You’re probably very familiar with USB-A ports-they’re the rectangular ones that always seem to be upside down every time you try to plug in a cable. The type of physical connector is denoted by a letter, either A, B, or C. USB, which stands for Universal Serial Bus, comes in a few flavors, and understanding their differences helps when purchasing a hub. Things to consider before buying the best USB hub More than a dozen USB hubs were considered before arriving at our top-five choices. To a lesser extent, and where warranted, the price was taken into account as well. We focused on the criteria of speed, number of ports, type of ports, and portability when considering which hubs to include on this list. When evaluating the best USB hubs, we consulted external reviews, talked with computer experts, read manufacturer spec sheets, and relied on our own professional experience.

Best budget: Sabrent 4-Port USB 2.0 Hub.

Best for desktops: Sabrent 10-port USB Hub.

Best for multimedia: Anker PowerExpand Elite 13-in-1.Best for business travel: Belkin USB-C Hub MultiPortAdapter Dock.Best overall: Anker PowerExpand 8-in-1 USB C Adapter.Finding the best USB hubs means sifting through a lot of products, so read on to find our favorites. Thanks to upgraded design philosophies, the best USB hubs not only look nicer on your desk but are also small enough to drop into a bag for easy and convenient travel. For laptops that also draw power through the USB port, many hubs provide powered pass-through connections, and some even have jacks dedicated to charging devices like phones, tablets, and wireless earbuds. They sometimes include Micro or standard SD card readers, and Ethernet ports for networking your machine. USB hubs not only give you more USB-C and A ports, but they often include HDMI outputs for running multimedia presentations or using a second monitor. These handy hubs help connect just about any peripheral including external drives, monitors, card readers, and more.

The best USB hubs reclaim all the ports computers have lost in the pursuit of thinner, smaller, and lighter machines.

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