Cisco Cisco Catalyst 9200L vs Aruba (HPE) Aruba CX 6100 Switch: 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

Aruba (HPE) Aruba CX 6100 Switch

★ 3.4 Value Score

Switching Capacity: 68 Gbps (12G, reseller listing); 128 Gbps (24G, reseller listing); 176 Gbps (48G, HPE comparison table and reseller listings)
Forwarding Rate: 98.6 Mpps (48G models, HPE comparison table); 12G and 24G forwarding rates not confirmed in sources
Ports (breakdown): 12G: 12 x 10/100/1000BASE-T + 2 x SFP + 2 x SFP+ (JL679A, exact uplink mix unverified); 24G: 24 x 10/100/1000BASE-T + 4 x SFP+ (JL678A no PoE, JL677A PoE); 48G: 48 x 10/100/1000BASE-T + 4 x SFP+ (JL676A no PoE, JL675A PoE, R9Y04A PoE)
PoE Budget: 139W (12G PoE, JL679A); 370W (24G PoE JL677A, 48G PoE JL675A); 740W (48G PoE R9Y04A); no PoE on JL676A/JL678A. PoE standards: IEEE 802.3af/802.3at (Class 4)
Layer: Layer 2 (managed); static routing and IPv6 listed by some resellers; some listings label models 'Managed L3', so L3 capability is unclear and should be verified against HPE's datasheet
Stacking support: Yes, VSF (Virtual Switching Framework); up to 6 members per HPE specification (some resellers list 8)
Form Factor: 1U rack-mount

✔ Pros: Low-cost managed switch with 1G access and 10G SFP+ uplinks; PoE models available at 139W, 370W, and 740W budgets for AP and camera deployments; Virtual Switching Framework (VSF) stacking for simplified multi-switch management; Aruba CX NetEdge OS with REST API and automation support; Wide SKU range covering 12, 24, and 48-port variants with and without PoE
✘ Cons: Mostly Layer 2 with unclear Layer 3 feature support, which limits routing use cases; Uplinks are 1G/10G only, with no 25G or 100G options; Per-SKU specs and pricing are inconsistent across resellers and HPE's official datasheet was not verified; Stacking limit differs between sources (6 vs 8 members); Older generation compared with the newer CX 6200/6300 series
Est. Price: $1,959 - $5,419

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