Does a USB hub work to charge multiple phones?

[Charlie]

In a pinch, when traveling light, could you use a high power single port
charger with a USB hub connected to it to charge multiple phones?

Would it work?

[Theo]

Post by Charlie
In a pinch, when traveling light, could you use a high power single port
charger with a USB hub connected to it to charge multiple phones?
Would it work?

It may not pass Power Delivery (probably wouldn't) so you'd be limited to
'slow' charging from 500mA to maybe 2A. But if you don't mind that then it
should work for say charging overnight at the slower rate (eg phones with a
20Wh battery charge in 8 hours at 500mA).

Theo

[AJL]

Post by Charlie
In a pinch, when traveling light, could you use a high power single port
charger with a USB hub connected to it to charge multiple phones?
Would it work?

I do it and it works for me. I often charge several different types of
devices off the same hub: tablets, phone, and I even sometimes run a
digital clock at the same time. It of course depends on the charger and the
hub, but it's easy to test. Just check the devices to see if they're
charging. It does of course take longer to charge. I do it because I have a
lot of devices (toys) to play with and I can charge and keep them topped up
between use. Again, testing is the key. If it works at home it'll probably
work on a trip...

[Arno Welzel]

Post by Charlie
In a pinch, when traveling light, could you use a high power single port
charger with a USB hub connected to it to charge multiple phones?

Not really.

Protocols like USP-PD or QuickCharge require a direct connection between
the power source and the device being charged, were USB-PD requires
USB-C as well.

USB hubs are usually not designed to power devices except when they come
with their own power supply to make sure that every port can be powered
with 4.5 (USB 2) to 9 watts (USB 3). They will most likely only delivery
100 mA per port and refuse any higher requirements.

A better choice is to use a charger with multiple ports. Up to 4 ports
in a single charger are not hard to find. There are also power banks
which provide multiple ports.