The BEST Linear Switches in 2023 (20+ Switch Comparison)

Today we'll be comparing over 20 popular linear switches and giving each a score out of 100 based on the sound and the feel, in the quest to find the best linear switch in 2023.
Chapters:
0:00 Intro
0:15 Gateron Milky Yellow (Stock)
0:21 Gateron Milky Yellow (L+F)
0:27 Cherry "New Nixie" (Stock)
0:34 Cherry "New Nixie" (L+F)
0:42 Akko CS Cream Yellow Pro (Stock)
0:48 Akko CS Cream Yellow Pro (L+F)
0:55 KTT Strawberry (Stock)
1:02 KTT Strawberry (L+F)
1:08 Gateron G Pro Silver 2.0 (Stock)
1:14 Gateron G Pro Silver 2.0 (L+F)
1:20 Gateron China Joy (Stock)
1:27 Gateron China Joy (L+F)
1:33 Durock POM Piano (Stock)
1:40 Durock POM Piano (L+F)
1:46 KTT Kang White (Stock)
1:52 KTT Kang White (L+F)
1:59 TTC Gold Pink (Stock)
2:05 TTC Gold Pink (L+F)
2:11 Akko CS Matcha Green (Stock)
2:16 Akko CS Matcha Green (L+F)
2:22 Wuque Studios Aurora Clear (Stock)
2:28 Wuque Studios Aurora Clear (L+F)
2:34 Gateron Oil King (Stock)
2:40 Gateron Oil King (L+F)
2:47 Gateron Ink Black V2 (Stock)
2:53 Gateron Ink Black V2 (L+F)
2:59 Keyfirst Bling Blue (Stock)
3:05 Keyfirst Bling Blue (L+F)
3:12 Wuque Studios Morandi (Stock)
3:19 Wuque Studios Morandi (L+F)
3:25 Everglide Aqua King (Stock)
3:31 Everglide Aqua King (L+F)
3:38 C3 Equalz Tangerine (Stock)
3:45 C3 Equalz Tangerine (L+F)
3:52 NovelKeys Cream Linear (Stock)
3:58 NovelKeys Cream Linear (L+F)
4:05 JWK Alpaca (Stock)
4:11 JWK Alpaca (L+F)
4:18 Akko CS Jelly Black (Stock)
4:24 Akko CS Jelly Black (L+F)
4:31 Gateron Box Ink Black V2 (Stock)
4:37 Gateron Box Ink Black V2 (L+F)
4:43 Switch Comparison Chart
4:53 Credit to KEKeebs
5:03 Overall Top Picks
Don't follow us on Twitter because Elon Musk is getting even worse somehow: / minemousereview
What do we use?
Eric
Monitor: Asus VG249Q, AOC 24G2
Mouse: Lamzu Atlantis OG V2 4K
Keyboard: QwertyKeys x Cub Studio Cub65 & Wooting 60HE Burger Mounted
Mousepad: Lethal Gaming Gear Saturn Pro, Lethal Gaming Gear Venus
Microphone: Razer Seiren V2 X
Headset: Corsair HS80 RGB Wireless, Razer Blackshark V2
Webcam: Logitech C920
Devin
Monitor: Gigabyte M27Q
Mouse: Razer Viper V2 Pro
Keyboard(s): SteelSeries Apex Pro TKL
Mousepad: Pulsar ES2
Microphone: Razer Seiren V2 X
Audio: TRUTHEAR x Crinacle Zero
Webcam: Logitech C920

[@TypingOasis-ASMR]

The sound is really good. Thank you for the great video. I will come visit often in the future!!

[@minemouse]

Thank you for watching, I'm glad we could be helpful!

[@Deatomizer]

Well done :)

[@starplatinumrqm]

Love this kind of videos, hope you do more

[@minemouse]

Thank you! I would certainly enjoy doing more as I still have not found my ideal non-frankenswitch linear.

[@ulgmail]

Agreed, the KTT Strawberry switches are my endgame switches for a while now. Also my wallet agrees and is happy that the testing is finally over 😅

[@XPISigmaArt]

Thanks for this! I've been leaning forwards G Pro Silver 3.0, so it's nice to see the 2.0 score pretty nicely here. Low actuation force, linear, and nice light diffusion for RGB. But I'm still on the fence.

