USW Pro Max 24 PoE vs Pro HD 24 PoE: Eight Fast Ports or 24

The Pro Max is a gigabit switch with a multi-gig corner. The Pro HD is a multi-gig switch with a 10 GbE corner. In fact, that one sentence settles most purchases, because it turns the question into a count of how many fast devices the rack holds.

The price per fast port makes the same point in dollars. Eight multi-gig ports for $799 is $100 each, and 24 for $999 is $42. That said, a port is only worth paying for when something uses it. A rack with five Wi-Fi 7 access points and a NAS fills six multi-gig ports, and the Pro Max still has two to spare.

Both are among the five switches this site tracks, and both sit in the rack tier with the $699 Pro 24 PoE. Accordingly, Pro 24 vs Pro Max 24 covers the step below this one, and how to choose a UniFi switch places all five.

What a 2.5 GbE port buys depends on the device at the far end. A Wi-Fi 7 access point such as the U7 Pro has a 2.5 GbE uplink, and a gigabit switch port caps it at 1 Gbps. For instance, a rack feeding ten of those APs runs out of fast ports on the Pro Max after the eighth.

The two 10 GbE ports are the feature with no equivalent on the Pro Max at all. After all, on the Pro Max 10G exists only on the SFP+ uplinks. On the Pro HD it also arrives on copper, where a workstation, a NAS such as the UNAS Pro 8, or an access point can take it without an SFP+ module.

Keep in mind that the other 22 ports stop at 2.5 GbE. A rack that wants 10 GbE to many desks is not describing this switch, and Ubiquiti's spec sheet is plain about the split.

The extra 200 W matters more than the port classes do. A Wi-Fi 7 access point draws between 13 W and 43 W in the range this site tracks, and its PoE cameras draw between 9 W and 25 W each. As a result, a full Pro Max can run out of watts before it runs out of ports. PoE budget planning works through the arithmetic for a mixed load.

In addition, the 10 GbE ports are where PoE++ and speed finally meet. The E7 needs PoE++ at 43 W and has a 10 GbE uplink, and the U7 Pro XGS needs PoE++ at 29 W with the same port. On the Pro Max either one powers up on a 2.5 GbE PoE++ port and links at 2.5 GbE. On the Pro HD, one cable to a 10 GbE port carries both.

Note that there are two such ports, not 24. A site planning more than two 10 GbE access points on one switch still needs a different plan for the third. E7 vs U7 Pro XGS covers what each of those APs asks of the switch.

Those figures follow directly from the ports. Each non-blocking number is simply the sum of them. The Pro Max adds up to 36 Gbps of RJ45 and 20 Gbps of SFP+, which is 56. The Pro HD adds up to 75 Gbps of RJ45 and 40 Gbps of SFP+, which is 115. Therefore neither switch is oversubscribed internally, and the larger fabric exists because the ports are faster.

Additionally, the uplinks are where the design shows. Twenty-four multi-gig ports behind two 10G uplinks would be 75 Gbps of access against 20 Gbps of uplink. Four SFP+ ports halve that ratio, and they leave room for a NAS or a second switch on 10G without giving up the path to the core. Switch uplinks and link aggregation explains how to size that ratio against real traffic.

However, Layer 3 does not separate them. Both list inter-VLAN routing, static routing, a DHCP server and DHCP relay, and the Layer 3 rows on the two spec sheets match line for line.

Depth is the figure to check first. A shallow wall cabinet that takes the Pro Max may not take the Pro HD, because the supported range starts 200 mm further back. Measure the usable depth between the posts before ordering, and leave room for the cabling in front.

The power draw rises with the PoE budget. Ubiquiti lists a maximum of 660 W including PoE output for the Pro HD, against 450 W for the Pro Max. However, the switches themselves are close, at 60 W and 50 W excluding PoE. What's more, a fully loaded Pro HD is a meaningful load on a small UPS, so size the battery for the PoE devices and not only for the switch.

Of course, redundant power works the same way on both. Each lists one universal AC input and a USP-RPS DC input, so a rack with Ubiquiti's Redundant Power unit covers either one.

Buy the Pro Max 24 PoE when the fast devices can be counted on two hands. These are the cases where it is simply the right switch:

• Eight or fewer multi-gig devices. Wi-Fi 7 access points and a NAS take the 2.5 GbE ports, and cameras, phones and printers lose nothing on gigabit.
• A PoE load under 400 W. Add up the draw before assuming the larger budget is needed.
• A shallow rack. It is 325 mm deep and supported from a 400 mm rack depth.

Buy the Pro HD 24 PoE when the rack has outgrown that list. For example, it is the right switch once multi-gig devices pass eight, or once the PoE load passes 400 W. It is also the right switch when an E7 or a U7 Pro XGS should get PoE++ and 10 GbE from one port. Overall, the $200 is a small share of a build that already includes those devices.

However, if nothing in the rack exceeds gigabit, both are more switch than the job needs. The Pro 24 PoE also has 24 PoE ports and Layer 3, for $699, and the Switches hub sets all five side by side.