These are the best docks for Dell XPS laptops: Plugable, Anker, and more

July 19, 2021 4:00pm

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João Carrasqueira

The Dell XPS laptop family offers top-tier performance in a design that’s much smaller than you might initially expect. The tiny bezels make these laptops extra portable, and with the performance they offer, they’re some of the

best laptops

out there. That small size comes with some sacrifices though. Like many other ultrabooks, the Dell XPS family relies mostly on

Thunderbolt 4

(USB Type-C) for connectivity. If you want to connect a lot of peripherals to your laptop, you’re going to want a dock. That’s why we’ve rounded up the best docks you can get for Dell XPS laptops.

Now, to be fair, Dell’s laptops ship with two adapters by default. A USB Type-C to Type-A adapter and USB Type-C to HDMI adapter are included in the box, so you’re not completely out of options. But docks can give you a lot more flexibility and versatility. They make creating an office setup a lot easier, plugging in all your peripherals into one device. All of that can then be connected with a single cable to your PC.

Dell Thunderbolt Dock WD19TBS

High-end Dell dock

This official Dell dock adds all the connectivity you need for your XPS laptop, including multiple display outputs, USB, Ethernet, and power delivery. It's modular too, so you can keep the same connector and upgrade the ports later.

Buy at Dell.com

Plugable 14-in-1 USB-C and Thunderbolt dock

All the ports you could need

This Plugable dock offers a whopping 14 ports, including four display outputs, six USB Type-A ports, and SD card readers. It's one of the most robust options out there.

Buy at Amazon

Anker PowerExpand 5-in-1 Thunderbolt 4 Mini Dock

Portable Thunderbolt

Most Thunderbolt docks are pretty big, but this one from Anker is much easier to take on the go. It splits a Thunderbolt connection into three ports so you can connect multiple Thunderbolt displays, plus a USB Type-A port.

Buy at Amazon

CalDigit TS3 Plus

Sturdy and versatile

This dock from CalDigit looks built to endure the toughest bumps of everyday life, and it has a whopping 15 ports to expand your connectivity. It has everything you'd expect, plus an S/PDIF optical audio port, which you don't see very often.

Buy at Amazon

Razer Thunderbolt 4 Dock Chroma

Add some flair

If your desk could use with some spicing up, this Razer dock is one way to do it. It gives you two USB ports, three Thunderbolt ports for display output, gigabit Ethernet, and an SD card reader, all with fully customizable RGB lighting.

Buy at Amazon

Plugable USB 3.0 Universal Laptop Docking Station

Who needs Thunderbolt?

Thunderbolt docks are expensive, but with this dock, you can still get a lot of ports for less. Six USB ports, Ethernet, HDMI, and DVI ports are all included for a much lower price. It doesn't charge your laptop, though.

Buy at Amazon

QGeeM USB C Hub

Portability and versatility

This USB Type-C hub is both portable and versatile. It's very compact, yet it features four USB Type-A ports, USB Type-C, Ethernet, two HDMI ports, and even a VGA port for older monitors and projectors. It's one of the more affordable options, too.

Buy at Amazon

Anker PowerExpand+ 7-in-1 USB C Hub

Cheap and easy to carry

This cheap Anker USB-C dock is very easy to take anywhere, but still offers a lot of expansion for your Dell XPS. It has HDMI, SD card readers, and three USB ports, plus it can charge your laptop at up to 85W.

Buy at Amazon

WAVLINK USB C Hub

Gigabit Ethernet anywhere

This is another cheap dock that's easy to take anywhere. In fact, it's the smallest one on this list. Despite that, you now get support for Gigabit Ethernet, two USB ports, HDMI, SD card readers, and power delivery.

Buy at Amazon

That should give you a few options that cover pretty much all types of use cases. You have some very high-end and capable options like the Plugable 14-in-1 Thunderbolt dock, which can give you lots of ports, including two 4K displays at 60Hz. Or you can get something cheap like the Anker PowerExpand+ 7-in-1, which you can take anywhere easily to add ports wherever you are. Ultimately, which dock is best is completely dependent on your use case for the Dell XPS.

If you want to buy one of the Dell XPS laptops, you can use the links below to buy your preferred size and model. If you’re still exploring options, you can check out our roundup of the

best Dell laptops

, which will also support these docks – though AMD laptops won’t support Thunderbolt.

Dell XPS 13

The Dell XPS 13 is a great premium laptop with a much smaller chassis than you might expect thanks to its tiny bezels. It offers great performance in a premium and lightweight chassis.

Buy at Dell.com

Dell XPS 13 2-in-1

The Dell XPS 13 2-in-1 combines the portability and performance of the XPS 13 with the convertible form factor. It's even more versatile because of it.

Buy at Dell.com

Dell XPS 15

The Dell XPS 15 is a powerful 15 inch laptop in a stylish and sleek body. It has 45W Intel processors and you can get it with a 45W GeForce RTX 3050 Ti GPU.

Buy at Dell.com

Dell XPS 17

The most powerful of the XPS lineup, the XPS 17 has a large 17 inch display in the body of a 15 inch laptop. It packs 45W Intel processors and you can get it with up to a 70W GeForce RTX 3060 from Nvidia.

Buy at Dell.com