The Best Laptop Docking Stations to Supercharge Your Workstation

This Kensington Thunderbolt 5 dock is thick, heavy, and undeniably bulky. But as something that's not meant to move from your desk all that much, that's not a bad thing. The aluminum case on the Kensington will look great on your desk, but just know that it's quite long, taking up quite a footprint.

It's the most well-rounded Thunderbolt 5 dock I've tested so far. It comes with three downstream Thunderbolt 5 ports, which are blazing fast, and they'll become more useful as more Thunderbolt 5 accessories roll out. I also like that it includes a manual power button on the back too. The one thing it's missing is HDMI, though that's been cut out of a lot of the new Thunderbolt 5 docks in exchange for more Thunderbolt. On sale, it squeezes under $300, and that's without cutting out all the extra ports on something like the CalDigit Element 5 Hub, which I'll be testing out soon.

Connects via USB-C.

It's hard not to like the Plugable USB-C 5-Display Dock (UD 7400-PD). Being able to support up to five 4K displays is just ridiculous, even if it requires downloading a DisplayLink driver. Those do have to be locked at 60 Hz, mind you, as this isn't Thunderbolt 5, but it's impressive nonetheless. It all comes in a fairly thin little dock, though I did notice that it gets quite warm to the touch. That's true of many docking stations, though the thinness of the chassis might be making cooling more difficult.

The other thing that should be mentioned about this dock is that it's missing SD card slots and a headphone jack. If you need either of those, this one isn't for you. But if you dream of an ever-increasing screen count for your desk setup, the Plugable USB-C 5-Display Dock does what few others can.

Connects via USB-C.

Satechi's Triple 4K Docking Station serves a similar purpose to Anker's 568 (mentioned below) but comes with a few upgrades. It supports three monitors, and while the first display output is HDMI-only, the two others can be connected via either HDMI or DisplayPort. Each display supports up to a maximum of 4K resolution at 60 Hz, which is more than enough for most office or media work, though it struggles a bit with the super-high frame rates you might want for gaming.

In my testing, the USB-C and USB-A ports on the front rated for 10 Gbps speeds were able to reach write speeds of around 900 MB/s and read speeds of 800 MB/s. However, they only output 7.5 watts. You do get a bonus USB-C port on the front that has around 400 MB/s read and write speeds. If you care more about transferring a lot of data rather than charging gadgets, this is the docking station to go with. It's also worth noting that even the rear USB ports reached similar 400 MB/s speeds, so while you can use them for peripherals, there's still the option of even more relatively fast data transfers if you need it.

Connects via USB-C.

Sometimes, simpler is better. This docking station from Satechi is small, made of sturdy aluminum, and comes with three Thunderbolt 4 ports on the rear, each of which is capable of up to 40 Gbps. That's so blisteringly fast that there aren't many devices on the market that can reach faster speeds. In my testing, I regularly reached 900 MB/s, which is more a limitation of the storage devices I have and not the docking station itself. The only spec capable of faster speeds is Thunderbolt 5, and I reviewed the very first laptop with a Thunderbolt 5 port not that long ago. It's unlikely you have anything so fast that this dock can't handle it.

On the front, there's one USB-A 3.2 port and one more Thunderbolt 4 port, though this is an upstream port meant to connect to your laptop. It can deliver up to 96 watts of power, which is more than enough to charge your laptop as long as the docking station is plugged into a power source. This layout is surprisingly clean, with only a few cables coming out of the back, and one running to your laptop. If all you need is to connect to a couple of monitors or high-speed data storage, and you like to keep your desk free of clutter, this is a great option.

Connects via USB-C.

If you do any heavy video editing, game design, or other types of work that involve huge amounts of data, this dock has all the bells and whistles for you. It's a thick dock, made of sturdy aluminum, and it can either lie flat on your desk or stand upright on its side. I prefer the former, but it's nice to have the option to take up less space.

The docking station uses a Thunderbolt 4 port to connect to your laptop, which has plenty of bandwidth to handle a lot. It supports a lavish four displays at once, each up to 4K at 60 Hz, and it's stacked with high-speed data transfer ports. In my testing, the fastest ports reached speeds of up to 900 MB/s, which is essential for transferring huge media files back and forth. I used this docking station to transfer raw 6K video footage, and it made short work of one of the most demanding tasks I could throw at it. Best of all, it has UHS-II SD card slots on the front, so you don't need a separate adapter for those either.

Connects via USB-C.

It's hard to overstate how excessively luxurious this dock is. It's specifically for MacBook Pro users and can tackle up to four 6K screens, something only recent MacBook Pros support. The Ivanky FusionDock Max 1 accomplishes this via four USB-C Thunderbolt 4 ports, each capable of 40 Gbps data transfer speeds.

That connection enables a massive array of high-speed data transfer ports. There are five separate USB-A ports, each of which managed to exceed 800 to 900 MB/s speeds in my testing, and it was the same story for the six USB-C ports. Short of building a media workstation that would make a VFX studio blush, it would be difficult to push this thing to its limits. The only downside is that this docking station is Mac-only. But if you're building the beefiest media workstation you can for the most powerful MacBook Pros on the market, this is it. Just put it all on the company card, because it's expensive.

Connects via two USB-C ports.

Few people need an 8K display—or multiple 4K displays—but those who do know how difficult it can be to find gear that supports their exorbitant needs. Fortunately, the Revodok Max 213 from Ugreen fits that bill. The DisplayPort 1.4 port can handle up to an 8K display at 30 Hz. It also comes with a Thunderbolt 4 upstream port that runs to your laptop, and, more importantly, a pair of downstream Thunderbolt 4 ports, which is another rarity among the docks I've tested.

When you get to this level of data transfer, you're unavoidably going to start generating a lot of heat. Fortunately, this docking station is built to handle it. It features a unique pleated aluminum surface, which provides plenty of airflow. That surface is then wrapped in a second aluminum shell, allowing it to dissipate heat without making the whole docking station hot to the touch. It's a clever design. If you need to transfer a ton of media from various sources into one machine, connected to some seriously high-res displays, this is the dock that can handle it all.

Connects via USB-C.

A mobile docking station might sound like a contradiction, but in the case of the Kensington Triple Video Mobile Dock, it makes a lot of sense. Using the included two HDMI ports and the DisplayPort, this little device can power three 1080p displays or two 4K displays—all at 60 Hz. It also has a USB-C port with 85 watts of pass-through charging, which is enough to charge most laptops.

It's a unique accessory in that it straddles the line between USB hub and full-on docking station. It doesn't have a separate power source, and it only weighs 0.6 pounds, making it the perfect solution for someone who needs additional monitor support on the go without the extra bulk. The downside is that it only supports a single 4K monitor on MacBooks, as the dual 4K support is only for Windows devices.

Connects via USB-C.