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Socket cube buying guide: fuse, pins and real outlets

Updated: 23 October 2026

You have one spare wall socket and three plugs, and a cube looks like the cheapest way to finish the evening. This socket cube buying guide is the order of checks for a dry room, before the price. Every face shares one 13 A path. You want a fuse you can see, a Type G pin without a conflicting plug field, and faces your largest plug can enter. The ten amazon.co.uk listings, from about £4.30 to £17.99, are in the [socket cube comparison](/hub/sockets-and-extension-leads/socket-cube). Peter F., editor for DIY & tools, did not lab-test them. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

You have one spare wall socket and three plugs, and a cube looks like the cheapest way to finish the evening. This socket cube buying guide is the order of checks for a dry room, before the price.

Our top picks

Masterplug Masterplug MSWRG3-MP

Best overall

Masterplug Masterplug MSWRG3-MP
8.9/10about £8.25
View offer
NAEEM SONS NAEEM SONS cube

Best value

NAEEM SONS NAEEM SONS cube
8.7/10about £4.30
View offer
LENCENT LENCENT 3-way cube

Alternative

LENCENT LENCENT 3-way cube
8.7/10about £14.99
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.One socket, one 13 A path
  2. 2.Fuse, pins, and shutters
  3. 3.Outlets you can use, not outlets that are printed
  4. 4.When the listing argues with itself
  5. 5.USB, a lead, or stop

One socket, one 13 A path

A British wall socket is one 13 A path. A cube borrows it for every appliance you add. BS 1363-3 covers 13 A adaptors: sleeved pins, shutters where required, and a body that is an adaptor rather than a flex with sockets on the end. When a bullet prints 3,250 W, that is 250 V times 13 A, once, for the whole adaptor. The worked sum is on how to use a socket cube. If the listing never names a fuse, look in the plug before you trust the printed watts.

Fuse, pins, and shutters

Electrical Safety First treats the fuse in a BS 1363 plug as a BS 1362 fuse. Double Dragon at about £4.93 claims shutters, UKCA, CE, TUV and BS 1363, and does not name a fuse. One UK review says there is no fuse and no CE mark on the item, against 4.4 from 126. Masterplug at about £8.25 prints 13 A and does not call it a fuse. LENCENT’s standards cell says CE and UL, with no BS number. LENCENT, Chemilen and Double Dragon claim shutters.
Masterplug Masterplug MSWRG3-MP

Testsieger

Masterplug Masterplug MSWRG3-MP
8.9/10about £8.25
View offer

Outlets you can use, not outlets that are printed

The useful outlet is the one your plug enters without covering the next face. NAEEM reviews at about £4.30 say a small plug, such as a toothbrush charger, fits, and bulky plugs do not. Masterplug reviews, from the first 50 of 5,929, say that on a twin socket the body covers the other outlet or one of its own faces. Aodeng reviews say the adaptor sticks out more than 3 inches, about 4.5 inches with a plug in, and that one unit leaned out until it lost contact. Which?, quoting a fire officer, records that pull-out: plug weight loosens the pins and they heat.

When the listing argues with itself

Read the title, the outlet field and the plug field. If they disagree, do not average them. NAEEM B0F88SRPWX at about £4.30 says 2-way in the title and 3 in the outlet field. The pack of two, B0GDZ7H25C at about £5.49, repeats that clash. Masterplug B004I5BQ42 prints Type G and Type B, plus two USB ports the bullets never describe. That USB cell is not a charger. Aodeng and Chemilen print 7 because the bullets say three mains sockets plus four USB ports. Status prints Type B and no Type G line, on a 1.4 m lead. A CE and UL cell is not a BS 1363 number.

USB, a lead, or stop

Buy USB only when you want about 12 W for a phone. Shared current, and a switch that may leave the charger live, are on the socket cube with USB page. The Status at 1.4 m is the only lead in this set. A normal extension lead is a different object, which socket cube vs extension lead sets out. Stop when the room already runs on adaptors. In England and Wales a new socket is notifiable under Part P, and no listing prints an IP rating. Schedule 1 of the 1994 Regulations puts a built-in USB charger outside the plain-adaptor rules.

Common questions

Does a socket cube need its own fuse?
You want a fuse in the plug, because the cube and the wall share one 13 A path. JSVER and Chemilen name a 13 A fuse. Double Dragon claims BS 1363, and a UK review says the item had none. FAMHOME and the NAEEM cubes do not name one. Masterplug prints 13 A and does not label it as a fuse. If the page is silent, look in the plug before you leave a load on it.
Will it cover the other half of a double socket?
Masterplug reviews say that on a twin socket you lose the spare outlet or one face of the adaptor. Aodeng reviews describe a body more than 3 inches proud, about 4.5 inches with a plug in, and one unit that leaned out. If you still need the neighbour, measure the gap. The Status row has the 1.4 m lead when the shortage is reach.
What if the listing says both 2-way and 3 outlets?
Count the faces on the object. NAEEM B0F88SRPWX at about £4.30 says 2-way in the title and 3 in the outlet field. The pack of two at about £5.49 carries the same clash. Aodeng and Chemilen say 7 because the table adds USB ports to three mains sockets. A printed total does not replace the plastic in your hand.
Is a printed UKCA or CE mark enough?
A mark in a bullet is a claim, not a certificate this comparison has checked. LENCENT’s cell says CE and UL, with no BS number. Double Dragon names UKCA, CE, TUV and BS 1363, and one review says the item had no CE mark. If the object and the bullet disagree, believe the object.
Should I buy USB now or a plain cube?
Buy USB for phone charging at about 12 W, on a row whose bullets describe the ports. The switched block is the Masterplug at about £8.25, and its USB count is absent from the bullets. The cheap plain cube is the NAEEM at about £4.30 if your plugs are small. A kettle plus a toaster, a bathroom, or a layout you use every day is the point to stop: no row has an IP rating.

Related pages

Best socket cube

Socket cube

How to use a socket cube: the one shared 13 A path

Socket cube vs extension lead: wall holes or reach

Socket cube with USB: about 12 W, not a 65 W brick

Sources

Sources taken from the research digest. Listings were scored from stored amazon.co.uk rows. This page did not run a lab test.

  1. Electrical Safety First — block adaptors (retrieved 22.10.2026)
  2. Electrical Safety First — appliance ratings (retrieved 22.10.2026)
  3. Electrical Safety First — plugs and fuses (retrieved 22.10.2026)
  4. Plugs and Sockets etc. (Safety) Regulations 1994 (retrieved 22.10.2026)
  5. BSI, BS 1363-3:2023 (retrieved 22.10.2026)
  6. IET Wiring Matters — BS 7671 FAQ (retrieved 22.10.2026)
  7. NICEIC — bathrooms and electrics (retrieved 22.10.2026)