Best linear switches
The best linear switches are judged on one thing above all: smoothness, because with no bump and no click there is nothing to hide a scratchy stroke behind. We ranked ten linears across the whole price spread, from 65-cent thock machines to dollar-a-switch endgame picks. Our winner has a live sound player below, simulated from its real specs, so you can hear it before you buy a single pack.
The ranking
-
Dark nylon housings, heavy factory lube and a 55 g actuation add up to the deep, muted, oily thock that made the Oil King a phenomenon. At street prices around 65 cents per switch it delivers boutique sound at mid-range money, which is why it tops this list instead of something twice the price.
Linear · 55 g actuation · 2.0 mm pre-travel · 4.0 mm total travel
simulated from real specssound loads on first tap -
The benchmark boutique linear for years running. JWK molding gives it a glass-smooth 62 g bottom-out stroke with a clean, slightly bright clack that sounds expensive in any board. When reviewers say a new linear is "Alpaca-smooth", this is the switch they mean.
Linear · 62 g bottom-out · 2.0 mm pre-travel · 4.0 mm total travel
-
The Ink housing has a signature voice: deep yet clacky, smooth and resonant at 60 g actuation with a firm 70 g bottom-out. Inks were the endgame linear of an entire era of custom builds and they still hold up against anything released since.
Linear · 60 g actuation · 2.0 mm pre-travel · 4.0 mm total travel
-
The first mainstream full-POM switch, and still the most distinctive-sounding linear here: a rounded clack-thock no other material quite makes. Scratchy stock, magnificent after lube or break-in, at 55 g actuation. A switch you buy for the sound signature.
Linear · 55 g actuation · 2.0 mm pre-travel · 4.0 mm total travel
-
The community budget king. Milky nylon housings mute the bottom-out into a creamy, deeper tone, the Pro version comes factory lubed, and the 50 g actuation suits almost everyone. For whole-board quantities on a budget, this is the default answer.
Linear · 50 g actuation · 2.0 mm pre-travel · 4.0 mm total travel
-
Akko's budget icon: muted creamy thock, factory lube, 50 g actuation and a shorter 3.3 mm travel that makes boards feel a touch quicker. Routinely one of the cheapest switches on this list per pack, and it does not sound like it.
Linear · 50 g actuation · 2.0 mm pre-travel · 3.3 mm total travel
-
The oldest design here and the one heavy-linear fans keep coming back to. A firm 60 g actuation and 80 g bottom-out give a controlled, planted stroke, and modern MX2A revisions plus factory lube have quietly fixed the old scratchiness. A classic that aged into relevance.
Linear · 60 g actuation · 2.0 mm pre-travel · 4.0 mm total travel
-
Before the Milky Pro there was the plain Gateron Yellow, famously good for the money: smooth, slightly deep, 50 g rated actuation, nearly free. Still the best answer for a first lube-and-film project or a beater board.
Linear · 50 g actuation · 2.0 mm pre-travel · 4.0 mm total travel
-
The premium clack option. Where most of this list chases depth, Tealios go the other way: a bright, glassy, slightly hollow voice over an ultra-smooth 67 g bottom-out stroke. At about a dollar per switch they are a deliberate luxury, but the clack crowd swears by them.
Linear · 67 g bottom-out · 2.0 mm pre-travel · 4.0 mm total travel
- #10
TTC Gold Pink
The lightweight pick: 37 g actuation and a 42 g bottom-out make this one of the lightest linears in production, with a soft, barely-there landing. Superb for long writing sessions and light-fingered typists, and a warning to everyone else that accidental presses are real.
Linear · 37 g actuation · 2.0 mm pre-travel · 4.0 mm total travel
How we ranked them
Smoothness first, sound second, value third. The Oil King takes the top spot because it wins on all three at once: it is nearly as smooth as the Alpaca, sounds deeper stock, and costs noticeably less per switch. The Alpaca and Ink Black are ranked for what they are, reference points the whole hobby calibrates against, and the budget trio of Milky Yellow Pro, Akko Cream Yellow Pro and plain Gateron Yellow are here because a great board does not require boutique money.
Force numbers on this page mix two rating bases. Gateron, Cherry, Akko, NovelKeys and TTC publish actuation force, while Durock and Zeal publish bottom-out force. The "67 g" Tealios V2 is not a heavy switch in practice, and the "60 g" Cherry MX Black bottoms out at a genuinely firm 80 g. Every spec line above names its basis, so read the label before judging the number.
If you find yourself wanting feedback partway down the stroke, cross over to our best tactile switches ranking, and if noise is the constraint, the dampened picks in quietest switches keep the linear feel while cutting the clack. Hear everything on this page side by side in the switch library, then measure your actual typing speed on the new board with our typing test.
Frequently asked questions
What is a linear switch?
A linear switch travels smoothly from top to bottom with no bump and no click: force rises steadily with the spring and nothing else interrupts the stroke. That consistency is why linears dominate gaming and why smoothness is the main quality metric, since any scratch is immediately noticeable.
Are linear switches better for gaming or typing?
They are the default for gaming because rapid double-taps have no bump to fight through. For typing it is pure preference: many fast typists love linears, others miss the feedback of a tactile bump. Our switches-for-gaming and switches-for-typing roundups split the picks by use case.
What is the difference between thock and clack?
Thock is a deep, low-pitched bottom-out, usually from nylon or POM housings, like the Oil King or Milky Yellow. Clack is brighter and higher-pitched, typical of polycarbonate housings like the Tealios V2. Neither is better: it is a voicing choice, and the sound players on our switch pages let you hear the difference directly.
Do linear switches need lube?
Modern factory-lubed linears like the Oil King, Milky Yellow Pro and Akko V3 Cream Yellow Pro are genuinely good stock. Unlubed or lightly lubed switches such as the NovelKeys Cream and plain Gateron Yellow improve dramatically with hand lubing, which is part of why they are hobbyist favorites.