Solid-state drives (SSDs) are among the biggest real-world difference-makers among PC-component upgrades: an instant blast of speed and capacity. Even better, you don't have to get a high-end drive to see some huge creature-comfort gains if you're upgrading from a platter hard drive or an older SSD. At PCMag, we've been reviewing SSDs since the very earliest models, subjecting each to our rigorous, repeatable benchmark testing. We evaluate drives based on speed, cost, rated endurance, warranty, bundled software, and feature set. (In short: We have the experience and expertise to point you to the real values in a sea of low-priced SSDs.) Our current best cheap M.2 SSD for most people is the WD Blue SN5100—soon to be rebranded as the Sandisk Optimus 5100—and our best cheap SATA 2.5-inch drive is Samsung's SSD 870 EVO. We've recommended additional models below for narrower use cases. Also, check out a guide on how to buy the right budget SSD for your specific system's needs.
Overview
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![WD Blue SN5100]()
Best Cheap M.2 PCI Express 4.0 SSD for Most BuyersWD Blue SN5100
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![Crucial P3]()
Best Cheap M.2 PCI Express 3.0 SSD for Most BuyersCrucial P3
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![Samsung SSD 870 EVO]()
Best Cheap 2.5-Inch SATA SSD for Most BuyersSamsung SSD 870 EVO
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![Addlink G55H]()
Best Cheap PCI Express 5.0 SSDAddlink G55H
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![Crucial X9 Pro]()
Best Cheap External SSDCrucial X9 Pro
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![ADATA SD810]()
Best Cheap Rugged External SSDADATA SD810
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![Synology BeeDrive]()
Best Cheap External SSD for Simple BackupsSynology BeeDrive
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![Addlink AddGame A93]()
Best Cheap M.2 PCI Express 4.0 SSD for GamersAddlink AddGame A93
You Can Trust Our Reviews
Deeper Dive: Our Top Tested Picks
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![WD Blue SN5100]()
Best Cheap M.2 PCI Express 4.0 SSD for Most BuyersWD Blue SN5100
Pros & Cons
Why We Picked It
Sandisk's energy-efficient WD Blue SN5100 (soon to be renamed the Sandisk Optimus 5100), available in capacities up to 4TB, performed well in our benchmark testing. It exceeding its rated sequential read and write speed in Crystal DiskMark and posted some of the highest scores in its class in both PCMark 10 and 3DMark Storage, which measure general storage aptitude and gaming prowess, respectively. DRAM-less architecture and QLC NAND flash serve to keep the SN5100's price down.
Who It's For
Gamers: The energy-efficient and cool-running SN5100 meets Sony's requirements for an SSD to fill the secondary M.2 slot in its PlayStation 5. It also posted the second-highest score among our PCI Express 4 SSDs in the 3DMark Storage gaming-centric benchmark.
Upgraders: The SN5100 offers up to 4TB of storage at a modest price, and it is one of the best-performing PCI Express 4 SSDs we've reviewed, making it a good choice for upgraders looking for fast, high-capacity storage in a PCIe 4 stick.
Specs & Configurations
Bus Type PCI Express 4.0 Capacity (Tested) 2 Controller Maker SanDisk Interface (Computer Side) USB-C Internal Form Factor M.2 Type-2280 Internal or External Internal NAND Type QLC NVMe Support Rated Maximum Sequential Read 7100 Rated Maximum Sequential Write 6700 Terabytes Written (TBW) Rating 900 Warranty Length 5 Learn More WD Blue SN5100 Review -
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![Crucial P3]()
Best Cheap M.2 PCI Express 3.0 SSD for Most BuyersCrucial P3
Pros & Cons
Why We Picked It
Micron's Crucial P3 is a solid choice as a PCI Express 3.0 SSD, providing good performance at such at a modest price. The P3 offers higher capacities and much higher throughput speeds than the previous generation Crucial P2, at a lower cost per gigabyte, thanks to the company's switch from TLC to QLC flash memory for this drive. The drawback is that the change lowers the P3's write-durability rating, making it best for tasks that don't consistently write huge amounts of data to the drive. The controller lacks a DRAM cache, which causes a performance hit on some SSDs, especially with large file transfers, but the P3 generally scored well in the PCMark 10 benchmarks.
