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I’ve tested almost every Thunderbolt 5 docking station on the market, and these are the 8 I think are worth buying right now. A few of them have special features that make them stand out, and depending on your setup, one may be a much better fit than another.
A docking station lets you plug one cable into your computer to power a laptop and connect everything else: displays, audio interfaces, storage and your network. All of these were sent to me for free to test, but these are my honest thoughts and my top picks after testing so many of them.
| Dock or hub | Price | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| CalDigit Element 5 | $250 | Fast ports in a tiny hub |
| OWC Thunderbolt 5 Hub | $190 | Saving money, 140W laptop charging |
| Sonnet Echo 13 | $300 (add your own SSD) | An SSD slot at the best price |
| CalDigit TS5 | $400 | Most people |
| Satechi CubeDock | $400 | Matching your Mac mini |
| CalDigit TS5 Plus | $500 | Lots of 10 gig USB devices |
| Sonnet Echo 21 SuperDock | $500 | HDMI or DisplayPort, 10 gig, SSD slot |
| IVANKY FusionDock Ultra | $650 | 4 displays on an M1 to M4 Max MacBook Pro |
Do these work with older Macs?
All of these docks and hubs support Thunderbolt 5, but they’re also backwards compatible with Thunderbolt 3 and Thunderbolt 4. So if your computer doesn’t have Thunderbolt 5, they’ll still work, and you’ll be future proof when you upgrade. On an older Thunderbolt 4 or 3 Mac, you get that port’s 40 Gb/s instead of the 80 Gb/s Thunderbolt 5 gives you.
CalDigit Element 5
The first one, and probably the most basic one, is the CalDigit Element 5. This one is technically a hub, and it’s the best value if you just want more high speed ports.
It costs $250. You get 3 Thunderbolt ports and a USB-A port on the back, then 2 USB-C ports and 2 USB-A ports on the front, plus the single port on the side that plugs into your computer. It still powers your computer with up to 90 watts. It does have a power adapter, but I love how tiny this one is. It’s small enough to throw in a bag, and it fits perfectly on top of a Mac mini.
My full take: CalDigit Element 5 vs TS5 vs TS5 Plus
OWC Thunderbolt 5 Hub
OWC has a hub that’s even cheaper. It’s $190, and it can sometimes be found on sale for $150. It also has 3 Thunderbolt 5 ports, but only one USB port.
What’s interesting about this one is the Thunderbolt port on the front for plugging in external devices, while the port that goes to your computer is on the back. It has fewer ports, but it charges your laptop with up to 140 watts. It’s a great option if you want to save a little money and you need more power for your laptop.
Hub vs dock
Those first two are technically hubs. With a hub you don’t get any display outs and you don’t get a network port, but you can always add that later. They’re both great options for a Mac mini or Mac Studio, because those already have network ports on the back.
- Hub: Thunderbolt and USB ports only. No Ethernet, HDMI or DisplayPort.
- Dock: adds Ethernet, card readers and audio. Some docks add HDMI or DisplayPort too.
Sonnet Echo 13
The Sonnet Echo 13 is probably the best budget docking station. It comes in at $300 if you add your own SSD.
On the back you get a couple of USB-A ports, 2.5 gigabit Ethernet and 2 Thunderbolt 5 ports. The port you plug into your laptop is on the front, along with an extra Thunderbolt 5 port, another USB-A port, and microSD and SD card slots. You can also put your own NVMe SSD inside, which is awesome because you don’t have to use up one of your ports for an extra drive.
I love all the ports on this, and it gives you very fast SSD speeds. The biggest drawback is that you’ll need an adapter for an external display unless you’re using an Apple Studio Display or another Thunderbolt display, which can go on the Thunderbolt ports on the back. I also wish it had a few more USB ports.
My full take: Sonnet Echo 21 SuperDock review (with an Echo 13 comparison)
CalDigit TS5
Next is the classic CalDigit TS5. CalDigit docks are known for being some of the most reliable, they reserve lots of power for all the ports, and they look super clean. You can lay it on its side or stand it up, which works better for some setups.
It has the same 3 Thunderbolt ports on the back, plus the port that goes to your computer, 3 USB-A ports, 2.5 gigabit Ethernet, and a headset jack and mic in. The front has the perfect amount of ports: 2 USB-C ports, microSD and SD card slots, and a headset jack.
It’s rock solid and has lots of power for all your devices. The biggest drawback is that there’s no DisplayPort and no SSD slot, and it comes in at $400. It’s not exactly a bargain, but these are known for being super reliable.
My full take: CalDigit Element 5 vs TS5 vs TS5 Plus
Satechi CubeDock
Next is the Satechi CubeDock, and if you look at it, it looks exactly like a Mac mini. It’s very similar to the Sonnet Echo 13, but the real reason to pick this one is the design.
