PACKETPERF

Primary Device

Cisco Cisco Catalyst 9300X
Cisco Cisco Catalyst 9300X
★ 3.3 Value Score

Technical Specifications

  • Switching Capacity: Family: 800 Gbps to 2,000 Gbps standalone (24Y 2,000; 12Y 1,000; 24HX 800; 48HXN 960; 48HX/48TX 1,760). Stacked: up to 3,000 Gbps (24Y) / 2,760 Gbps (48HX/48TX) / 1,880 to 2,760 Gbps for other SKUs
  • Forwarding Rate: Family: 654.72 to 1,488 Mpps standalone (24Y 1488; 12Y 744.04; 24HX 654.72; 48HXN 714.24; 48HX/48TX 1309), measured at 64-byte IPv4. Stacked: 1,398.72 to 2,232 Mpps depending on SKU
  • Ports (breakdown): C9300X-12Y: 12x 1/10/25G SFP28 (modular uplinks). C9300X-24Y: 24x 1/10/25G SFP28 (modular uplinks). C9300X-24HX: 24x 10G mGig UPOE+ (modular uplinks). C9300X-48HXN: 8x 10G mGig + 40x 5G mGig UPOE+ (modular uplinks). C9300X-48HX: 48x 10G mGig UPOE+ (modular uplinks). C9300X-48TX: 48x 10G mGig data (modular uplinks, no PoE)
  • PoE Budget: C9300X-24HX: 735W to 1,835W (1100W AC PSU, depends on secondary PSU). C9300X-48HXN: 690W to 1,790W (1100W AC). C9300X-48HX: 590W to 1,690W (1100W AC). 24Y and 48TX: no PoE (715W AC PSU)
  • Layer: L3 (Network Essentials includes basic routing: RIP, EIGRP stub, OSPF limited to 1,000 routes; Network Advantage adds BGP, full OSPF/EIGRP, IS-IS). Scale: 39,000 IPv4 routes, 19,500 IPv6 routes, 8,000 multicast routes
  • Stacking: Yes. StackWise-1T, 1 Tbps stacking bandwidth, up to 8 members. Stacks with other 9300X models at StackWise-1T speed; stacks with C9300 models at StackWise-480. Stacking cables: 50 cm, 1 m, 3 m
  • Data Source: Cisco Catalyst 9300 Series Switches Data Sheet (cisco.com, nb-06-cat9300-ser-data-sheet-cte-en); reseller listings (CDW, CDWG, Avendor, Avoira) for pricing. Official list prices not published in datasheet; price range reflects reseller listings and varies by license tier and port configuration

Curation Review

  • ✔ Pros: Wire-speed nonblocking IPv4 and IPv6 forwarding across all SKUs; StackWise-1T stacking with 1 Tbps bandwidth and up to 8 members; Multigigabit (mGig) UPOE+ downlinks on HX models for 2.5G to 10G wired and high-power Wi-Fi 6/7 AP deployments; 25G SFP28 uplink/downlink options on 12Y and 24Y for modern aggregation; High routing scale (39,000 IPv4 routes) for a switch in this class; Mixed stacking with C9300 at StackWise-480 eases migration; Modular uplinks allow flexible network module upgrades
  • ✘ Cons: Pricing is high, with reseller listings from roughly $10,800 to $29,600+ and wide variance; Full routing (BGP, full OSPF, IS-IS) requires the Network Advantage license, adding recurring subscription cost; IPsec VPN on 9300X requires a separate HSEC key; PoE budget on HX models depends on secondary PSU choice, and no-PoE models (24Y, 48TX) cannot power endpoints; Official SKU-level list prices are not published in the datasheet, making budgeting harder; Higher-speed 25G/10G optics and StackWise-1T cables add cost beyond the base chassis
  • Est. Price: $10,783 - $29,572

Compare Against

Aruba (HPE) Aruba CX 6200
Aruba (HPE) Aruba CX 6200
★ 4.2 Value Score

Technical Specifications

  • Switching Capacity: 128 Gbps (24-port models); 176 Gbps (48-port models)
  • Forwarding Rate: 95.2 Mpps (24-port models); 130.9 Mpps (48-port models)
  • Ports (breakdown): 24x or 48x 10/100/1000BASE-T (PoE+ on PoE SKUs) + 4x SFP/SFP+ uplinks (1GbE/10GbE); 6200M models add 4x SFP+ uplinks
  • PoE Budget: 370W Class 4 (24G and 48G 370W SKUs); 740W Class 4 (48-port 6200F PoE SKU); up to 1440W Class 6 (60W per port) on 6200M PoE SKUs. Varies by SKU
  • Layer: L2/L3 (Layer 3 static routing; dynamic routing depends on software license)
  • Stacking support: Yes, VSF virtual stacking up to 8 members (single logical device); VSX redundancy also supported

Curation Review

  • ✔ Pros: Fixed-port, Layer 2/3 managed access switch in a compact 1U form factor; Wide range of PoE and non-PoE SKUs (370W, 740W, and 1440W class 6 PoE options) for IP phones, cameras, and APs; VSF stacking of up to 8 members simplifies management as one logical device; Full Aruba CX OS features with REST API, network analytics, and automation support via Aruba Central; Solid mid-range pricing compared with enterprise-class core switches; 10GbE SFP+ uplinks support aggregation and campus backbone links
  • ✘ Cons: Model and SKU naming (6200F vs 6200M, 24G vs 48G, PoE vs non-PoE) is confusing and specs differ significantly between variants; Public spec sources conflict on some figures (for example, 6200F throughput and uplink types), so exact datasheet values should be verified per SKU; Dynamic routing and advanced L3 features require additional licensing; Power budget is limited on 370W and 740W SKUs, so high-draw PoE devices may not all be supported at full load; Pricing is in USD only for 6200F SKUs. European 6200M pricing was found only in EUR and GBP, and no official HPE list price was confirmed
  • Est. Price: $4,261 - $8,663

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