The Best Budget External SSDs
Above-average ratings, below-average prices, no fake reviews.
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External SSDs are smaller, faster and more reliable than traditional hard drives (HDDs), but they cost around 300% more than external HDDs with the same storage capacity.
Solid state drives use flash memory. Like a USB stick, these drives don’t have mechanical moving parts. Instead, they use memory cells that are accessed by a controller, which is like the brain of the drive. This results in transfer speeds that are at least 200% faster than traditional hard drives, plus, SSDs produce less heat and have greater shock-resistance. (All external SSDs are portable, though some are rugged by design.) SSDs are the future of storage; for now, the trick is finding a decent-sized drive at an acceptable price.
External SSDs for Xbox Series X and PS5 Aren’t Cheap
Loading Xbox One or PS4 games from an external SSD is indeed faster than loading games from an external HDD (or either console’s internal storage) even though these prior generation consoles lack high speed interfaces like Thunderbolt 3 or USB 3.2 Type-C Gen 2.
On the other hand, the internal storage found within current generation consoles like the Xbox Series X|S and Playstation 5 is so fast that finding external storage that is compatible (or affordable) is a challenge.
Xbox Series X ships with a 1TB internal NVMe SSD. Microsoft’s flagship console also supports 1TB of expandable storage (sold separately) that matches the console’s proprietary PCI Express Gen4 x2 (NVMe) drive. Manufactured by Seagate, the 1TB Series SSTJR1000400 Game Drive has an MSRP of $219.99. Additionally, “The USB 3.1 storage you use today will be plug and play compatible with Xbox Series X|S…You can also use USB 3.1 storage to store next generation games, optimized to take full advantage of the Xbox Velocity Architecture, for quick transfer and play on Series X|S,” according to a blog post on Xbox Wire.
Playstation 5 Didn’t Support Expandable Storage at Launch
PS5 ships with 825GB of blazing fast PCIe 4.0 SSD internal storage, 667GB of which is free. “The SSD can deliver uncompressed data to other system components at up to 5.5GB/sec via its new proprietary hardware, which is over twice that of an Xbox Series X,” according to TweakTown. Unfortunately, this custom drive isn’t designed to pair with the current generation of SSDs.
Samsung’s 980 Pro and Western Digital’s SN850 may ultimately be compatible with the PS5, however, as of Nov. 2020, the PS5 “doesn’t support expansion options for its internal SSD or allow you to copy games from the console to an external HDD for storage,” according to Gamespot. That said, the PlayStation 5 is backwards compatible with PS4 titles that are already stored on an external HDD or SSD.
How Much Does a Good Portable SSD Cost?
A 512GB external SSD (with verified, above-average reviews) costs approximately $87, according to a 12-month analysis of price trends. Those same portable SSDs cost around $73 while on sale: an average discount of 16%. Here are the best cheap external SSDs for the money:
Methodology for Selecting Products
I use data science to discover above-average products that are selling for below-average prices. To find external SSDs with below-average prices, I first assemble a list of candidates, then organize those products by their 12-month average sale price, determine the median value and then exclude any drive with a price above the mid-point.
To find portable SSDs with above-average reviews, I measure the relationship between 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 star ratings and flag outliers that fall outside of a normal statistical distribution. I also discount paid, sponsored and unverified reviews as well as unhelpful review behaviors from verified customers. Game drives with an average adjusted rating of less than 3.9 out of 5 are excluded; in the end, fewer than 30% of the analyzed products remain.
Pioneer 3D NAND External SSD (960 GB)
Good Value: $100 | Great Deal: $80
Interface: USB 3.1/3.2 Gen 1
Pioneer’s portable SSD packs a huge storage capacity into a drive that’s smaller than a deck of playing cards. Many reviewers say this drive loads games quickly; some wish that it didn’t have a proprietary USB cable.
Samsung T5 Portable SSD (500GB)
Good Value: $93 | Great Deal: $80
Interface: USB 3.1/3.2 Gen 2
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Samsung’s T5 SSD is tiny, lightweight and transfers data quickly, according to several online customers. Many reviewers caution that this drive (specifically, the drive’s software) does not work well with Macs. A few owners say the USB connector is weak and wobbly.
Sabrent Rocket Nano 512GB USB 3.2 Aluminum SSD
Good Value: $100 | Great Deal: $90
Interface: USB 3.1/3.2 Gen 2
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Sabrent’s Mac-optimized SSD is tiny, lightweight and it has fast transfer speeds, according to several online customers. Many reviewers warn that this drive gets extremely hot; others say that it’s slow to initialize.
WD (512GB) My Passport SSD Portable Storage
Good Value: $95 | Great Deal: $80
Interface: USB 3.1/3.2 Gen 2
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This portable SSD is lightweight and durable, according to several online customers. Two common criticisms are that the drive runs hot and the included USB-C cable is too short.
Crucial 500GB X8 Portable SSD
Good Value: $115 | Great Deal: $80
Interface: USB 3.1/3.2 Gen 2
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Micron Technology’s portable SSD is compact, lightweight and fast, according to several customers. Some reviewers caution that this drive gets hot; others warn that the cord is short (at around six inches) and stiff.
ADATA SD600 (480GB) External Solid State Drive
Good Value: $72 | Great Deal: $50
Interface: USB 3.1/3.2 Gen 1
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Adata’s portable SSD loads games like PUBG quickly, according to several Xbox One gamers. Some reviewers say their drive failed in a few months; others say this drive is not compatible with PS4.
Note: This item was heavily discounted on Amazon Prime Day.
Inland Professional External SSD (480GB)
Good Value: $67 | Great Deal: $44
Interface: USB 3.1/3.2 Gen 1
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This compact SSD is backpack-friendly, durable and can reduce Xbox One load times by as much as 50%, according to several online customers. Some reviewers complain that the USB Type-A cable is short and stiff.
Note: This item was heavily discounted on Black Friday and Amazon Prime Day.
Seagate Barracuda Fast SSD (500GB)
Good Value: $97 | Great Deal: $88
Interface: USB 3.0
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Seagate’s portable SSD is lightweight, fast and easy to use, according to several online customers. Some reviewers say that faster drives are available for less money; others dislike the plastic build.
SanDisk (500GB) Extreme Portable External SSD
Good Value: $90 | Great Deal: $73
Interface: USB 3.1/3.2 Gen 2
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SanDisk’s rugged external SSD is small, light and blazing fast according to several customers. Reviewers say this exFat-formatted SSD must be reformatted to avoid wasted storage space; Mac owners admit that it was tricky formatting the drive for Apple’s APFS system. Also, reviewers agree that this drive runs hot.
Note: This item was heavily discounted on Black Friday.
About the Author: John DeFeo was formerly the head of editorial insights for brands such as Tom’s Hardware, Anandtech and Tom’s Guide. He is the moderator of a charitable sub-Reddit that lists daily Amazon deals.
