How (and where) to save money on a new Surface charger

By Richard Devine
published

Microsoft charges a lot for the hardware and accessories in its Surface lineup. But you don't have to spend a ton.

Thanks to the internet, if you're happy to look around just a little bit there's always a way to get what you need and save some cash. So if you find yourself needing a new or additional Surface charger, but you're not keen on the $80 price tag from Microsoft, just shop around. The easiest place to find a deal is on Amazon.

Surface charger

We're not even necessarily talking about a third-party charger here, either. You can get the very same official Surface charger (opens in new tab) at a much cheaper price than you can at the Microsoft Store. At the time of this writing, you can save $22 on the same item.

Of course, if you're looking to save even more, there are a plethora of third-party options out there. If you're going non-official, it's worth making sure you buy from a large, reputable retailer, such as Amazon. You really don't want to buy some random charger from China that could be dangerous and offer you no way to get your money back if it turns out to be garbage.

You also have the chance to check out real reviews from folks who bought the products on Amazon. The site's current "choice" is a $26 charger (opens in new tab) that has a rating of 4.2 out of 5 stars.

You're always taking something of a risk with the quality of items from unknown brands, but at $26 the savings are enormous. One of the tradeoffs is that this, like most of the third-party choices, is a 36W charger, compared to the 65W official product from Microsoft.

But whatever you eventually end up buying, it's easy to save yourself some cash.

See at Amazon (opens in new tab)

Richard Devine
Richard Devine
Managing Editor - Tech, Reviews

Richard Devine is a Managing Editor at Windows Central with over a decade of experience. A former Project Manager and long-term tech addict, he joined Mobile Nations in 2011 and has been found on Android Central and iMore as well as Windows Central. Currently, you'll find him steering the site's coverage of all manner of PC hardware and reviews. Find him on Mastodon at mstdn.social/@richdevine

13 Comments
  • Of the current Surface tablet competitors out there, how many of them allow charging of the tablet via USB-C? The Surface 3 uses USB Micros for charging, but has a significantly lower Power requirement than the Pro models. USB-PD over USB-C allows for up to 100 watts of power being supplied. I'm sure we'd all like to get away from proprietary chargers. It would be great if this is currently out there for Surface competitors or will be coming soon. The article yesterday showed that the Lenovo tablet had USB-C, but it didn't look like it supported charging into it.
  • th Samsung Tab Pro and Huawei Matepad both allow charging via USB-C. Perhaps more importantly, it's pretty much standard on the latest generation of Chroemboks, including the Samsung Chromebook Plus and Pro (whcih both have touchscreens and pens). My wife's SP4 is great, but I think MS is missing the boat on this one.  
  • Nope. I have the plus and a pixel XL. Both are USB C. The pixel XL charger is not powerful enough for the plus. So while the USB C future everyone dreams of sounds good it's just not standard yet. What I really wish is that MS put their proprietary port on both sides of the Surface. That is something I love about the plus. And yes I get I could charge my phone with the plus
  • It's a limitation of the charger. Google implemented USB-PD, you need to get a charger that supports it up to 100 watts. However, that charger is very limited at 18watts. Quote Google's product page for it,"USB-C 18W adapter with USB-PD". What's even more interesting is that the replacement charger with cable comes with a USB-C cable rated for USB 2.0. Something is fishy about the default charger. They're generally more expensive than the super-common, general USB Type A chargers. Edit: Here is a 60-Watt Charger Google sells: https://www.windowscentral.com/e?link=https2F2F...
  • I personally like the Surface charger / dock connector as it is well designed, easy to use, and supports proper dock functionality. That said, to answer the question above, the new HP Spectre X2 is almost a Surface Pro clone (snap on keyboard and all) and it features dual USB-C ports with charging ability. Ideally, MS would keep the Surface connector and add USB-C so we have multiple options.
  • That would be nice to have both! Actually, I was thinking rather linearly; one or the other, not considering both. I'd like both! With USB-C PD charging and the Surface Power Port, I could stage the extra Surface chargers around my house and office cube. Would be quite handy! And thanks for reply regarding HP. I'll look more into that model!
  • I don't mind spending an extra $20 to feel better about my $2000 investment. I'll stick with OEM and not 3rd party, thanks.
  • Agreed those third party ones can be sketchy some times. Not to mention if you have a case that was designed for the Surface Pro and it's OEM charger the third party charger might be just a little bit off and not fit correctly with the case on. You see this a lot with cell phone chargers but can be applicable with other devices.
  • I bought it from Ebay for 30€. And its better than STOCK :D cuz with original stock charger i couldnt charge  surface and phone at the same time. But now with this one I can do it without any problems :)
  • Handy to know, I have brought a spare each time and hadn't noticed third party lines!!!
  • I bought a third party cheapo unit for my wife's Surface Pro 2 for under $30 on Amazon.  I would have bought a genuine MS unit, but they just aren't around anymore.  It actually was better than the original MS unit.  The cord was a bit longer, and we found the original cord was just a bit too short.
  • Bought a brand new genuine Microsoft model 1706 65W charger unit from AJParts on eBay for £26, didn't come with cord but they're cheap enough...
  • The only thing I dislike about the surface charger is the cable from the brick to the Surface is crappy. Easily tangled and stays warped. I am very careful on how I wrap it up but it still looks like its gonna go soon.