















Plugable 2.5G USB-C and USB to Ethernet Adapter
$28.95 USD
SKU: USBC-E2500Amazon Rating : (1052 Reviews)
Features
- Faster Than Gigabit—Double the performance of a traditional Gigabit Ethernet adapter when used with switches or routers capable of 2.5Gbps for faster file transfers, smoother video conferencing, and seamless streaming
- Keep USB Universal—Hybrid 2-in-1 cable converts from USB-C to USB-A so you always have the right connection (USB 3.0 required for full performance)
- Use Existing Cabling—Upgrade your network without updating your cables. 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet signals are designed to work on Cat 5e cabling, just pair your USB Ethernet Adapter with 2.5Gbps-capable switches/routers
- OS Compatibility—Works with Windows 11, 10, 8.x, and 7, macOS 10.7 and above, and Linux Kernel 3.2 and above. Driver download and install may be required on older OS and Kernel versions. Some core features require driver install on macOS
- 2 Year Warranty—We love our Plugable products, and hope you will too. All of our products are backed with a 2-year limited parts and labor warranty as well as Seattle-based email support

Get the Most out of Wired Connection Speeds
The Plugable 2.5Gbps USB to Ethernet Adapter (USBC-E2500) is for users looking to move beyond Gigabit Ethernet speeds. With USBC-E2500, you can leverage existing Cat 5e Ethernet cables and use less-costly switches to more than double the performance of your local network, compared to traditional Gigabit Ethernet. The adapter comes with a Hybrid 2-in1 connection that converts from USB-C to USB-A, so you always have the right connection.
Some common uses include:
- Adding wired 2.5 Gigabit network support to Windows desktops, Ultrabooks, 2-in-1s, tablets, or notebooks—as well as Mac and Linux systems
- Replacing or upgrading network adapters for your computer
- USB network adapters can improve transfer speeds compared to 10/100/1000 adapters, and most wireless networks
- Adding additional network interfaces, and transferring files peer-to-peer over Ethernet
Please note, this adapter is not a solution for connecting USB devices like printers, hard drives, etc to a network. This adapter cannot be used to share Ethernet, WiFi, or mobile data between multiple devices.

More Than Double Performance
Plug into any laptop or desktop currently limited to 10/100/1000 Ethernet–or no Ethernet at all–and benefit from faster transfers on your 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet network. (Also works on 10/100/1000 Ethernet networks at their native speeds.) USB 3.0 systems support theoretical maximum transfer speeds up to 5Gbps and USB 2.0 supports up to 480Mbps.
Note: When accessing sites on the internet, the bandwidth provided by your internet service provider will likely determine your ultimate speeds. Testing in the Plugable lab using the iPerf application on a local server has yielded speeds up to 2.37Gbps. However, speeds will depend on the capabilities of your host system and other network devices.

Multi-Platform Convenience
Quickly and easily add Ethernet connectivity, with performance up to 2.5Gbps to virtually any Mac, Windows, or Linux PC. Use either USB-C or USB 3.0 to connect, and connect instantly with built-in drivers on current versions of major operating systems.
Compatible with:
- USB-C
- USB 3.0
- Thunderbolt 3 or Thunderbolt 4
Note: Older versions of Windows, Linux, and macOS may require a driver download for the adapter to function. Older macOS versions will have limited functionality (1Gbps link rate, no jumbo frame support) until the driver is updated through separate install.

Universal Compatibility
Compatible with Windows, macOS, Linux, and Chrome OS, USB-C (5Gbps), USB 3.0, and Thunderbolt 3 Systems.
- Microsoft Windows 11, 10, 8.x, and 7
- macOS 10.7 and above
- Linux kernel 3.2 and above (basic support, install driver or update to 5.x kernel for full support)
- Supported on up-to-date Chrome OS systems
Not compatible with:
- ARM-based Windows RT and Windows Mobile
- Most Android devices, TiVo Series 2, Wii, or other non-PC/Mac platforms
- Nintendo Switch
Not recommended for use with FreeBSD or pfSense

Technical Specifications
Inside the adapter is a Realtek RTL8156B chipset for fast 10/100/1000/2500Mbit network speeds and with all Thunderbolt 3, Thunderbolt 4, USB 3.0, 3.1, 3.2, and 2.0 hosts. (USB 2.0 will limit the performance of the adapter.)
Drivers built into Windows 11, 10, 8.x, and 7 as well as macOS 10.7 and above (driver install required for 2.5Gbps link rate and jumbo frames), and Linux kernel 3.2 and above.
