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Production benefits for any grazing systems are affected by climatic conditions of the grasslands, forage species mixture and growth habits of the plants. Study objective was to evaluate the effects of native species mixtures [simple (six cool-season grasses and one legume) versus complex (eight cool-season, three warm-season grasses and one legume)] and grazing systems [continuous (CON) versus deferred rotational grazing (DRG)] on cattle performances [total live weight production (TLP), average daily gain (ADG) and pasture utilization (UTL)], pasture productions [available yield (AYD) and peak yield (CYD)] and qualities [NDF, ADF, CP and organic matter digestibility (OMD)]. A 12-yr (2005-2016) grazing experiment was carried out at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada - Swift Current Research and Development Centre, Saskatchewan, Canada. Grazing systems by species mixtures interaction was not significant (P > 0.05). Higher TLP (P = 0.02) and ADG (P = 0.04) values were observed for complex versus simple and DRG versus CON, respectively. The TLP values were 55.5 � 2.9 ha-1 kg and 46.5 � 2.6 kg ha-1 for complex versus simple, respectively. The ADGs were 0.82 � 0.04 kg d-1 and 0.99 � 0.04 kg d-1 for DRG vs. CON, respectively. Deferred rotational grazing increased UTL (P = 0.05), all pasture productions (P < 0.0001) and ADF (P < 0.0001) versus CON but decreased (P < 0.0001) OMD due to higher ADF observed. Forage NDF was higher (P < 0.05) for complex versus simple and CP did not differ (P > 0.05) for both grazing systems and species mixtures. The DRG system allows forage species to set seeds, thus higher AYD, CYD and ADF compared to CON were expected. Warm season grasses present only in the complex seed mix would explain the higher NDF content level. No grazing system was the best and depending upon the animal and pasture productivity goals, either system could be considered.