[@minemouse]

G Pro Silvers are super nice switches, I can definitely give them a strong recommendation.

[@DanteJ]

Thank you for the video! Have you tried the Vertex V1? Which one do you prefer vs. the WS Morandi?

[@MaybeNathan]

Great video. Would love to see you do this with tactiles

[@minemouse]

Thank you! I would like to try this with tactiles, but I am not familiar enough with them atm.

[@misterhamez]

i have some strarberries arriving tomorrow that i bought on a whim. super keen now after hearing your thoughts. great video man

[@obsidianquill7949]

Normally I'd ask v1s or v2s but both the ktt strawberry v1s and v2s are so good you wouldn't be dissatisfied with either.

[@minemouse]

Thank you! And let us know how you like the Strawberries.

[@misterhamez]

@@obsidianquill7949 I think they're v2. Going to go into a Corsa!

[@obsidianquill7949]

@@misterhamez oh wow nice! I have no doubt the keyboard's going to be endgame level.

[@misterhamez]

@@obsidianquill7949 they all arrived today and stupid me forgot i ran out of lube for the stabilisers so that has delayed the build -_-

[@Sliceable_]

The gateron milky yellows are like the ancient budget switch that everyone used to achieve “thock”

[@minemouse]

They've really been around forever, and are somehow still some of the nicest budget switches.

[@Sliceable_]

Agreed.

[@rodrigoeduardo9199]

i have,and i love the sound,and i put o-rings,very good

[@Sliceable_]

Fair enough, o rings were never for me ngl

[@Glivpo]

Really good video but next time when you do these types of videos please and the spacebar sound test

[@TeaTehMan]

i skipped alot and i apologise for that, but definitely agree with you with the picks! KTT strawberries and kang whites are my fav linears, though 45g actuation might be a bit too light for me when typing as im used to 60g blue switches lol.. im still trying to find other kind of linear switch with 50g+ act force thats not yellows lol, great one tho, love that ur doing kind of videos other than mices

[@minemouse]

Thank you, I really enjoy custom keebs so it's fun to branch out! And yeah, KTT switches have really impressed me so far. As for linear switches with >50g actuation force, some I can think off of the top of my head are: Wuque Studios Aurora Clears Keyfirst Bling Purple/Blue/Green Switches Gateron Box Ink Black V2s Gateron Ink Blacks Gateron Oil Kings Everglide Aqua Kings (67g variant) NovelKeys Creams Cherry MX Blacks Cherry "New Nixies"

[@user-iz5qf5mi8n]

👍

[@Tom-Bomb]

I’m a gateron blue kinda guy. There’s just something those clicky keys that are so nostaligic and satisfying for me :)

[@mysteques2771]

Hey, where can I find the Akko Jelly black switches? Are the cream blacks their next iteration?

[@MarbsMusic]

I realize sound is subjective so personally I tend to go for a deeper sound putting the Milky Yellow and Morandi near the top. Sound profile and feeling the Morandi seem to be my favorite and this is coming from a clicky/tactile guy who is learning to love linear. Going to try some Oil Kings if my Neo 65 ever gets here in that as I didn't get RGB. I agree with your stem wobble score, it's truly insane how much wobble there is on the Morandi but I don't notice it much when typing with cheer profile caps however putting them on is extremely apparent. I have Milky Yellow Pros in a couple of boards and while I love the Morandi and I'm excited for the Oil Kings it's dang hard to be the Milky Yellow Pros, factory lube job is insanely good on them and the price is incredible. Thanks for putting this together very informative, going to have to try the strawberry soon!

[@minemouse]

I'd have to agree! Milky yellows and Morandis sound really damn good. I would probably use Morandis if they didn't have the horrific stem wobble lol. I'm not the biggest fan of the Oil Kings personally, as the top out sound is a bit plasticky and rattly to my ears, but they definitely feel great.

[@MarbsMusic]

@@minemouse the wobble is bad, hopefully they fix that but it doesn’t bother me ones the caps are on, at least not the cherry profile keys.

