Opting for one of the best external SSDs around is one of the most important investments you can make in this data-dominated world. The ability to transport your files around with you is a necessity for a lot of people, and you might not even realise you need one. \u00a0If you want to have your massive games library to hand without it taking up your entire PC storage, or heaven forbid your HDD stops working all of a sudden, having a fast and decent size external SSD can be a life-saver.<\/p>\n
An external SSD is a great cheap storage upgrade, too; it’s also often a more affordable way of expanding your storage on a Sony PlayStation 5<\/a> or Microsoft Xbox Series X<\/a> gaming console. You can even run games directly off the SSD itself in most cases, but we understand the dubiousness around the idea.<\/p>\n When looking for a perfect external SDD, USB Type-C drives<\/a> are the way to go. Over the last few years, the performance of external SSDs has improved exponentially, with some even supporting 2GB\/s of raw bandwidth. That gives you the ability to transfer huge game files in minutes rather than hours. There’s still no competing with an internal latest PCIe 5.0 M.2 drives<\/a>, but perhaps one day soon.<\/p>\n Whatever the size, speed, and price of the external SSD, chances are we got the one for you listed below. Each of these entries we’ve tested thoroughly, putting them through our gauntlet of benchmarks so they could earn their right to store your precious games.<\/p>\n \n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n (Image credit: Adata)<\/span><\/p>\n All round best external SSD<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Storage: <\/strong>1TB | Connectivity: <\/strong>USB 3.2 Type-C | Sequential read: <\/strong>1GB\/s | Dimensions: <\/strong>73 x 44 x 12mm | Warranty: <\/strong>3 years<\/p>\n Looking for something with speedy NVMe tech inside? The ADATA SE800 1TB has that. TLC NAND memory? Affirmative. IP rating for increased robustness, including waterproofing? Check. And all for an attractive price compared to its main competitors.<\/p>\n The ADATA SE800 Ultra FAST 1TB really does have quite a bit going for it.<\/p>\n It starts with that M.2 NVMe drive, bridged to a USB interface. In this case, it\u2019s a 10Gbps USB 3.2 Gen 2 interface rather than a 20Gbps USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 connection. But this drive is still claimed to be good for 1GB\/s data transfers in both directions. Lest you have forgotten, that\u2019s around twice as fast as any SATA-based drives, including internal SSDs connected natively via SATA.<\/p>\n That makes it unique among these SSDs, and, what\u2019s more, given the competitive pricing, you\u2019re getting that IP rating effectively for free. Performance-wise, in testing, the ADATA delivers in the headline 1GB\/s spec for sequential transfers while notching up 4K random throughput that\u2019s comparable to the competition at 21MB\/s for reads and 40MB\/s for writes.<\/p>\n That all goes along with a IP68 dust and water proofing, which seems to do the trick in testing.<\/p>\n \n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n (Image credit: Western Digital)<\/span><\/p>\n The fastest USB Type-C gaming drive in town<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Storage: <\/strong>1TB | Connectivity: <\/strong>USB 3.2 2×2 Type-C | Sequential read: <\/strong>2GB\/s | Dimensions: <\/strong>118 x 62 x 14mm | Warranty: <\/strong>5 years<\/p>\n If you\u2019re looking for fast USB-powered external storage for games, this is currently as good as it gets. At least, it is in theory. The WD Black P50 Game Drive we tested here in 1TB format, and available in 500GB and 2TB flavors, is a rare breed of USB Type-C external SSD. That\u2019s because it supports the very fastest USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 20Gbps interface, which is why it\u2019s capable of read and write speeds up to 2,000MB\/s.<\/p>\n As for real-world performance, in terms of peak sequential, the WD Black P50 easily maxed out the 10Gbps connection of our test PC, registering just over 1GB\/s in both directions. It\u2019s likely capable of the advertised 2GB\/s with the right interface, however.<\/p>\n Sustained performance is a little less impressive, with performance dropping to around 375MB\/s after around 30GB of data transfer. Random access performance is reasonable rather than spectacular, with 22MB\/s reads, and 40MB\/s writes for the 4K QD1 metric.<\/p>\n \n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n (Image credit: Crucial)<\/span><\/p>\n A great-value NVMe-based external SSD<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Storage: <\/strong>2TB | Connectivity: <\/strong>USB 3.2 Type-C | Sequential read: <\/strong>1,050MB\/s | Dimensions: <\/strong>110 x 53 x 12mm | Warranty: <\/strong>3 years<\/p>\n If you want it all, you\u2019re going to have to pay for it. So, sometimes it makes sense to compromise. Enter the Crucial X8 2TB USB Type-C SSD. It\u2019s not the absolute fastest external SSD on Earth. But it is quick. It\u2019s extremely capacious. It\u2019s built into a really solid-feeling metal case. And it\u2019s attractively priced. In fact, right now, it\u2019s available at Best Buy for $239. That\u2019s over $150 less than WD\u2019s Black P50 Game Drive in 2TB trim.