Best External SSDs

Samsung T9 sits at #1 in the S tier of our consolidated board, ranked across independent research runs over current expert reviews. Long-term reliability, robust warranty, proven endurance.

Crucial X10 ranks #2 (A tier). Excellent write endurance and low failure rate; strong support.

Our research places SanDisk Extreme PRO with USB-4, Kingston XS2000, LaCie Rugged Pro 5, Crucial X6, WD My Passport SSD, SanDisk Extreme PRO Portable SSD, Samsung T5 EVO in the bottom tiers (D/F). Fastest speeds, best endurance for price.

Yes, for storing and playing most games. A modern external SSD loads games far faster than any spinning external hard drive, and for a PC library on a 10Gbps or 20Gbps drive the gap to an internal drive is small in practice. On our board the Samsung T9 and the Crucial X10 Pro are the fastest picks for a big game library. Check your console's rules first, since some consoles only allow older-generation titles to run from an external drive.

No, but the gap depends on the port. A USB4 drive like the Samsung T9 reaches about 2 GB/s, a 20Gbps drive like the Crucial X10 Pro reaches about 2 GB/s in ideal conditions, and a 10Gbps drive like the Crucial X9 Pro tops out near 1 GB/s. An internal NVMe drive is several times faster on paper. For file copies, photo libraries and games the external drive feels quick enough that most people never notice.

A good external SSD outlives the computer it is plugged into. Flash wears with writes, not time, and a typical owner never gets close to the rated write endurance. The board weights endurance and warranty heavily: the Samsung T9, Crucial X10 and Crucial X10 Pro all scored well on endurance in testing, and the Crucial X9 Pro carries a 5-year warranty. The exception is a drive line with a failure history, which is why the SanDisk Extreme PRO Portable SSD sits in F tier.

Samsung and Crucial, on our board. The Samsung T9 won on long-term reliability and proven endurance, and the Crucial X10 earned its A tier on high write endurance and low failure rates. Corsair also lands in A tier with the Corsair EX400U. SanDisk and WD portable drives carry a documented failure history, and the Adata SD810 is reliable in testing but has a thinner support network than Samsung or Crucial.

Three things, in order of how often reviewers report them. Sudden data loss, which is the failure the SanDisk Extreme PRO Portable SSD became known for in 2023. Thermal throttling during long writes, noted on the Kingston XS2000, and a smaller version of it on the Samsung T9 under sustained load. Slow sustained writes on QLC drives once the cache fills, which is what drags the Samsung T5 EVO and the Crucial X6 down. Back up anything that matters to a second location regardless of which drive you buy.

They describe the port the drive talks through, which sets its speed ceiling. USB 3.2 Gen 2 at 10Gbps gives roughly 1 GB/s, as on the Crucial X9 Pro and Crucial X10. USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 at 20Gbps roughly doubles that, as on the Crucial X10 Pro. USB4 is the fastest common option and is what the Samsung T9 uses for its 2 GB/s rating. The drive only runs at the speed of the slowest part, so a 20Gbps drive on a 10Gbps port runs at 10Gbps.

Yes, every drive on the board works on a Mac. Most ship formatted exFAT, which both macOS and Windows read and write, so you can plug in and go. If the drive will only ever touch Macs, reformatting to APFS in Disk Utility is a little faster and supports Time Machine. USB-C Macs with Thunderbolt or USB4 ports get the full speed of a USB4 drive like the Samsung T9.

Only if it travels in a bag or works outdoors. An SSD has no moving parts, so a plain drive already survives knocks a spinning drive would not. For genuine field use the Samsung T7 Shield has military-grade shock resistance and the Crucial X9 Pro and Crucial X10 Pro carry an IP55 rating against dust and water. The LaCie Rugged Pro 5 is the most rugged-looking drive on the board and still lands in F tier on higher failure rates and weak performance for its price.

Avoid drive lines with a failure history, however good the benchmarks look. The SanDisk Extreme PRO Portable SSD is still widely recommended for speed and still sits in F tier on our board for that reason. Avoid a 1-year warranty, which is the main complaint against the Kingston XS1000. Avoid QLC drives sold on capacity alone, like the Samsung T5 EVO, because sustained writes fall well below the headline number. And avoid paying 20Gbps money for a 10Gbps drive, which is the case against the WD My Passport SSD.

Usually not, because the cheapest drives give up the most. The Crucial X6 saves very little against the roughly twice-as-fast Crucial X9 Pro and lands in F tier for that reason. The better budget move is the Adata SD810 in B tier, which has the best price-to-performance ratio on the board at 1 GB/s with reliable endurance. If you want the cheapest drive from a big brand, the Samsung T7 Shield is the safer buy than the Samsung T5 EVO.