Cisco Meraki MX80 vs MX85
The MX80 is an end-of-life branch security appliance; the MX85 is its modern replacement with 4x the firewall throughput, more ports, and current SD-WAN/Advanced Security feature support. If you run MX80s, the MX85 is the supported upgrade and removes the performance ceiling on cloud and VPN traffic.
Cisco Meraki MX80
End-of-life medium-branch cloud-managed security appliance and SD-WAN gateway.
- 250 Mbps stateful firewall throughput
- Five GbE ports; up to ~100 recommended users
- End of sale and end of support; no longer eligible for current firmware roadmap
- Limited headroom for modern cloud, VPN, and threat-inspection loads
Cisco Meraki MX85
Current mid-size branch SD-WAN and security appliance with Advanced Security support.
- 1 Gbps stateful firewall throughput (4x the MX80)
- Dual WAN with SFP and RJ45, eight LAN GbE plus SFP, integrated PoE
- Up to ~250 recommended users; Auto VPN SD-WAN
- Advanced Security: IDS/IPS, AMP, content filtering, geo-firewalling
Cisco Meraki MX80 vs Cisco Meraki MX85: spec comparison
| Spec | Cisco Meraki MX80 | Cisco Meraki MX85 |
|---|---|---|
| Stateful firewall throughput | 250 Mbps | 1 Gbps |
| Site-to-site VPN throughput | Up to 100 Mbps | Up to 500 Mbps |
| Recommended max users | ~100 | ~250 |
| WAN interfaces | Shared GbE (RJ45) | 2x GbE SFP + 2x GbE RJ45 (1 PoE-in) |
| LAN interfaces | 5x GbE RJ45 total | 8x GbE RJ45 + 2x GbE SFP |
| SFP support | No | Yes (WAN and LAN SFP) |
| Auto VPN / SD-WAN | Yes | Yes |
| Advanced Security (IDS/IPS, AMP, filtering) | Limited / legacy | Full (with Advanced Security license) |
| Form factor | Desktop / rack | 1U rack-mountable |
| Lifecycle status | End of sale and end of support | Current shipping product |
Choose Cisco Meraki MX80 if
There is no reason to buy a new MX80. Keep an existing unit only as a stopgap until you can schedule the MX85 swap, since the MX80 is past end of support.
Choose Cisco Meraki MX85 if
Choose the MX85 for any active branch: it quadruples firewall throughput, adds SFP uplinks and more LAN ports, scales to ~250 users, and runs the current Meraki SD-WAN and Advanced Security feature set.
Verdict
Migrate from MX80 to MX85. The MX80 is end of life with a 250 Mbps ceiling that throttles modern broadband and cloud traffic, while the MX85 delivers 1 Gbps firewall throughput, more interfaces, and full Advanced Security on supported hardware. Plan the cutover rather than extending the MX80.
Frequently asked questions
Is the Meraki MX80 still supported?
No. The MX80 is end of sale and end of support. To stay on the current firmware and security roadmap you need to move to a supported model such as the MX85.
What replaces the Meraki MX80?
The MX85 is the modern mid-branch replacement, offering roughly four times the firewall throughput, more ports, SFP uplinks, and current SD-WAN and Advanced Security features.
How much faster is the MX85 than the MX80?
The MX85 provides 1 Gbps stateful firewall throughput versus 250 Mbps on the MX80, and up to 500 Mbps site-to-site VPN versus about 100 Mbps.
Can I migrate MX80 config to the MX85?
Because both are managed in the Meraki dashboard, much of the network policy, VLAN, and Auto VPN configuration carries over logically. You add the MX85, license it, apply your template, and swap.
More Meraki MX comparisons
Specs are for planning and may change; Uniqcli confirms the current Cisco bill of materials and pricing on your quote. Cisco, Catalyst, Nexus, Meraki, and Firepower are trademarks of Cisco Systems, Inc.; Uniqcli LLC is an independent authorized Cisco partner.