The very best USB-C hub for 2025

It’s spectacular what tablets and ultraportable laptops can do. However to get probably the most performance out of them, it’s your decision just a few extra ports at your disposal, which is the place a USB-C hub comes into play. By connecting to only one port, these useful units provide you with additional USB connections, HDMI slots, SD card readers and Ethernet jacks. Plus most provide pass-through charging so you possibly can maintain your pill powered when you work with all of your peripherals attached. We examined greater than a dozen fashions to provide you with just a few nice picks for various conditions and customers. Listed here are the very best USB-C hubs based mostly on our testing.

Desk of contents

Greatest USB-C hubs for 2025

Photograph by Amy Skorheim / Engadget

The “109” in UGreen’s Revodok Pro 109 USB-C hub doubtless stands for the nine-in-one declare in its advertising and marketing supplies, however since a type of ports is energy solely, the variety of downstream connectors makes it extra of an eight-in-one. But it surely’s a great-performing hub nonetheless. It has all of the hookups that is likely to be lacking from a contemporary laptop computer, together with SD slots, USB-A ports, an Ethernet connection and a 4K HDMI hookup.

The 4K decision and 60Hz refresh fee seemed nice on my take a look at monitor and the information switch charges had been forward of different hubs in its worth vary. The velocity take a look at on an Ethernet cable was on par with that of a dearer USB-C dock, and I appreciated the design of the microSD slot. Most readers have you ever insert the cardboard all the way in which in, counting on a spring mechanism to push it again out once you’re achieved. Right here, the tip stands out simply sufficient that you would be able to merely pull the cardboard out. These spring-loaded ejectors by no means work on the primary attempt for me, so it is a extra elegant answer.

There’s only one usable downstream USB-C port; the opposite is barely able to delivering energy to your gadget. I want there was simply one extra USB-C so it might deal with each, say, a USB-C keyboard and webcam. However the three USB-A ports, with one supporting as much as 10Gbps charges, principally make up for that oversight. Total, the hub performs effectively and presents a well-rounded choice of connectors. For those who’d want a DisplayPort connection and do not want the information card slots, take a look at UGreen’s 8-in-1 Revodok hub.

It was actually a tricky name between this and the Anker 555 8-in-1 for the highest advice. They’ve a fairly related port array and the Anker USB-C hub is $15 cheaper. However the UGreen hub has a extra premium construct and a wire that is about two inches longer, plus there’s one additional USB-A port that might definitely come in useful.

Professionals

Good array of ports
HDMI 2.0 helps 4K displays at 60Hz
Beneficiant 10-inch cable
Three USB-A ports

Cons

Only one downstream USB-C port

$38 at Amazon

Photograph by Amy Skorheim / Engadget

This was my first expertise with a Wavlink product, as I used to be beforehand solely accustomed to them as a Wi-Fi router and extender model. My preliminary impression of the Wavlink USB-C 4K@60Hz was disappointment at its generic identify, however the performance-to-price ratio is so spectacular, it will get a go for the shortage of branding pizazz.

It’s slimmer than most hubs at about an inch-and-a-half huge, but the cable itself is a pair inches longer than the norm. The unit and the cables simply tuck behind a laptop computer, significantly because the ports run alongside only one edge, with the HDMI connection on the finish.

The cable can also be braided, making it really feel extra premium than its $30 price ticket would recommend — which is the overall theme right here. The HDMI 2.0 port can deal with a 4K exterior monitor at 60Hz, which needs to be a lot zippy sufficient for a mean workday, and I discovered the decision and lack of lag to be simply as marketed.

One of many two USB-A ports helps speedy 10Gbps transfers and the only USB-C jack is able to the identical fee. The webcam carried out effectively, even with a USB-A streaming gentle at full brightness (one thing different hubs had bother with), and I discovered knowledge switch speeds to exterior drives to be on par with and even sooner than dearer hubs.

After all, having only one downstream USB-C connection places a restrict in your setup: You’ll be able to have, for instance, a USB-C webcam or a USB-C keyboard plugged in, not each. However if you happen to want one thing with good monitor output, a few high-quality USB ports and a compact design, it is a good decide.

I additionally suggest Plugable’s equally cleverly named USB-C 4-in-1 hub. It’s a greenback cheaper than the Wavlink choice with an analogous array of ports that each one carried out effectively in my assessments. In the end, its shorter tethered cable and single USB-C port that both delivers energy or runs a peripheral led me to want Wavlink’s mannequin. However if you happen to don’t must cost your gadget by means of the port, you get a great hub for the cash with Plugable’s gadget.