In the Box
- USB 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet Adapter with attached USB-C to USB-A adapter
- Quick Install Guide
In The Box
Item and Quantity | Item Notes |
---|---|
1x USB 2.5Gbps Ethernet Adapter with USB-C to USB-A Adapter |
Power
Port | Placement | Power Host / Device | Connection Type | Notes | Voltage | Amperage | Wattage |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
USB-C to Host | Cable End | Device | Bus Powered (No Power Adapter) | 5.0V | 190mA | 0.95W |
Connection To Host
Port | Placement | Version and Link Rate | Features |
---|---|---|---|
1x USB-A or USB-C | Cable End | USB 3.0 (5Gbps) |
Wired Network
Port | Placement | Version and Link Rate | Features | Chipset |
---|---|---|---|---|
2.5 Gigabit Ethernet | Front | 2.5GBASE-T | Wake-on-LAN (WoL) or Energy-Efficient Ethernet (EEE) or 9K Jumbo Frames | RTL8156B Realtek |
Compatibility
Supported | |
---|---|
Host Connection | USB 3.0 (USB-A) USB-C Thunderbolt 3 or 4 USB 2.0 (USB-A, Reduced Speed) |
Windows | Windows 7 and above |
macOS | macOS 10.7 and above |
Linux | Kernel 3.2 and above (basic support, install driver or update to 5.x kernel for full support) |
Chrome OS | Ensure all updates are installed |
Windows RT and ARM versions | |
Nintendo Switch | |
TV Sets | |
Android Devices | |
Game Consoles | |
TiVo and Set-top Boxes |
Get Started
- Connect the Ethernet adapter to your computer
- Install driver. Follow platform specific instructions below:
- Windows® 10 or 11: With existing network connection, drivers install automatically via Windows Update, it will usually be in the 'Optional Updates' section. You can also download the driver package from the drivers page.
- Other Windows® Versions: Download the driver package from the drivers page.
- macOS (10.13.6-10.15): Basic in-box driver support, but for full performance, visit our drivers page to download an updated driver
- macOS (11.x+): No driver install available, use built-in NCM driver. Note: There are known issues with incorrect link rate reporting and packet counts on macOS 11.x+ With auto-negotiation, the adapter will get a 2.5Gbps connection, and the device operates normally, but it will appear in macOS that the link rate is only 1000Mbps. Jumbo frames are not currently supported on macOS 11.x+. We are working with Realtek on drivers to resolve these issues
- Linux (5.x Kernel+): In-box driver support, recommended to install driver on lower kernel versions
- Earlier macOS and Windows Versions: for a driver download, visit our drivers page.
- Connect the adapter to your network.
Questions? We're here to help! Please reach out to us at support@plugable.com
Windows PCs with internet access via another network adapter should automatically download and install drivers from Windows Update without a separate download.
If you experience issues with the adapter, first try applying the drivers listed here. Then, if issues continue, try the latest drivers from Realtek, available here .
Please reach out to us at support@plugable.com if you encounter issues.
Platform | Important Notes | Date | Version and Download |
---|---|---|---|
Windows 11 | Windows 11 should install the latest driver automatically, provided an Internet connection is available when the device is connected. You will likely need to look in the Optional Updates section of Windows Update. |
August 28, 2023 | 1156.13.20.0420 |
Windows 10 | Windows 10 should install the latest driver automatically, provided an Internet connection is available when the device is connected. |
August 28, 2023 | 10.59.20.0420 |
Windows 8.x and Server 2012 | December 28, 2021 | 8.68.20 | |
Windows 7 and Server 2008 R2 | December 28, 2021 | 7.61.20 | |
10.6 to 10.15 | Up-to-date Mac systems (approximately 10.14.3+) will have the driver for the adapter built-in, though throughput is limited without installing the driver. |
1.0.22 | |
macOS 11.x to 12.x | There are some minor issues using the adapter in macOS 11.x+. Please see the Get Started information on this product for details. |
Built-in | |
UEFI | Get from Realtek . |
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Understanding and Troubleshooting Network Performance
Computer networking is a complex topic. In this article, we'll be taking a deep dive on the nuances of network performance for those who need some additional explanation while striving to be concise, and to educate users of various experience levels relating computer hardware and computer networking.
If you just need to know how to perform a network performance test/benchmark, jump down to configuring iPerf.
Core Network Concepts
LAN vs WAN
With regards to network performance, it is crucial to first separate whether an issue is with Wide Area Network (WAN) performance, or if the issue is with Local Area Network (LAN) performance.
Your LAN is essentially the network inside your home or business. Many homes use a combination modem/router device provided by their Internet Service Provider (ISP). In some cases, especially in businesses, you may have a separate modem and router, along with other equipment connecting to the router such as a network switch.