[@IanEisaman]

Thoughts on Morandi vs Oil King?

[@mojoneko8303]

I just ordered my first custom keyboard. The Meletrix Zoom98 non split with WS Morandi switches. I wanted a linear switch and it is supposed to be pretty good. Would you recommend filming the Morandis? They come prelubed and I plan to install them as is initially and then lube and possibly film them later. I was using a 20 year old Steelseries keyboard until a couple of weeks ago when I spilled a beer on it. I bought a mechanical keyboard as a replacement and was amazed at the difference. Looking forward to building the Zoom98. Thanks for the video. Subscribed

[@minemouse]

Glad you liked the video, and thanks for subscribing! I don't think you need to film the Morandis as they already have fairly tight housings. Good luck with your Zoom98 build!

[@BigDomDaddy]

Make more like this!

[@abdullaalmansoori6378]

Hey bro I have a question I want a very deep thick and poppy sound what is the best budget option Ktt strawberry gateron yellow pro or was morandi on gmk67 lubed and

[@Moonwalkbest]

yooo fire video

[@minemouse]

Thank you!

[@user-iz5qf5mi8n]

It seems like they have all the really famous switches! I like the strawberry switch the most But I think the most important thing is the body and how it was built!

[@minemouse]

The Strawberry switches are really quite nice yeah. And 100% agreed, switches can sound entirely different depending on what case they're in and what mods have been done.

[@vctrsone]

zbought ktt strawberries when they came out, upgraded to gateron box v2 blacks, seems they are both still the best

[@g.9814]

Hello I have questions. would you recommend filming the ktt strawberries? and I have seen ktt switches with 3 and 5 pins, do they have difference on sound or feel?

[@minemouse]

Hi there! I would not recommend filming KTT Strawberries as they have very tight housings to begin with. I don't think number of switch pins themselves would affect sound or feel, but the fact that they have different numbers of pins means they have different tooling processes, which would affect the sound and feel. Hope this was helpful!

[@g.9814]

@@minemouse very helpful. thank you!

[@equiknox_]

Which one do you think is best for creamy sounding keyboards?? Budget and best overall

[@Bobeeha]

you should the same review on mouse switches, it will be a banger

[@minemouse]

I could do that actually, as I did just design a rig to precisely test force on mouse clicks.

[@obsidianquill7949]

ktt strawberries are honestly one of the best overall switches. They're like better cheaper tangerines. Some other really good linears I'd say are the keebhut tropical waters, vertex v1, and jwicks.

[@minemouse]

Agreed, Strawberries are amazing yeah. I haven't checked out the Keebhut or Vertex Switches. I was going to put JWICKs in this video but I can't figure out where I put them :P

[@valkhori]

vertex v1's are realy good imo

[@obsidianquill7949]

@@valkhori yeah thanks to those jwicks are basically useless now 😅

[@georgepierre3594]

y u not try greywood v3, and piano pro v3s. (better version of jelly black) both of these are more muted

[@JustFluxz]

I love how my Alpacas feel but I wish they felt like the Morandi switches. Any suggestions on switches that sound close to the Morandi, are as smooth as the Alpacas, and also have similar or less wobble than the Alpacas? everything seems to have higher pitch or a lot more wobble. I am struggling to find a switch that does all 3...

[@JaLLY77]

Have u tried bsun switches? Those are pretty great. Surprised to not see many favs among enthusiasts, like alpaca, marshmallows, hyperglides, and etc

[@minemouse]

I have not tried them yet, I do really want to though!

[@vinhle4430]

Honorable mention i would suggest is the swk Neon, bsun X and the jelly v3 lubed. I had experience with these and they are phenomenal for the price.

[@minemouse]

I'll add them to the test list!

[@fnvfanMSPR]

I'd pick the HMX Macarons over all of them

[@minemouse]

@@fnvfanMSPR also added to the list!

[@nikocayetano1805]

Depends on build but im loving my diamond polish nixies on the glare tkl. Other than that i think the geonxhaimu white tactiles are very good if you like a heavy clacky tactile

[@minemouse]

I'll have to try some polished or broken in Cherry switches at some point. I'm not too familiar with tactiles so not quite sure which ones I'd like lol.