<\/p>\n And so it proves in our testing, with the Crucial X8 good for just under 1GB\/s for sequential transfers in both directions. 4K random performance is decent, too, for this class of drive, with reads of 27MB\/s and writes just over 40MB\/s at QD1.<\/p>\n Given the use of QLC NAND, one big question mark is sustained performance. However, while the Crucial X8 does drop down to 380MB\/s with sustained traffic, in our testing, it maintained that level for many tens of GB, which puts it on a par with the more expensive WD drive.<\/p>\n Best gaming laptops<\/a> | Best gaming keyboards<\/a> | Best gaming mouse<\/a> \n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n (Image credit: Samsung)<\/span><\/p>\n A smart SSD built to last<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Storage: <\/strong>1TB | Connectivity: <\/strong>USB 3.1 Type-C | Sequential read: <\/strong>484MB\/s | Dimensions: <\/strong>76 x 58 x 10mm | Warranty: <\/strong>3 years<\/p>\n For the power user who wants it all\u2014speed, capacity, and portability\u2014and who is willing to pay a premium for it, Samsung\u2019s Portable SSD T5 is one of the slickest solutions out there.<\/p>\n Our testing proved it’s not only faster than any USB flash drive available, it also has the capacity of a hard drive, and you can carry it pretty inconspicuously in your pocket, considering it’s only 76 x 58 x 10mm. This spunky little drive shares the same DNA as Samsung\u2019s 860 Evo SSD, just in a smaller package.<\/p>\n Speed doesn\u2019t come at the expense of storage space either. While it\u2019s easy to bump into the storage ceiling of a 32GB, 64GB, or even a 128GB USB flash drive, you\u2019ll find there\u2019s much more breathing room when dealing with terabytes of space, which is what the T5 offers. Whereas the first generation T1 topped out at 1TB, Samsung doubled the maximum capacity of the T5 to 2TB, a result of upgrading from 32 to 48 stacked layers of V-NAND flash memory cells for a denser configuration.<\/p>\n \n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n (Image credit: Crucial)<\/span><\/p>\n The toughest external hard drive on the market<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Storage: <\/strong>2TB | Connectivity: <\/strong>USB 3.2 Type-C | Sequential read: <\/strong>540MB\/s | Dimensions: <\/strong>69 x 64 x 11mm | Warranty: <\/strong>3 years<\/p>\n There\u2019s a fine line between compelling and compromised when it comes to external USB Type-C SSDs. For your money, our testing proved the Crucial X6 falls on just the wrong side of that divide, but it’s worth a look.<\/p>\n One of the knock-on implications of that architectural difference is that the X8 has a fully 2GB of DRAM cache where the X6 has none at all. The X6 does support features like TRIM passthrough, which isn\u2019t always the case on cheaper USB drives and ensures that performance should be sustained in the longer term. It\u2019s also very compact for a 2TB drive, measuring 69 x 64 x 11mm.<\/p>\n As for raw performance, peak write speeds are a little disappointing at 378MB\/s, as is the 12MB\/s 4K QD1 write throughput. It\u2019s also worth noting that write performance eventually drops to 180MB\/s with sustained throughput. However, in our testing, it never dropped lower than that, even with over 50GB of sustained traffic.<\/p>\n \n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n (Image credit: Seagate)<\/span><\/p>\n A slightly underwhelming SATA-based SSD<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Storage: <\/strong>1TB | Connectivity: <\/strong>USB 3.2 Type-C | Sequential read: <\/strong>540MB\/s | Dimensions: <\/strong>93 x 79 x 9mm | Warranty: <\/strong>3 years<\/p>\n This is not the fastest USB Type-C SSD you can buy for gaming. But then, it\u2019s far from the most expensive. Compared, say, to the WD Black P50 Game Drive, the branding of the Seagate Barracuda Fast SSD 1TB looks like a bit of stretch. Rated at 540MB\/s for reads and 500MB\/s for writes, it\u2019s simply nowhere near as quick.<\/p>\n \n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n (Image credit: MSI)<\/span><\/p>\n Best gaming motherboard<\/strong><\/a>: the best boards around Then again, that fancy WD Drive with its NVMe SSD and USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 20Gbps interface costs roughly 75 percent more for the same 1TB of capacity. Moreover, a great deal of that increased performance isn\u2019t available on most PCs and all consoles due to limited interface support.<\/p>\n A great deal that is. But not all. The Seagate Barracuda Fast SSD 1TB is essentially a SATA SSD behind a USB bridge, which means performance is limited to 6Gbps despite the drive\u2019s 10Gbps USB 3.2 Gen 2 interface. What\u2019s more, in our testing, the Seagate Barracuda Fast SSD 1TB couldn\u2019t even deliver its modest claimed performance, clocking just 306MB\/s for sequential write performance. It also drops down to just 190MB\/s with sustained multi-GB workloads.