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Best SSDs (Solid-State Drives): Get Your PC, Server, or Console One Today!

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This post includes the best internal solid-state drives (SSDs) I’ve reviewed that are relevant and available to purchase.

Migrating your computer from a hard drive to a solid-state drive (SSD) or from a SATA SSD to an NVMe is the most gratifying upgrade.

So, getting the correct drive is naturally an important task, and you will be able to pick one today!

Dong’s note: I last updated this frequently revised post on November 23, 2022.

Best SSDs : Internal SSDs come in different shapes and sizes.
Best SSDs: Solid-state drives generally comes in 2.5-inch (SATA) and M.2 (NVMe) designs

Best SSDs: The lists

You’ll find standard SATA and NVMe drives here, divided into two lists in reviewed order, with the latest on top.

NVMe and SATA are two different internal storage types — more about them in this post on SSD basics.


Seven best NVMe SSDs (and alternatives): A must for a top-performing computer, server, or game console

Newer and much faster NVMe SSDs require a host with an M.2 slot. Most computers released in the past five years have this slot built-in, but you can upgrade to one on almost all desktop computers via a PCIe adapter.

7. Sabrent Rocket 4 series

This is the latest drive on this list. The number is not the rating.

Sabrent Rocket 4 Plus vs Rocket 4 Plus G Underside
Best SSDs: The Rocket 4 series includes two SSD.

Sabrent’s Rocket 4 series includes:

Both are excellent SSDs.

Sabrent Rocket 4 Plus-G and Rocket 4 Plus' Rating

8.8 out of 10
Sabrent Rocket 4 Plus vs Rocket 4 Plus G NVMe SSDs 1 7
Performance
9.5 out of 10
Features
8 out of 10
Value
9 out of 10

Pros

Excellent NVMe performance, available in up to 8TB (the Plus model) capacity, high endurance

Useful Dashboard software; valuable bundle backup software

Microsoft DirectStorage API support (Rocket 4 Plus-G model)

5-year warranty

Cons

Only a 2-year warranty without registration

No hardware encryption or user-accessible feature


6. Samsung 990 PRO

Samsung 990 PRO SSDs front on hand
Best SSDs: The PRO is the latest in Samsung 990’s internal SSDs.

The Samsung 990 is Samsung’s latest in its flagship NVMe SSDs with an incremental improvement to previous models, which remain to be excellent.

Similar alternatives from Samsung:

Samsung 990 PRO SSD's Rating

9 out of 10
Samsung 990 PRO SSD front
Performance
9 out of 10
Features
9 out of 10
Value
9 out of 10

Pros

Excellent PCIe 4.0 performance

Reasonably priced

Helpful Samsung Magician software with lots of useful settings and features

5-year warranty

Cons

No PCIe 5.0 support

No new or break-through features


5. Silicon Power XPower XS70

Silicon Power XS70 PCIe .0 SSD
Best SSDs: The Silicon Power XPower XS70

The Power XPower XS70 is the best PCI 4.0 NVMe SSD from Silicon Power.

Alternative:

Silicon Power XS70's Rating

8.5 out of 10
Silicon Power XS70 PCIe .0 SSD
Performance
8.5 out of 10
Features
8 out of 10
Value
9 out of 10

Pros

Fast performance with up to 4TB of capacity

High endurance with competitive pricing

Heatsink included

5-year warranty

Cons

Bulky, no non-heatsink version

No security or any user-accessible features

Runs hot


4. WD Black SN850

WD Black SN850 PCIe Gen NVMe SSD
Best SSDs: The WD Black SN850

The SN580 is not the latest NVMe SSD from WD, but it remains the best deal.