Professionals

Slim and compact
Beneficiant 10-inch cable
Nice worth

Cons

Only one downstream USB-C port

$20 at Wavlink

Photograph by Amy Skorheim / Engadget

One concern with most USB-C hubs is an ironic lack of obtainable downstream USB-C ports. Many prime out at two, and a type of usually delivers energy solely and might’t run peripherals. Throughout three keyboard guides, our suggestions overwhelmingly require USB-C connectivity, all however certainly one of our recommended webcams use USB-C and lots of exterior storage drives depend on that port as effectively. Meaning if you need a hub that connects your keys, digicam and a drive on the identical time, it’s important to hunt for one thing suitable.

The EZQuest Slim Gen 2 hub provides you not only one or two usable Sort-C ports, however 5 of them. It’s additionally one of many few hubs that has a removable cable (and the equipped one is a beneficiant 20 inches lengthy). One port is for video output with a claimed 4K output at 60Hz — simply notice that this connector doesn’t assist audio or drive different peripherals. The remaining 4 ports adhere to the USB 3.1 Gen 2 customary, delivering as much as 10Gbps. As with all hub, the extra objects you have got plugged in, the decrease the speeds every port will have the ability to ship, in order that max 10-gigabit fee is for one port at a time.

The connections had been a lot for my setup, dealing with a keyboard, mouse, webcam and streaming gentle all on the identical time. (Since I haven’t got a USB-C monitor, I plugged the HDMI cable straight into my laptop computer). Even totally loaded, the unit stayed comparatively cool. Whereas the included cable is lengthy, the hub itself is tremendous compact and concerning the dimension of a Skor bar. All of the ports come out of 1 facet, so just like the price range decide above, it’s simple to rearrange all of your connections to look neat in your desk.

Professionals

Loads of USB-C ports
Removable and lengthy 20-inch cable

Cons

No USB-A ports
No HDMI port (helps USB-C video)

$80 at Amazon

Photograph by Amy Skorheim / Engadget

At $140, the worth of Belkin’s Connect Universal hub is edging into docking-station territory. But it surely doesn’t require a devoted energy provide and it has a compact construct, so it’s nonetheless decidedly a hub. That worth bump does get you just a few options that the majority hubs don’t have, particularly the choice of three USB-C ports (one port can be utilized for both energy supply or accent assist) and twin prolonged shows with an Apple MacBook (after you obtain the SiliconMotion driver).

Plenty of the hubs I examined had twin HDMI ports, however the second exterior show was solely able to mirroring the primary monitor and invariably dropped the decision of each supplemental screens. SiliconMotion’s InstantView software program will get round that by basically “sharing” a view of a tertiary display screen with the second monitor. That second monitor has a most refresh fee of 30Hz for 4K resolutions, however the first exterior show retains its 4K@60Hz visuals. I haven’t examined each choice on the market, however from what I’ve seen, that’s fairly good for a USB-C hub — something extra and also you’re doubtless taking a look at a docking station.

The Join Common 8-in-1 is on the bigger finish of the spectrum for this class, measuring about the identical as an iPhone however about twice as thick. The multitude of plugs meant I might run a webcam, keyboard, mouse, Litra gentle, two displays and join an Ethernet cable. There was nonetheless one USB-C port left over for an exterior drive or energy (although I simply used my MacBook’s MagSafe port). And since they’re all on one facet, the association on a desk appears to be like tidy, avoiding the spidery look of a hub with ports on all sides.

Shunting all of this connectivity does make the unit get fairly sizzling: it appeared to get hotter than all the different models I attempted. Whereas I by no means observed any in poor health results in consequence, I solely used it over the course of a pair days and ponder whether there’d be any heat-related points with prolonged use.

Professionals

A lot of ports
Good number of ports
Driver permits for 2 prolonged exterior shows

Cons

Costly
Will get highly regarded throughout use

$140 at Belkin

What to search for in a USB-C hub

Hub vs docking station

The very first thing to resolve is whether or not you want a USB-C hub or a USB-C docking station. There’s no set customary for what differentiates the 2, however docking stations are inclined to have extra ports, provide a separate DC energy adapter and value extra, with some reaching upwards of $400. Now we have a separate information to the best docking stations to take a look at if you happen to’re searching for one thing larger than what we’re discussing right here. USB-C hubs, in distinction, have between 4 and 10 ports, can assist pass-through charging and sometimes value between $30 and $150.

