Zyxel GS1100-24ES: Specs, Features, Pros & Cons
Zyxel puts both a wall-mount kit and a rack-mounting kit in the GS1100-24ES box, so the same 24-port switch can hang in a utility closet, sit on a shelf or take a slot in a 19-inch rack.
It is the largest model in the GS1100 Switchable Series: twenty-four gigabit RJ-45 ports in a case 280 mm wide and 44 mm tall, which is the height of one rack unit, so in a rack it takes a single slot. There is no fan, and Zyxel rates it at 0 dBA. Three DIP switches on the front stand in for a management page, toggling loop prevention, Energy Efficient Ethernet and the port LEDs.
Zyxel's specification table answers the questions an unmanaged switch usually leaves open. The 48 Gbps fabric covers all twenty-four ports at full duplex at once, forwarding is rated at 35.7 million packets per second, the MAC table holds 16,000 addresses and jumbo frames up to 12 KB pass through. None of it needs setting up.
The series stops PoE at sixteen ports, in the GS1100-16EPS, so this model powers nothing. Every port is gigabit, with no 2.5G socket and no SFP slot for a faster uplink, so a Wi-Fi 7 access point or a 2.5G NAS plugged in here links at 1 Gbps and shares one gigabit uplink with twenty-three other ports. There are no VLANs, no link aggregation and no traffic statistics.
Category strengths
Where the Zyxel GS1100-24ES beats the median
- More total ports ?24 vs 10 (median)
- More gigabit ports ?24 vs 0 (median)
- A higher switching capacity ?48 Gbps vs 40 Gbps (median)
- Has rack-mountable ?
- A much lower power consumption ?12.21 W vs 26.5 W (median)
- A slightly higher forwarding rate ?35.7 Mpps vs 32.73 Mpps (median)
Where the Zyxel GS1100-24ES trails the median
- Fewer PoE ports ?0 vs 4 (median)
- No VLAN support ?
- No link aggregation ?
- No Quality of Service (QoS) ?
- No IGMP snooping ?
- No cloud management ?
How this VS Score was computed
Score 50: each known spec is measured against the median of all network switches (17 products), then weighted; 50 means level with that median. In classes of six or more, a value beyond the class’s 10th–90th percentile range counts as that limit, so one extreme product cannot set the scale. 85% of the scoreable weight could be used; unknown values, features not applicable to this class and proxies (battery capacity where a rated life exists) add or remove nothing.
| Specification | This product | Cohort median | Score weight | Points moved |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total ports | 24 | 10 | 2 | +100.0 |
| Gigabit ports | 24 — capped at the class’s upper range (16) | 0 | 1.5 | +75.0 |
| PoE ports | 0 | 4 | 1.2 | −57.6 |
| VLAN support | No | 59% of the class have it | 0.8 | −38.4 |
| PoE standard | None | PoE+ (802.3at) | 0.8 | −26.4 |
| Management level | Unmanaged | Smart managed | 1 | −25.0 |
| Power consumption | 12.21 | 26.5 | 0.5 | +25.0 |
| Link aggregation | No | 53% of the class have it | 0.5 | −24.0 |
| Quality of Service (QoS) | No | 62% of the class have it | 0.5 | −24.0 |
| Cloud management | No | 50% of the class have it | 0.4 | −19.2 |
| Switching capacity | 48 | 40 | 1.5 | +15.0 |
| Rack-mountable | Yes | 35% of the class have it | 0.3 | +15.0 |
| IGMP snooping | No | 60% of the class have it | 0.3 | −14.4 |
| Forwarding rate | 35.7 | 32.73 | 0.8 | +4.0 |
| 2.5G ports | 0 | 0 | 1 | +0.0 |
| 10G ports | 0 | 0 | 0.8 | +0.0 |
| SFP/SFP+ ports | 0 | 0 | 0.5 | +0.0 |
| MAC address table | 16 | 16 | 0.3 | +0.0 |
Not scored: PoE budget (unknown: not scored); Jumbo frame support (standard for the class (100% have it)); Fanless (standard for the class (80% have it)); Metal housing (unknown: not scored).
