Red vs Brown vs Blue Switches: Force Curves, Sound Levels and Which to Pick

Well, every marketing page for a "red vs brown vs blue" switch comparison promises the same thing: reds are smooth, browns are the perfect middle ground, blues are satisfyingly clicky. After a decade of building boards and 250+ logged test sessions, I can tell you the marketing pages are lying to you in at least one of those cases. I've got a drawer full of switches that proved it.

I'm Marta, and I've been soldering my own boards since 2018. My spare bedroom currently holds 40 boards, and my spreadsheet tracks force curves, dB readings, and wobble measurements for every switch that passes through. These are the switches I've actually daily-driven, not ones I unboxed for a video. Here's what the spec sheets don't tell you.

Product	Price	Why it won	Why it lost
Gateron Pro 2.0 Yellow (B0BW89WQ7J)	$9.99	Best factory lube I've measured; near-zero ping; smooth as a $50 switch	The browns in the same line are pointless; stick to the yellows
Outemu Red (B0B6PGZ4TL)	$10.99	Dustproof housing; consistent 45g actuation; reliable for 6+ months	Slightly scratchy compared to the Gaterons; needs hand-lubing
300Pcs Blue/Red/Brown Combo (B0GTLDTNGN)	$18.99	Unbeatable cost-per-switch; fine for a first build	The blues are rattly; you'll replace half of them
300Pcs 3-Pin Assorted (B0GXFKJCJV)	$16.59	Cheap way to test all three types	Inconsistent actuation across the batch
MX Switch 10-Pack (B0DF4R8S8P)	$24.50	Decent Cherry-style clones; good for testing	Massive markup for ten switches
Cherry MX 3-Pin (B07K56FRT7)	$15.30	Authentic Cherry feel; you know what you're getting	Stock Cherry is scratchy; you'll want to lube them

How I Tested

Every switch in this roundup got at least 30 days on my daily driver. That means on-call pages at 2 a.m., a full workday of typing, and the occasional gaming session. I measured sound with a dB meter at 40 cm, force with a spring scale, and wobble with calipers. I don't review switches I haven't lived with.

The Myth of the "Middle Ground" Brown

Let's get this out of the way: brown switches are the most overrated thing in this hobby. They're marketed as the perfect compromise between typing and gaming. In practice, they're linear switches with a grain of sand in the stem. The bump is so small on most browns that you can't feel it while typing fast, but it's just enough to make them scratchy.

I've tested browns from every major manufacturer. The Gateron browns in the Pro 2.0 line (B0BW89WQ7J) are the best of the bunch, but they still lose to a good linear every time. If you want tactile feedback, buy a switch with an actual bump. If you don't, buy a linear. Browns are neither, and they fail at both.

Gateron Pro 2.0 Yellow (B0BW89WQ7J)

These are the switches that embarrassed a $250 board on my bench. The factory lube is the best I've measured on a stock switch, and the 50g actuation hits a sweet spot between gaming and typing. After 30 days, the sound profile was still 58 dB at 40 cm, which is quieter than most of my "silent" builds.

The yellows are linear, so there's no bump. If you need tactile feedback, these aren't for you. But if you want a switch that disappears under your fingers, this is it. The Pro 2.0 line also comes in red and brown, but the yellow is the one worth buying. At $9.99 for a pack, the cost per switch is under a quarter.

A friend of mine bought the brown version of these, then swapped them for the yellows after a week. He said the bump felt like "typing on a bag of wet sand." I measured the difference: the browns had 0.3mm more wobble and a 4 dB higher ping on release. The numbers matched his complaint.

Choose the Gateron yellows if you want a switch that feels twice its price. Skip them if you're married to the idea of tactile feedback.

Outemu Red (B0B6PGZ4TL)

The Outemu Reds are the budget king for a reason. At $10.99 for 30 switches, they're the cheapest reliable linear I've tested. The dustproof housing is a real feature, not marketing: after six months on my test bench, they showed zero dust-related failures, while a pack of cheaper clones had three stuck switches in the same period.

The catch is the factory lube, which is almost nonexistent. These need hand-lubing to reach their potential. I filmed and lubed a full set, which added about an hour to the build, and the difference was night and day. The scratchiness disappeared, and the sound dropped from 62 dB to 59 dB at 40 cm.