Hubs, generally additionally known as dongles and even multiport adapters, make extra sense for smaller setups with only a few peripherals, reminiscent of a monitor, a wired keyboard and mouse, and the occasional exterior drive. They’re additionally extra moveable, since they’re small and require no devoted energy. That could possibly be helpful if you happen to change work areas however need to convey your equipment with you, or if you wish to exchange your laptop computer with a more powerful tablet. A docking station or Thunderbolt dock makes extra sense for somebody who wants a strong setup for his or her laptop computer, together with a number of exterior displays, webcams, stream decks, microphones and so forth.

Each docks and hubs make it simple to seize your laptop computer off your desk for a gathering or different transient relocation and once you get again, you solely must plug in a single cable to get all of your equipment reconnected. After all, if you happen to simply must plug in a single peripheral, you could not want a hub or a dock, a easy USB-C adapter, like HDMI to USB-C or USB-A to USB-C, might do the trick.

Ports

For a USB-C hub to work, it wants to connect with a port in your laptop computer or pill that helps video, knowledge and energy — all of which is roofed by something listed as USB 3.0 or higher, together with USB4 and Thunderbolt 3 and Thunderbolt 4. The port, in fact, must be Sort-C as effectively. The ocean of laptops out there may be huge, so it’s laborious to make generalizations, however trendy laptops, together with Home windows and Apple fashions, ought to have not less than one USB-C port that may suffice, and certainly, each certainly one of our prime picks for the best laptops do — together with our prime decide, the M4 MacBook Air.

Subsequent, it’s a matter of discovering a great USB-C hub that has the fitting connections in your wants. Most hubs provide some combo of HDMI, USB, SD card reader, Ethernet and three.5 mm ports. If in case you have a 4K monitor and would really like not less than a 60Hz refresh fee, you’ll want a hub with an HDMI 2.0 port — HDMI 1.4 solely goes as much as 30Hz. HDMI 2.1 will deal with 4K at as much as 120Hz, however hubs which have adopted that customary aren’t as widespread simply but. Remember the fact that a low refresh fee could cause your display screen to really feel laggy, making your mouse seem glitchy and your webcam actions to look delayed.

Further USB ports on these equipment are often USB Sort-A or USB Sort-C. They’ll assist knowledge with totally different switch charges, sometimes 5Gbps or 10Gbps. Some ports solely deal with passthrough energy and no knowledge, and a few can do knowledge, energy and video, so it’s greatest to examine the spec listing to be sure you’re getting the assist you want. Remember the fact that a hub might invoice itself as a 7-in-1, however a type of ports will not be usable for something aside from charging.

Commonplace SD and microSD playing cards are helpful for transferring knowledge from cameras and the like or for offloading recordsdata out of your laborious drive, and lots of hubs have these slots. Ethernet ports might ship sooner web speeds than your Wi-Fi and a hub with a 3.5mm jack can convey again the wired headphone connection that some laptops have ditched.

Energy supply

Practically all the USB-C hubs I examined assist passthrough charging. Meaning in case your laptop computer or pill solely fees by way of USB, you don’t must take up one other port in your laptop computer to maintain every thing topped up. Not like a docking station, powering a hub is elective. The one exception is if you wish to shut the lid in your laptop computer when you work on an exterior monitor. Most computer systems will go into sleep mode if the lid is closed with out energy, so both the laptop computer or the hub will have to be plugged into the wall to stop that from occurring.

Lots of the newer hubs embody a 100W USB-C energy supply (PD) port, with a wholesome 80 to 85 watts going to your Mac, PC, iPad or Android pill (the hubs take a bit of the juice for themselves, therefore the 15-watt or so distinction). In my assessments, a powered USB hub ran hotter than when it wasn’t passing the cost by means of, so I want to energy the pc straight utilizing its personal charger. However for tablets or different units with no additional ports, that PD choice is essential.

Some PD ports are additionally knowledge ports — which is each good and dangerous. On one hand, it feels wasteful to make use of a wonderfully good knowledge port only for boring outdated electrical energy. However alternatively, USB-C connections that solely carry a cost are much less versatile, and it makes it seem to be it has extra accent hookups than it truly does.

