Thunderbolt™ Technology: The Fastest, Simplest, and Most Reliable USB-C Connection1
Thunderbolt™ technology offers a best-in-class set of capabilities to deliver the simplest, most reliable, and fastest cable solution available for connecting to power and your favorite accessories.
Thunderbolt™ Technology: Revolutionary Connectivity
Thunderbolt™ technology is more than a USB-C connector. Although it uses the same oval shape connector as USB-C, Thunderbolt™ technology certification mandates higher minimum performance and capabilities for cables, PCs, and accessories. You benefit from the best-in-class product capabilities to deliver the fastest cable solution for connecting to power and to all your docked accessories and monitors.
Simplicity
Set up a clutter-free desk with consolidated connectivity and high bandwidth over a single cable.
Reliability
Connect computers, cables, and accessories from different brands across Mac, Windows, Chrome, or Linux.
Compatibility
Thunderbolt™ products are designed for compatibility with prior, current, and future devices and USB 3 and USB 4 products.
High Performance
Thunderbolt™ technology provides the fastest port available on a computer.
Compare the Latest Thunderbolt™ Technology
Thunderbolt™ 5 Technology: Accelerate Everything
Thunderbolt™ 5 technology delivers up to 80 Gbps bidirectional bandwidth—2x vs. the previous generation—with fast device charging up to 240W2 and dual 8K monitor support3 to enhance all your PC experiences.
Bidirectional bandwidth up to
80Gbps
2x Faster vs. Thunderbolt™ 4 technology
Bandwidth Boost up to
120Gbps
With 40 Gbps for downstream bandwidth
Blazingly fast storage and eGFX connections up to
2x
Higher throughput vs. Thunderbolt™ 4 technology
Bidirectional bandwidth up to
80Gbps
2x Faster vs. Thunderbolt™ 4 technology
Bandwidth Boost up to
120Gbps
With 40 Gbps for downstream bandwidth
Blazingly fast storage and eGFX connections up to
2x
Higher throughput vs. Thunderbolt™ 4 technology
Thunderbolt™ 5 Technology Resources
Get the best display and data experiences to meet the growing needs of content creators and gamers. The latest generation drives innovation in connectivity standards with support for USB4 v2, DisplayPort 2.1, and PCIe Gen 4. When detecting a high volume of video traffic, Thunderbolt™ 5 technology uses its Bandwidth Boost capability to deliver up to 120 Gbps for an unparalleled display experience.
Thunderbolt™ 4 Technology: The de Facto Standard
Thunderbolt™ 4 technology has a broad installed base across Windows, Mac, Linux, and Chrome OS devices. Intel® Evo™ laptops4 and Intel vPro® platform-enabled laptops5 all have at least one Thunderbolt™ 4 port.
Fast connectivity for files, video, and more
40Gbps
Minimum required bandwidth
Fast laptop charging for up to2
100W
Required PC charging
Dual monitor support at up to
4K
Minimum resolution
Fast connectivity for files, video, and more
40Gbps
Minimum required bandwidth
Fast laptop charging for up to2
100W
Required PC charging
Dual monitor support at up to
4K
Minimum resolution
Thunderbolt™ 4 Technology Resources
Thunderbolt™ Technology Advantages
See all the ways Thunderbolt™ technology is the better choice for setting up your ideal desk.
Incredible Experiences
Thunderbolt™ Share – Easy, Fast, Efficient
Improve your PC-to-PC connectivity experience and productivity Thunderbolt™ Share software , which enables ultra-responsive control and easy access to shared storage and files with the speed of Thunderbolt™ technology.
Premium Visual Quality
Enjoy stunning visuals on larger monitors with built-in Thunderbolt™ ports, or easily connect any monitor to a full-featured Thunderbolt™ dock.
Create or Game Directly from External Storage
Fast data transfers allow you to connect your PC to external storage to expand or conserve your internal storage.
Connect Thin and Light Laptops to External Graphics
A Thunderbolt™ eGFX device gives your laptop additional graphics performance for use cases, including 3D gaming, professional apps, and VR.
Enjoy the Highest Frame Rates
Capture gameplay for streaming up to 240 FPS in full HD for the smoothest playback and crisp details.
Daisy-Chain Multiple Accessories
Data and video signals can flow from the computer down the chain into five Thunderbolt™ accessories.
Clean, Ergonomic Workspaces
With a universal Thunderbolt™ port, you can connect multiple high-resolution monitors, add all the accessories you need, and power your laptop via a single connection.
Immersive Gaming on a Laptop
Connect to multiple displays, a video capture device for streaming, an external SSD, an external GPU, a keyboard, and a mouse—all over a single docked Thunderbolt™ connection.
Full-Fledged Creation Spaces
Be more productive on multiple screens, see your vision in stunning high resolution, and breeze through massive files. Thunderbolt™ technology does it all.
Technical Comparison: Thunderbolt™ Technology vs. USB 4
Thunderbolt™ technology continues to evolve and deliver the best wired connectivity and experiences for creators, workers, and gamers. Thunderbolt™ 4 technology is the standard for connectivity, with the broadest inclusion of PCs in the market.
