A system and method for Ethernet network design are disclosed. In one embodiment of a method incorporating teachings of the present disclosure, embedded network information describing at least one existing network element and a plurality of physical locations available for locating new network nodes may be inputted. A demand forecast for a coverage area of a proposed network may also be inputted. In an embodiment in which a to-be-designed network has at least a core layer and an aggregation layer, a number of core layer nodes and aggregator nodes to be included in the proposed network may also be inputted. Consideration may be given to these and other inputs in connection with generating a potential network design for the proposed network, and a cost of implementing the potential network design may be calculated.