Your modem, and the connection it establishes to your ISP—whether through coaxial cable, fiber, phone lines, or long-range wireless—essentially marks the point between the WAN and the LAN. The connection your modem makes to your ISP is the WAN, and any devices you connect through your router behind that modem belong to the LAN.
Link Rate
Almost every type of connection your computer makes to any piece of hardware will have a link rate of some kind. The link rate establishes how fast data can possibly be transferred across any given connection, but it does not guarantee how fast the hardware on either end of the connection will actually transfer data.
The concept of link rates, and their related bottlenecks, is likely best conveyed by giving an example of what connections might be involved in transferring a file from one computer on your LAN to another.
- 800Mbps—The file source is a USB 3.0 thumb drive capable of 100MB/s (800Mbps) read/write.
- 480Mbps—The USB 3.0 thumb drive is plugged into a USB 2.0 port on the PC, which has a maximum throughput of 480Mbps
- 1000Mbps—PC1's Ethernet connection establishes 1Gbps (1000Mbps) link to the router via Ethernet
- 300Mbps—The router connects to a second PC (we'll refer to this as PC2) via Wi-Fi, and it has established a 300Mbps link to the Wi-Fi adapter on PC2
- 480Mbps—The Wi-Fi adapter on PC2 is connected via a USB 2.0 port. The link rate of the USB connection to PC2 is at 480Mbps
- 6000Mbps—PC2 is going to store the file on an internal hard drive with a link rate of 6Gbps
- 1600Mbps—File Destination: SATA hard drive capable of 200MB/s (1600Mbps) read/write.
Following this chain, we see that 300Mbps is the slowest link rate established. This means that, regardless of the link rates established elsewhere, the absolute maximum the data can possibly be transferred is 300Mbps.
if we were to change the Wi-Fi connection to a wired Ethernet connection capable of 1Gbps, our performance bottleneck would then become the USB 2.0 connection to the USB drive where the file is stored.
Ports and Interfaces
Interfaces
A network interface represents connections, whether wired or wireless, that are made to form a network between devices.
Ports
Some may refer to physical hardware connections as "ports". For the purposes of networking, ports are logical constructs that can also be referred to as "network ports". Each network interface has 65,535 of these logical ports. Each port on a network interface is a separate data connection.
Benchmarking Network Adapter Performance
To properly benchmark network adapter performance, we need to:
- Use a simple LAN configuration
- Eliminate bottlenecks, especially link rate bottlenecks
Websites like speedtest.net, fast.com, and other performance tools in your web browser are going to use your WAN connection, and are not appropriate for determining if a network adapter is working well.
Transferring files from one computer to another on your LAN is typically not the best way to benchmark a network adapter. File transfers are bottlenecked by a number of things, including performance limitations of the disk the data is on, and often times a lack of establishing parallel network connections to perform the task.
One of the most accurate ways to benchmark network performance on a LAN is by using iPerf . To more effectively benchmark network adapter performance, it is best to establish a point-to-point connection between two PCs, rather than connecting through a router or switch.
Configuring iPerf
To test a connection using iPerf, you'll need at least two network interfaces, and preferably two computers. You'll also need to know the IP (Internet Protocol) address assigned to each network interface . One network interface will function as an iPerf server, and the other network interface will function as an iPerf client. Lastly, you'll need to download the version of iPerf 3.x that's appropriate for your computer's operating system and extract/install it .
Windows
- Make sure the drivers for both network interfaces involved in the test are using up-to-date drivers. Drivers for Plugable products can be found here.
- Download and extract iPerf for Windows
- Open Command Prompt
- Press Windows Key + R or + R, then enter
cmd
in the window that appears - Search the Start Menu for
Command Prompt
, and open it
- Press Windows Key + R or + R, then enter
- Navigate Command Prompt to the directory the directory where iPerf is located
- The
cd
command is for 'change directory'- If you have a folder named 'iperf' on your Windows desktop, you can reach it in command prompt with the command
cd %USERPROFILE%\Desktop\iperf
- If you have a folder named 'iperf' on your Windows desktop, you can reach it in command prompt with the command
- The
- Run iperf in server mode via Command Prompt
iperf3.exe -s
macOS
- Usually it is best to install iperf on macOS using brew in Terminal
- Make sure the drivers for both network interfaces involved in the test are using up-to-date drivers
- Open Terminal
- Run iPerf in server mode
iperf3 -s
Linux
- Usually it is best to install iperf using the package manager in your Linux distro. For example, in Ubuntu, use
apt
: sudo apt install iperf3
- Make sure the drivers for both network interfaces involved in the test are using up-to-date Drivers
- Open Terminal
- Run iPerf in server mode
iperf3 -s
Next, you'll need to run iPerf in client mode, targeting the IP address of the server/interface where iPerf is running in server mode. Additionally, we'll run the test for 30 seconds using -t 30
and with four parallel connections using -P 4
. Running 4 parallel connections is optimal for saturating a network link.
