Cisco Cisco Catalyst 9200L vs Ubiquiti UniFi Pro Max 48 PoE: 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

Ubiquiti UniFi Pro Max 48 PoE

★ 3.5 Value Score

Switching Capacity: 224 Gbps
Total Non-Blocking Throughput: 112 Gbps
Forwarding Rate: 167 Mpps
Ports: 48 total: 32 x 1GbE RJ45 (24 PoE+, 8 PoE++); 16 x 2.5GbE RJ45 (8 PoE+, 8 PoE++); 4 x 10G SFP+
PoE Budget: 720W total (PoE 15.4W, PoE+ 32W, PoE++ 64W per port)
Layer: Layer 3
Stacking Support: Not listed on official spec sheet
MAC Address Table: 32,000 entries
Packet Buffer: 2 MB
Max Power Consumption: 100W excluding PoE output; 820W including PoE output
Form Factor: Rack mount, 1U (442.4 x 400 x 44 mm)

✔ Pros: Full multi-gig access layer: 16 x 2.5GbE ports plus 4 x 10G SFP+ uplinks; Layer 3 features including static routing, inter-VLAN routing, ACLs and DHCP relay; 720W PoE budget with PoE++ (64W) on 16 ports; Non-blocking 224 Gbps switching capacity and 167 Mpps forwarding rate on the official spec sheet; Managed through UniFi Network with a 1U rack-mount form factor
✘ Cons: 720W PoE budget cannot power all 48 ports at PoE++ levels, so PoE planning is required for high-draw devices; No stacking support listed on the official spec sheet; 4 SFP+ uplinks are the only 10G connectivity, with no 25G or 100G options; Official and retailer listings disagree on the PoE+/PoE++ port split, so the exact layout should be verified before purchase; Street price ranges widely across retailers (about $1,299 to $1,599), and some listings show stock delays of 5 to 14 days
Est. Price: $1,299 - $1,599

PACKETPERF