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Qualcomm Quick Charge (QC) protocol

 

The most well-known fast charging protocol is Quick Charge. This protocol was developed by the Qualcomm company, which is also known for the Snapdragon chips in many smartphones. It is a proprietary battery charging protocol.

 

Quick charge protocols:

  • Quick Charge 1 was released in 2013, supporting up to 10W of power.

  • Quick Charge 2 was released in 2014, increasing the power output to 36W (60W with HVDCP class B) and introducing features like a High Voltage Dedicated Charging Port (HVDCP) and optional Dual Charge (using 2 power management integrated circuits, splitting power into 2 streams, decreasing heating).

  • Quick Charge 3 was released in 2016, supporting charging power up to 36W (60W with HVDCP class B) and introducing INOV (Intelligent Negotiation for Optimal Voltage), Battery Saver Technologies, HVDCP+, and optional Dual Charge+. It's compatible with USB-A, USB-C, and Micro-USB ports. It is backward compatible with QC 2.0

  • Quick Charge 4 was announced in December 2016, supporting up to 100W via Qualcomm’s implementation and 27W via USB PD (Power Delivery), including features like HVDCP++, Dual Charge++, INOV 3.0, and Battery Saver Technologies 2, and compatibility with USB PD. Quick Charge 4 chargers are not backward compatible with older Quick Charge versions.

  • Quick Charge 4+ was announced in June 2017. It introduces Intelligent Thermal Balancing and Advanced Safety Features to eliminate hot spots and protect against overheating, short-circuit, or damage to the USB-C connector. Unlike Quick Charge 4, Quick Charge 4+ is fully backward compatible with QC 2 and 3.

  • Quick Charge 5 was announced in July 2020. Supporting up to 100W. This standard is cross-compatible with USB PD PPS. It can double the voltage output from a charger to a power receiver if it has double-cell batteries in a series configuration (2S). Devices with a single battery will be able to achieve up to 45W peak charging speeds. Quick Charge 5 is fully backward compatible with all older QC versions.

  • QuickCharge5+. This protocol was announced by Qualcomm in September 2025. It is also based on PD-PPS technology, but offers 140W charging at 20V7A (as opposed to PD140W - 28V5A).​

Backward compatibility of QC protocols:

Quick Charge protocols compatibility

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