[@nikocayetano1805]

@@minemouse if i get extras I can send some diamond polish and broken in for you to try.

[@cinicomendicante7645]

hey have you ever tried akko cs piano switches? If so what do you think about them?

[@minemouse]

I have not tried them yet. So far I honestly haven't been blown away by any Akko switches, as I find them all a bit inconsistent. Jelly Blacks are the best ones I've tried so far from them, but that could always change in the future.

[@KP-by4eu]

you should rate it based on sound pitch, scratchy or not, friction noise or not, spring crunch or not. Things like "overall sound" and "overall feel" are pretty subjective and don't say anything. Someone who prefer clacky switches could rate muted or thocky switches low on overall sound.

[@minemouse]

Yeah that’s a fair argument. For the sound score I did my best to rate them based on how clean the sound is. I took away points if there was spring pinging, leaf pinging, spring crunch, and excessive rattle on the bottom/top out. Feel is definitely more subjective, I mostly took away points for excessive wobble, heavy scratchiness, particularly weak rebound, and inconsistency from switch to switch.

[@jochang9012]

With the Gatereon Milky Pro v2 (factory lubed), it might replace the "Best Overall (stock)" considering how much cheaper it is

[@minemouse]

Gateron Pro switches are definitely really impressive when it comes to factory lubing. I haven't personally tried the Milky Pro switches, but I imagine they'd at the very least top out the list when it comes to Best Budget Stock Switches.

[@emoney451]

Late comment but I have ktt strawberries and they are amazing. No lube needed. Marbly poppy and creamy sound

[@oriolinton]

still in shock that the gateron luciolas arent on this list... just crazy lol

[@Food_shorts53]

Please give scores of Akko v3 cream yellow pro Ttc flame red

[@TeaTehMan]

question, does heavier bottom out means heavier actuation force usually?

[@minemouse]

Generally yeah, though switches longer single stage springs will have actuation forces which are closer to their bottom out force. For example, Gateron Pro Reds have a 60g bottom out and a 45g actuation force, Akko Jelly Blacks with their long spring have a 60g bottom out and 50g actuation force.

[@rinnoX1]

have you tried any leobog switches? they are getting quite popular and are very budget friendly

[@minemouse]

I have not yet, I will keep them in mind for the future.

[@rinnoX1]

@@minemouse yeah you should check em out! you can find them for under .20 a switch which is remarkable value. great video in general btw!

[@georgepierre3594]

My favorite are greywood v3, ktt kang v3, and piano akko v3.

[@jayden6963]

Do Gateron CJ’s feel less smooth when lubed/filmed?

[@minemouse]

No, they're just as smooth if not smoother after lubing and filming.

[@Picomcyt]

Does it ktt strawbeeey v2?

[@troykoni7591]

Akko CS Cream Yellow Pro and Akko CS Cream Black Pro is the same switch just other spring?

[@minemouse]

I think they are?

[@dan3thegoat]

Which do you think is better? The akko cream yellow pros or the gateron milky yellow

[@minemouse]

Personally I much prefer the Milky Yellows after lubing, and the Milky Yellow Pros likely are far better stock than the Cream Yellow Pros.

[@dan3thegoat]

@@minemouse thanks :)

[@BigDomDaddy]

Does filming reduces the stem wobble of WS MORANDIS?

[@minemouse]

Not really. Filming only helps with stem wobble when the housings are loose. Wuque switches have pretty tight housings, so filming doesn't really have much of an effect.

[@rolancalpito4062]

Gateron cream sodas didn’t make the cut?😢

[@Zeioth]

Gateron yellow caps v2 are the GOTY for me. They are basically yellow milky, but more stable, pre-lubed, and with black inks sound signature. There is a learning curve, but they are definitely awesome.

[@minemouse]

I haven't tried the Cap switches, I'll have to add them to the list!

[@quiksilveriz]

Interesting, would check this out too!

[@haoyuanboss]

do you think lubed milky yellows would be as smooth as oil kings?

