Is Cat6 faster than Cat5e?

Cat6 has the higher cabling performance specification, but Ethernet speed is negotiated by the active equipment and supported by the complete channel. A Cat6 cable between two 1Gbps devices is still a 1Gbps link.

The practical advantage is greater performance headroom and support for applications that place more demanding requirements on the cabling, rather than every packet somehow travelling faster merely because the sheath says Cat6.