Best USB Hub for Mac
With a typical USB hub, a single port can be expanded to offer numerous additional USB hubs or entirely different ports.
This is useful on a desktop PC. On a laptop though? It’s game changing. Suddenly your Macbook Air that normally only has one or two USB Type-C ports now has 3, 4, 5, or 6!
That means you can charge the laptop while also streaming to a large monitor, while also using your iPad to extend your display, and reading off of a microSD card.
In this post, we’ll break down the five best USB Hubs for Macs.
Top 5 USB Hubs
Product
Features
Price
Purgo USB C Hub Adapter Dongle
USB C Hub, 6 in 1 Aluminum Type C Hub Adapter
AUKEY USB Hub 3.0 Portable Aluminum 4 Port USB 3.0
HyperDrive Mac USB C Hub Adapter, Sanho USB Type C
USB C Hub HDMI Adapter,QGeeM 7 in 1 Type C Hub
Purgo USB C Hub Adapter Dongle
If you’ve made the switch to a Macbook Air, then you are no doubt starting to get to grips with the “dongle life.” That is to say that you’re learning what it is to be entirely reliant on dongles and accessories in order to access your basic functionality. While the Air is a fantastic product still, it has certainly sacrificed a lot of functionality in exchange for its svelte looks.
And that’s the bizarre thing: because often adding a USB hub is going to ruin that clean aesthetic anyway! That’s why we were big fans of this Purgo dongle. This is a USB hub that sits entirely flush to the device when plugged in, and that matches the aluminium color tone of the Macbook line perfectly. You can leave this plugged in and slip it into your bag, with no concern for it being knocked or tugged when you take it in and out.
The other thing we love about this hub is that it offers a significant amount of extra functionality and power. The HDMI port found here for example is a 4K one, meaning that you can stream exquisite high-quality images to a larger display. Along with that, you are getting two USB 3.0 ports, and two Thunderbolt 3.5K (USB Type-C) ports. We might have liked to have seen one more of those for good measure, but the balance here is still superb (and this isn’t something that other products are offering either).
It’s not the cheapest USB Hub for Mac, but it certainly is one of the best!
Pros
Cons
USB C Hub, 6 in 1 Aluminum Type C Hub Adapter
This is another USB hub that has made the smart design decision to sit flush with the device using it, and to try and match the color scheme. It also provides a wide range of different ports that make it very useful and easy to use.
But there are also some key differences here, and it is those differences that will really set this apart from the previous option.
This time around you get three USB 3.0 ports, which is useful if you still use a lot of tech from the last few years. That means just the one USB Type-C port however (rather than Thunderbolt 3.5).
That’s a bit of a shame, seeing as this device also takes up both USB Type-C ports on the latest Macbooks. That means you’re actually exchanging two USB Type-Cs for a single one! And seeing as you’ll be using that to charge the device, it leaves you without the fastest connection.
So why is it on our best list? Well, that small issue aside, what is very useful is having both a miniSD card slot AND a microSD card slot. This is excellent for productivity, and for creative professionals working with big images or video files.
Those three USB 3.0 ports are also very generous, and mean you can still plug into a lot of other devices at once. And in compensation for the omission, the price tag is much more affordable this time around.
Pros
Cons
AUKEY USB Hub 3.0 Portable Aluminum 4 Port USB 3.0
And now for something entirely different. This time around, no USB Type-C or Thunderbolt at all. All you’re getting is USB 3.1. If that scares you off, so be it!
But for those that can make do with that arrangement, this option has a lot else going for it.
That’s because this is not just a dongle but rather a “hub.” That only really makes a difference form a design point of view, but the result is something quite noticeable.
This dock connects to your Mac or Macbook via a useful 1.6ft cable, which means it will sit neatly next to it. It has a smart, raised design which offers you all the sockets in an easily-accessible manner. From there, it’s easy to plug in your memory sticks, or even a keyboard and a mouse.
This can help to keep your cables tidy, and means that everything you need is within easy reach. We really liked the set-up and while it doesn’t offer a huge range of extra ports, what it does do is to make those ports neater and more accessible.
Pros
Cons
HyperDrive Mac USB C Hub Adapter, Sanho USB Type C
It’s expensive, but this is one of the smartest and most powerful USB hubs on the market for any Mac user.
That’s because the HyperDrive Mac USB C Hub Adapter offers nearly everything that the previous options on this list offer.. combined!
In exchange for your two USB Type-C ports, you’re getting a Thunderbolt 3 port, USB Type-C, two USB 3.0, one microSD, one miniSD, a Mini DP (which you hardly ever see any more) AND a HDMI cable capable of 4K output!
That means you can charge your device at the same time as transferring data across multiple devices, and streaming the whole thing to a monitor. We really love the sheer flexibility this offers, and once again it all comes in a package that sits entirely flush to your device.
Pros
Cons
USB C Hub HDMI Adapter,QGeeM 7 in 1 Type C Hub
While the previous option might offer the most horsepower, this alternative from QGeeM is in many ways the superior product – thanks in no small measure to its sheer value.
Despite offering another excellent array of different ports: 4K HDMI, USB Type-C, Thunderbolt 3, MicroSD, MiniSD, and three USB 3.0… this device still only costs a fraction of the HyperDrive! Not only that, but it actually only takes up one of your precious USB Type-C ports, meaning that you’ve got space for a second dongle! It’s like black magic.
On top of that, the device attaches using a cable and has ports on all three remaining sides. This might not seem like a big deal but it really is.
Why? Because normally plugging a device into one port will block several of the others. Thanks to the smart organization here, you can more easily have multiple large items plugged in at once.
Pros
Cons
Buyer’s Guide
When it comes to choosing a USB hub, there are a number of different elements to consider.
On the one hand, you need to think about the number of ports that you are going to need of course. But perhaps more important is what kinds of ports those are, and it’s also very important to think about the accessibility of those ports.
Two ports directly next to one another for example might not be easy to use, seeing as any device that has any width is going to block the ports next to it.
Thunderbolt 3.5 ports are by far the fastest and the most versatile, so getting as many of these as possible is always useful. Likewise, a HDMI port can be extremely useful, just as creative types will benefit from microSD.
Conclusions
Whatever your needs though, you’ll find that any of the hubs on this list are more than up to the task thanks to a great design, portable form factor, and reliable performance.
Choose the ports that you need, think about your available budget, and then choose the option that works from the list.
Welcome to the dongle life! At least when they’re this good, you won’t mind plugging in.