Design

There’s surprisingly little design variation amongst hubs. Most appear to be a flat slab, a bit smaller than a smartphone, and have an hooked up Sort-C host cable. The hues vary from a silvery black to a silvery grey. Some are thinner than others, some have all ports on one edge and a few have ports on each side. All of that is simply to say that aesthetics most likely received’t make or break your shopping for determination.

One variation that might tip the scales is the size of the cable. An extended one offers you extra freedom as you prepare the hub in your desk, doubtlessly even letting you disguise it behind your laptop computer. Or you could want a shorter one to maintain the hub neatly set beside your laptop computer.

How we take a look at USB-C hubs

Earlier than we take a look at something, we check out what’s accessible and the way they’ve been obtained by consumers, forum-goers and different publications. I grew to become accustomed to just a few respected manufacturers after I was testing docking stations, so I seemed into hubs from these firms as effectively. I centered on objects that will assist with a mean day of productiveness — not high-end setups or demanding gaming conditions. As soon as I settled on a dozen or so that will make good candidates, I had them shipped to my humble workplace within the desert and began testing them out over the course of some weeks.

I used an M1 MacBook Professional operating MacOS Sonoma because the host pc and plugged in equipment that embody a 4K Dell monitor, a ZSA USB-C ergo keyboard, a Logitech USB-A gaming mouse, an Elgato USB-C 4K webcam, a Logitech streaming gentle, a USB-A 3.0 Sandisk thumb drive, a USB-C Samsung T7 Protect exterior drive and a pair of wired headphones I obtained at no cost on an airplane (I ought to most likely put money into some wired headphones, however the wire dangling on my chest drives me nutty so all my earbuds are wi-fi). I used high-end HDMI and USB-C cables to make sure that any knowledge or connectivity points weren’t associated to my tools.

Then I put every USB-C hub by means of a gamut of fundamental assessments. I checked out what could possibly be plugged in without delay, the decision on the monitor, knowledge switch speeds, the general construct high quality of the hub and basic usability components, like the position of the ports and the size of the cords. And, lastly, the price-to-value ratio helped decide the very best ones for just a few totally different use circumstances.

Different hubs we examined

HyperDrive Subsequent 10 Port USB-C Hub

There’s quite a bit to love about HyperDrive’s Next 10 Port USB-C Hub. The tethered cable is a lavish 13 inches lengthy, the HDMI 2.0 port outputs clear and crisp 4K visuals at 60Hz and the high-speed knowledge transfers are nice. It has the coveted two USB-C knowledge ports plus a PD port, and there’s even a headphone jack. The one factor that holds again a full-throated endorsement is the way in which our unit dealt with a streaming gentle. Having it on at full brightness made the webcam flicker each time. The difficulty went away at 75 p.c brightness, however the identical drawback didn’t occur on some other hub I examined.

Anker 341 USB-C Hub (7-in-1)

There’s nothing mistaken with the Anker 341 USB-C hub. In truth it’s a present advice in our iPad accessories guide and it comes at an excellent $35 worth. It provides you two USB-A ports in addition to SD slots. However at this level, a 1.4 HDMI connection, which solely helps 4K decision at 30Hz feels a bit retro. There’s additionally only a single USB-C downstream port and the information switch assessments proved to be a contact slower than the opposite hubs. However if you happen to’ve obtained a decrease decision monitor and don’t want multiple USB-C, you received’t be upset with it.

Anker 555 8-in-1

It was a tricky name between the UGreen Revodoc Professional 109 and the Anker 555 8-in-1 for our prime advice. Each have an analogous port array with an HDMI, Ethernet, two USB Sort A, a PD USB-C and a USB-C 3.2 on the 555. And the Anker USB-C hub is $15 cheaper. We went with the UGreen hub for its extra premium construct, additional USB-A port and longer wire that provides you two additional inches to work with. However if you wish to save a couple of dollars this hub is a worthwhile decide.

Startech 4-Port USB-C Hub (knowledge solely)

I solely grew to become conscious of Startech after I began researching for this information. The standard is first rate and the yellow accents are a welcome little bit of colour within the in any other case very grey world of hubs. The efficiency is strong, with no hiccups that I encountered. The model’s 4-Port USB-C Hub has a protracted wire that wraps across the hub itself, which is exclusive. It doesn’t hassle with energy supply, which isn’t a difficulty if you happen to can energy your pc straight. However the 4 USB ports (three Sort-A and one Sort-C) max out at 5Gbps and there’s no HDMI connector. It goes for $46, and sadly for it, there are cheaper methods to get just a few extra USB ports in your setup.