Cisco Cisco Catalyst 9200L vs Juniper Networks EX4100-48P: Specs & Price Comparison

Cisco Cisco Catalyst 9200L

★ 4.3 Value Score

Switching Capacity: 56 Gbps (24P-4G) to 128 Gbps (24-port 4x10G) and 104 Gbps (48P-4G) to 176 Gbps (48P-4X); varies by SKU and source
Forwarding Rate: 83.33 Mpps (24P-4G) to 190.4 Mpps (24P-4X); 154.76 Mpps (48P-4G) to 261.9 Mpps (48P-4X); varies by SKU and source
Ports (breakdown): 24 or 48 x 10/100/1000 downlink ports (PoE+ on P models, non-PoE on T models; some 48-port PXG variants add mGig ports) plus 4 fixed uplinks: 4 x 1G SFP (-4G) or 4 x 10G SFP+ (-4X)
PoE Budget: 24P models: about 370 W default, up to about 740 W with redundant PSU; 48P models: about 740 W default, up to about 1440 W with two PSUs (sources conflict, e.g. 600 W and 1 kW PSU options quoted)
Layer: L2/L3: Network Essentials provides L2 switching with basic L3 features; Network Advantage adds full dynamic L3 routing
Stacking support: Yes, StackWise-80 with 80 Gbps stacking bandwidth, up to 8 switches (requires stacking module/kit)

✔ Pros: Cisco StackWise-80 stacking of up to 8 units with 80 Gbps stacking bandwidth; 4x10G SFP+ uplink option for higher-bandwidth aggregation; Full PoE+ (802.3at) on P models with budgets up to roughly 1440 W with redundant power; Two licensing tiers (Network Essentials and Network Advantage) let buyers pay only for needed L3 features; Lower price point than Catalyst 9300 for standard campus access deployments
✘ Cons: Uplinks are fixed with no modular expansion slots, which limits future upgrade paths; Full dynamic L3 routing requires the more expensive Network Advantage license; Stacking needs a separate stacking module and is capped at 8 units; Switching capacity and PoE budgets differ widely between SKUs, making spec comparison and sizing confusing; Lower forwarding performance and feature depth than Catalyst 9300 for aggregation or core roles
Est. Price: $1,783 - $4,604

Juniper Networks EX4100-48P

★ 3.2 Value Score

Switching Capacity: 376 Gbps full duplex (188 Gbps unidirectional), per reseller listings citing Juniper's datasheet
Forwarding Rate: 279 Mpps (Juniper specs page)
Ports (breakdown): 48x 1GbE 10/100/1000BASE-T RJ-45 access ports (PoE+); 4x 1GbE/10GbE SFP+ MACsec-enabled uplinks; 4x 10GbE/25GbE SFP28 ports (Virtual Chassis by default, configurable as uplinks); 1x dedicated RJ-45 management port; RJ-45 and USB Type-C console
PoE Budget: 1440 W with two power supplies (740 W with one 920 W PSU per Juniper spec table); 30 W per port (802.3at PoE+)
Layer: L2 switch with Layer 3 features (Junos OS, first release 22.2R1); license requirements for L3 features not confirmed in sources
Stacking support: Virtual Chassis, up to 10 switches over the 4x 25GbE SFP28 ports
Power supplies: 1x 920 W AC PSU shown on the datasheet; redundancy depends on the second PSU slot
Form factor: 1U, 44.09 cm wide x 35 cm deep (38.24 cm with PSU and fans), front-to-back airflow (AFO)
Weight: 6.495 kg with PSU and fan module

✔ Pros: 48 x 1GbE PoE+ access ports at 30 W per port in a compact 1U chassis; 4 x 25GbE SFP28 ports allow Virtual Chassis stacking of up to 10 switches or use as uplinks; 4 x 10GbE MACsec-capable SFP+ uplinks for secure backhaul; 1440 W PoE budget with dual power supplies; Junos OS management and Layer 3 feature set; front-to-back airflow suits data-center and rack deployments
✘ Cons: Only 802.3at PoE+ (30 W per port), so it cannot power 802.3bt/PoE++ devices such as high-power APs or PTZ cameras (the 24MP/48MP models are needed for that); access ports are 1GbE, not multi-gig; Layer 3 features may require a separate license; retail pricing varies widely (about $4,300 to $11,000) across sellers; the model is now sold under the HPE Juniper Networking brand, so Juniper-branded support paths may differ; redundancy requires buying a second PSU
Est. Price: $4,341 - $10,999

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