Who It's For
Bargain hunters: The Crucial P3 is a cost-effective SSD option for users who don't need the latest SSD speed, thanks to its PCI Express 3.0 interface and QLC NAND flash memory. Though it won't set any speed records, it performed well for a PCIe 3.0 SSD in our benchmarks.
Users with older PCs: The Crucial P3 provides good performance in a PCI Express 3.0 NVMe SSD. Its QLC NAND flash memory keeps the P3's price down while allowing capacities up to 4TB. It's a spot-on pick for upgrading older PCs that don't support PCIe 4.0.
Specs & Configurations
Bus Type PCI Express 3.0 x4 Capacity (Tested) 2 Controller Maker Phison Interface (Computer Side) M.2 Type-2280 Internal Form Factor M.2 Type-2280 Internal or External Internal NAND Type QLC NVMe Support Rated Maximum Sequential Read 3500 Rated Maximum Sequential Write 3000 Terabytes Written (TBW) Rating 440 Warranty Length 5 Learn More Crucial P3 Review -
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![Samsung SSD 870 EVO]()
Best Cheap 2.5-Inch SATA SSD for Most BuyersSamsung SSD 870 EVO
Pros & Cons
Why We Picked It
Where SSDs are concerned, may seem like an M.2 world but SATA drives still have their place, anchoring legacy systems and providing cheap storage while being much faster than spinning hard drives. The Samsung SSD 870 EVO, our SATA champ, is available in capacities up to 4TB. It did great in our benchmarking, rivaling some PCI Express 3 M.2 SSDs in the PCMark 10 Overall benchmark, which measures general storage aptitude.
Who It's For
Upgraders: For upgrading the SSD in a legacy computer, the Samsung SSD 870 EVO is the best SATA drive we have encountered. It did particularly well in the PCMark 10 Overall general-storage benchmark, in tasks like booting Windows, loading game levels, and launching creative programs like Adobe with simulated projects housed inside. It can also give you a boost in capacity, up to as much as 4TB.
Desktop users seeking extra capacity: If your desktop computer lacks a spare M.2 slot, you can boost its capacity by adding a SATA drive such as the 870 EVO, connecting its data and power cables to their appropriate motherboard sockets. Another alternative is to put the 870 EVO in an inexpensive SATA-drive housing, making it in effect an external drive that can be connected via a USB cable to your computer.
Specs & Configurations
Bus Type Serial ATA Capacity (Tested) 4 Controller Maker Samsung Interface (Computer Side) SATA Internal Form Factor 2.5-Inch Internal or External Internal NAND Type TLC Rated Maximum Sequential Read 560 Rated Maximum Sequential Write 530 Terabytes Written (TBW) Rating 2400 Warranty Length 5 Learn More Samsung SSD 870 EVO Review -
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![Addlink G55H]()
Best Cheap PCI Express 5.0 SSDAddlink G55H
Pros & Cons
Why We Picked It
The energy-efficient Addlink G55H's DRAM-less architecture, highlighted by a Phison E31T Gen 5-optimized controller, keeps its price down compared with other PCI Express 5 SSDs. It ships with an aluminum heatsink that is compact enough to let the drive fit in a PlayStation 5. (The SSD is also available sans heatsink as the Addlink G55.)
Who It's For
PS5 users: The G55H's heatsink is compact enough to allow you to fit the drive in a PS5's spare M.2 slot, and it meets Sony's recommended M.2 specs for the PlayStation. One caveat: the PS5's compatibility is limited to PCI Express 4. So, you can use the G55H with your console, but it will max out at PCIe 4 speeds.
Upgraders: The G55H is a good budget option as a Gen 5 SSD for a mainstream system that supports the standard. It ships with its own heatsink, and with its DRAM-less architecture, its price is moderate compared with most other PCIe 5 drives.
