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My computer only has one USB-C port and I want to connect multiple USB-C devices to it.

I have trawled through Amazon but am amazed that I cannot find a single one. There are many hubs that have USB 3.1 USB-A ports but not USB-C ones.

Is there a limitation in the spec that prevents this being possible?

Giacomo1968
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NibblyPig
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    I've closed this because a lot of the answers are simply "here's one I've found" rather than answering the specific question of "why" and risks further devolving into nothing more than a collection of "pick my one!" answers. A useful answer has been posted, we don't need or want a hardware shopping thread. The question itself is not bad, but it is attracting the wrong kind of answers. – Mokubai Apr 04 '21 at 07:17

6 Answers6

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Thunderbolt 4

In 2021 Thunderbolt 4 docks are now available, which for the first time allow for USB-C / Thunderbolt true multi-port hubs.

For the first time, Thunderbolt 4 will offer docks with up to four Thunderbolt ports and universal cables up to 2 meters in length. – Intel press release

These hubs also seem to pass through USB-C DisplayPort Alt Mode signals, allowing them to be used with non-Thunderbolt devices.

Thunderbolt 4 hubs:

USB-C

Simple one-to-many USB-C hubs with a large number of ports, for some reason, do not really seem to exist.

There are some 2 and 4-port USB-C hubs now available, but none seem to be cheap, simple, or reliable. It's very easy to find 7-port USB-A 3.0 hubs from well-known companies; the same cannot be said for USB-C. There appears to be some kind of spec, chip, or marketing limitation the prevents them from being made.

Some of the same complaints are outlined here, from when zero port-duplicating "hubs" were available:

https://mjtsai.com/blog/2017/10/14/the-impossible-dream-of-usb-c/

None of these USB-C “hubs” actually give you more USB-C ports.

There is supposedly news for 2019/2020 that suggests hub chips may be coming soon:

Update (2018-07-30): Accidental Tech Podcast reports on a rumor that next year Intel will finally ship the chip that’s needed for making a USB-C that adds additional type-C ports.

http://atp.fm/episodes/284 (19:10)

We've heard from an anonymous person that Intel is finally releasing a hub chip for USB-C next year. We may not see products based on it until 2020.

Siguza
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pkamb
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  • @pkamb - Do you agree with the most recent edits to your answer? – Ramhound Apr 05 '21 at 04:00
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    @chx - That will get you suspended. Stick to editing your own answer to this question – Ramhound Apr 05 '21 at 04:03
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    I just rolled back [the edits](https://superuser.com/posts/1414046/revisions) @chx has made. The original poster (pkamb) has clearly rolled them back in the past and yet now, with the answers cleaned up here and there being a better focus chx is *still* violating the basic concept of respecting the original poster’s intent. This is mentioned in a comment here and elaborated on in the [meta post](https://meta.superuser.com/a/14447/167207) about this question and chx is still insisting on pushing this forward “till the cows come home.” To whose value and to what value? Your suspension, chx? – Giacomo1968 Apr 05 '21 at 04:13
  • @chx Please stop this nonsense. – Giacomo1968 Apr 05 '21 at 06:24
  • @chx the reason that I reverted your original edits was that large paragraphs of USB-C minutia + product recommendations are out of place in this answer, which is attempting to provide high-level guidance to the question of if any multi-port hubs exist at all. – pkamb Apr 05 '21 at 15:42
  • I do think the the question of TB4 hubs working with non-TB USB-C devices is interesting and worth knowing. @chx can you ask and answer that question on Super User? Then we can link to that question in a single sentence in the TB section of this answer. – pkamb Apr 05 '21 at 15:43
  • https://hardwarerecs.stackexchange.com/a/14758/9588 – chx Apr 05 '21 at 22:06
  • Just an update, but I [deleted my previous answer to this question](https://superuser.com/a/1534109/167207) because pretty much one year later the hub I found started to flake out and cause more headaches than solutions for me. Using a USB 3.1 hub with USB A to USB C cables right now and things are stable. Speed is 5Gbps which is not as fast as 10Gbps, but stability means more to me than speed. And Thunderbolt 3/4 hubs are too expensive and co-dependent on external power sources for my needs. – Giacomo1968 Apr 27 '21 at 17:23
  • Can someone add some header in the answer to this explaining in a simple sentence why a USB-C multi-port hub is not on the market? What is mentioned is currently the ONLY informative link about the very confusing state of getting more than 1:1 out of USB-C. The devices mentioned seem to claim this but reading the reviews do not appear to deliver. Also maybe a mention of any KVM solutions people have found that may work for some as a patch to not having a 1:MANY USB-C:USB-C solution – the_real_one May 27 '21 at 20:17
  • @the_real_one I've never understood why they don't exist, so I can't write that explainer. Hope someone can give the technical reason. Seems ridiculous when you can easily build "the same thing" at home via a 10+ port USB-A USB-3 multi-port hub plus individual A-to-C adapters or cables. – pkamb May 27 '21 at 20:30
  • Aside from the bits about TB4/USB4, this answer is mostly wrong/oversimplified, and I empathize with @chx's frustration here. The largest technical blocker for pure USB USB-C hubs is that if you try to release one (and they do exist) people will complain and leave negative reviews that video doesn't work. The second is that, practically speaking, it needs external power because USB-C more firmly promises more power. Once you get into video, TB3 just doesn't support multiple downstream ports, and MacOS doesn't support MST which is the natural way to get them through DisplayPort altmode. – Captain Segfault Jul 11 '21 at 20:02
  • @CaptainSegfault I mostly believe what you're saying, they *should* exist, but the fact remains that **no** 8-port USB-C simple hubs exist in the market. Even one that was clearly marked with "no monitor support!" would be exactly what people want... but no one sells them. There must be some kind of real technical or spec limitation. – pkamb Jul 14 '21 at 17:42
  • So just USB-C (not TB) to USB-C hubs exist, but they don't provide video? This answer suggests that they don't exist, but other answers have examples, albeit expensive ones. – sudo Dec 07 '21 at 06:05
  • @sudo Yes, this answer is/was misleading. There aren't a lot of them, and I don't know of any that have more than four ports, but they do exist and existed when this answer was posted. https://dancharblog.wordpress.com/2020/12/08/10-usb-c-hubs-with-2-or-more-usb-c-downstream-ports/ has a list with some examples. – Captain Segfault Dec 11 '21 at 20:57
  • @pkamb Another data only answer if you want a lot of ports and don't mind having only legacy power (and 5 gigabit) is to use C to A adapters. Most of those are spec violating crap (you can't just pass through the wires, you need a chip) but https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B074V4QRNK does the right thing and is pretty cheap. – Captain Segfault Dec 11 '21 at 21:02
  • I edited the answer and am open to suggested edits. Until the equivalent of the current cheap, reliable, 4 and 7-port USB-A 3.0 hubs can be bought with USB-C ports, I still wouldn't exactly call this question's product need met. – pkamb Dec 12 '21 at 17:40
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Also search a lot and only found one :

