planning to buy a mechanical keyboard and linear switch profile is your priority.
I bet you would certainly go with red switches, am I right!
But there are many manufacturers on the market such as Cherry, Gateron, and Kailh.
Among them, Gateron and Cherry are the most dominant switch manufacturer, a battle always starts in mind when users try to pick switches between Gateron Red vs Cherry Red because of their neck-to-neck similarities.
In the end, you have to pick one, so in this article, we will compare Gateron Red vs Cherry Red switches on essential technical factors.
And get the conclusion on which switches should you pick out for your existing mechanical keyboard.
Or if you looking for a new then which switches keyboard you should go with?
Before diving into the details some questions needs to be answered so you may get a better perspective about both switches.
Let’s get dive in!
Table of Contents
Gateron Red Switches: An Overview
To know about Gatron Red switches, we should know about the Gateron manufacturer, and why they are popular in the mechanical switches industry.
Produced by Huizhou Gateron Electronic Technology Co., Ltd, Gateron switches are a mechanical type of switches that are known to produce a variety of high-quality mechanical switches, keycaps, and some other essential components for a mechanical keyboard.
Gateron company setup is completely based in china, but now it is spreading its legs after its tremendous success on the keyboard market.
Now Coming to Gateron Red switches.
Gateron Red switches are linear switches that offer very fast response time, super-fast typing with a quiet sound profile due to their light actuation force.
Gateron Red switches are very easy to press on the keyboard and being light switches, they require less pressure to actuate.
Even after typing for long on Gateron reds, You will not feel tired, thanks to their light-oriented components.
By placing Gateron switches, you can type very frequently which not only gives broad advantages in hard-core games like PUBG and Apex Legends but also give more controls over the applications like MS offices, Text Editing tools, and site audit software like Workaware which needs fast hands to achieve better results and efficiency.
Cherry Red Switches: An Overview
Cherry Mx switches don’t need to introduce to any keyboard lovers. right!
Cherry Mx switches are way ahead in terms of applications and popularity compared to some other known switches.
In Cherry Family, Cherry Red switches are the most preferred switches among keyboard enthusiasts due to their premium quality and reliability.
Cherry Red switches are a linear type of switches that are best known to provide a smooth, fast, and consistent typing experience with a quiet sound profile, along with a premium, and sturdy feel.
Cherry Red offers light actuation with an actuating force of 45cN so users may feel very light touch with slightly less pressure.
The total travel distance for these switches is 4mm and the pre-travel distance is 2m which is quite ideal for a fast typing experience with less stretch of your wrist.
For a hard-core gamer, office employee, and regular users, these Cherry Red switches can be an excellent option to install them in the mechanical keyboards.
The silent typing sound and fast response time with super-smooth typing are the most prominent factors for Cherry red as well as for a user to consider as their next keyboard switch.
Gateron Red vs Cherry Red Comparison table
Now after discussing Gateron Red vs Cherry Red switches in brief, let’s find out the main difference between Gateron Red vs Cherry Red.
And after we will differentiate both switches in complete detail on every vital benchmark to get the conclusion.
I’m putting a comparison table to understand the differences between these two switches better.
Technical Benchmarks | Gateron Red | Cherry Red |
Switch Profile | Linear | Linear |
Smoothness | Super-Smooth | Smooth (Scratchy at intial) |
Noise Level | Very Silent | Silent |
Actuation Force | 45g | 45g |
Pre-travel Distance | 2mm | 2mm |
Total Travel Distance | 4mm | 4mm |
Durability | Gateron red switches can survive up to 50 millions keystrokes. | Cherry red switches are more durable having 100 million keystrokes. |
Gateron Red vs Cherry Red: In-Depth Comparison
Let’s break down all the major features into the in-depth details, these features impact both switch’s performance so knowing them in detail will certainly clarify your queries.
Although both switches have many similarities, so finding differences will be quite challenging that’s why giving them a winner title on every benchmark will help you to pick out the best.
Here are the in-depth details of Gateron Red vs Cherry Red switches:
1. Feel
Feel is the very first factor a user experience when he starts to type on the mechanical switches.
In terms of feels, Cherry Mx Red switches will give you a more premium feel, sturdy build, as well as excellent holds on the keyboard, compared to Gateron Red switches.
Cherry Red switches are built with very premium components, that can be easily experienced during typing on the Cherry red switches.
You will get connected more closely with the keyboard having Cherry red switches due to their strong build quality and sturdier mount on the PCB.
Whereas, Gateron Red switches also offer good quality components inside the switches so users also feel excellent hold while typing on the board. Feels quite satisfying too with the Gaterons.
You feel light and comfortable typing on Gateron red switches.
Although, feel is not the major differentiating factor between Gateron Red vs Cherry Red switches but I will give a slight edge to Cherry Red switches.
A fast and consistent typing can easily be done without any issues like pain and fatigue in fingers due to standard travel distances that required less stretch of your wrist.
Winner = Cherry Red
2. Smoothness
When opting for mechanical switches, especially linear switches. a user always prefers smooth switches because a smooth switch can drastically enhance the overall typing experience.
Gateron switches are mainly focused on providing a super-smooth typing experience to their users.
In terms of smoothness, Gateron switches are buttery smooth and more comfortable to type as their build mechanism is focused on producing more smooth-oriented switches.
The soft plastic stems and copper spring pushes these Gateron switches towards more smoothness and light actuation.
Talking about the Cherry red switches, Cherry Red switches have some scratchiness feel at initial during typing, but with the time of usuage, this scratchy feel may disappear so this can be a downside for Cherry Red switches.