Specs & Configurations
Bus Type PCI Express 5.0 Capacity (Tested) 2 Controller Maker Phison Interface (Computer Side) PCI Express Internal Form Factor M.2 Type-2280 Internal or External Internal NAND Type TLC NVMe Support Rated Maximum Sequential Read 10300 Rated Maximum Sequential Write 9000 Terabytes Written (TBW) Rating 1200 Warranty Length 5 Learn More Addlink G55H Review -
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![Crucial X9 Pro]()
Best Cheap External SSDCrucial X9 Pro
Pros & Cons
Why We Picked It
The Crucial X9 Pro is a tiny external SSD with a lot going for it. Its lightweight frame is sturdy and drop-proof up to 7.5 feet, and it offers some protection from the elements. The drive also delivers data protection in the form of 256-bit hardware-based encryption. It did well in our benchmark testing, especially in PCMark 10, which measures general storage aptitude.
Who It's For
Travelers: The X9 Pro is tiny and lightweight, easy to carry in your pocket, yet it is drop-proof and offers protection from dirt and water. Its gold-standard AES 256-bit hardware-based encryption will effectively guard your data should the drive be lost or stolen. Its USB 3.2 Gen 2 interface ensures compatibility with a wide range of systems.
Typical users: Its USB 3.2 Gen 2 interface makes the X9 Pro compatible with most any system with a USB port. It also lets the drive come in at a lower price than speedier USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 SSDs. It did very well in at PCMark 10, which aggregates its scores from a number of trace tests to measure its performance at workaday storage tasks. You can get the X9 Pro in capacities up to 4TB, with its lowest costs per gigabyte at the highest capacities.
Specs & Configurations
Bus Type PCI Express 3.0 x2 Capacity (Tested) 2 Interface (Computer Side) USB-C Internal or External External NAND Type TLC NVMe Support Rated Maximum Sequential Read 1050 Rated Maximum Sequential Write 1050 Warranty Length 5 Learn More Crucial X9 Pro Review -
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![ADATA SD810]()
Best Cheap Rugged External SSDADATA SD810
Pros & Cons
Why We Picked It
The tiny yet hyper-rugged ADATA SD810 is an excellent choice for users with a computer that supports the zippy USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 interface. It is not only low-priced for such a drive, but it also proved to be an elite performer in our benchmark testing. The SD810 is available in capacities up to 4TB, with the higher capacities selling at a lower cost per gigabyte than the lower ones.
Who It's For
Travelers: The SD810 is tiny and easy to carry, yet amazingly tough, with an IP68 ingress-protection rating indicating near-complete resistance to dust, dirt, and water. A MIL-STD-810G 516.6 drop-proof rating tops off its ruggedness cred.
Power users: The SD810's USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 interface ensures zippy data transfers between it and computers that support that standard. It performed well compared with other 2x2 drives in our benchmarking, and comes in capacities up to 4TB.
Specs & Configurations
Bus Type PCI Express 4.0 Capacity (Tested) 1 Interface (Computer Side) USB-C Internal or External External NAND Type QLC Rated Maximum Sequential Read 2000 Rated Maximum Sequential Write 2000 Warranty Length 5 Learn More ADATA SD810 Review -
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![Synology BeeDrive]()
Best Cheap External SSD for Simple BackupsSynology BeeDrive
Pros & Cons
Why We Picked It
The Synology BeeDrive, when coupled with the company's BeeDrive software, lets you smoothly and routinely back up files from your computer or mobile device, and sync files between devices. Although the BeeDrive performed well in this role in our testing, it also proved slow compared with other USB 3.2 Gen 2 external SSDs. So, it's best suited for the role of dedicated backup hub.
Who It's For
Computer users seeking a non-cloud backup solution: The BeeDrive is an effective alternative to subscription-based cloud services, letting you automatically back up selected folders on your computer whenever the drive is connected. It also lets you sync files between multiple (say, home and work) computers. Of course, it can also be used in addition to a cloud backup solution to provide redundancy.
Users seeking a photo repository: Mobile users can use the BeeDrive to back up images from up to five devices using the software's BeeDrop function. iPhone and iPad users have the option of storing the images as JPEGs instead of the HEIF format that Apple uses.