Windows
- Open Command Prompt
- Press Windows Key + R or + R, then enter
cmd
in the window that appears - Search the Start Menu for
Command Prompt
, and open it
- Press Windows Key + R or + R, then enter
- Navigate Command Prompt to the directory the directory where iPerf is located
- The
cd
command is for 'change directory'- If you have a folder named 'iperf' on your Windows desktop, you can reach it in command prompt with the command
cd %USERPROFILE%\Desktop\iperf
- If you have a folder named 'iperf' on your Windows desktop, you can reach it in command prompt with the command
- The
- Run iperf in client mode via Command Prompt (replace 192.168.0.200 with the IP address of the server/interface where iPerf is running in server mode)
iperf3.exe -c 192.168.0.200 -t 30 -P 4
macOS / Linux
- Open Terminal
- Run iPerf in client mode (replace 192.168.0.200 with the IP address of the server/interface where iPerf is running in server mode)
iperf3 -c 192.168.0.200 -t 30 -P 4
iPerf should start performing a network performance test. If the test fails to start, make sure that iPerf is not being blocked by your PC's/Mac's firewall.
Why iPerf is Ideal for Benchmarking
Unlike a file transfer, iPerf runs in memory on the PC and generates data to send using the CPU directly. This alleviates potential bottlenecks generated by storage devices, and allows you to explicitly control how many parallel connections are being used to transfer data rather than being unsure if parallel network connections are being used by other means.
Conclusion
There's a lot more to networking that isn't covered in this article, but we hope this helps explain enough to get an accurate measure of your network performance.
If you need assistance with your Plugable product that features network connectivity, please contact us for further assistance.
Network Adapter Prioritization on Windows
There are various reasons and configurations that can benefit from having more than one network adapter present on a PC.
For users with newer networking products, featuring 2.5Gbps link rates or greater, it may be beneficial to prioritize that network connection over others on your PC that are still connected to your network/LAN.
My Plugable product with wired Ethernet is no longer working on macOS. What can I do?
Please Note
The below guide is an advanced troubleshooting step, and we do not recommend doing so unless you are comfortable manually altering files on your Apple product running macOS. You may not be able to perform the below troubleshooting step if you are unable to execute administrative credentials on your laptop. Please reach out to our support first if you do not wish to attempt the below instructions. You can do so at Plugable.com/Support
How to delete a specific Ethernet adapter from your Network devices on macOS
- Click on the Apple logo in the top left corner of your primary monitor, and select ‘System Preferences’
- Next select ‘Network’ in the ‘System Preferences' window.
- In the now visible list, please select the Plugable Ethernet, or Thunderbolt Ethernet device that may not be working as expected.
- Once selected click on the minus button in the bottom left of the network window.
- Click on Apply in the bottom right.
- Next click on the plus button in the bottom left of the network window, and add the previously removed device.
- Click on Apply in the bottom right.
- Test to see if this has resolved the unexpected behavior, and assure that your Ethernet is now working.
- If this does not resolve the problem, please proceed to the next section (As noted previously the next section is for advanced users only!)
Manually erase your macOS Network Settings to fully reset the Network configuration
(Advanced! Click to reveal)
Warning!
This will fully erase all of your Network configuration! Do not skip any steps, and proceed only if you are comfortable with each step!
- Open the ‘Finder’ app, then in the ‘Go’ menu at the top of your screen select ‘Computer’
- Click on ‘Macintosh HD’ then Library, Preferences, SystemConfiguration
- Copy the file named ‘NetworkInterfaces.plist’ to your desktop as a backup of your current configuration.
- Delete the original version of the ‘NetworkInterfaces.plist’ located in the SystemConfiguration directory.
- Restart your Mac
- Login to your Mac, and return to System Preferences → Network
- If the list is now empty, please re-add the Plugable or Thunderbolt network adapter by clicking on the plus button in the bottom left of the Network window. Once done click on 'Apply'.
- Test to see if this has resolved the unexpected network behavior
I am still unable to get my Ethernet connection working on my Mac
If this is the case please reach out to our support team. When you do please include a diagnostic log gathered using our PlugDebug tool (instructions are provided on the PlugDebug page). If you are not able to gather the PlugDebug diagnostics do not worry we are still here to help! Please reach out to our support team at support@plugable.com or Plugable.com/Support with a detailed description of your problem, and the model of Plugable product you are using.