[@minemouse]

Unfortunately no, the ratings shown in the video are for the lubed forms of the switches.

[@haoyuanboss]

@@minemouse Oh ok

[@sandy-vd3sl]

there a good amount of classics in here that when i saw them i was like, I REMEMBER THESE! bro like the alpacas or the aqua kings, those where the shit lol

[@minemouse]

Alpacas and Aqua Kings definitely still hold up well nowadays!

[@sandy-vd3sl]

tho in my eyes they are still what got me into the hobby and a classic bad boy lol@@minemouse

[@cre8view]

yea I agreed😊. ink black is the best of the best

[@NoName-cr7uw]

Hello, can u tell me which is the thockiest switch???

[@minemouse]

It's a bit hard to say exactly, since "thocky" doesn't have an exact definition. Overall though I'd say the Wuque Studios Morandis give the most "thocky" sound.

[@jmd1743]

I like silent reds but I want something quieter + Thock. I like mechanical keyboards but I try to be respectful toward others as for instance ask yourself what would you buy for a whole office of say 20 workers or gift them to workers for use at home as you're downsizing the physical office. People need to realize that with work from home they'll have an obnoxious keyboard that will be heard on camera during meetings.

[@minemouse]

That's fair yeah. Personally I haven't had issues with my keyboards annoying people on call, as noise suppression generally completely eliminates the sound. But in a work environment silent keebs are definitely more ideal.

[@jmd1743]

@@minemouse Topre might be an option. But I wish there were topre switches that produce say half the loudness while keeping that same...sound feel. Right now I guess I'm like the gay guy who lives in San Fran but hates events like the "Folsom Street Fair". "i wish they would cool it with their loud switches, do they not know how disrespectful they are to their own sub-culture & others?"

[@aznbuddy0]

Have you ever tried out/thought about trying out the Gateron Baby Racoons? If so, what were your thoughts on them?

[@minemouse]

I tried some Baby Racoons right after I did this video. I think they're very good feeling nice clacky switches, though they do suffer from a poor top out sound like a lot of other Gateron switches.

[@owenpacey4219]

You should try this with tactiles too

[@minemouse]

I would like to do a tactile switch comparison, but I am not very familiar with tactiles atm. Maybe sometime in the farther future.

[@caleb6373]

@@minemousepls want to see ur breakdown on tactiles

[@albertko1]

I know some switches can use the filming but i honestly didn't think the KTTs needed any films since the housings are quite tight. As smooth as the CJs are lubed, I've found switches with P3 stems even smoother but have the stem wobble similar to a Gat Milky Yellow. I haven't tried Epsilons but have Hoshizoras which have Milky housings unlike the Epsees.

[@minemouse]

KTT switches definitely don't need films, I just filmed all the switches for consistency. Haven't tried either the Epsilons or Hoshizoras. I'm not a fan of the top out sound of the Epsees from the sound tests I've heard, but maybe the Milky housings on the Hoshizoras would fix that.

[@babylaaamp2809]

which one is the clackiest in your opinion

[@minemouse]

That's a hard question to answer, out of these ones maybe the Durock POMs or Tangies? I think the Gateron Baby Racoons (which I tried after finishing this video) are clackier than any of the switches here though.

[@marshallmaia8130]

The Akko pro line is very clacky. I have the cream blackv3 but look into the lavender pros if you want loud and clacky.

[@blizzard7713]

Where is vertex v1?

[@Hmm-lb1bp]

you can film kang whites?

[@minemouse]

Sorta? Very very hard to, and I wouldn't recommend putting in the effort, as the housings are already very tight. I just did it so that the switches were consistently modded.

[@Hmm-lb1bp]

@@minemouse ah alright, appreciate it man

[@iciel1009]

Wouldve been nice if it was a quick type test instead of presses

[@minemouse]

Yeah probably, but in no world was I going to lube 1500 switches just for one video lmfao.

[@iciel1009]

@@minemouse lmao that’s fair, thanks for the comparisons tho

[@NxghtK]

what is the fastest switch?

[@minemouse]

Of the switches shown, the fastest is the Gateron Pro Silver.