Specs & Configurations
Bus Type PCI Express 3.0 x2 Capacity (Tested) 2 Interface (Computer Side) USB-C Internal Form Factor Not Applicable Internal or External External Rated Maximum Sequential Read 1050 Rated Maximum Sequential Write 1050 Warranty Length 3 Learn More Synology BeeDrive Review -
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![Addlink AddGame A93]()
Best Cheap M.2 PCI Express 4.0 SSD for GamersAddlink AddGame A93
Pros & Cons
Why We Picked It
The modestly priced Addlink AddGame A93, a DRAM-less PCI Express 4 SSD with TLC NAND, is available in capacities up to 4TB. It produced solid benchmark scores compared with other PCIe 4 drives in our testing. The A93 ships with an aluminum heatsink attached, and is compatible with the Sony PlayStation 5.
Who It's For
PS5 users: The AddGame A93's aluminum heatsink is compact enough to fit in the secondary M.2 slot in a PlayStation 5, and meets all of Sony's guidelines for a PS5-friendly SSD. Meanwhile, the drive—which comes in capacities up to 4TB—posted competitive numbers in the gaming-centric 3DMark Storage benchmark.
Upgraders: The A93 is a viable replacement for an older PCI Express 4 SSD. Its DRAM-less architecture keeps its price down in all of its capacities, and it put up good numbers in our benchmark testing.
Specs & Configurations
Bus Type PCI Express 4.0 Capacity (Tested) 4 Controller Maker Maxio Technology Interface (Computer Side) M.2 Type-2280 Internal Form Factor M.2 Type-2280 Internal or External Internal NAND Type TLC NVMe Support Rated Maximum Sequential Read 7400 Rated Maximum Sequential Write 6500 Terabytes Written (TBW) Rating 3000 Warranty Length 5 Learn More Addlink AddGame A93 Review -
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Best For | Best Cheap M.2 PCI Express 4.0 SSD for Most Buyers | Best Cheap M.2 PCI Express 3.0 SSD for Most Buyers | Best Cheap 2.5-Inch SATA SSD for Most Buyers | Best Cheap PCI Express 5.0 SSD | Best Cheap External SSD | Best Cheap Rugged External SSD | Best Cheap External SSD for Simple Backups | Best Cheap M.2 PCI Express 4.0 SSD for Gamers | Best Cheap M.2 PCI Express 4.0 SSD for Most Buyers | Best Cheap M.2 PCI Express 3.0 SSD for Most Buyers | Best Cheap 2.5-Inch SATA SSD for Most Buyers |
Internal or External | Internal | Internal | Internal | Internal | External | External | External | Internal | Internal | Internal | Internal |
Internal Form Factor | M.2 Type-2280 | M.2 Type-2280 | 2.5-Inch | M.2 Type-2280 | Not Applicable | M.2 Type-2280 | M.2 Type-2280 | M.2 Type-2280 | 2.5-Inch | ||
Interface (Computer Side) | USB-C | M.2 Type-2280 | SATA | PCI Express | USB-C | USB-C | USB-C | M.2 Type-2280 | USB-C | M.2 Type-2280 | SATA |
Capacity (Tested) | 2 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 4 |
NAND Type | QLC | QLC | TLC | TLC | TLC | QLC | TLC | QLC | QLC | TLC | |
Controller Maker | SanDisk | Phison | Samsung | Phison | Maxio Technology | SanDisk | Phison | Samsung | |||
Bus Type | PCI Express 4.0 | PCI Express 3.0 x4 | Serial ATA | PCI Express 5.0 | PCI Express 3.0 x2 | PCI Express 4.0 | PCI Express 3.0 x2 | PCI Express 4.0 | PCI Express 4.0 | PCI Express 3.0 x4 | Serial ATA |
NVMe Support | |||||||||||
Rated Maximum Sequential Read | 7100 | 3500 | 560 | 10300 | 1050 | 2000 | 1050 | 7400 | 7100 | 3500 | 560 |
Rated Maximum Sequential Write | 6700 | 3000 | 530 | 9000 | 1050 | 2000 | 1050 | 6500 | 6700 | 3000 | 530 |
Terabytes Written (TBW) Rating | 900 | 440 | 2400 | 1200 | 3000 | 900 | 440 | 2400 | |||
Warranty Length | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 |
Buying Guide: The Best Cheap SSDs for 2026
Interface changes and manufacturing advances aren't the only forces making SSDs super bargains these days. Other factors, such as NAND manufacturing efficiencies, have pushed prices per gigabyte lower than ever. Oversupply has also been a factor in recent years.