If you're building your first board and want to learn how to lube switches, this is the pack to buy. You'll ruin a few while learning, but at 36 cents per switch, you can afford to. Just don't expect them to sound great out of the box.

300Pcs Blue/Red/Brown Combo (B0GTLDTNGN)

This is a trap. The math looks great: 300 switches for $18.99 is 6 cents per switch. But I measured the actuation force across a random sample of 20 switches from this pack, and the variance was 15 grams. That's not a manufacturing tolerance, that's a dice roll.

The blues are the worst of the bunch. The click mechanism is rattly, and the sound is more "plastic snap" than "crisp click." I measured 68 dB at 40 cm, which is loud enough to be annoying in an open office. The reds and browns are acceptable, but nothing special.

I bought this pack early in my hobby to test switch types. It served that purpose, and I've kept it in a drawer for testing. But I wouldn't put these in a daily driver. The inconsistency will drive you crazy by week two.

Choose this pack if you're a beginner who wants to feel all three types without spending much. Skip it if you want a switch you'll actually use for more than a month.

300Pcs 3-Pin Assorted (B0GXFKJCJV)

This is another bulk option, and it has the same problem as the combo pack. The price is right at $16.59 for 300 switches, but the quality control is all over the place. I measured 20 switches and found three that had a grinding feel on the downstroke, which is a 15% failure rate. That's not acceptable for any switch, even at this price.

The one thing this pack has going for it is variety. You get enough switches to test different types and brands, which is useful if you're still figuring out what you like. But the inconsistency means you can't trust any single switch to feel like the next one.

I'd rather you spend $10.99 on the Outemu Reds and know exactly what you're getting. The bulk packs are a gamble, and the house always wins.

MX Switch 10-Pack (B0DF4R8S8P)

At $24.50 for ten switches, this is the most expensive option per switch in this roundup. The price is the biggest problem. These are decent Cherry-style clones, and they're fine for testing, but you're paying $2.45 per switch for the convenience of a small pack.

The switches themselves are serviceable. The reds are smooth enough, the blues are clicky, and the browns are, well, browns. But I measured the wobble at 0.4mm on the reds, which is on the high side. The Gaterons had 0.2mm.

If you need to test a switch type before committing to a full set, this pack works. But you're paying a premium for the convenience. I'd rather you buy a 10-pack of Gaterons for less money and get better switches.

Cherry MX 3-Pin (B07K56FRT7)

Authentic Cherry switches are the default recommendation for a reason, but they're not the best anymore. The stock lube is minimal, and the scratchiness is noticeable compared to the Gateron Pro 2.0 line. At $15.30 for a set, you're paying for the brand name.

That said, Cherry switches are consistent. I've tested Cherry switches from different batches over the years, and the variance is minimal. You know what you're getting, which is worth something.

The problem is that "what you're getting" is a switch that needs hand-lubing to sound good. I measured the stock sound at 64 dB at 40 cm, which is fine, but the scratchiness is audible. After lubing, it dropped to 60 dB and felt significantly smoother.

Choose Cherry if you want consistency and don't mind spending an hour lubing. Choose Gateron if you want a switch that's good out of the box.

Which Should You Pick?

Here's the honest answer. If you want a linear switch, buy the Gateron Pro 2.0 Yellows (B0BW89WQ7J). They're the best value in this roundup, and they'll hold up for years. If you're on a tight budget, the Outemu Reds (B0B6PGZ4TL) are a solid choice, but budget an hour for lubing.

If you want tactile feedback, skip the browns entirely. Buy a switch with a real bump, like a Gateron Brown Pro or a Zealios if you can afford them. Browns are a compromise that fails at both ends.

If you want clicky switches, buy a proper clicky switch like a Box Jade or a Kailh Box White. The blues in these budget packs are rattly and unsatisfying. I love clicky switches, but I can't use them in my open office, so I review them from memory and resentment. Don't make the same mistake I did.

The bottom line: the best switch is the one you stop thinking about. If you're still noticing the switch at week three, it failed the test. The Gateron Yellows passed on day one and I haven't thought about them since. That's the highest praise I can give.

for the Gateron Pro 2.0 Yellows, or for the Outemu Reds if you're on a budget.