Keyboard Builders' Digest / Switch trends

Best-selling keyboard switches of January 2026

Here are January’s top mechanical switches, the community’s favorites based on vendor sales data.

KBD.news
Published February 6, 2026

(Cover: HMX Black Cat switches. Photo by Unikeys.)

Alongside our awesome regular vendors, Divinikey has joined the ranks of shops sharing their data – so let’s keep the series rolling by highlighting the community’s most loved switch models and diving into January’s best-selling switches! Discussion over at r/mk if you'd like to share your experiences or opinion.

Summary: 18 contributors from all around the globe, representing about 1 million switches sold, with 105 switch models mentioned and 10 new switch models appearing first in the top lists.

The article is quite long, feel free to jump to the list of contributors, to my quick market overview, the aggregated top10 list, the shooting stars, newly added switches, the detailed results by shops, or to the disclaimer, aggregation rules used by the algorithm, and my closing thoughts with new features and developments. Finally, search and filter the mechanical switch database for your favorite switch types or specific models.

General market trends

Thanks to this compilation getting more and more representative — we have data coming from the US to China, Japan to France, Germany to India, and Australia to the UK –, and based on the sales volumes reported by all the participating shops, I can usually spot some interesting trends.

That said, while overall positive, the January numbers are quite mixed again. An improvement compared to December, but no clear trend. Only 10 out of 18 shops reported gains at various levels, with 6 reporting a decrease in sales, and one shop basically with the same numbers as before. (I don't have December data for Divinikey.)

The linear vs tactile ratio is 80:20 in the top 10 this time, but 55:41 in the top 100 (with four models representing clickies), closer to out previous observation. The current top tactiles, the silent TTC Bluish White V2 and Gateron's Type R, made it to the top spots though. However, keep in mind that the smaller variety and greater concentration of tactiles compared to linears may result in their over-representation.

In addition, silent switches now account for only 10% of the top 10 (vs. 40% in December) and 19% of the top 100 (vs 27%). Both ratios indicate a substantial decline.

Just like in December, looking into the per-shop lists may reveal the effect of stock clearances: Some older switch models appear in the individual Top 10 lists as customers snap them temporarily at discounts. Keep this in mind as well while evaluating the rankings.

For first-hand insights, shared by shop runners, check out the detailed lists below.

Contributors

Many thanks to all the shops that are contributing their detailed statistics to this series. Exact sales volumes (rather than mere rankings) make the aggregated list more accurate. Thank you for your trust on behalf of the community – we all know how sensitive this data is.

I'd also like to highlight Divinikey, one of your favorite US-based shops, joining this initiative for the first time. Welcome aboard!

Clicking the links takes you to the individual top lists:

MonacoKeys (DE), Lume Keebs (US), InputGear (DE), BeaverKeys (CA), The Thocc Exchange (UK), DiviniKey (US), Delta Key Co. (FR), Mechboards (UK), UniKeys (CN), SerpentKeys (UK), Clackify (US), Gateron (CN), Coffeekeys (IT), Keebz N Cables (AU), Mechanical Keyboards (US), Yusha Kobo (JP), StacksKB (IN), AKKO EU (CN).

Switch testers

Many of you asked for switch testers. While I'm not a merchant myself, Clackify (US) specializes in exactly that – custom switch testers. Give them a shot. Or there's also Monacokeys (DE) and CoffeeKeys (IT) in the EU, Thocc Exchange and SerpentKeys in the UK, while Unikeys (CN) is revamping their tester page. Other shops offer more specific switch testers too, e.g. Beaverkeys (CA) or Keebz N Cables (AU).

Novelties & Database updates

10 new switch models have recently been added to the database as a result of the incoming top lists – some of these are new, however, some rather old switches have been "hacked" into the list again – by stock clearances or otherwise.

E.g. the recently added Cherry MX1A Hyperglide Black or Cherry MX Grey tactile variants, the Kailh Box V2 Brown, Kailh Choc V2 Brown, or Gateron KS-3 Milky Black aren't anything new. No problem, these anomalies don't really mess up the overall top list.