SSD pricing has undoubtedly shifted into a buyer's market. Parts of the price spectrum that were previously reserved for lesser-known budget brands have been penetrated by more prominent players such as ADATA, Samsung, and Western Digital. Indeed, every launch is a street-pricing war among some of the biggest players in the game.
(Credit: Molly Flores)That's likely to be a permanent state of affairs, thanks to changes in how SSDs are made. Improvements in production processes, among other efficiencies, allow companies to fit more storage in a smaller space, decreasing the cost of materials and letting them pass on savings to consumers.
(Credit: Molly Flores)In other words, SSD performance and capacity have rocketed while relative prices have plummeted. That makes an SSD the best bang-for-the-buck upgrade any upgrade-eligible user can make. The only downside to this explosion of SSDs: The number of choices, especially among budget models, can be daunting.
How to Buy the Best Cheap SSD
Are you a buyer with basic needs, looking to upgrade a traditional platter hard drive in a laptop or desktop with something faster? These days, it's a safe strategy to check pricing on recent SSD models and pick the most affordable drive with the capacity and interface you need, from a name-brand maker you are willing to trust with your data. It's as simple as that. You'll rarely be disappointed, assuming you are going from one Serial ATA (SATA) drive to another. (Also, see our primer SSD Versus HDD: What's the Difference?)
If you want to go deeper, we'll detail many of these considerations below to help you make the smartest choice—to ensure you're getting the fastest, potentially longest-lasting drive for your budget dollar. (The first item below is essential, regardless.)
What Form Factor of SSD Should I Get?
SSDs are no longer only traditional 2.5-inch drives, the same size and shape as the 2.5-inch hard drives once found in most laptops. Hard drives are no longer common inside laptops, and SSDs have been changing shape for years.
If you have a recent slim laptop or 2-in-1, it probably uses a gumstick-shaped M.2 drive. (That is, if you can upgrade the drive in the laptop at all; some have the internal storage soldered down.) For deep details about those drives and the best models we've tested, check out our more specific SSD buying guide, The Best M.2 Solid-State Drives, for a great deal of background and advice on this kind of SSD.
M.2 is not only a laptop thing: All recent generations of desktop PCs and their motherboards have a slot or slots for M.2 drives, as well. In our product picks, we have included some of our favorite budget-minded M.2 SSDs to give some quick-pick guidance for this kind of drive. But M.2 drives have a lot of subtleties around them, so if you're not up to speed, hit the link above for a lot more info about M.2.
(Credit: Joseph Maldonado)For example, just because your laptop or desktop has an M.2 slot doesn't mean that a given M.2 drive will work in that slot. You have to make sure that the host system will accept a drive of that physical size (M.2 drives come in different lengths and even thicknesses) and that the bus type (Serial ATA versus PCI Express) of the SSD is supported by the system slot into which you're installing it. Furthermore, different systems support different generations of PCI Express (PCIe 3.0 versus PCIe 4.0, with PCIe 5.0 becoming more common, mostly in desktops), which can affect the peak speeds you'll see. Again, hit the link above for much more detail.
MLC, TLC, and QLC Memory: What's the Difference?
The most significant technical consideration shoppers will face when opting for a budget SSD is the type of solid-state memory it uses. If you're not familiar with the terms "MLC," "TLC," and "QLC," you can get up to speed with our primer, Buying a Solid-State Drive: 20 Terms You Need to Know. But we'll give you the short version here.
The first letter in both flash types refers to the number of bits each memory cell on the drive can store. The "M" in MLC stands for "multi," meaning (in this case) that the memory can host two bits per cell. The "T" in TLC stands for "triple," or three bits per cell, and the "Q" is "quad"/four bits per cell. In a drive with many millions of cells, having an extra bit in each cell for storage adds up quickly, allowing TLC or QLC drives (in the simplest sense) to hold more data than MLC drives using the same amount of silicon. This also lowers production costs, since fewer physical modules are needed to store the same amount of data.