The Belkin 4-Port Mini USB-C Hub with Two USB-C

All four ports support only USB 3.0 speed (5 Gbps = 300 MB/sec effective).

However please note:

The USB-C 4-Port Mini Hub does not support pass-through charging and video output to monitor. This hub is only intended to use with USB-A and USB-C peripherals.

Update:

Found a 2nd one from Sitecom the CN-386:

Turn your USB-C port into 3 ultrafast USB-C ports and 1 USB-C Power Delivery Port

  • USB 3.1 Type-C input
  • 3 x USB 3.1 Type-C Output (10Gbps data and 7.5W power)
  • 1 x USB Type-C Power Delivery (100W power)
  • Supports USB SuperSpeed 10Gbps, downwards compatible with USB 3.0 / 2.0
  • Supports USB Battery Charging (BC) 1.2 up to 7.5W (5V / 1.5A)
Lonzak
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    Nice. Although I would really like to see a smaller version of this device, i.e. something that I can attach to a phone. Main goal is to connect USB-C headphones and charge my phone at the same time. – Sergiy Belozorov Feb 13 '20 at 16:27
  • Yeah but doesn't somethink like that work? https://www.amazon.com/Splitter-Extension-Smartphone-Converter-JKRED/dp/B07ZH5CSMQ – Lonzak Feb 17 '20 at 13:45
  • Most likely, this cable uses [Audio Adapter Accessory mode](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USB-C#Audio_Adapter_Accessory_Mode). Depending on the manufacturer of the phone, this may or may not work. The extra USB-C is for charging only and at 500mA rate only, so fast charging is not possible. – Sergiy Belozorov Feb 18 '20 at 14:17
  • The USB-C ports are according to the video "USB 3.1 5Gbps" ports (which means that they are effectively USB 3.0 ports) - not perfect but better than nothing. – Robert Mar 01 '20 at 12:45
  • Seeing that Sitecom also has a 1x USB-A (4.5W) int 2x USB-C (7.5W) + 2x USB-A (4,5W), 20.5W total without an additional power input makes the USB power delivery questionable to say the least: https://www.sitecom.com/en/usb-a-to-usb-a-usb-c-hub/cn-399/p/1925 – plaisthos Apr 30 '20 at 22:58
  • Sitecom now offers the [CN-386](https://www.sitecom.com/en/usb-c-hub-4-port/cn-386/p/1881) which has 3 x USB-C 10 Gb/s ports, plus one 100W PD port, which it seems doesn't handle data at all. – Tom Anderson Jul 04 '20 at 21:57
  • Hopefully this works for you, but I [deleted my previous answer to this question](https://superuser.com/a/1534109/167207) because pretty much one year later the hub I found started to flake out and cause more headaches than solutions for me. Using a USB 3.1 hub with USB A to USB C cables right now and things are stable. Speed is 5Gbps which is not as fast as 10Gbps, but stability means more to me than speed. And Thunderbolt 3/4 hubs are too expensive and co-dependent on external power sources for my needs. – Giacomo1968 Apr 27 '21 at 17:23
  • Note: The CN-386 seems to have a lot of really bad reviews stating that PD doesn't work with many adapters, and that for some people it appears as USB2.0 hub: https://www.amazon.com/Sitecom-CN-386-USB-C-Female-Delivery/dp/B07YN56F9T – Tomáš Kafka Sep 19 '22 at 07:40
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I found one with four USB-C ports! The Sitecom CN-385. It only goes up to 5GBit/s, but judging by the (admittedly just two) reviews on amazon, it is more reliable than its big brother, the CN-386, which has Power Delivery and 10GBit/s support.