The SSD slot on this is just as fast as the one on the Sonnet. It also has extra USB-C ports, one on the back and one on the front, that the Echo 13 doesn’t have.
It’s $100 more than the Echo 13, so you really only want this one if you want those extra USB ports. It can often be found on sale for $320 to $350, and at that price I think it’s a much better buy.
CalDigit TS5 Plus
Then we’ve got the beast, the CalDigit TS5 Plus. It has 2 USB controllers inside, which means CalDigit reserves lots of bandwidth for all the different devices you plug in.
On the back you’ve got 3 USB-C data ports, 4 USB-A ports, 10 gigabit Ethernet, and a DisplayPort for an external display. You can also use the other 2 Thunderbolt ports on the back for a Studio Display or fast external SSDs. On the front you get 2 more USB-C ports, a USB-A port, and microSD and SD card slots.
The biggest drawback, and this goes for some of the docks coming up too, is that there are fewer Thunderbolt downstream ports. You only get 2 extra Thunderbolt ports, where most of the options above have 3, so you give one up to get the extra ports and the 10 gigabit network. It’s $500. It’s pricey, but it’s reliable and gets you a ton of ports with one cable.
My full take: CalDigit Element 5 vs TS5 vs TS5 Plus
Sonnet Echo 21 SuperDock
The Sonnet Echo 21 SuperDock is amazing because of how many ports it has on the back. You can choose between DisplayPort or HDMI, and you get 2 extra Thunderbolt ports, 10 gigabit Ethernet and 4 USB ports.
It also has RCA line out, so you can plug it straight into an audio interface or powered speakers. It sounds great, and it supports true 96 kHz lossless audio. On the front you get 5 USB ports, with one of them reserving 15 watts of power.
It also has the SSD slot on the bottom, but the weird thing is that Sonnet limits that SSD to 3000 MB/s. That’s not as fast as the Echo 13 or the Satechi, but 3000 MB/s is still more than fast enough for editing multicam clips.
The biggest drawback is that it doesn’t reserve as much power for its ports as the TS5 or TS5 Plus. On the TS5 Plus you get up to 36 watts on one of the USB-C ports, which is handy for charging. Where the Echo 21 makes up for it is the built-in SSD slot, the RCA jacks and 10 gig Ethernet. It’s an awesome docking station.
My full take: Sonnet Echo 21 SuperDock review
IVANKY FusionDock Ultra
Last on the list is the IVANKY FusionDock Ultra. It has more ports than any other dock here: 12 USB ports that all support the 10 gig standard, Thunderbolt 5 ports, 10 gig Ethernet, HDMI, DisplayPort, and optical out, which you don’t see on many docks.
The biggest drawback is that it plugs into your computer with 2 ports. The cool thing is what that gets you. If you have an M1 through M4 Max MacBook Pro, the other docks top out at 2 external displays, but this one can run up to 4 at the same time. On an M5 Max, the TS5 and some of the others can also do four, but one of those has to be a Thunderbolt monitor you daisy chain from. The Ultra doesn’t need that. You can mix and match all the ports on the back to run up to 4 external monitors.
It has a cool floating design and great cooling, but it costs $650 and you give up 2 ports on your computer to use it. It’s the most expensive dock here, but you get lots of ports and lots of external displays.
My full take: IVANKY FusionDock Ultra review
Which one should you buy?
- CalDigit Element 5: you just want fast ports for displays or external SSDs. It’s super compact and fits perfectly on top of a Mac mini.
- OWC Thunderbolt 5 Hub: you want to save a little money. It works great too.
- Sonnet Echo 13: you want a dock that holds an SSD at the best price.
- Satechi CubeDock: you want it to look like your Mac mini. It’s a little more than the Echo, but it’s really nice looking and works great.
- CalDigit TS5: most people should just get this one. It has all the ports you need, it’s fast and reliable, and you still get 3 extra Thunderbolt ports with a single cable.
- CalDigit TS5 Plus: you run a lot of 10 gig USB SSDs. It reserves lots of power for every port and gives you 10 gig Ethernet.
- Sonnet Echo 21 SuperDock: you want even more connectivity, HDMI or DisplayPort, 10 gig and a fast SSD.
- IVANKY FusionDock Ultra: you have an M1 through M4 Max MacBook Pro and want 4 external displays from one dock.
If you’re still not sure which Mac or setup you need, tell me how you use your Mac and I’ll give you free personalized advice. You can also see every Mac I’ve tested.
Still deciding? My Mac Studio accessories guide covers the rest of the desk, and the best external SSDs for Mac pair well with any of these.
