Which Docking Station for a Laptop With USB-A, or a Basic USB-C Port?

Why not every dock works with your laptop

Many of our docking stations are designed to take advantage of USB Type-C’s optional features: Power Delivery - for powering and charging the computer, and Alt-Mode video - for connecting an external display directly to the USB Type-C port. USB 2.0 or 3.0 “Standard-A” ports do not support these features, and some system manufacturers still produce entire product lines where these features are not enabled.

Wait, USB Type-C and USB-C, what’s the difference? USB Type-C describes the physical port, while USB-C is not an official term, but is often used to describe the data connection: USB 5Gbps, or USB 10Gbps and may or may not include optional features. A USB Type-C port can support more than just USB 3, with additional modes like USB 2.0 data-only, or USB4/Thunderbolt.

Power Delivery (PD)

Power Delivery lets one USB-C cable carry a significant amount of power as well as data. A PD dock plugs into the wall and charges the laptop through the same cable that carries your keyboard, monitor and network. If your laptop's USB-C port doesn't support PD charging, the dock can't charge it. A laptop with no USB-C port at all can't use it either.

A quick rule of thumb: in 2026, if the notebook computer didn’t include a USB Type-C power adapter, it likely doesn’t support USB Power Delivery.

DisplayPort Alt Mode (video over USB-C)

“Alt Mode” lets a USB-C port carry a native video signal, usually DisplayPort, so a dock or cable can drive a monitor with no extra software. Many of our docks rely on it for the “Display 1” or “HDMI 1” output on our triple display docks, and for our “MST” based docking stations. If your USB-C port lacks Alt Mode, those docks give you no picture. A USB-A port has no Alt Mode at all.

MST or Multi-Stream Transport takes a single DisplayPort video stream and splits it to support multiple external displays. This requires the host computer to support USB Type-C with DisplayPort video, and the host operating system (and graphics drivers) must support MST. For example, this is available with Windows 11 on Intel, AMD, and ARM based systems. While Apple has enabled USB Type-C DisplayPort video output, they have not enabled MST in the graphics drivers.

How to check your laptop

• Look in your laptop's specs for “DisplayPort Alt Mode,” “DP over USB-C,” or “Power Delivery.” The USB-C port is sometimes marked with a small DisplayPort or charging-bolt symbol, though many aren't marked.
• A USB-C port with no symbol and no mention in the specs is probably data only. Check the manual or the manufacturer's page to be sure.
• A rectangular USB-A port with a blue tab or an “SS” symbol is USB 3.0. That is all these docks need.

How do these docks enable external displays if the port doesn’t support video?

Our USB 3.0 docking stations rely on DisplayLink USB Graphics Technology. Instead of relying on Alt Mode, they emulate graphics hardware in software, compress, then transmit the video data over the ordinary USB 3.0 data connection to the docking station where the video is decompressed and converted to either DisplayPort or HDMI for the external display connection. A small driver on your computer turns the screen image into data, and the dock turns it back into video. This extends the computer’s original design capability, at the expense of a little bit of display performance. Generally, we recommend our DisplayLink based products for use with office and productivity software. DisplayLink controlled external displays may not perform well for 2D or 3D graphics applications, video editing, or full screen video playback - HDCP (High-bandwidth Digital Content Protection) is not supported and some streaming services will not function when using the docking station.

What that means for you:

• Works with: USB-A 3.0 ports, and USB-C ports that carry data only, and USB-C with video or charging - but it doesn’t take advantage of these features.
• These don’t charge your laptop. These docks have no Power Delivery. Plug in your laptop's own charger when using the docking station for the best experience.
• Needs a driver on macOS, and see the Drivers note below for Windows. ChromeOS (v100 or later) is supported.
• Not supported: iPad, Android and Linux.
• The video is software-generated, so the dock suits office work, browsing, video calls and documents better than fast-moving games or high-end video editing.

Plugable’s USB 3.0 docking stations

¹ A single display on the UD-3900 can run up to 2560×1440 at 50Hz.

