Name: Cisco Cisco Catalyst 9500
Brand: Cisco

Cisco Cisco Catalyst 9500

★ 3.3 Value Score

Switching Capacity: Up to 3.2 Tbps (48Y4C); up to 480 Gbps full duplex (40X, Cisco table); up to 12.8 Tbps (9500X, Silicon One Q200). Varies by model
Forwarding Rate: Up to 1 Bpps (48Y4C; one source says 1,440 Mpps, unresolved); up to 720 Mpps (40X); up to 8 Bpps (9500X). Varies by model
Ports (breakdown): Varies by SKU. Examples: 48Y4C = 48 x 1/10/25G SFP28 + 4 x 40/100G QSFP28; 40X = 40 x 1/10G SFP+ + 8 x 10G uplink module; 24Y4C, 16X, 24Q, 32C, 12Q and 48X variants also exist
PoE Budget: Not applicable to most models. PoE+ variants are limited to a few SKUs; budget not confirmed in this research
Layer: L3 (Network Essentials and Network Advantage licensing tiers)
Stacking Support: StackWise Virtual (two-switch virtual stack); not verified against Cisco's current datasheet in this research
Form Factor: 1RU rack-mountable
Research Note: Figures come mainly from third-party reseller datasheets and an older Cisco performance table. Verify per SKU against Cisco's official datasheet before publishing

✔ Pros: Family spans 10G and 25G access/aggregation to 40G/100G uplinks, covering a wide range of core and distribution roles; Layer 3 routing on Network Advantage licensing; StackWise Virtual provides redundant two-switch resilience; 9500X variant offers up to 12.8 Tbps switching capacity for next-generation cores; mature, widely deployed enterprise platform with broad reseller and partner support
✘ Cons: High acquisition cost compared with Catalyst 9300 class switches; PoE is available on only a few SKUs, so most models cannot power endpoints; throughput and port figures differ between sources, so SKU-level verification is required; 40X uplink modules are limited to 1/10G and 40G, unlike the 40/100G uplinks on the 48Y4C; 9500X top-end performance requires newer Silicon One hardware and is not available on earlier SKUs
Est. Price: $9,793 - $39,072

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