--- title: Your monitor's USB-C port is more useful than you think,... description: A monitor's built-in USB-C port can serve as a convenient hub once connected upstream to a PC via a separate USB cable or the same cable carrying the display... canonical: https://daily.dev/posts/your-monitor-s-usb-c-port-is-more-useful-than-you-think-and-here-s-what-you-should-plug-into-it-apjg5fdmx twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:site: @dailydotdev og:type: website og:site_name: daily.dev og:title: Your monitor's USB-C port is more useful than you think, and here's what you should plug into it | daily.dev og:description: A monitor's built-in USB-C port can serve as a convenient hub once connected upstream to a PC via a separate USB cable or the same cable carrying the display... og:url: https://daily.dev/posts/your-monitor-s-usb-c-port-is-more-useful-than-you-think-and-here-s-what-you-should-plug-into-it-apjg5fdmx og:image: https://api.daily.dev/og/posts/apJg5FDmX.png og:image:alt: Your monitor's USB-C port is more useful than you think, and here's what you should plug into it og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 630 og:locale: en --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://daily.dev/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Your monitor's USB-C port is more useful than you think, and here's what you should plug into it **[XDA Developers](https://daily.dev/sources/xda-developers)** · 4 min read · 0 upvotes · 0 comments ## Summary A monitor's built-in USB-C port can serve as a convenient hub once connected upstream to a PC via a separate USB cable or the same cable carrying the display signal. Practical use cases include charging a phone within arm's reach, running a webcam permanently for cleaner cable management, connecting gaming peripherals like a PS5 controller or wireless headset to avoid cable drag, and plugging in external SSDs or flash drives when top speed isn't essential, since a 5Gbps port is often fast enough for USB 3.0 devices. ## Full article daily.dev links to this article rather than hosting it. Read it at the original source: ## Questions this post answers ### How do I get my monitor's USB-C port to work with devices plugged into it? The monitor's USB hub needs an upstream connection to the PC, either through a separate USB upstream cable or the same USB-C cable that carries the display signal. Once that upstream connection is established, the USB-C port on the monitor functions as another port on the PC, just positioned more conveniently near the display. _daily.dev surfaces practical desk setup guides for developers optimizing their workstation cabling._ ### Is a 5Gbps USB-C port on a monitor fast enough for external SSDs and flash drives? Yes, for many use cases a 5Gbps port, roughly USB 3.0 speed, is sufficient, especially since many external drives and most flash drives are only USB 3.0 anyway. A 5Gbps monitor port is half the speed of a 10Gbps USB 3.2 Gen 2 motherboard port, but that gap only matters if the drive itself can exceed 5Gbps. _developers picking storage and cabling setups can compare port speed tradeoffs on daily.dev._ ## Similar posts on daily.dev - [Your monitor's USB hub does more than a docking station, and costs nothing extra](https://daily.dev/posts/your-monitor-s-usb-hub-does-more-than-a-docking-station-and-costs-nothing-extra-bto1yuw13) · XDA Developers · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [The USB-C port on your phone supports much more than controllers, and these are the best uses for it](https://daily.dev/posts/the-usb-c-port-on-your-phone-supports-much-more-than-controllers-and-these-are-the-best-uses-for-it-6vmhcndjh) · XDA Developers · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [Your phone's USB-C port can let you run a full desktop, and most people never try it](https://daily.dev/posts/your-phone-s-usb-c-port-can-let-you-run-a-full-desktop-and-most-people-never-try-it-ntxkxei4t) · XDA Developers · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [My monitor's built-in USB hub was the desk upgrade I never knew I had](https://daily.dev/posts/my-monitor-s-built-in-usb-hub-was-the-desk-upgrade-i-never-knew-i-had-bbhkyvsyo) · XDA Developers · 1 upvotes · 0 comments - [Stop buying expensive docks when your monitor already has one](https://daily.dev/posts/stop-buying-expensive-docks-when-your-monitor-already-has-one-woouykol4) · XDA Developers · 0 upvotes · 0 comments --- Tags: [#hardware](https://daily.dev/tags/hardware) [View this post on daily.dev](https://daily.dev/posts/your-monitor-s-usb-c-port-is-more-useful-than-you-think-and-here-s-what-you-should-plug-into-it-apjg5fdmx) ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180},"sameAs":["https://twitter.com/dailydotdev","https://github.com/dailydotdev","https://www.linkedin.com/company/daily-dev-ltd"]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https://daily.dev/#website","url":"https://daily.dev","name":"daily.dev","publisher":{"@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization"},"potentialAction":{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https://daily.dev/search?q={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"TechArticle","headline":"Your monitor's USB-C port is more useful than you think, and here's what you should plug into it","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/your-monitor-s-usb-c-port-is-more-useful-than-you-think-and-here-s-what-you-should-plug-into-it-apjg5fdmx","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/your-monitor-s-usb-c-port-is-more-useful-than-you-think-and-here-s-what-you-should-plug-into-it-apjg5fdmx"},"datePublished":"2026-08-18T11:02:11.056Z","dateModified":"2026-08-18T11:02:48.109Z","description":"A monitor's built-in USB-C port can serve as a convenient hub once connected upstream to a PC via a separate USB cable or the same cable carrying the display...","image":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/3ee18ced6322d524b9d010625f9622a8?_a=AQAEuop","thumbnailUrl":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/3ee18ced6322d524b9d010625f9622a8?_a=AQAEuop","isAccessibleForFree":true,"articleSection":"XDA Developers","inLanguage":"en","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180}},"author":{"@type":"Organization","name":"XDA Developers","logo":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/s--kCg6yyAP--/f_auto,q_auto/v1774964407/logos/xda-developers?_a=BAMAMiWQ0","url":"https://daily.dev/sources/xda-developers"},"commentCount":0,"discussionUrl":"https://daily.dev/posts/your-monitor-s-usb-c-port-is-more-useful-than-you-think-and-here-s-what-you-should-plug-into-it-apjg5fdmx","interactionStatistic":[{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":0},{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"CommentAction"},"userInteractionCount":0}],"keywords":"hardware","timeRequired":"PT4M"} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https://daily.dev"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"XDA Developers","item":"https://daily.dev/sources/xda-developers"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Your monitor's USB-C port is more useful than you think, and here's what you should plug into it"}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"FAQPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/your-monitor-s-usb-c-port-is-more-useful-than-you-think-and-here-s-what-you-should-plug-into-it-apjg5fdmx#faq","mainEntity":[{"@type":"Question","name":"How do I get my monitor's USB-C port to work with devices plugged into it?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"The monitor's USB hub needs an upstream connection to the PC, either through a separate USB upstream cable or the same USB-C cable that carries the display signal. 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