Cherry MX Low Profile Red vs Kailh Choc V2 Red
Weight is the real gap here: 5 g between the Kailh Choc V2 Red and the Cherry MX Low Profile Red at actuation, which is enough to change how a long session ends. 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 Low Profile Red | Kailh Choc V2 Red |
|---|---|---|
| Type | Linear | Linear |
| Brand rates force at | actuation | actuation |
| Actuation force | 45 g | 50 g |
| Bottom-out force | not published | not published |
| Pre-travel | 1.2 mm | 1.3 mm |
| Total travel | 3.2 mm | 3.2 mm |
| Silent (dampened) | No | No |
| Factory lubed | No | No |
| MX-compatible stem | Yes | Yes |
| 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.
Verdict
Cherry and Kailh are selling the same stroke here, so the Cherry MX Low Profile Red and the Kailh Choc V2 Red separate on spring, distance and voice instead. The Kailh Choc V2 Red is the firmer of the two at actuation, 50 g to 45 g, though 5 g is not much to choose between. Distance to actuation splits them as well, 1.2 mm on the Cherry MX Low Profile Red against 1.3 mm on the Kailh Choc V2 Red. The Cherry MX Low Profile Red comes out ahead of the Kailh Choc V2 Red for gaming and for typing, and it is the safer of the two in a shared room, so this comparison has one answer instead of a set of them.
- Overall pick
- Cherry MX Low Profile Red
Gaming, typing and a shared office all point at the Cherry MX Low Profile Red, so printing the same name three times would tell you nothing. One pick it is.
Force curves
Cherry MX Low Profile Red
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.
Kailh Choc V2 Red
Kailh 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 Low Profile Red or Kailh Choc V2 Red: the long answer
The table above already holds the answer. Here is what it means under a finger. At actuation the Kailh Choc V2 Red is the firmer press, 50 g against 45 g, a difference you notice after a paragraph rather than on the first keystroke. Type is not in play. Both are linears, and neither one puts a bump or a click in the way of the press. The Cherry MX Low Profile Red registers earlier, 1.2 mm against 1.3 mm, inside the same 3.2 mm of total travel. None of these gaps is large. Stack them up and they still point somewhere, but gently.
What the table cannot tell you is how either one lands in a room. The Cherry MX Low Profile Red sits at shallow, brighter clack with little body; the Kailh Choc V2 Red answers with shallow clack with a touch more body than V1. Worth repeating: the audio here is a simulation built from specs and community descriptions, not a recording of either switch.
On price and practicality, both are mid priced. Neither ships lubed, so budget an evening with a brush if you want either at its best.
That leaves an unusually simple answer, because one switch wins on all three counts: the Cherry MX Low Profile Red is our pick for gaming, for typing and for a shared desk. On speed, the two are close enough here that either works, and our scoring gives it the nod by a hair. On typing feel, its keystroke stays consistent and comfortable across a full day of writing. On noise, it is the one of these two you would not apologize for. That leaves the Kailh Choc V2 Red to anyone who preferred its voice in the player above, which is a good enough reason on its own. Before you order either, match the volume trims above and hear them back to back.
There is more on both than a head-to-head can carry. Start with the Cherry MX Low Profile Red page and the Kailh Choc V2 Red page, or test how your current keyboard performs with our free keyboard tester.
Frequently asked questions
Cherry MX Low Profile Red or Kailh Choc V2 Red for gaming?
We pick the Cherry MX Low Profile Red for gaming. The two are close enough for gaming that either works; our scoring defaults to it by a small margin.
Which of the Cherry MX Low Profile Red and the Kailh Choc V2 Red is quieter in a shared room?
Volume is roughly a wash: no dampening and no click mechanism on either, so your typing force and your case decide the level. The character is not a wash, with the Cherry MX Low Profile Red reading as shallow, brighter clack with little body against shallow clack with a touch more body than V1 from the Kailh Choc V2 Red.
Which has the heavier spring, the Cherry MX Low Profile Red or the Kailh Choc V2 Red?
The Kailh Choc V2 Red, by 5 g. Both figures are published at actuation, 50 g against 45 g, so they are measured at the same point and can be read straight.
More comparisons
More vs Cherry MX Low Profile Red
Or browse every switch comparison on the site.