Cherry MX Green vs Gateron Green
The Gateron Green and the Cherry MX Green sit in different price brackets, which across the 70-odd switches a board needs is a bigger difference than most of the spec sheet. Our library of every switch we simulate links the two to each other for that reason. Play the A/B bursts below to hear them back to back, match the volumes, then read the spec table and the verdict.
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 Green | Gateron Green |
|---|---|---|
| Type | Clicky | Clicky |
| Brand rates force at | actuation | actuation |
| Actuation force | 80 g | 80 g |
| Bottom-out force | 105 g (our estimate) | not published |
| Pre-travel | 2.2 mm | 2.3 mm |
| Total travel | 4 mm | 4 mm |
| Silent (dampened) | No | No |
| Factory lubed | No | No |
| MX-compatible stem | Yes | Yes |
| Price tier | Mid-range | Budget |
| Street price | varies | varies |
Both makers rate these at actuation, which is the one case where the advertised numbers compare directly. Every other force row still has to be matched basis to basis. The figure marked "our estimate" is our own derivation and not a manufacturer number, because Cherry publishes no bottom-out figure for the Cherry MX Green. How we derive a bottom-out figure .
Verdict
The Cherry MX Green and the Gateron Green are both clickies, so nothing separates them at the fingertip until you look at springs and acoustics. The Gateron Green is the cheaper board to fill by a full bracket, budget friendly against mid priced. Both are rated 80 g at actuation, the only measuring point with a published figure for each, so the spec sheet will not settle weight. Nothing here separates by use case: the Cherry MX Green is our pick for gaming and for typing, and it is the less punishing of the two in a shared room, though neither really belongs in one. Take the Gateron Green only if you specifically want louder, deeper click backed by a heavy spring.
- Overall pick
- Cherry MX Green
Our three scores agree on this pair. The Cherry MX Green takes all of them, which is why there is a single card above instead of three.
Force curves
Cherry MX Green
Cherry publishes no bottom-out force for this switch, so the 105 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.
Gateron Green
Gateron 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 Green or Gateron Green: the long answer
Start with what these cost to fill a board, because that is the widest gap between them. The Cherry MX Green is mid priced, while the Gateron Green is budget friendly. Neither is factory lubed, so enthusiasts often hand lube both for the smoothest result.
On to the mechanical side. Cherry and Gateron are both selling you clickies here, so both stack a click mechanism on a bump you already feel. They land on the same 80 g at actuation. That is the only measuring point with a figure for each of them, and bottom-out is exactly where two switches matched at actuation tend to separate. Cherry publishes no bottom-out figure, so treat that 105 g as our estimate. Both run to 4.0 mm, but the Cherry MX Green counts the press at 2.2 mm where the Gateron Green waits until 2.3 mm. Same family of stroke, so read the detail rather than the headline.
Sound is where most people finally pick a side. Played back to back, the Cherry MX Green is loud, slightly deeper click than Blue with a firm landing against louder, deeper click backed by a heavy spring from the Gateron Green. A click you love at your own desk can still be the loudest thing in someone else’s meeting. As everywhere on the site, these are simulations built from published specifications and documented character. Accurate enough to compare, not a recording.
That leaves an unusually simple answer, because one switch wins on all three counts: the Cherry MX Green is our pick for gaming and for typing, and the quieter of two switches that both announce themselves. On speed, the two are close enough here that either works, and our scoring gives it the nod by a hair. On typing feel, the click is a metronome for a long draft, which some writers will not give up. On noise, neither of these belongs in a quiet shared room, and this is only the less punishing of the two clicks. That leaves the Gateron Green to anyone who preferred its voice in the player above, which is a good enough reason on its own. Whichever way you land, listen to both above with the volume trims matched before you spend anything.
For either one on its own terms, read the Cherry MX Green page and the Gateron Green page. Or leave switches aside for a minute and run your current keyboard through the free keyboard tester.
Frequently asked questions
Cherry MX Green or Gateron Green for gaming?
We pick the Cherry MX Green for gaming. Honestly either is fine here. It takes the nod once the scoring is added up, and only just.
Cherry MX Green or Gateron Green: which one is quieter?
Neither is quiet. Two click mechanisms means two switches that broadcast every press, and picking between them will not save your colleagues. If noise decides this, look at a silent tactile instead.
Is the Cherry MX Green heavier than the Gateron Green?
Neither, as far as the published numbers go: both are rated 80 g at actuation, the only measuring point with a published figure for each. Bottom-out is where two switches matched at actuation often diverge, but neither switch here has a published bottom-out figure at all. Treat this as a tie on the spec sheet rather than a proven match in the hand.
Which is cheaper to fill a board with, the Cherry MX Green or the Gateron Green?
The Gateron Green sits in the budget friendly bracket and the Cherry MX Green in the mid priced one. We do not hold a reliable per-switch price for both, so the bracket is the honest answer rather than a total.
More comparisons
More vs Cherry MX Green
More vs Gateron Green
Or browse every switch comparison on the site.