Cherry MX Ultra Low Profile vs Kailh Choc Red V1
The Cherry MX Ultra Low Profile and the Kailh Choc Red V1 are not the same kind of switch, so this comparison is settled by which stroke you want before a single number matters. 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 Ultra Low Profile | Kailh Choc Red V1 |
|---|---|---|
| Type | Tactile | Linear |
| Brand rates force at | actuation | actuation |
| Actuation force | 65 g | 50 g |
| Bottom-out force | not published | 60 g (our estimate) |
| Pre-travel | 0.8 mm | 1.5 mm |
| Total travel | 1.8 mm | 3 mm |
| Silent (dampened) | No | No |
| Factory lubed | No | No |
| MX-compatible stem | No | No |
| Price tier | Premium | Mid-range |
| Street price | varies | varies |
Cherry and Kailh both advertise an actuation force, so the two headline figures in this table are measured at the same point and can be read against each other. The figure marked "our estimate" is our own derivation and not a manufacturer number, because Kailh publishes no bottom-out figure for the Kailh Choc Red V1. How we derive a bottom-out figure .
Verdict
Start with feel: the Cherry MX Ultra Low Profile gives you a tactile stroke and the Kailh Choc Red V1 a linear one, and no amount of tuning changes that. 15 g at actuation is a bracket apart, not a shade, and it is the Cherry MX Ultra Low Profile carrying the heavier end at 65 g. The Cherry MX Ultra Low Profile also stops sooner, 1.8 mm of total travel against 3.0 mm. Our picks: the Kailh Choc Red V1 for gaming, the Cherry MX Ultra Low Profile for typing and a shared office.
- Gaming pick
- Kailh Choc Red V1
- Typing pick
- Cherry MX Ultra Low Profile
- Office pick
- Cherry MX Ultra Low Profile
Force curves
Cherry MX Ultra Low Profile
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 Red V1
Kailh publishes no bottom-out force for this switch, so the 60 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 Ultra Low Profile or Kailh Choc Red V1: the long answer
The table above already holds the answer. Here is what it means under a finger. Feel splits them at the root: the Kailh Choc Red V1 runs smooth the whole way down while the Cherry MX Ultra Low Profile raises a bump at the point it registers. The spread at actuation is 15 g, 65 g on the Cherry MX Ultra Low Profile against 50 g on the Kailh Choc Red V1, which puts them in different weight brackets rather than two shades of one. On distance the Cherry MX Ultra Low Profile registers at 0.8 mm against 1.5 mm, and the full stroke runs 1.8 mm on the Cherry MX Ultra Low Profile against 3.0 mm on the Kailh Choc Red V1. No spec under this one outranks it, so answer the bump question before you weigh anything else.
Now the part spec sheets cannot carry: the voice. Through the A/B player above, the Cherry MX Ultra Low Profile comes through as crisp laptop-like tick, shallow and precise, while the Kailh Choc Red V1 reads as thin, shallow clack; the sound of ergo split boards everywhere. Both packs are synthesized rather than recorded, so read the comparison as a faithful sketch of each voice and not as a measurement of it.
On price and practicality, the Cherry MX Ultra Low Profile is premium priced, while the Kailh Choc Red V1 is mid priced. Neither ships lubed, so budget an evening with a brush if you want either at its best. Worth knowing before you order: neither of these uses an MX style stem, so neither will drop into a standard hot-swap board or accept ordinary MX keycaps, and they do not share a mount with each other either.
So who should buy which? For gaming we lean toward the Kailh Choc Red V1, because nothing interrupts fast repeated presses on its linear stroke. For long typing sessions the Cherry MX Ultra Low Profile makes the stronger case, since the bump gives your fingers a landmark on every keystroke. And if your keyboard shares a room with other people, the Cherry MX Ultra Low Profile is the one we would trust, as it is the one of these two you would not apologize for. Match the trims above, play both, and trust whichever one you keep replaying.
There is more on both than a head-to-head can carry. Start with the Cherry MX Ultra Low Profile page and the Kailh Choc Red V1 page. Or leave switches aside for a minute and run your current keyboard through the free keyboard tester.
Frequently asked questions
Which is better for gaming, the Cherry MX Ultra Low Profile or the Kailh Choc Red V1?
We pick the Kailh Choc Red V1 for gaming. Its linear stroke has no bump or click to interrupt fast repeated presses, which is exactly what rapid inputs reward.
Cherry MX Ultra Low Profile or Kailh Choc Red V1: which one is quieter?
They are close. Neither is a silent switch and neither clicks, so loudness depends mostly on how hard you bottom out and the board they sit in. Their character differs though: the Cherry MX Ultra Low Profile leans toward crisp laptop-like tick, shallow and precise, while the Kailh Choc Red V1 is thin, shallow clack; the sound of ergo split boards everywhere.
Which has the heavier spring, the Cherry MX Ultra Low Profile or the Kailh Choc Red V1?
The Cherry MX Ultra Low Profile. Both brands publish at actuation, which makes 65 g against 50 g an honest 15 g rather than two numbers from different rulers.
Which is cheaper to fill a board with, the Cherry MX Ultra Low Profile or the Kailh Choc Red V1?
The Kailh Choc Red V1 sits in the mid priced bracket and the Cherry MX Ultra Low Profile in the premium 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
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