exceeding the $1.09 estimate, and revenue of $898 million, above the $877 million forecast. Revenue jumped 25% year-over-year from $719 million. Annual recurring revenue rose 25% to $3.77 billion, surpassing StreetAccount's $3.75 billion projection. CEO Jay Chaudhry highlighted early momentum for the company's Zero Trust security solution for AI agents, which he expects to accelerate into fiscal 2028 and 2029. The company also issued better-than-expected guidance for the fiscal first quarter and full year. Despite a 20% stock decline this year, management remains confident in its differentiation strategy.
- Zscaler's adjusted EPS was $1.19 vs. $1.09 expected, revenue $898M vs. $877M expected.
- Revenue increased 25% year-over-year to $898M.
- Annual recurring revenue rose 25% to $3.77B.
Compare their exact ecosystem overlaps.
Explore all deep relationships in Polaris7. Discover exactly which mutual clients, integrated technologies, and overlapping partners Cisco and Zscaler share across the market ecosystem.