Cherry MX Black MX2A vs Cherry MX Linear Grey
The Cherry MX Black MX2A and the Cherry MX Linear Grey are separated mostly by spring weight, 20 g of it at actuation, with the Cherry MX Linear Grey the firmer press and the Cherry MX Black MX2A the easier one to hold down. Our switch library already points each of these at the other. Hear them back to back below with the trims matched before you read a single number.
Hear them back to back
simulated from real specssound loads on your first tapShortcuts: press A or B anywhere outside a text box to fire that burst. Use the volume trims to loudness-match the pair before judging which sounds better.
Spec by spec
| Spec | Cherry MX Black MX2A | Cherry MX Linear Grey |
|---|---|---|
| Type | Linear | Linear |
| Brand rates force at | actuation | actuation |
| Actuation force | 60 g | 80 g |
| Bottom-out force | 80 g (our estimate) | not published |
| Pre-travel | 2 mm | 2 mm |
| Total travel | 4 mm | 4 mm |
| Silent (dampened) | No | No |
| Factory lubed | Yes | No |
| MX-compatible stem | Yes | Yes |
| Price tier | Mid-range | Mid-range |
| Street price | varies | varies |
Cherry advertises an actuation force for both of these, so the two headline figures in this table are measured at the same point and can be read against each other. Cherry publishes no bottom-out figure for the Cherry MX Black MX2A, so the figure marked "our estimate" is our own derivation from the forces that are published rather than a rating. What actuation force actually measures .
Verdict
Stroke character is a tie. Two linears feel alike under a finger, which pushes the decision onto the rows below the type row. Weight separates them clearly: measured at actuation, the Cherry MX Linear Grey is 20 g heavier than the Cherry MX Black MX2A, which changes both fatigue and sound. Only the Cherry MX Black MX2A arrives factory lubed, which is an evening of work saved on a full board. The Cherry MX Black MX2A comes out ahead of the Cherry MX Linear Grey for gaming and for typing, and it is the one that carries less across a room, so this comparison has one answer instead of a set of them.
- Overall pick
- Cherry MX Black MX2A
Gaming, typing and a shared office all point at the Cherry MX Black MX2A, so printing the same name three times would tell you nothing. One pick it is.
Force curves
Cherry MX Black MX2A
Cherry publishes no bottom-out force for this switch, so the 80 g at the end of the stroke is our estimate and the run into it is dashed. Everything up to actuation comes from the published numbers. How we derive it.
Cherry MX Linear Grey
Cherry publishes no bottom-out force for this switch, so the dashed end of the curve is an estimate, not a spec. Everything up to actuation comes from the published numbers.
Cherry MX Black MX2A or Cherry MX Linear Grey: the long answer
Put the two side by side on paper before you trust your ears. The springs are a long way apart: 80 g against 60 g at actuation, so the Cherry MX Linear Grey asks noticeably more of your fingers across a long session. The stroke itself is shared: both give you spring resistance and nothing else. The two stroke depths are identical, 2.0 mm to actuation inside 4.0 mm of total travel. Everything else about them is close enough that the spring is the honest tiebreak.
Sound decides more of these arguments than force curves do. Played back to back, the Cherry MX Black MX2A is deeper, firmer bottom-out than Red; controlled and solid against deep and heavy; a slow, weighty clack from the Cherry MX Linear Grey. One caveat we repeat wherever a player appears: no studio recording sits behind either of these. They are built from what each maker publishes and what the community reports.
On cost and convenience, both are mid priced. One of them has already been lubed for you and one has not, which is worth more than the price gap if you were not planning to open 70 switches.
That leaves an unusually simple answer, because one switch wins on all three counts: the Cherry MX Black MX2A is our pick for gaming, for typing and for a shared desk. On speed, the scoring hands it a lighter spring at actuation. On typing feel, nothing about it gets tiring by the afternoon, which is the whole test for a writing switch. On noise, it is the quieter of the two once the room is listening. That leaves the Cherry MX Linear Grey to anyone who preferred its voice in the player above, which is a good enough reason on its own. The player above is the cheapest part of this decision, so use it before your wallet is involved.
There is more on both than a head-to-head can carry. Start with the Cherry MX Black MX2A page and the Cherry MX Linear Grey page. Or leave switches aside for a minute and run your current keyboard through the free keyboard tester.
Frequently asked questions
For gaming, should I buy the Cherry MX Black MX2A or the Cherry MX Linear Grey?
We pick the Cherry MX Black MX2A for gaming. The scoring gives it a lighter spring at actuation against the Cherry MX Linear Grey, and both of those show up in a fast game.
Which of the Cherry MX Black MX2A and the Cherry MX Linear Grey is quieter in a shared room?
Nothing in either one is built to reduce noise, so on raw volume this is a tie decided by your keyboard rather than your switch. What you will actually hear is a difference of pitch and texture, which the player above shows better than a sentence can.
Cherry MX Black MX2A vs Cherry MX Linear Grey: which one is the heavier press?
The Cherry MX Linear Grey. Both brands publish at actuation, which makes 80 g against 60 g an honest 20 g rather than two numbers from different rulers.
Do the Cherry MX Black MX2A and the Cherry MX Linear Grey need lubing?
The Cherry MX Black MX2A arrives lubed from the factory, so it is usable straight out of the bag. The Cherry MX Linear Grey does not, and on a full board that is an evening of work if you want it at its smoothest. Plenty of people run unlubed switches happily; it is a question of whether a slightly drier stroke bothers you.
More comparisons
More vs Cherry MX Black MX2A
More vs Cherry MX Linear Grey
Or browse every switch comparison on the site.