Forwarding Rate: 59.52 Mpps (Ubiquiti tech specs list 60 Mpps)
Non-Blocking Throughput: 40 Gbps
Ports (breakdown): 8 x 2.5GbE RJ45 (all PoE+; 2.5G/1G/100M/10M) + 2 x 10G SFP+ (10G/1G)
PoE Budget: 120W total PoE; 802.3af/at (PoE+) only, up to 32W per port
Layer: L3 (managed)
Stacking Support: Not stated in official specs
Packet Buffer: 1.5 MB
MAC Address Table: 16,000 entries
Power Consumption: 30W excluding PoE; 150W including PoE output
Form Factor: Compact desktop, wall-mount kit included
Dimensions: 200 x 248 x 44 mm
Management Display: 1.3-inch color LCM touchscreen
Product Status: Listed as 'Enterprise 8 PoE (Vintage)' on Ubiquiti's store; no official replacement or EOL announcement found
Curation Review
✔ Pros:Eight 2.5GbE PoE+ ports suit multi-gig Wi-Fi 6 access points and desktop devices; Layer 3 managed feature set at a low price for the class; 80 Gbps switching capacity and 59.52 Mpps forwarding rate cover small-office and branch loads; Two 10G SFP+ uplinks allow 10G backhaul or fiber links; Compact desktop form factor with wall-mount kit and LCM touchscreen for local status; 120W PoE budget is enough for several PoE+ access points or cameras
✘ Cons:Only 802.3af/at PoE+ (max 32W per port), so it cannot power PoE++ devices such as Ubiquiti's U7/E7 access points; Product is listed as Vintage with no official successor named, so long-term availability and firmware support are uncertain; 120W total PoE budget limits how many high-draw devices can be powered at once; Only two SFP+ uplinks and no stacking support, which limits scaling; Price varies widely across resellers ($479 on Ubiquiti's US store, up to about $688 or more at third-party sellers)
Est. Price:
$479 - $688
Compare Against
Cisco Catalyst 9500 Series
★ 3.3 Value Score
Technical Specifications
Switching Capacity: Model-dependent: up to 12.8 Tbps on the 9500X (C9500X-28C8D, Silicon One Q200); up to 0.96 Tbps on 40X/48X-class fixed models (older datasheet); 2.0-3.2 Tbps on 24Y4C/48Y4C (current comparison table)
Forwarding Rate: Model-dependent: up to 8 Bpps on the 9500X; up to 1.44 Bpps on 24Q-class; up to 1 Bpps on 24Y4C/48Y4C; up to 720 Mpps on 40X/48X-class (older datasheet)
Ports (breakdown): C9500-24Q: 24 x 40G QSFP+; C9500-40X: 40 x 10G SFP+ plus 2 x 40G uplink module; C9500-24Y4C: 24 x 1/10/25G SFP28 plus 4 x 40/100G QSFP28; C9500-48Y4C: 48 x 1/10/25G SFP28 plus 4 x 40/100G QSFP28; C9500X-28C8D: 28 x 40/100G QSFP28 plus 8 x 40/100/200/400G
PoE Budget: N/A - no PoE. Cisco's Catalyst 9500 datasheets list no PoE/PoE+ ports or PoE budget (one unverified reseller listing claims PoE on a 9500 variant)
Layer: Layer 2 and Layer 3 (IPv4, IPv6, multicast routing); L3 features depend on Network Essentials vs. Network Advantage licensing
Stacking support: StackWise Virtual (two-node virtualization, Network Advantage license). StackWise-480 is a Catalyst 9300 feature, not a 9500 feature
Research Note: Prices are reseller and distributor listings, not official Cisco list prices, and they conflict across sellers. Datasheet throughput figures differ between document versions, so verify SKU-level numbers on cisco.com before publishing. Cisco DNA licensing is an additional cost
Curation Review
✔ Pros:Cisco IOS is the industry-standard switch operating system with broad feature parity and familiar CLI; Wide range of fixed-form-factor models covering 10G, 25G, 40G, and 100G uplinks; Scalable Layer 3 routing tables (IPv4, IPv6, multicast) suit campus core and aggregation roles; StackWise Virtual provides two-node redundancy with multi-chassis EtherChannel and SSO support; Mature platform with a long track record in enterprise campus and data center edge deployments; 9500X models offer very high capacity (up to 12.8 Tbps) with Silicon One Q200
✘ Cons:Pricing is high: list prices range from roughly $10k to $38k per switch before the mandatory Cisco DNA license; Feature and licensing tiers (Network Essentials vs. Network Advantage) add cost and complexity; No PoE, so it is not suitable as an access switch for powering endpoints or APs; StackWise Virtual is limited to two nodes, which restricts scale compared with larger virtual chassis; Throughput specs vary across datasheet versions and models, which makes specification comparisons harder; Some users report features promised at launch arriving only in later firmware releases; Web management UI is considered less polished than cloud-managed competitors