This leaves us with only a handful of novelties:

• Keygeek Y3x – not really an upgrade to the Y3 switch, the Y3X and Y3 cover different sound and typing spectra. According to Unikeys, compared to the classic Y3 switch, Y3X is slightly louder and poppier.
• HMX Ash – a "balanced", not too loud clacky linear with POK stem.
• HMX Black Cat – a clacky long-pole tactile, with a tactile bump close to D shape, like the Retro J or Hydra.
• the Haimu Industrial Orange V2 is a heavier tactile.
• Gateron KS-33 Silent Brown 2.0 – the tactile variant of Gateron's low-profile switches with dual-railish structure to reduce stem wobble, and silicone dampeners.

At this point I have to mention Gateron's crazy Magnetic Jade Delta, two weight variants of a HE switch with the characteristic triangularish stems.

Yeah, as demonstrated by the GravaStar UFO HE model, the simpler inner structure of Hall-effect switches provides much greater freedom during the design process.

Results

January's Top 10 – aggregated

Beside this Top10 feel free to check out the Top 400+ list too. (About the ranking: switch models appearing in multiple shop lists are prioritized over high sales in a single shop.)

As you'll see, there's not much overlapping in the individual shop lists, because of the relatively few repetitions. It's no surprise that the well-known, widely available, recurring models made it into the aggregated list above.

Anyway, here is a more interesting list: the shooting stars.

Shooting stars

These are the switches with the highest gain in rank from December to January:

And now let's take a look at the individual lists.

MonacoKeys (Germany)
[5% off with the KBDNEWS coupon code]

Here is the collection of Monaco's best sellers so you can find them all at once.

We have some brand new and nice switches in-stock for February and are interested to see how they will sell! HMX Blackberry Silents from YG, KTT Mirror Silent, Keygeek SU Color V2 as an Y2 Update and HMX Cthulhu – Michael.

Lume Keebs (US)
[5% off with the KBDNEWS coupon code]

Newer manufacturers like Keygeek are definitely on the rise. They've been improving really fast in terms of consistency, smoothness, and overall quality, and you can see more people in the community starting to recognize and use their switches – Emily.

InputGear (Germany)
[5% off with the KBDNEWS coupon code]

Keygeek will probably make some bigger name switches coming up sooner or later after a big success of the Y2, keep your eyes peeled – David.

BeaverKeys (Canada)
[5% off with the KBDNEWS coupon code]

The Keygeek Y2 has made its grand entrance this month and immediately captured the first place in the switch sales ranking. The unique waffle pole bottom of the Y2 enable a super deep sound, doubling down on the naturally deeper sound of Keygeek switches – Peter.

The Thocc Exchange (UK)
[5% off with the KBDNEWS coupon code]

Keygeek Y2 has stolen the show the past few months. Deep, satisfying sound profile straight out of the box. It’s also been really encouraging to see the Unity switch land well with people, particularly with customers who value the charity-focused angle behind it. Blue Cheese V2 and Type R have both seen a strong resurgence as well. Lots of new switches to upload this week. Thanks, as always, for the continued support – Matty.

DiviniKey (US)
[5% off with the KBDNEWS coupon code]

Three of last month’s top 10, Cherry MX2A (black & brown) and Lichicx are regulars on our shelves, which speaks to the staying power of well-loved classics. The rest of the list leaned heavily toward newer additions from brands like Keygeek and HMX, showing how much excitement there still is around fresh releases. Normally we usually see Gateron Type-R, Gateron Oil King, and Gateron KS-3 on our top 10 list every month but we were out of stock for January. We anticipate their return to the top 10 list probably for next month or March.

Overall our sales tend to be a mix of tried-and-true favorites and whatever new switch is having its moment in the spotlight. We have a few more releases on the way to us so we’re looking forward to seeing what rises to the top (and what sticks around!) – Carl.

Delta Key Co. (France)
[5% off with the KBDNEWS coupon code]

Mechboards (UK)
[5% off with the KBDNEWS coupon code]

Akko Rosewood has taken our top MX spot for the first time. They're also the only switch we sell in packs of 45. Perhaps we need to look at stocking more Akko switches – Ben.