You can also lube Cherry Red if you want to get rid of the scratchiness feel, by doing lubing a switch are able to offer more smoothness.
Some users may feel stifled by the Cherry red switches while typing.
In smoothness, Gateron clearly the winner here with the broad margin.
Winner = Gateron Red
3. Actuation Point
As both switches share many similarities, the actuation force is comparatively equal for both switches.
An actuation force is a kind of force that is required to register a keystroke which means at a low activation point a switch need to depress with less force to actuate whereas for the high activation point it is required more force to actuate.
For Gateron Red switches, the actuation force is 45g which is considered very ideal for a linear switch. The actuation is light that why the switches follow easy to press principal.
Apart from the actuation force, the activation point is 2mm, it can be actuated with a light hand as you don’t need to depress it to the bottom.
For Cherry Red switches, the actuation force is the same as the Gateron red switches which are 45g so all the operations are done equally good on both switches.
Some internal components of the switches can impact the actuation feel but it cant be felt with a casual typing.
In terms of actuation, there are not any significant differences between Gateron red vs Cherry red switches. I would say both are comparatively equal.
Winner = Gateron Red
4. Durability
The durability of the switches decides how long that particular switch is going to survive. Besides durability, there are some other factors too which impact the lifespan of switches.
One thing is pretty clear in the mechanical keyboard industry that no one can compete with the Cherry switches in terms of durability.
In comparison between Gateron red vs Cherry red, Cherry red switches can survive up to 100 million keystrokes with conventional usage
Whereas Gateron switches can survive up to 50 million keystrokes which is slightly less compared to Cherry red.
Although 50 million keystrokes are well enough to work these switches for long years even with the aggressive typing.
Cherry red switches offer a warranty for up to 50 million actuation with the authorized certificate, but Gateron does not provide any warranty certificate.
On the conclusive thought, Cherry red switches won this durability battle with a huge margin.
Winner = Cherry Red
5. Overall Typing Experience
Being linear switches, both switches are quite similar in terms of overall typing experience.
Look, both switches have some pros as well as some cons, they have their own special features and functionalities so we can’t declare one side winner here.
The typing is smooth, fast, and consistent with a silent sound profile for both Gateron and Cherry red switches.
As we have discussed in the above section, Gateron red switches offer more smoothness whereas cherry red switches have some sort of stiffness that can be felt during typing on them.
It is also the fact that Cherry red switches are very well built that are more stable and sturdily mounted on the board.
Being linear switches and without a tactile bump, both Gateron and Cherry red switches probably generate more errors so not be considered for professional typing but best for gaming purposes and casual typing.
These are certain things you should keep in mind before buying any mechanical switch.
In my opinion, both switches give a neck-to-neck competition on every benchmark. So I’m leaving it to you to decide which switches are ahead in terms of typing.
Winner = Tied (User-preference)
Source: Kagan
6. Price
Price is the most impactful and key factor which can be a dealmaker or dealbreaker for any kind of product.
As far as the price is considered, Gateron red switches achieved a big plus point here due to their affordable price compared to Cherry Red switches.
The price for Gateron red switches varies according to the availability, you can get these switches on Amazon for $20 for a pack of 70 switches.
Gaterons look quite affordable, am I right?
Now talking about Cherry red switches, the price for cherry red switches on Amazon for $42 for a pack of 65 switches.
You can see the difference in the price point for both switches, as Cherry red switches cost you nearly double compared to Gateron red switches.
Winner = Gateron Red
Is Gateron red good for gaming?
If you are looking for gaming switches for your mechanical keyboard, there are some technical features you should pay attention to.
Fast response time, silent sound profile, and good actuation features are sufficient to handle all gaming operations.
Linear switches have all these required specifications to handle all gaming operations including fast-paced gaming too.
So yeah, Gateron red switches are certainly an excellent choice for gaming because of their super smooth, fast response and typing along with a silent sound profile. These will give you a competitive edge over your enemies during the gameplay.
Besides Gaterons, Cherry, Kailh linear switches can be a good choice for gaming purposes.
If you are looking for a switch that is dedicatedly designed for gaming, I recommended you to go with Silver Speed Switches that have the fastest response time and will provide immense advantages in gaming.
Conclusion
As we have seen Gateron red and Cherry red switches have many similarities in all technical factors, that’s why they are compared often.
From their feel, and smoothness to their typing experience and price, I have tried to put everything about these switches.
After reading and studying all the technical factors, we have come to the conclusion that Gateron red switches can be excellent switches over Cherry red switches considering their price point and overall feel.
Please keep in mind that Cherry red switches are equally good and somehow ahead on some benchmarks like durability and build quality.
But the price is the prominent thing that forces me to put Gateron red over Cherry Red, if the budget is not a concern for you I would suggest you go with Cherry red switches.
Well, We should appreciate Gateron manufacturer introducing one of the best affordable mechanical switches in front of us so every keyboard lover can enjoy the magnificent experience of mechanical keyboards.
I hope this post was able to give all the answers regarding Gateron red vs Cherry red switches.
Thanks for reading.
Cheers!!
Gateron Red vs Cherry Red FAQs
Are the Gateron Reds good?
Gateron Red switches are linear switches that offer buttery-smooth typing, fast response time, lighter actuation along with a silent typing experience, considering these factors Gateron reds are really good switches for mechanical keyboards.
Are Gateron Reds smooth?
Gateron is best known to produce high-quality super smooth switches, so Gateron red switches are very smooth even better than Cherry switches in terms of smoothness.