Editor’s note
Running flat out around the clock, the GS1100-24ES would use about 107 kWh a year at Zyxel's full-load rating of 12.21 W, and it idles at 3.38 W with nothing plugged in. For a switch that stays on for a decade, the fanless case is worth more than the low wattage: there is no bearing to wear out and no fan to clog with dust.
The 126 mm depth is the other practical number. It fits shallow wall-mounted network cabinets, where a full-depth rack switch would stop the door closing, and the rack ears let it share a standard rack with a patch panel later.
The judgement turns on what is plugged in. A house with every room wired back to one panel gets 24 gigabit ports and a loop-prevention switch for the day someone patches the same jack twice, and nothing to configure. A house that adds PoE cameras ends up with injectors or a second, powered switch beside this one, and a flat network where the cameras, the TV and the guests' phones all see each other. That second scenario is where an unmanaged 24-port switch stops being the cheap option and becomes the part you replace.
I would buy it for the first house without hesitation. For the second, Ubiquiti's UniFi Switch Pro 24 PoE shows what the managed alternative looks like, with power on every port and VLANs through a UniFi controller, in a 1U rack chassis.
Specifications
Quality bars show where each figure sits between the lowest and highest of the 17 network switches this VS Score is measured against.
Ports
Power over Ethernet
Performance
Management
Design & power
Networking assessment
What the specification table does not say on its own: what this device needs to connect, what speeds are realistic, what costs extra, and where it falls short. Every statement below is read from the verified sheet or written by an editor — nothing is estimated.
Test environment
Research-based assessment: this brief is derived from the manufacturer’s published specifications for the Zyxel GS1100-24ES and the documents listed under Sources and verification. We have not run this unit on our own network, so nothing here is a measurement of ours.
Connection requirements
Unmanaged: it plugs into any router’s LAN port and needs no configuration, but it also offers none — no VLANs, no port monitoring.
Ports: 24 in total, of which 24 are Gigabit.
Throughput expectations
Switching capacity is 48 Gbps, enough for every port to run flat out at once — the usual case for a home or small-office switch.
Jumbo frames are supported, which helps large file transfers between NAS and desktop.
Security support
Security-update cadence is not something manufacturers publish as a specification; see Support and updates below.
Known limitations
Not offered, according to the spec sheet: vLAN support, link aggregation, quality of Service (QoS), cloud management.
2 specifications are not published by the manufacturer and are shown as Unknown rather than guessed.
Support and updates
We have not found a published firmware support-lifetime commitment for this model. Update policies differ widely between brands; check the support page linked under Sources and verification before relying on it for a long deployment, and treat a device that has stopped receiving security updates as due for replacement.
Sources and verification
Verification
- First published
- Specifications last checked
- Sheet completeness
- 20 of 22 specifications verified; the rest show as Unknown and are never estimated or scored
- Page type
- Product specification page — Compiled from the manufacturer’s published specifications and the cited sources; this is not a hands-on test.
- Basis
- Research-based: specifications and editorial text were compiled from the documents listed here and the manufacturer’s published data. We have not tested this unit ourselves; where independent measurements are mentioned they belong to the linked publication.
Network Switches with similar specs to the Zyxel GS1100-24ES
Ratings & reviews
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The bottom line
The Zyxel GS1100-24ES earns a VS Score of 50, level with the median of the 17 network switches it is measured against.
- Who it’s for
- A whole-house wiring panel or a small office rack where up to 24 wired jacks need joining at gigabit, silently, with the freedom to mount the same switch on a wall, a shelf or a rack.
- Who should look elsewhere
- Anyone who needs PoE for cameras or access points, VLANs to keep guests and smart-home gear apart, or any port faster than a gigabit.
- The trade-off that matters
- Twenty-four ports with no management means every device shares one flat network. The day cameras or guests need separating, this is the switch that has to go.
- The main alternative
- Zyxel GS1100-16EPS: sixteen ports with PoE+ on every one and a 135 W budget, if cameras or access points share the panel.
The VS Score is calculated from the weighted specifications above, each measured against the median of comparable network switches — a shortlisting guide, not a substitute for your own priorities. See how we score.
