What's the Difference Between Cat6 and Cat6A Ethernet Cables?

Category 6 ethernet cables are rated for up to 250 Mhz, while Category 6A ethernet cables are rated for 500 Mhz. The "A" stands for "Augmented," referring to the cable's enhanced performance speeds. Cables.com offers both Cat6 and Cat 6A rated ethernet cables for purchase at some of the lowest prices on the market.

Shopping for network cables can get confusing between all the measurements, configurations, and types of connections. While Category 6 cable remains the standard for today's ethernet and network patch cables, you might have noticed that you also have the option of purchasing Category 6A cables when you're shopping from Cables.com. What makes Cat6A different from Cat6, and which should you choose? Let's take a look at these types of cables and identify the factors that should help you make your decision!

Why Buy Category 6 Cable?

Category 6 network cables, also known as Cat6, are the industry standard for networking. The newer Cat6 standard ethernet cables offer up to twice the performance of Cat 5e cables or Category 5e cables, and are gigabit rated. All Category 6 cables will work with POE (Power over Ethernet) Devices. Our Cat6 cables offer a reliable and secure connection between your office or home network device and the internet. 

You can purchase our Cat6 cables either bootless or with snagless boots, depending on where you'd like to run them - a cable that's likely to be jostled a bit would benefit from the addition of the molded rubber "boot" meant to help it fit snugly within the receptacle, while a bootless cable is the best option for dense data network switches. Whichever you choose, you'll still be getting a high quality cable featuring 24 AWG 100% bare copper wire with 50 micron gold plated RJ45 connectors. 

We also offer 28 AWG Category 6 slim jacket cables which are almost half the size in diameter of a standard Cat6 cable!

Why Buy Category 6A Cable?

It's worth noting that the "A" in Category 6A, or Cat6A, stands for "augmented." In this case, that refers to Cat6A cable's enhanced speeds. While Category 6 ethernet cables are rated for up to 250 Mhz, our Datacomm Category 6A ethernet cables are rated for 500 Mhz - twice as fast! While you can purchase these with or without boots, they also come in same wider variety configurations as many of our other cables. Consider, for example, our shielded plenum-rated Cat6A ethernet cables. Their CMP (Plenum) jacket means that they're manufactured in compliance with fire safety codes, so in the event of a fire they won't produce toxic gases. And their shielded construction cuts down on EMI, or electromagnetic interference, ensuring that you'll get clean signal transmission. 

You can also find shielded Cat6A cables that are rated for outdoor installations. Our Outdoor Cat6A cables are waterproof and UV-resistant, and you can safely bury them outside without having to worry about weakening their signal. 

What's one thing that both our Category 6 and Category 6A cables have in common? Besides the quality of their materials and manufacture, they're covered by a lifetime warranty. You can run them once, and forget about them! 

Still looking?

Finding the right cable for your installation is essential, and you'll want to carefully consider your options before deciding which cable to purchase from Cables.com. If you're still having difficulty getting started, check out our Quick Patch Finder, which will let you enter what you're looking for in a cable before making a suggestion based on that input. And if you're unable to locate exactly what it is you need on our extensive online catalog, consider reaching out to us for a Custom Cable order. Contact Us anytime, or send us an email at sales@cables.com! 

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