enter image description here

iFreilicht
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    i ordered the SiteCom CN-386, where one of the ports is a 100W power delivery port - had to order it from amazon in the UK. But I can't get any display port monitors to work on this hub :(( OSX 10.14.6 – Tilo Jun 23 '20 at 00:54
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    @Tilo I think this hub doesn't support DP via USB-C, just plain old USB 3.1 Gen 1. This could be one of the reasons why few companies produce hubs like these, they lead to quite a bit of confusion. If you want to be sure, ask SiteCom directly. – iFreilicht Jun 27 '20 at 13:43
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    Hopefully this works for you, but I [deleted my previous answer to this question](https://superuser.com/a/1534109/167207) because pretty much one year later the hub I found started to flake out and cause more headaches than solutions for me. Using a USB 3.1 hub with USB A to USB C cables right now and things are stable. Speed is 5Gbps which is not as fast as 10Gbps, but stability means more to me than speed. And Thunderbolt 3/4 hubs are too expensive and co-dependent on external power sources for my needs. – Giacomo1968 Apr 27 '21 at 17:22
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Actually OWC is about to create a solution for this stalemate, but you have to look a step up, both in function and in price. However, given how long we waited all is fine: a Thunderbolt 4 hub.

https://eshop.macsales.com/shop/owc-thunderbolt-hub

It should also support USB-C standard, so it is also an USB-C hub.

mrmut
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    $149.00 is not the same as $14.90 which is around what most basic USB A hubs cost. – Giacomo1968 Apr 07 '21 at 19:28
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    Quality USB hubs were always expensive. Cheap ones are worth exactly what they cost (not much). – mrmut Apr 08 '21 at 21:39
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    A $29 USB hub is a fine quality hub. $149 to just have basic USB connectivity — without a need for Thunderbolt — is a waste of money. – Giacomo1968 Apr 09 '21 at 01:12
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    Hopefully this works for you, but I [deleted my previous answer to this question](https://superuser.com/a/1534109/167207) because pretty much one year later the hub I found started to flake out and cause more headaches than solutions for me. Using a USB 3.1 hub with USB A to USB C cables right now and things are stable. Speed is 5Gbps which is not as fast as 10Gbps, but stability means more to me than speed. And Thunderbolt 3/4 hubs are too expensive and co-dependent on external power sources for my needs. – Giacomo1968 Apr 27 '21 at 17:22
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So far, I’ve found a few hub chips that support USB 3.1, which can find us some hubs:

  • this forum post mentions the 3.1 chips VIA VL820 and Cypress HX3PD. The former seems to be in production use, I couldn’t find anything at that stage about the latter.
  • I also fount the 3.2 chip Realtek RTS5429, which seems to be used in exactly the following products:
flying sheep
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  • The first one also says `Charge up your devices at max speed with up to 2.4 Amps of power delivery.` but power delivery can't be measured in amps since the voltage can be varied... hmm... still, proper usb-3 usb-c ports is a step in the right direction! – NibblyPig Jun 11 '20 at 14:45
  • You’re right, [this review](https://techfruit.com/2019/06/27/review-juiced-vertexhub-usb-3-1-data-and-charging-hub/) says that it doesn’t actually have Power Delivery or Quickcharge. Disappointing. – flying sheep Jun 11 '20 at 16:00
  • Hopefully this works for you, but I [deleted my previous answer to this question](https://superuser.com/a/1534109/167207) because pretty much one year later the hub I found started to flake out and cause more headaches than solutions for me. Using a USB 3.1 hub with USB A to USB C cables right now and things are stable. Speed is 5Gbps which is not as fast as 10Gbps, but stability means more to me than speed. And Thunderbolt 3/4 hubs are too expensive and co-dependent on external power sources for my needs. – Giacomo1968 Apr 27 '21 at 17:22
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The Dell WD19 (just plain WD19, not the more expensive WD19TB) has two USB C ports, one of which is DisplayPort alternate mode capable. It provides 60W charging to non-Dell laptops (and 130W via proprietary means to Dell laptops). See the WD19 Userguide specifications.

As with all such products, buying one from eBay is significantly cheaper. Also, Dell has standardized its AC chargers so even if you get one without an AC adapter, any 7.4 mm plug Dell adapter works with it.

chx
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