[@NxghtK]

@@minemouse whats faster gateron pro 3.0 silver or cherry mx speel silver

[@ZedBC]

I personally dont agree on a few of those ratings based on my experience with a few of the switches mentioned here. Then again a lot of the ratings seem very subjective so I don't want to just throw an opinion against another

[@minemouse]

Super fair! I just did my best to use a lot of individual ratings to calculate a score, but subjectivity is the name of the game in keyboards at the end of the day. This was the sheet I used for everything docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/18nyDpE3zEtTRRYIkWtvotuTwmND64OoeIEJzjgbf1aE/edit#gid=1487679078 I'm curious, which ratings did you disagree with specifically?

[@ZedBC]

@@minemouse For example I have oil kings and box ink black v2s here and I find oil kings much smoother (both stock and lubed, films arent necessary on them) than inks. I even find gateron milky yellows more smooth both stock and l+f than inks but lacking in sound compared to them. Also had a batch of WS Morandi here before and I am surprised with the stem wobble in your video because mine felt just fine in that category. Soundwise I would sort them all very differently but that's really just my subjective taste. I enjoy really smooth switches on stiffer plates, hence why I'm typing on BCPs on an alu plate rn :)

[@minemouse]

Interesting. I've long suspected that different people have differing sensitivity to aspects of switch scratch, so this may be more evidence of that? Another explanation might be that my Ink Black V2's are the newly retooled version which have much better stem wobble control, so maybe they're also more smooth? The Morandi's don't have much stem wobble towards the top, but if you bottom them out and push side to side, they have wayyyy more play than any other switch I've felt. And yeah soundwise it's all very subjective lol. I'll have to add BCPs to the list of switches to test if I make another one of these!

[@ZedBC]

@@minemouse Regarding the swirch scratch: Personally it's not just about what I can feel but also what's audible. My box ink v2s are also slightly more scratchy in its sound compared to my oil kings. I also have some prevail epsilons laying around here which are kinda inbetween those two. That's why I've never really thought of inks as smooth ones but more as very deep-sounding switches. For morandis, I sadly already sold them again but I still cant remember any specific stem wobble even when bottoming out. Maybe because I had them spring swapped? I can't tell. They've been nicely smooth in stock though! There's a lot of Bsun, Haimu and WS switches worth adding to the list, though personally I am using a frankenswitch BCP. Contrary to most people, I use a prevail epsilon stem rather than the scratchy NK Cream one. The smoothest I ever got to try. The BSUN BCPs are a different switch in comparison, different sound and feel, slightly scratchier but a very great switch.

[@SkarrStrike]

duuude stock nk creams are the best switch on the market, lubing them will only just make them worse, they are the smoothest switch available out of these options. the best linear switch though is obviously the cherry mx blues. Also at 0:48 is that the price that I have to pay for you to do a sister reveal.

[@minemouse]

TBH Box Jades are best and smoothest linears. Also 3.3mm isn't a price you goof

[@SkarrStrike]

@@minemouse I think that you are forgetting about the razer purples, I love the way they send shivers down my spine. I also just realised that at 0:42 you have just done a sister reveal (For legal reasons this is a joke)!

[@matiasjara4102]

How can u take screenshots? It dont have prtscn key....

[@el_teodoro]

Windows + Shift + S

[@fnvfanMSPR]

HMX Macaron > everything else

[@alpacamale2909]

filming has to be the most placebo sh1t you can do to a switch

[@minemouse]

Well it depends on what switch you're doing it to. I've found on switches with loose tolerances, such as the Wooting Lekkers, filming can have a noticeable impact on overall sound and feel. But on most good linears today, filming is not really necessary.

[@pranze3484]

All akko switches sound awful to me somehow vOv

[@ruh-roh]

2 minutes ago hooray

[@arystanbekjetisy7329]

Good work. Is was obvious that ktt strawberry would win. It would be nice if you do tactile switches comparison. I'll look for Ajaz fruity pack.

[@minemouse]

Thank you! Yeah, KTT Strawberries are a really impressive switch. I would like to do a tactile switch comparison, but I am not very familiar with tactiles atm.