Cat5 now commonly known as Cat5e and Cat6 are in many ways very similar. Furthermore their transmission in some cases are also quite similar. However there are a few ways in which Cat6 excels Cat5e in performance. The difference between Cat5 and Cat6 includes: • They are constructed slightly differently • Cat6 cabling has a higher bandwidth capability • Cat6 data cabling is capable of 10 gigabit Ethernet speeds at short distances • There is a difference in material costs

1. What is the difference between Cat5 and Cat6
Cat5 now commonly known as Cat5e and Cat6 are in many ways very similar. Furthermore
their transmission in some cases are also quite similar. However there are a few ways in
which Cat6 excels Cat5e in performance. The difference between Cat5 and Cat6 includes:
 They are constructed slightly differently
 Cat6 cabling has a higher bandwidth capability
 Cat6 data cabling is capable of 10 gigabit Ethernet speeds at short distances
 There is a difference in material costs
Cat5 and Cat5e Cabling
When comparing Cat5 and Cat6 cabling what we are really comparing is Cat5e and Cat6. In
short Cat5e replaced Cat5 as the standard in 2001. Furthermore Cat5e was able to transmit 1
gigabit Ethernet which was previously unattainable with the previous standard.
Generally Cat5 cabling is still used as the default phrase when discussing a large amount of
data cabling installation. However it is sometimes used when actually Cat5e, Cat6, Cat6a or
eyond is actually required. Therefore when we are comparing modern Cat5 and Cat6 we are
comparing with the enhanced version.
Construction of the data cable
To the visual eye both types of data cable look very similar if not the same. However their are
differences in overall size and the reasons for the size increase
1. The overall diameter of a Cat6 data cable is around 10% larger. Although this isnt alot
for a single cable if hundreds of cables are involved then it makes a big difference.
Subsequently to the size of the containment required. Furthermore traywork and
conduits may need to be increased
2. The individual cores in a Cat6 cable are more tightly twisted. The cores are twisted to
reduce interference between cores. Therefore by a tighter twist the chances of a
similar signal clashing along the cable are minimised
3. The Cat6 cable has a central plastic separate. In both cables the cores are twisted into
4 pairs (8 cores overall). In addition in the Cat6 cable the central separator splits the 4
pairs into their own section. The diagrams below illustrate this

2. Difference between Cat5 and Cat6 Bandwidth Capability
Bandwidth is the range of frequencies that can be used for transmission of data along a data
cable. Therefore more data information can be carried over a larger bandwidth. Furthermore
it is the amount of data that can be transferred at one time
In short Cat6 cable has more than twice the bandwidth capability of Cat5e cable. Indeed the
comparison is 250Mhz against 100Mhz
Gigabit and 10 Gigabit Ethernet
A large portion of technology will be built based on the transmission capabilities of its
hardware. For example a PC may have a 1 Gigabit or 10 Gigabit Ethernet card built in.
Furthermore a data switch in the comms cabinet will be rated in a similar way.
This is a way Cat5e and Cat6 in which the capabilities of the different categories differ.
However they only differ in their capabilities and not to the ratified data cabling standards
All Copper data cabling is ratified on its performance over a 90m permanent link. For this
reason over 90m both Cat5e and Cat6 are only able to transmit 1 Gigabit Ethernet. However
Cat6 cable has the ability to transmit 10 Gigabit Ethernet upto 55 metres. However when
designing a structured cabling installation if 10 Gig is required then the overall cabling dseign
should allow for Cat6a as a minimum. For this purpose it is the minimum standard for a
10Gig install
The chart below shows the different cables and their capabilities as an example

3. Difference between Cat5 and Cat6 Material Costs
When comparing an overall installation of the 2 categories the main difference in price is in
the materials. For the most part the installation time of both cables is the same. Therefore the
difference is in the materials.
The structured cabling system components for any link are
 The cable itself
 Patch Panel
 Data Module
 Patch Leads
Each of these components costs more in Cat6 cabling. However the larger the installation the
less the overall percentage increase in cost it will be. In summary Cat6 cabling will be
approximately 15% more when compared with Cat5e cabling
In addition due to the larger size of Cat6 in some cases larger containment will be required.
generally on a new installation this will not make much difference as different containment
can be chosen. However in a situation when there is containment in place but not suitable
then a swap out cost can be incurred.
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