Kailh Red vs Outemu Red
Weight is the real gap here: 5 g between the Kailh Red and the Outemu Red at actuation, which is enough to change how a long session ends. Our full 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 | Kailh Red | Outemu Red |
|---|---|---|
| Type | Linear | Linear |
| Brand rates force at | actuation | actuation |
| Actuation force | 50 g | 45 g |
| Bottom-out force | not published | 60 g (our estimate) |
| Pre-travel | 2 mm | 2 mm |
| Total travel | 4 mm | 4 mm |
| Silent (dampened) | No | No |
| Factory lubed | No | No |
| MX-compatible stem | Yes | Yes |
| Price tier | Budget | Budget |
| Street price | varies | varies |
Kailh and Outemu 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 Outemu publishes no bottom-out figure for the Outemu Red. How that derivation works .
Verdict
The Kailh Red and the Outemu Red are both linears, so nothing separates them at the fingertip until you look at springs and acoustics. The Kailh Red is the firmer of the two at actuation, 50 g to 45 g, though 5 g is not much to choose between. With the numbers this close, the honest tiebreak is the voice: familiar MX-clone clack with a touch more scratch on the Kailh Red, light thin clack with a whisper of spring ping on the Outemu Red. Where we land: the Outemu Red for gaming and typing, the Kailh Red for a shared office.
- Gaming pick
- Outemu Red
- Typing pick
- Outemu Red
- Office pick
- Kailh Red
Force curves
Kailh 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.
Outemu Red
Outemu 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.
Kailh Red or Outemu Red: the long answer
Put the two side by side on paper before you trust your ears. Springs split them by 5 g at actuation: 50 g for the Kailh Red, 45 g for the Outemu Red. Kailh and Outemu are both selling you linears here, so nothing sits between the top of either key and the bottom. The two stroke depths are identical, 2.0 mm to actuation inside 4.0 mm of total travel. Neither one out-feels the other on type, so the small differences in the table are where the decision lives.
Sound is where most people finally pick a side. Two different voices: familiar MX-clone clack with a touch more scratch on the Kailh Red, light thin clack with a whisper of spring ping on the Outemu Red. The usual caveat applies. Nothing here is a studio recording; both packs are synthesized from published specs, and the players say so.
On the practical side, both are budget friendly. Neither ships lubed, so budget an evening with a brush if you want either at its best.
Two of the three questions have the same answer. The Outemu Red takes gaming, because the two are close enough here that either works, and our scoring gives it the nod by a hair, and typing, because nothing about it gets tiring by the afternoon, which is the whole test for a writing switch. Only the shared-room question goes to the Kailh Red, as it makes the least fuss of the pair in a shared space. 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 Kailh Red page and the Outemu Red 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 Red or the Outemu Red?
We pick the Outemu Red for gaming. The two are close enough for gaming that either works; our scoring defaults to it by a small margin.
Kailh Red or Outemu Red: which one is quieter?
Nothing in either one is built to reduce noise, so on raw volume this is a tie decided by your keyboard rather than your switch. What you will actually hear is a difference of pitch and texture, which the player above shows better than a sentence can.
Is the Kailh Red heavier than the Outemu Red?
The Kailh Red, and the comparison is clean: actuation on both sides, 50 g to 45 g.
More comparisons
More vs Kailh Red
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