<\/p>\n Arguably even more problematic is the existence of NVMe-based drives for similar money. The ADATA SE800 Ultra FAST 1TB, for instance, is around twice as quick for peak sequential performance. It\u2019s a pity because the Seagate Barracuda Fast SSD looks slick with its sleek enclosure and LED status light. And Seagate\u2019s file syncing and backup software is handy. But there\u2019s better performance to be had elsewhere.<\/p>\n Performance-wise, your choice is between a drive based on the SATA interface with a bridge to USB, or an NVMe interface, again behind a USB bridge. SATA-based USB Type-C drives top out at around 540MB\/s peak performance, while the NVMe options up the ante to a maximum of 2GB\/s.<\/p>\n At least they do, in theory. To achieve those peak speeds, you\u2019d need a USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 port with 20Gbps capability. That\u2019s something that remains relatively rare on PCs and laptops and isn\u2019t available on any console, including the new Sony PlayStation 5 and Microsoft Xbox Series X. Instead, you\u2019ll find most high-speed USB ports top out at 10Gbps.<\/p>\n Indeed, it\u2019s unlikely that USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 will ever become widely used. Instead, USB 4 will likely take over, increasing bandwidth to 40Gbps. But the good news is that USB 4 is backward compatible with USB 3.2 Gen 2×2. So, it will be possible to extract maximum performance from a USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 20Gbps drives in the future using a USB 4 interface.<\/p>\n Interface specification isn\u2019t the only deciding factor when it comes to performance. Features like controller specification and the type and quality of NAND flash used are also important, though it\u2019s not always easy to identify the finer details. Many manufacturers are reluctant to quote full specifications. For instance, drives with four-level QLC NAND memory will tend to have worse underlying performance than those with triple-layer TLC memory.<\/p>\n Form factor and other frills should also be part of your calculations. Some drives are built to be particularly robust; others include extras like hardware encryption, status LEDs, or even fingerprint scanners for added security. Some of those features fairly tangential to the basic remit of providing high-performance storage space for a games library. But you might also be looking for a drive that can serve more than one role.\u00a0<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" [#item_image]Best external SSD for gaming on PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X<\/p>\n Opting for one of the best external SSDs around is one of the most important investments you can make in this data-dominated world. The ability to transport your files around with you is a necessity for a lot of people, and you might not even realise you need one. \u00a0If you want to have your massive games library to hand without it taking up your entire PC storage, or heaven forbid your HDD stops working all of a sudden, having a fast and decent size external SSD can be a life-saver.<\/p>\n An external SSD is a great cheap storage upgrade, too; it’s also often a more affordable way of expanding your storage on a Sony PlayStation 5<\/a> or Microsoft Xbox Series X<\/a> gaming console. You can even run games directly off the SSD itself in most cases, but we understand the dubiousness around the idea.<\/p>\n When looking for a perfect external SDD, USB Type-C drives<\/a> are the way to go. Over the last few years, the performance of external SSDs has improved exponentially, with some even supporting 2GB\/s of raw bandwidth. That gives you the ability to transfer huge game files in minutes rather than hours. There’s still no competing with an internal latest PCIe 5.0 M.2 drives<\/a>, but perhaps one day soon.<\/p>\n Whatever the size, speed, and price of the external SSD, chances are we got the one for you listed below. Each of these entries we’ve tested thoroughly, putting them through our gauntlet of benchmarks so they could earn their right to store your precious games.<\/p>\n \n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n (Image credit: Adata)<\/span><\/p>\n All round best external SSD<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Storage: <\/strong>1TB | Connectivity: <\/strong>USB 3.2 Type-C | Sequential read: <\/strong>1GB\/s | Dimensions: <\/strong>73 x 44 x 12mm | Warranty: <\/strong>3 years<\/p>\n Looking for something with speedy NVMe tech inside? The ADATA SE800 1TB has that. TLC NAND memory? Affirmative. IP rating for increased robustness, including waterproofing? Check. And all for an attractive price compared to its main competitors.<\/p>\n The ADATA SE800 Ultra FAST 1TB really does have quite a bit going for it.