Can I use a non-Apple thunderbolt to ethernet adapter?

When I needed an Ethernet dongle for my MBP I was rather amazed at the price spread between the least expensive (a company I'd never heard of) and the most expensive (Apple, no surprise). But I also discovered that dongles made by companies I consider reliable aren't much less expensive than Apple's. So yes, there are lots of choices and no one is making you go with Apple's dongle. I didn't either but the savings wasn't huge.

I find the Apple adapter works the best, but you an use third party ones.