UniKeys (China)
[7% off with the KBDNEWS coupon code]

SerpentKeys (UK)
[5% off with the KBDNEWS coupon code]

Plenty of new switches will be arriving over the next 1–2 weeks, including some exciting silents — a silent linear from WingTree, produced using the Lichicx molds, plus silent tactiles from Gateron and HMX. Also arriving is Gateron’s latest clicky, the Harmonic, following on from the popular Melodic, alongside a solid lineup of linears such as Keygeek Blue Cheese V2, HMX Cthulhu, Keygeek Full Nylon, HMX Lanikai, and more! – Ollie.

Clackify (US)
[5% off with the KBDNEWS coupon code]

This month didn't see too many changes, but the HMX Retro J seem to be climbing the ranks! Similar to the Gateron Type R, these have a tactile bump that lasts throughout the vast majority of the keypress. Worth trying in my opinion! – Calvin.

Gateron (China)
[10% off with the KBDNEWS coupon code]

Coffeekeys (Italy)
[5% off with the KBDNEWS coupon code]

January’s switch performance was shaped by recent launches. The Keygeek Y2, introduced mid-month, sold out rapidly and led demand despite limited availability. Two additional Keygeek models were also recently introduced and are currently available, further expanding the active lineup – Riccardo.

Keebz N Cables (Australia)
[5% off with the KBDNEWS coupon code]

Gateron Lanes have made it back to the Top 10 as worldwide stock is nearing sold out. With 6 out of 10 top selling switches in our line up being tactile, we getting closer to our ultimate goal of tactile dominations 😈 – Jason.

Mechanical Keyboards (US)
[5% off with the KBDNEWS coupon code]

Yusha Kobo (Japan)

Silent switches stay strong and are a popular choice among our Japanese keyboard community dominating the ranking of January 2026. To our surprise - a magnetic switch - a Hall Effect switch - did rank 7th. I think we didn't have an HE switch selling this good during the last few months. Also we finally stocked the Gateron Lanes! They didn't make it into the ranking - but let's see – Sabrina.

StacksKB (India)

Business as usual in January - HMX restock took place on the 28th of January, otherwise I suspect that Xinhais might have made the cut – Aditya.

AKKO EU (China)
[10% off with the KBDNEWS coupon code]

Disclaimer

Keep in mind that most of the time I'm not in a position to verify the validity and accuracy of the data provided by shop runners. Some of these lists come automatically from their databases, with screenshots, however, some were put together manually. I asked for the numbers of the previous month, but some shops may query the past 30 days, etc.

That said, take everything with a grain of salt, but I hope this compilation will still hold some value, highlighting trends, giving you some tips, and as a snapshot of the zeitgeist it will be also interesting to look back at on the long run.

About the algorithm

While contributors provide exact numbers, standardization, normalization, and other techniques remain essential to come up with a ranked list due to some remaining inconsistencies, unfortunately.

The current system:

• incorporates sales volume as a percentage – to mitigate the dominance of a single huge vendor
• rewards switches present in multiple lists – to compensate the effect of some switches being offered in a single shop only, thus reflecting availability
• incorporates the previous month to break ties.

As with all such statistical methods, if we were to tamper with the algorithm, it would produce completely different results.

Another source of confusion and inconsistency is the arrival of belated lists. When such datasets come in, I may update the database but often not the already published article. While I add the specific list to the database, I don’t update the overall rankings in the write-up.

Final thoughts & Developments

Hey, I hope this write-up was useful to some of you because it took me a lot of time to complete it again, despite the heavy automation wherever possible. Thankfully, this time I'm closer to 7-8 hours again, instead of the painful 15-20 hours I spent with the early write-ups. This is only partly the result of my efficiency, less new switches influence this number a lot – less time spent with looking for missing data, proper photos, and including new models into the database.

Feel free to use and reference this post and the switch database. Spread the word so it makes sense for me to invest all this time and effort.

• Check out the switch database – with 450 switch models – with specs, photos, vendors, prices, typing tests.
• Some features: Search by keyword, filter by tags. You can order the list by price and release date now, as well as filter switches by color. Use permalinks to custom lists like silent tactiles or light, lubed linears with dust-proof stem and light diffuser. ;)
• Finally, the archive of all the monthly switch compilations is available too, e.g. the previous, December top list as a reference.

Thanks for reading this far, see you next month!

Published on Fri 6th Feb 2026. Featured in KBD #206.

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