<\/p>\n It starts with that M.2 NVMe drive, bridged to a USB interface. In this case, it\u2019s a 10Gbps USB 3.2 Gen 2 interface rather than a 20Gbps USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 connection. But this drive is still claimed to be good for 1GB\/s data transfers in both directions. Lest you have forgotten, that\u2019s around twice as fast as any SATA-based drives, including internal SSDs connected natively via SATA.<\/p>\n That makes it unique among these SSDs, and, what\u2019s more, given the competitive pricing, you\u2019re getting that IP rating effectively for free. Performance-wise, in testing, the ADATA delivers in the headline 1GB\/s spec for sequential transfers while notching up 4K random throughput that\u2019s comparable to the competition at 21MB\/s for reads and 40MB\/s for writes.<\/p>\n That all goes along with a IP68 dust and water proofing, which seems to do the trick in testing.<\/p>\n \n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n (Image credit: Western Digital)<\/span><\/p>\n The fastest USB Type-C gaming drive in town<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Storage: <\/strong>1TB | Connectivity: <\/strong>USB 3.2 2×2 Type-C | Sequential read: <\/strong>2GB\/s | Dimensions: <\/strong>118 x 62 x 14mm | Warranty: <\/strong>5 years<\/p>\n If you\u2019re looking for fast USB-powered external storage for games, this is currently as good as it gets. At least, it is in theory. The WD Black P50 Game Drive we tested here in 1TB format, and available in 500GB and 2TB flavors, is a rare breed of USB Type-C external SSD. That\u2019s because it supports the very fastest USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 20Gbps interface, which is why it\u2019s capable of read and write speeds up to 2,000MB\/s.<\/p>\n As for real-world performance, in terms of peak sequential, the WD Black P50 easily maxed out the 10Gbps connection of our test PC, registering just over 1GB\/s in both directions. It\u2019s likely capable of the advertised 2GB\/s with the right interface, however.<\/p>\n Sustained performance is a little less impressive, with performance dropping to around 375MB\/s after around 30GB of data transfer. Random access performance is reasonable rather than spectacular, with 22MB\/s reads, and 40MB\/s writes for the 4K QD1 metric.<\/p>\n \n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n (Image credit: Crucial)<\/span><\/p>\n A great-value NVMe-based external SSD<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Storage: <\/strong>2TB | Connectivity: <\/strong>USB 3.2 Type-C | Sequential read: <\/strong>1,050MB\/s | Dimensions: <\/strong>110 x 53 x 12mm | Warranty: <\/strong>3 years<\/p>\n If you want it all, you\u2019re going to have to pay for it. So, sometimes it makes sense to compromise. Enter the Crucial X8 2TB USB Type-C SSD. It\u2019s not the absolute fastest external SSD on Earth. But it is quick. It\u2019s extremely capacious. It\u2019s built into a really solid-feeling metal case. And it\u2019s attractively priced. In fact, right now, it\u2019s available at Best Buy for $239. That\u2019s over $150 less than WD\u2019s Black P50 Game Drive in 2TB trim.<\/p>\n And so it proves in our testing, with the Crucial X8 good for just under 1GB\/s for sequential transfers in both directions. 4K random performance is decent, too, for this class of drive, with reads of 27MB\/s and writes just over 40MB\/s at QD1.<\/p>\n Given the use of QLC NAND, one big question mark is sustained performance. However, while the Crucial X8 does drop down to 380MB\/s with sustained traffic, in our testing, it maintained that level for many tens of GB, which puts it on a par with the more expensive WD drive.<\/p>\n Best gaming laptops<\/a> | Best gaming keyboards<\/a> | Best gaming mouse<\/a> \n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n (Image credit: Samsung)<\/span><\/p>\nBest external SSD<\/h2>\n
1. ADATA SE800 1TB<\/span> <\/span> <\/span> <\/span> <\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n
2. WD Black P50 Game Drive 1TB<\/span> <\/span> <\/span> <\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n
3. Crucial X8 2TB<\/span> <\/span> <\/span> <\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n
\nBest gaming motherboards<\/a> | Best graphics cards<\/a> | Best gaming monitors<\/a><\/p>\n4. Samsung T5 SSD<\/span> <\/span> <\/span> <\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n
5. Crucial X6 2TB<\/span> <\/span> <\/span> <\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n
6. Seagate Barracuda Fast SSD 1TB<\/span> <\/span> <\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n
\nBest AMD motherboard<\/strong><\/a>: your new Ryzen’s new home<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nThe best external SSDs FAQ<\/h2>\n
Should I buy an NMVe or SATA external SSD?<\/h3>\n
What type of NAND flash should I go for?<\/h3>\n
Best external SSD<\/h2>\n
1. ADATA SE800 1TB<\/span> <\/span> <\/span> <\/span> <\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n
2. WD Black P50 Game Drive 1TB<\/span> <\/span> <\/span> <\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n
3. Crucial X8 2TB<\/span> <\/span> <\/span> <\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n
\nBest gaming motherboards<\/a> | Best graphics cards<\/a> | Best gaming monitors<\/a><\/p>\n