Unrivaled Simplicity
Reliable Connectivity
Feature |
Thunderbolt™ 5 technology |
Thunderbolt™ 4 technology |
USB4 |
|---|---|---|---|
Mandatory certification for all shipping computers, accessories, and cables |
√ |
√ |
|
Cable testing and cable quality audits for |
√ |
√ |
|
Required Intel® VT-d-based DMA protection |
√ |
√ |
|
USB4 specification compliance |
√ |
√ |
√ |
Exceptional Performance
Feature |
Thunderbolt™ 5 technology |
Thunderbolt™ 4 technology |
USB4 |
|---|---|---|---|
Minimum PC speed requirements |
80 & 120 Gbps |
40 Gbps |
20 Gbps |
Minimum PC data requirements |
PCIe: 64 Gbps USB 3.2: Up to 20 10 Gbps |
PCIe: 32 Gbps USB 3.2: 10 Gbps |
-- USB 3.2: 10 Gbps |
Required PC charging on at least one computer port2 |
Required up to 140W Available up to 240W |
Required up to 140W Available up to 240W |
|
Required PC wake from sleep when computer is connected to a Thunderbolt dock |
√ |
√ |
|
Minimum PC port power for accessories |
15W |
15W |
7.5W |
Thunderbolt Tech Tips
Set Up a Thunderbolt™ Dock
Learn how to set up a docking station with your laptop, monitor, and peripheral devices over a single Thunderbolt™ cable connection.
Dual 4K Support and Windows 11 Snap
Learn how to configure Microsoft Windows 11 with Thunderbolt™ docks for dual 4K monitors, and use a Windows 11 screen organization feature called Snap to maximize productivity.
Shop Thunderbolt™ Products
FAQs
Frequently Asked Questions
Thunderbolt 5 technology is supported on PCs with Windows 11 (version 23H2 and later) and Linux (kernel version 6.7 and later).
Thunderbolt™ 5 technology doubles minimum bandwidth requirements from 40 Gbps to 80 Gbps compared to Thunderbolt™ 4 technology. The latest generation also features the adaptive Bandwidth Boost capability, which detects high-volume video traffic and intelligently accelerates upstream bandwidth to 120 Gbps while maintaining 40 Gbps downstream bandwidth. Thunderbolt™ 5 technology enables up to 240W charging and support for dual 8K monitors, whereas Thunderbolt™ 4 technology enables to 100W charging and support for dual 4K monitors.
Check out which type of ports your system has by:
- Looking for the Thunderbolt™ icon next to the USB-C port on your device.
- Checking the product’s I/O specification online to see if it lists Thunderbolt™ ports.
- Downloading Intel® Driver & Support Assistant (Intel® DSA).
Thunderbolt™ technology delivers the best-in-class capabilities to drive high-bandwidth data, power, and video transfers for up to five devices on one connection. Gamers, creators, and workers can enjoy a clean desktop space with multiple displays and accessories on a powerful connectivity standard. Learn how Thunderbolt™ technology delivers the best experiences with simple, powerful, and flexible connectivity.
No. You don’t need to install any software or drivers to make things work. Connect your computer with any Thunderbolt™ accessory, and they simply work together.
Thunderbolt™ 4 technology was integrated in the CPU starting with 11th Gen Intel® Core™ processors. Today, approximately 90 percent of 11th Gen Intel® Core™ processor-based laptops have Thunderbolt™ ports. At least one Thunderbolt™ 4 port is required on all Intel® Evo™ and Intel® Core™ vPro® processor family-based laptops.
Please visit thunderbolttechnology.net.
Notices and Disclaimers6 7 8
Product and Performance Information
As compared to other current PC Client bidirectional I/O connection technologies like eSATA and USB. Must be connected via Thunderbolt™ 3 or newer accessory to enable full performance. See intel.com/performance-wired for details. Results may vary.
Laptop charging: Thunderbolt™ 4 technology for thin and light notebooks that require up to 100W to charge. Thunderbolt™ 5 technology for laptops that require up to 140W to charge. 140W‒240W is available on some devices.
With support for 3:1 display stream compression.
All Intel® Evo™ branded designs must meet demanding thresholds for key mobile user experiences like responsiveness and battery life; individual device performance may vary. See intel.com/performance-evo for details.
All versions of the Intel vPro® platform require an eligible Intel® processor, a supported operating system, Intel® LAN and/or WLAN silicon, firmware enhancements, and other hardware and software necessary to deliver the manageability use cases, security features, system performance, and stability that define the platform. See intel.com/performance-vpro for details.
Performance is based on minimum specification requirements by Thunderbolt™ certification. Performance varies by use, configuration, and other factors. Learn more at intel.com/performanceindex.
Thunderbolt is a trademark of Intel Corporation or its subsidiaries. Thunderbolt and the Thunderbolt logo are trademarks of Intel Corporation or its subsidiaries.
Performance varies by use, configuration, and other factors. Learn more at edc.intel.com/content/www/us/en/products/performance/benchmarks/wired.