Which USB port should you use for your mouse and keyboard?

Setting up your computer can be a complicated process, but one thing you'd assume to be simple is plugging in your USB accessories and peripherals such as a keyboard and mouse. Unfortunately, even that seemingly simple act requires a bit of technical knowledge without which you'll end up hamstringing yourself in the long run.

If you're unfamiliar with the intricacies of various USB standards, it can be difficult to know which ports are best suited to a mouse or keyboard. Your computer may have anywhere between a single USB port and over a dozen of them. But they're not all created equal. One may be a high-powered USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 or USB4 port capable of blazing fast speeds, while another might be a low-powered USB 2.0 port.

Your keyboard and mouse are most likely to be your least demanding accessories, requiring very little bandwidth. While any port will power your input peripherals and allow them headroom to perform at their best, choosing the wrong ports will leave you with worse options for other, more demanding accessories such as portable SSDs and storage drives, external monitors and USB hubs. To leave those ports free, your keyboard and mouse should be plugged into any open USB 2.0 ports. Here's why.