Kailh BOX White vs Outemu Blue
Two clicky switches with two different click mechanisms: the Kailh BOX White against the Outemu Blue is a comparison of tone, not of volume. Our library of every switch we simulate cross-links them because this matchup keeps coming up. Start with the A/B bursts below, then take the spec table and the picks in order.
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 | Kailh BOX White | Outemu Blue |
|---|---|---|
| Type | Clicky | Clicky |
| Brand rates force at | actuation | actuation |
| Actuation force | 45 g | 60 g |
| Bottom-out force | 60 g (our estimate) | 65 g |
| Pre-travel | 1.8 mm | 2.2 mm |
| Total travel | 3.6 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. Kailh publishes no bottom-out figure for the Kailh BOX White, 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
This is clicky against clicky with a catch, because the Kailh BOX White and the Outemu Blue make their click in different ways. They also click differently: a click bar snapping inside the housing on the Kailh BOX White against a click jacket sliding down the stem on the Outemu Blue. There is a real weight gap too: 60 g against 45 g at actuation, so the Outemu Blue asks noticeably more of your fingers over a long session. One pick, not three: the Kailh BOX White takes gaming and typing, and it is the one a shared room would forgive first, which is faint praise for two clickies. The Outemu Blue is the answer only to a question our scoring does not ask.
- Overall pick
- Kailh BOX White
Our three scores agree on this pair. The Kailh BOX White takes all of them, which is why there is a single card above instead of three.
Force curves
Kailh BOX White
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.
Outemu Blue
Kailh BOX White or Outemu Blue: the long answer
This one is decided by sound before anything mechanical. The Kailh BOX White sits at sharp, clean tick-tick; click bar snapping on press and release; the Outemu Blue answers with harsh, loud, rattly click-jacket snap. They do not even click the same way: a click bar snapping inside the housing on the Kailh BOX White against a click jacket sliding down the stem on the Outemu Blue, 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.
The mechanical picture is the smaller half of this, but it is not nothing. Weight is the loud fact here. At actuation the Outemu Blue takes 60 g where the Kailh BOX White takes 45 g, and 15 g is enough to change how the third hour feels. On distance the Kailh BOX White registers at 1.8 mm against 2.2 mm, and the full stroke runs 3.6 mm on the Kailh BOX White against 4.0 mm on the Outemu Blue. The stroke itself is shared: each announces actuation to your finger and to the room at once. Everything else about them is close enough that the spring is the honest tiebreak.
On price and practicality, the Kailh BOX White is mid priced, while the Outemu Blue is budget friendly. Lube is on you with both of these, which is a real cost in time whichever one you order.
So who should buy which? The same switch wins every way we score it: the Kailh BOX White is our pick for gaming and for typing, and the quieter of two switches that both announce themselves. On speed, the scoring hands it a lighter spring at actuation and a shorter distance to actuation. On typing feel, the click keeps a long session in rhythm, assuming nobody nearby objects. 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 Outemu Blue 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.
Each of these has a page of its own with the full spec sheet and the sound notes. Start with the Kailh BOX White page and the Outemu Blue page. If you are here to check the board you already own, use our free keyboard tester.
Frequently asked questions
Which is better for gaming, the Kailh BOX White or the Outemu Blue?
We pick the Kailh BOX White for gaming. Of the two it has the quicker, less intrusive stroke, winning on a lighter spring at actuation and a shorter distance to actuation.
Is the Kailh BOX White quieter than the Outemu Blue?
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 Kailh BOX White heavier than the Outemu Blue?
The Outemu Blue is heavier: 60 g against 45 g, both measured at actuation, so this is a fair like-for-like comparison.
Which is cheaper to fill a board with, the Kailh BOX White or the Outemu Blue?
The Outemu Blue sits in the budget friendly bracket and the Kailh BOX White 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 Kailh BOX White
More vs Outemu Blue
Or browse every switch comparison on the site.