UD-3900: two 1080p monitors, our longest running and most popular docking station

Best for two 1080p monitors

The UD-3900 is one of our longest running models with over 500,000 units sold!

View the UD-3900

It supports two HDMI monitors up to 1920x1200 resolution, adds gigabit Ethernet and audio, and gives you six USB-A ports for a keyboard, mouse, webcam and drives. It connects over USB 3.0, from either a USB-A port or a USB-C port with the captive adapter on the included USB data cable.

UD-3900H: two 1080p monitors, lay-flat horizontal docking station

Best for two 1080p monitors, lowest cost

The UD-3900H provides a lay-flat option.

View the UD-3900H

It supports two monitors up to 1920x1200 resolution - using HDMI and DVI and includes a DVI to HDMI and DVI to VGA adapter for broad display support. Like the UD-3900 it also adds gigabit Ethernet and audio, and gives you six USB-A ports for a keyboard, mouse, webcam and drives. It connects over USB 3.0, from either a USB-A port or a USB-C port with the two included cables.

UD-3900Z: same ports, matte finish

Best for two 1080p monitors

The UD-3900Z has the same two HDMI outputs as the UD-3900, gigabit Ethernet, audio and six USB-A ports.

View the UD-3900Z

The difference is the matte finish. We listened to our customers who were split on the glossy finish of the UD-3900; sometimes you don’t want a glossy reflective docking station. It connects over USB 3.0, from either a USB-A port or a USB-C port with the two included cables.

UD-6950Z: two 4K monitors

Best for two 4K monitors

If your monitors are 4K, step up to the UD-6950Z.

View the UD-6950Z

It has two pairs of DisplayPort and HDMI outputs; each pair supports a single display at up to 3840×2160 at 60Hz. All six USB-A ports are USB 3.0 (5Gbps), which helps when you plug in external drives. It also has gigabit Ethernet and audio. Use the right cable for each monitor: DisplayPort to the DisplayPort output, and HDMI to the HDMI output - no additional adapters are necessary. It connects over USB 3.0, from either a USB-A port or a USB-C port with the two included cables.

Supporting 4K displays takes more processing power and USB bandwidth than 1080P displays, and we recommend a bit more powerful system for the UD-6950Z. For this, a processor with 2.4GHz base from the Intel i-Series 10th generation, or AMD Ryzen 3 or newer, is recommended.

Choosing quickly

• Two 1080p monitors: UD-3900 or UD-3900Z.
• Two 1080p monitors with the dock under the displays: UD-3900H.
• Two 4K monitors, or fast external drives on the rear ports: UD-6950Z.
• Your laptop's USB-C port does support Power Delivery and Alt Mode, and you want one-cable charging: these docks aren't the right fit. Look at our USB-C docks with Power Delivery instead.

Drivers: what to expect

DisplayLink docks need the DisplayLink driver on macOS, which you install once. Our listings say this in the title (“Driver Required”) because it matters. On Windows, the DisplayLink software is installed automatically through Windows Update, and we offer the latest releases on our website.

Download the driver from plugable.com/pages/displaylink.

System compatibility

Windows 11 and 10 notebook or desktop computers with 2.0GHz or faster processor (2.4GHz for 4K displays).

Apple macOS 14 through 27 notebook or desktop computer with USB 3.0, or USB Type-C port.

Displays

1080P Displays with HDMI or DVI input - a separate HDMI to DVI adapter cable may be used for displays up to 1920x1200 resolution.

4K Displays with either HDMI or DisplayPort input and included HDMI or DisplayPort cables - adapter cables from DisplayPort to HDMI are not recommended as they can introduce a point of incompatibility, adapters from DisplayPort to HDMI introduce an additional failure point.

Frequently asked questions

Questions about your laptop?

Not sure what your USB-C port supports? Contact our support team, let us know the laptop's make and model, the displays you would like to use, and any additional details, and we will be more than happy to help! Contact Plugable support.