Name: Cisco Catalyst 9500 Series
Brand: Cisco

Cisco Catalyst 9500 Series

★ 3.3 Value Score

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

✔ 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
Est. Price: $9,761 - $37,824

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