Similar alternatives from WD:

WD Black SN850's Rating

8.8 out of 10
WD Black SN850 PCIe Gen NVMe SSD
Performance
9 out of 10
Features
8.5 out of 10
Value
9 out of 10

Pros

Top NVMe performance

Helpful Dashboard software

Available in heatsink version

5-year warranty

Cons

Different performance grades between capacities

Runs a bit hot


3. Seagate IronWolf 525

Seagate IronWolf 525 SSD
Best SSDs: The Seagate IronWolf 525

The IronWolf 525 is an excellent PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSD for PCs and NAS servers with the best endurance rating.

Alternative:

Seagate IronWolf 525's Rating

8.2 out of 10
Seagate IronWolf 525 SSD 3
Performance
8 out of 10
Features
8.5 out of 10
Value
8 out of 10

Pros

High endurance

Excellent real-world, including RAID, performance

Three years of data rescue services included

5-year warranty

Cons

Slower than PCIe 4.0 rivals

Limited NAS use


2. Micron Crucial P5 Plus

Micron Crucial P5 Plus PCIe Gen 4.0 NVMe SSD
Best SSDs: The Micron Crucial P5 Plus PCIe Gen 4.0 NVMe SSD

The Crucial P5 Plus is the top PCIe 4.0 from Micron and has remained one of the best among its peers.

Alternative:

Micron Crucial P5 Plus' Rating

9.2 out of 10
Micron Crucial P Plus PCIe Gen 4.0 NVMe SSD
Performance
9.5 out of 10
Features
9 out of 10
Value
9 out of 10

Pros

Excellent performance

Affordable

PCIe 4.0 support, backward compatible with PCIe Gen 3

Helpful Storage Executive software

5-year warranty

Cons

Comparatively modest endurance

Capacities cap at 2TB


1. SK hynix Gold P31

This is the oldest drive on this list. The number is not the rating.

SK hynix Gold P31
Best SSDs: The SK hynix Gold P31 NVMe SSD

SK Hynix Gold P31's Rating

8.7 out of 10
SK hynix Gold P31 Hand
Performance
8.5 out of 10
Features
8.5 out of 10
Value
9 out of 10

Pros

Fast performance, high endurance

Relatively affordable

5-year warranty

Cons

Storage caps at 1TB

No PCIe 4.0


Three best SATA SSDs (and alternatives): Kind of slow but still plenty fast and relevant

The SATA standard is much slower than the NVMe above but still significantly faster than any traditional hard drive.

A SATA SSD will fit in the place of any regular hard drive and, therefore, will make an easy and satisfying upgrade in any computer that still runs on a hard drive.

Or you can use one as a secondary backup drive of a pimped-out rig that runs on the top NVMe drive.

3. Samsung SSD 870 EVO: Arguably the best SATA drive to date

This is the latest drive on this list. The number is not the rating.

Samsung 870 EVO SSD on Box
Best SSDs: The Samsung 870 EVO

The 870 EVO is the latest SATA SSD from Samsung and might be the company’s last drive of the standard.

Similar alternatives from Samsung:

Samsung 870 EVO's Rating

9 out of 10
Samsung 870 EVO SSD
Performance
9 out of 10
Features
8.5 out of 10
Value
9.5 out of 10

Pros

Top-notch SATA performance

Useful software with an excellent feature set

Relatively affordable

5-year warranty

High endurance

Cons

No 8TB capacity

No M.2 version


2. WD Red SA500: A versatile SATA NAS SSD that’s also great for PCs

WD Red SA500 Hand
Best SSDs: The WD Red SA500

The WD RED SA500 is unique since it’s available in both M.2 and SATA form factors. It’s an excellent choice for a NAS server or a budget PC.

WD Red SA500's Rating

8.8 out of 10
WD Red SA500 Hand
Performance
9 out of 10
Features
8.5 out of 10
Value
9 out of 10

Pros

Affordable with extended warranty

Excellent performance

2.5-inch and M.2 form factors

High capacity

Cons

Relatively low endurance when compared to competing drive

No NVMe version, 2.5-inch to 3.5-inch mounting bracket not included


1. Micron Crucial BX500: The low-cost replacement SSD for a budget computer

This is the oldest drive on this list. The number is not the rating.

