Cherry MX Green vs Unicomp New Model M
Check compatibility before feel on this pair: the Unicomp New Model M will not drop into the same board as the other one, which narrows the choice for most people to whatever their keyboard accepts. Our full switch library puts these two on each other's shortlist, and the player below is the fastest way to settle it: match the volumes, then work down through the 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 | Unicomp New Model M |
|---|---|---|
| Type | Clicky | Clicky |
| Brand rates force at | actuation | actuation |
| Actuation force | 80 g | 65 g |
| Bottom-out force | 105 g (our estimate) | not published |
| Pre-travel | 2.2 mm | 2.3 mm |
| Total travel | 4 mm | 3.7 mm |
| Silent (dampened) | No | No |
| Factory lubed | No | No |
| MX-compatible stem | Yes | No |
| Price tier | Mid-range | Mid-range |
| 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 that derivation works .
Verdict
Both the Cherry MX Green and the Unicomp New Model M are clickies, but they are not the same click: the two use different mechanisms, and that is where most of the difference lives. Check your board first: the Unicomp New Model M does not use an MX style stem, so the two are not interchangeable in the same keyboard. 15 g at actuation is a bracket apart, not a shade, and it is the Cherry MX Green carrying the heavier end at 80 g. The scoring splits them: the Unicomp New Model M for gaming, the Cherry MX Green for typing and a shared office. Read that office call as relative: the Cherry MX Green clicks too, just less insistently.
- Gaming pick
- Unicomp New Model M
- Typing pick
- Cherry MX Green
- Office pick
- Cherry MX Green
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.
Unicomp New Model M
Unicomp 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 Unicomp New Model M: the long answer
Before anything else, check that both of these will go into the board you own. The Unicomp New Model M does not use an MX style stem, so it will not drop into a standard hot-swap board or accept ordinary MX keycaps. Both are mid priced. Neither is factory lubed, so enthusiasts often hand lube both for the smoothest result.
The specs are the smaller half of this pair, but they are not nothing. The Cherry MX Green carries the heavier spring at actuation, 80 g to 65 g. That is a real 15 g without being a change of bracket. Type is not in play. Both are clickies, and both fire an audible click alongside the bump. On distance the Cherry MX Green registers at 2.2 mm against 2.3 mm, and the full stroke runs 4.0 mm on the Cherry MX Green against 3.7 mm on the Unicomp New Model M. With the stroke shared, that spring gap does most of the deciding here.
Sound decides more of these arguments than force curves do. Through the A/B player above, the Cherry MX Green comes through as loud, slightly deeper click than Blue with a firm landing, while the Unicomp New Model M reads as the Model M voice in a slightly smaller case. They do not even click the same way: a click jacket sliding down the stem on the Cherry MX Green against a spring buckling against the hammer on the Unicomp New Model M, which is most of the tonal difference you are hearing. A click you love at your own desk can still be the loudest thing in someone else’s meeting. 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.
Who buys which, then? Gaming goes to the Unicomp New Model M, because a lighter spring at actuation goes its way. Writing goes to the Cherry MX Green, since the click keeps a long session in rhythm, assuming nobody nearby objects. A shared room goes to the Cherry MX Green, as neither of these belongs in a quiet shared room, and this is only the less punishing of the two clicks. 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 Green page and the Unicomp New Model M page. If you are here to check the board you already own, use our free keyboard tester.
Frequently asked questions
Is the Cherry MX Green or the Unicomp New Model M the better gaming switch?
We pick the Unicomp New Model M for gaming. The scoring gives it a lighter spring at actuation against the Cherry MX Green, and both of those show up in a fast game.
Is the Cherry MX Green quieter than the Unicomp New Model M?
Neither, honestly. Both are clicky switches that announce every keystroke, so neither belongs in a quiet shared space. If noise is the deciding factor, a silent tactile is the better direction entirely.
Which has the heavier spring, the Cherry MX Green or the Unicomp New Model M?
The Cherry MX Green. Both brands publish at actuation, which makes 80 g against 65 g an honest 15 g rather than two numbers from different rulers.
Can the Cherry MX Green and the Unicomp New Model M go in the same keyboard?
No. The Unicomp New Model M does not use an MX style stem, so it needs a board built for it and will not take ordinary MX keycaps, while the Cherry MX Green is a standard MX switch. Whichever you pick decides the keyboard, not the other way round.
More comparisons
More vs Cherry MX Green
More vs Unicomp New Model M
Or browse every switch comparison on the site.