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My HP gaming laptop comes with a dedicated Ethernet port, which is what I prefer over Wi-Fi whenever it's available. But my Asus Vivobook Flip doesn't have one. It traded an essential port for a slim profile, so I got a cheap USB-to-Ethernet adapter to add the missing port.
While the Ethernet adapter fixed the obvious problem, I've since found more use cases for it, ones that solved problems I didn't even know I had. If you've been running a homelab or self-hosting services on hardware you already own, you'll see what I mean.
Additional Ethernet port for backup connection
A second NIC keeps my self-hosted services online during outages
My ISP is pretty reliable for the most part and often takes care of occasional downtime in a couple of hours. But I self-host a lot of things for the family, from file storage to password vaults, so even a short outage can be annoying when someone needs access to something right now.
I have a backup connection from a secondary ISP, and the TP-Link UE300C lets me plug it into my server as a second network interface. When the primary connection goes down, the failover kicks in, and my services stay accessible without me having to touch anything.
It's not something I planned when I bought the adapter. But once I realized I could give a single machine two separate network paths for about $10, it became one of the more useful purchases I've made this year. If you run any kind of home server or self-hosted setup with a backup line, a second NIC through USB is the cheapest way to make failover work.
Giving my thin and light laptop a speed boost
Wired connections fix what Wi-Fi keeps breaking
Now the real reason I bought the Ethernet adapter in the first place: to give my thin and lightweight laptop a wired connection. My Asus Vivobook S 14 Flip is a capable device and can do all sorts of gymnastics, but it lacks a dedicated Ethernet port, forcing me to rely on wireless networks for everything.
This becomes a bigger issue when I'm traveling and have to deal with congested wireless networks in hotel rooms. With a USB-to-Ethernet adapter, I can skip Wi-Fi entirely, plug in an Ethernet cable wherever it's available, and the speed complaints usually stop. Hotels, conference centers, and co-working spaces almost always have Ethernet jacks somewhere, and a wired connection avoids the mess of dozens of devices fighting for the same wireless channel.
Ethernet adapters are available for both USB Type-A and Type-C ports. I went with a Type-C version since it also works with my phone, just in case I ever needed a wired connection on mobile.
Homelab router builds from old PCs or NUCs
A USB adapter turns a single-NIC machine into a two-port router
If you have an old PC or a NUC collecting dust, there's a good chance it only has one Ethernet port. That's fine for a desktop, but if you want to repurpose it into a router or firewall running something like OpenWRT or OPNsense, you need two network interfaces: one for the WAN side (your internet connection) and one for the LAN side (your switch or access point).
Opening the case and adding a PCIe NIC is one option, but not every machine has a free slot, and some NUCs don't even have that option. A USB-to-Ethernet adapter solves this for a few dollars. Plug it in, assign one interface to WAN and the other to LAN, and you have a functional two-port router without cracking the case open.
While this works for lighter home setups, make sure the adapter you pick supports PXE boot if you plan to boot over the network, because not all of them do. For anything mission-critical or high-throughput, a proper PCIe NIC is still the better call. But for a weekend homelab router project, USB Ethernet gets the job done.
Raspberry Pi clusters
A second NIC per node keeps storage traffic off the main network
This one is more niche, but if you're running a Raspberry Pi (Pi 4 or older) cluster, USB-to-Ethernet adapters open up a genuinely useful trick. The Pi doesn't have a PCIe slot or an M.2 expansion, so there's no way to add a second network interface without going through USB.
The idea is to use the Pi's onboard NIC for PXE boot and general service traffic, and dedicate the USB Ethernet adapter to iSCSI storage or NFS mounts. That way, heavy storage I/O doesn't compete with the services running on the same machine. If you're running something write-heavy or I/O-intensive, this split can make a noticeable difference in how responsive your containers stay.
It's also a practical way to avoid microSD cards for storage-heavy workloads, since those tend to wear out fast under constant writes. The TP-Link UE300 series works well here because the drivers are already baked into the Linux kernel, so there's no fussing with manual installation. Just plug it in, and it's ready to go.
Boosting Android TV network speed
Your TV's Ethernet port is probably slower than you think
Most smart TVs, even expensive ones, come with a 10/100 Ethernet port that caps out at 100 Mbps. Meanwhile, the same TV often has Wi-Fi 5 or Wi-Fi 6, which can easily push past that number. So in a lot of cases, your TV's Ethernet port is slower than its own Wi-Fi.
For regular streaming, 100 Mbps is fine. Netflix, YouTube, and Disney Plus don't need anywhere near that, even for 4K. But if you're streaming locally from a NAS, playing Blu-ray remuxes through Plex or Jellyfin, or using game streaming tools like Steam Link or Moonlight, a 4K HEVC file with Dolby Vision and lossless audio can easily blow past 100 Mbps in sustained bitrate. That's where the built-in port becomes a bottleneck.
A USB-to-Ethernet adapter with a Gigabit controller bypasses your smart TV's Ethernet limit entirely. The adapter has its own networking chip, so it doesn't rely on the TV's built-in Ethernet controller at all. Plug it into a USB 3.0 port on your TV, connect an Ethernet cable, and you'll get speeds well beyond the 100 Mbps ceiling. Compatibility varies by TV model and brand, though, so it's worth checking whether your specific TV recognizes USB Ethernet adapters before you buy one.
It won't replace a real NIC, but it doesn't need to
For all these use cases, there's one caveat worth mentioning. USB-to-Ethernet adapters are generally seen as less reliable than a proper PCIe NIC. They can struggle under heavy, constant load, like the kind you'd put on a NAS, a Proxmox host, or a production firewall. They may not always hit full Gigabit speeds, and some have issues waking from sleep or reconnecting after the host machine reboots.
That's fine, because they don't need to be bulletproof. For laptops, temporary setups, Raspberry Pi clusters, and low-power home projects, they're more than enough. I keep one permanently in my laptop bag and another plugged into my home server for failover. At $10, the cost of trying is so low that the worst outcome is finding another use for it you hadn't considered. Just don't plan your entire server infrastructure around them, and they'll serve you well.
