CCTV TOOLKIT

PoE Budget Calculator

Check total camera power against your switch power budget.

Free to use · Live results · Transparent formulas

A practical answer, with clear assumptions

Check whether a switch’s total PoE budget covers your cameras and planned power headroom. Enter peak power drawn at the switch port, including cable loss when applicable.

How to use this calculator

Check the exact camera power specification with every intended feature enabled.
Determine the worst-case switch-port draw, including cable loss.
Enter the switch’s available PoE budget, excluding power reserved for other devices.
Confirm the total result, per-port power limits and correct PoE standard.

The calculation

Peak load W = cameras × peak port watts
Required budget W = peak load × (1 + headroom/100)
Remaining W = switch PoE budget − required budget

What the result includes

Use peak rather than typical draw, including IR illumination, heaters, motors and startup behavior.
The input is switch-side power. A device-side rating may need a cable-loss allowance.
The total power budget does not establish the switch’s per-port limit, available port count or supported PoE type.
This is a total-budget calculation. It does not certify electrical compliance or predict voltage drop.

Common questions

Does a switch’s own power-supply rating equal the PoE budget?

Not necessarily. Use the manufacturer’s stated available PoE budget after the switch’s own consumption.

Can cameras with mixed power ratings be calculated?

Use the sum of peak port loads divided by the number of cameras as an average. Check every individual port separately.

Keep planning

Visualize camera coverage, compare camera specifications or check recorder requirements.

Formulas are documented on this page and implemented directly. These planning estimates should be checked against actual system measurements. Sources & methodology →