The new Crucial BX500 SSD from Micron.
Best SSDs: The Crucial BX500

Crucial BX500's Rating

8 out of 10
Crucial BX500 3
Performance
7.5 out of 10
Features
7.5 out of 10
Value
9 out of 10

Pros

Inexpensive

Good performance and endurance

Useful software and features

Cons

No encryption, bare-bone specs

Short 3-year warranty

No higher capacities than 960GB


Best SSDs: The performance

Generally, there are two types of performance when it comes to SSDs: sequential and random access.

The former shows how fast solid-state drives perform when copying a large amount of data from one place to another. It applies to general data transferring tasks, such as when you want to back up or recover data.

Best SSDs Copy Performances
Best SSDs: Sequential Performance

Random access performance, on the other hand, shows how a solid-state drive affects the host computer’s overall performance. It represents tasks like launching an application or editing a large data file.

Best SSDs Random Access Performances
Best SSDs: Random Access Performance

Now that you have found out which drive you should get. Check out how you can migrate a hard drive to an SSD or do an MVMe upgrade on your Windows machine.

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16 thoughts on “Best SSDs (Solid-State Drives): Get Your PC, Server, or Console One Today!”

  1. I am surprised there was no mention or inclusion of a single Sabrent-branded SSDs. I’ve been using a couple 2TBs for well over a year and no problems. I have an unopened 2TB NVMe v4.0 ready to deploy when I get my Lenovo X1 Extreme Gen 4. You might want to check them out. Here’s one link to a Black Friday special at Amazon.

    https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07TLYWMY

    Reply
  2. Hi Dong,
    My daughter has a ThinkPad X1 Carbon laptop. About a year ago, I upgraded its SSD from Intel Pro 6000p 256GB (SSDPEKKF256G7) to Samsung 970 EVO Plus 1TB (MZ-V7S1T0B/AM).

    We found out that the 970 EVO Plus runs quite a bit hotter than the Intel Pro 6000p.

    I think it might be useful to your readers, if you could include some temperature measurements, especially in ultra-portable laptops.

    Thank you and Happy Thanksgiving!

    Reply
  3. When you need larger capacity drives, there is no competition for old mechanical hard drives. I would rather pay $200 for a 10TB mechanical drive than $1000+ for a SSD. Put 8 of them into a Synology DS1819+ and you really have a lot of $ put out in drives.

    Reply
    • That’s true, Steve. These mostly are for the boot drive of a computer. You can use SSDs with a NAS though, you’ll be amazed how much faster your system is especially when you want to run VMs. More in this review of the DS1621+.

      Reply
      • I know. I have an Alienware m17 r3 with 2x 2tb m.2 NVMe SSDs, and 1x 512GB m.2 NVMe SSD. On the 1819+. I have 8x 10tb HD (shucked WD EasyShares) and 2 Seagate Iron Wolf drives for caching

        Reply
  4. Maybe this is insensitive (or plain ole back woods ignorance), but are spindle/platter drives still common in everyday computing? I purchase computers semi-regularly (I work in IT) and don’t think you can configure devices with anything but SSD for the primary (the Dell models we buy anyway).

    I can’t even begin to fathom how long it must take for Windows 10 to do anything on a 7200RPM (or even 5400RPM, ouch!) drive.

    Reply
    • There are still a lot of new (cheap) computers that use HDD on the inside, Lance. Not to mention existing old computers. But SSDs are taking over for sure. And you can also upgrade to a larger one.

      Reply
  5. consider ADATA XPG SX8100 512GB 3D NAND NVMe Gen3x4 PCIe M.2 2280 Solid State Drive R/W 3500/3000MB/s SSD (ASX8100NP-512GT-C)

    Reply
  6. Why no SanDisk SSD? Great budget SSD and good performance options. I have two 960GB Ultra IIs that are going strong 4-5 years now.

    Reply

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