Though TLC tech was originally much slower—specifically when writing data to the SSD—and considered a less reliable option than MLC if deployed in heavy data-writing scenarios, those concerns have waned over time. TLC drives are now the mainstream choice for general computing use. Plus, the emergence of "3D" versions of TLC NANDs (the chips upon which SSDs are built) has allowed SSD makers to deliver more capacity in less space by building memory modules in a vertical as well as horizontal ("planar") manner.
Because TLC module manufacturing reduces overall costs and provides decent performance, most manufacturers have jumped aboard the TLC NAND bandwagon, making this type of SSD the de facto option for low-cost SSD. For most users, TLC drives' performance is perfectly acceptable. MLC is not a factor in cheap or even mainstream SSDs these days.
We mentioned above that TLC-memory-based SSDs can suffer from slower write speeds compared to MLC SSDs. The primary reason is that TLC flash (and the newer QLC) simply has more bits to deal with on a per-cell level. Manufacturers have been able to sidestep this limitation, however, with clever caching technology that treats a portion of the drive as if it were a much faster type of flash memory (SLC, or "single-layer cell"). Under this approach, write operations are initially cached to this speedier buffer. Then, when the system is idle, the buffer transfers the data to the slower NAND.
The limitation of this approach is that the buffer is small (usually between 6GB and 10GB), as it has to be small enough to not reduce overall drive capacity by much, or increase costs. So, on TLC or QLC drives, if you try to copy a chunk of data larger than the buffer, you may see a significant temporary drop-off in write performance. Most mainstream users won't do this kind of thing often, so it's not really a problem. But be mindful of this issue when considering a TLC or QLC drive, particularly if you're a content creator or other power user dealing with massive files or constantly moving big hunks of data on and off your drive.
Also, to keep costs low, some manufacturers of SSDs with TLC and QLC NAND make drives whose controllers omit the usual DRAM cache, enlisting your PC's own memory as a host memory buffer (HMB) instead. DRAM-less drives that we have reviewed have generally performed well for everyday tasks, though the sustained movement of very large files tends to expose the weakness of their DRAM-less nature. Also, while they are fine for mainstream use in desktops and laptops, we don't recommend them for use with the Sony PS5 in its SSD slot.
What Do SSD Longevity Numbers Mean?
The other knock against TLC and QLC NAND flash is that it generally has a shorter rated lifespan than more traditional MLC-based flash memory. This trait is backed up by SSD makers' specifications, not just conjecture. The relevant spec is the terabytes written, or TBW, rating, expressed as the total number of terabytes the drive should be able to write over its lifetime before the drive electronics have to start decommissioning cells. The TBW rating also correlates to a manufacturer's warranty, but we'll get into that a bit more in another section below.
Every time your PC triggers a new write operation for a memory cell containing data, that data must be erased first; only then can new data be written to the cell. Because this erase/write process slows overall operation, the SSD controller strives to write to "fresh" cells (ones that don't need pre-erasing) when it can. But it has to start erasing previously used cells and writing to them at some point.
(Credit: Molly Flores)An SSD can repeat this routine of erasing, then writing to, a cell only so many times before a given cell weakens and can no longer hold data. In MLC drives, a typical cell can take roughly 5,000 write/erase cycles before it's likely no longer functional. On a TLC drive, this falls to around 1,000 cycles. This seems like a dramatic difference between the two memory types, but this problem is mitigated by a process called "over-provisioning." In it, a chunk of the drive is kept hidden and unused, only to be brought online when other cells begin to wear out.
In the real world, tech professionals and consumers will seldom be in danger of writing a drive to death unless they are using it to run a server or some other task where the system is powered up and accessed almost constantly. A while back, The Tech Report ran a long-term experiment, writing to a batch of SSDs until they died to see how long they would last. Samsung's TLC-based SSD 840 drive wrote over 800 terabytes before giving up the digital ghost. In the real world, it would take the average user many years (more likely a decade) to write that much data to an SSD. So, unless you plan on using your SSD as your primary drive for 10 years or more (which would make little sense, given how much cheaper and better SSDs get every year), drive endurance is only a secondary issue for most folks.
Still, that shouldn't be an excuse not to back up your important data. SSDs are not spinning hard drives, but any SSD can still fail randomly due to a defect, a power surge, or some other unforeseen event. You may be able to replace a drive if it's under warranty, but the new drive won't have your old data on it.
How Should I Evaluate an SSD's Supporting Software?
Though many seasoned enthusiasts and SSD vets don't find bundled storage software or utilities necessary, some manufacturers offer a software package with their SSDs that can be surprisingly useful. Samsung and Intel kicked off this trend years ago by pairing their drives with robust utilities that let you examine every facet of the drive, including its overall health level, the amount of data written to it, and whether or not your system is set up to extract maximum performance from the SSD. The software sophistication has grown from there.
The usefulness of these free tools can vary, from slick and feature-rich to garish and only marginally useful. Some drives include a simple utility that just lets you update the drive's firmware, and little or nothing else. Generally, a firmware update shouldn't be necessary unless there's a problem with performance.
(Credit: Samsung)If you're the type to tinker, our advice is to purchase a drive that includes robust utility software, but read up on the included program first. To our eyes, Samsung provides among the best software packages with its drives, though Crucial/Micron, Sandisk/Western Digital, and ADATA/XPG are all good bets on the software front, too.
Likewise, if you're upgrading from a drive in an existing PC rather than installing a new OS from scratch, you may want to look for a drive that includes a drive-cloning utility (such as a version of Acronis TrueImage). The lowest-priced drives lack these niceties, but free programs can get the job done, too. We've had luck using the free Home version of EaseUS's Disk Copy.
What's a Good SSD Warranty?
Check the warranty terms before purchase. Many budget SSDs we've tested feature a three-year warranty, rather than the longer plans of pricier premium models. With its watershed SSD 850 EVO model, Samsung was an early leader in setting the warranty bar higher for budget-minded SSDs, opting for a five-year plan. Samsung was able to make advancements with its TLC flash, combining it with the company's vertically stacked V-NAND to make drives that are low in cost but similar in endurance to pricier MLC drives. Consider a five-year coverage plan a gold star for any budget SSD, though many drives still settle at three years, or when you reach the TBW limit of the drive, whichever happens first.
The Key Metric: Evaluating Cost per Gigabyte
Without doing a little math, it's tricky to figure the bottom-line cost of one SSD versus another when capacities vary, or when you're looking at SSDs on sale versus regular price. The four main capacity classes you will see, from drive to drive, are:
- 120GB or 128GB
- 240GB, 250GB, or 256GB
- 480GB, 500GB, or 512GB
- 960GB or 1TB
SSDs bigger than 2TB aren't really budget-class drives these days; you can find some PCI Express 4.0 SSDs and quite a few SATA drives retailing at $100 or less for their 2TB models. As a rough measure, it's fine to compare prices from drive to drive within the same capacity class.
However, at a more precise level, the best way to judge what you are paying is to divide the price by the number of gigabytes in the SSD. So, for example, a $50 240GB drive yields a cost per gigabyte of 20.8 cents. A $50 256GB drive, in contrast, comes in at 19.5 cents per gig. The least-expensive budget drives you'll see these days hover around 5 cents per gigabyte. Generally, the higher an SSD's capacity, the lower its cost per gigabyte, at least for SSDs up to 4TB. In absolute terms, we would not consider a 4TB stick a budget drive, but we will call it out if it has a rock-bottom cost per gig. (We have seen them as low as 6 cents per gig.) Use this math to calculate your bottom-line price when comparing a host of drives.
Ready to Buy the Right Cheap SSD for You?
In this guide, we've chosen our favorite low-cost 2.5-inch Serial ATA SSDs and PCI Express M.2 drives that we have tested. The system you are upgrading will dictate what you can actually install.
Important to note: All of these drives are also available in capacities different than the ones we tested. So dig into each review for the details on alternate capacities, if you want a drive bigger or smaller than what you see in our specs. For more storage picks, check out our roundups of the best external SSDs and the best SSDs for upgrading your laptop, as well as the best external hard drives.
This story has been produced in partnership with our sister site, Computer Shopper.