When Sony first released the PlayStation 5, the console came with a paltry 1TB of storage. At the time, it was not possible to add more space via the system’s SSD expansion slot. Thankfully, that quickly changed with a software update less than a year ago. Starting in July 2023, Sony will allow PS5 users to add up to 8TB of additional storage to their system. That’s also a good thing considering how large the installs for some games are in this console generation. Even considering the PS5 Pro and its 2TB of internal storage, it won’t take long for avid gamers to fill up the included SSD. With the standard model’s 667 GB of available storage, it will take even longer.
The good news is that a standard PCIe Gen4 x4 M.2 NVMe SSD can solve all of your PS5’s storage problems. If the acronym confusion daunts you, don’t worry. It turns out it’s not that complicated. If you just want to know what the best PS5 SSDs are, they are right at the top.
Read more: Here are the best SSDs of 2024
Best PS5 SSD of 2024
pirate
Capacity: Up to 8TB | Sequential read performance: 7,100MB/s | Sequential write performance: 6,800MB/s | Connection: M.2
The Corsair MP600 Pro LPX tops our list of best PS5 SSDs because it’s a complete package. Deliver fast, superior performance with read speeds of up to 7,100MB/s. It also comes pre-installed with a heatsink and comes with a 5-year warranty.
Best of all, the MP600 is affordable. After launching at $190, the 1TB model sells for just $80, while the 2TB model ranges in price between $110 and $150. The 4TB and 8TB models aren’t such a bargain. The MP600 is not the fastest NVMe on this list. However, when it comes to hassle-free options, it’s hard to beat.
Pros Built-in heatsink Affordable price Cons Not the fastest Gen4 model $152 on Amazon
important
Capacity: Up to 4TB |Read performance: 7,300MB/s |Write performance: 6,800 MB/s |Connectivity: M.2
If you want to save a little money by installing your own heatsink, the Crucial T500 is a great option. Read speeds of up to 7,300MB/s exceed Sony’s technical requirements, and 1TB models often sell for as little as $60. Crucial also offers a version with a heatsink, so when you’re ready to upgrade your PS5, it’s worth adding both the Corsair MP600 and Crucial T500 to your price watch list and buying the cheaper model.
Available with or without ProsFast heatsink $90 on Amazon
Sabrent
Capacity: Up to 8TB | Sequential read performance: 7,000MB/s | Sequential write performance: 6,600MB/s | Connection: M.2
Of all the SSDs on this list, the Sabrent Rocket 4 Plus is the most interesting. It comes with its own heatsink that replaces the metal cover of the storage expansion slot. Sabrent claims this design improves cooling performance. As a result, you can expect them to cost more than models with typical heatsinks, with 1TB models costing around $110 and 2TB models running between $220 and $280.
Pros PS5-specific heatsink design Cons Not as fast as other options Expensive compared to other drives $130 on Amazon
samsung
Capacity: Up to 4TB | Read Performance: 1,050MB/s | Write Performance: 1,000MB/s | Connection: USB 3.0
As explained below, you can’t run PS5 games from an external drive. However, you can use an external drive to store games you don’t currently play, including older PS4 games.
One of my favorite portable drives is the Samsung T7. High-speed file writing is possible at 1,000MB/sec. If you plan to use the drive for home use, you can save money by purchasing the regular model rather than the more durable Shield version. I’ve been using a T7 drive to store photos, music, and games for years and it still doesn’t work for me. The latest model, Samsung T9, boasts read/write speeds of up to 2,000MB/s.
Pros Affordable Reliable and robust version available Cons Can’t play PS5 games from external drive $90 at Adorama
How to test PS5 SSD
We’ve tested most of the SSDs recommended on this list for use with your PS5 or computer. I also bought and used our top picks on my PS5.
How much storage does PS5 need?
PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 5 Pro can accept internal drives with storage capacities from 250 GB to 8 TB. If you already own a PS5, you probably have some idea of how much storage space you’ll need for your game library. If you’re buying an SSD to go with your new PS5 or PS5 Pro, or for someone else, it’s even harder to determine what you need for a high-performance experience.
PS5 games are on average smaller than PS4 games, typically taking up between 30GB and 100GB, with a few notable (and very popular) exceptions. If you’re a fan of the Call of Duty series, installing Black Ops 6 and Warzone 2.0 can consume up to 240 GB. In other words, a fully installed Call of Duty will take up more than a third of the PS5’s internal storage. However, if you’re not a CoD fan, it’s a good idea to have 6-10 games internally saved on a regular PS5 before you run into any issues.
Internet speed should also be considered. If you live in an area with slow broadband, the “download again” theory doesn’t really work. At my previous home, downloading 100 GB took about 8 hours. During that time, it was difficult to watch Twitch at the same time and publish articles about upgrading your PS5 SSD, for example. It makes sense to have games on hand that you might want to play someday.
Aaron Soupris/Engadget
In conclusion, choosing a 250GB PS5 SSD is basically meaningless. Economically, a 250 GB drive is not much cheaper than a 500 GB drive. In fact, this isn’t that much space to run the latest games. A 500GB drive might be a good option, but as prices have fallen over the years, the sweet spot for most people is to opt for a higher-capacity 1TB or 2TB drive that can be purchased for at most $200. I think that’s true. The latter more than doubles your PS5 Pro’s storage without breaking the bank.
Unless you have the cash and want flexibility, you should mostly avoid 4 TB and 8 TB models, as they cost more per gigabyte than 1 TB and 2 TB drives.
The 825GB PS5 only offers 667GB of storage, but this is mainly because storage is reserved for the operating system and cache. Installing a 1TB PS5 SSD will give you 1TB of storage for gaming, within a margin of error. The PS5 Pro offers 1.86TB of storage for games out of the box, but even more storage is available if you remove the pre-installed Astro’s Playroom (gasp).
Neither PS5 Slim nor PS5 Pro have the latest CPU architecture, so all recommendations apply to the PS5 model you have.
Can I play PS5 games on an external SSD?
External hard drives tend to cost less than internal SSDs (and there’s a good chance you already own one). Unfortunately, there are limits to what you can do with them. External SSDs connect to your PS5 via USB and are only suitable for playing PlayStation 4 games or storing PS5 titles. This is great if you have less than the best high-speed internet (it’s faster to move your PS5 games from “cold storage” on an external drive than to re-download them), or if you keep your PS4 library close at hand. This is useful if you want to
There are limitations here, so you don’t need the highest performance model, but you should choose an SSD over an HDD to improve transfer speeds and loading times. Any basic portable drive from a reputable brand will do, but the Crucial X9 Pro and Samsung T7 are the choices we’ve tried and recommend.
Which SSD cards are compatible with PS5?
The official answer to this question is “M.2 Socket 3 (Key M) Gen4 x4 NVME SSD”. But even within that seemingly specific explanation, there are additional factors to consider. The main requirements set by Sony for compatibility come down to speed, cooling, and physical dimensions.
As for speed, Sony says the drive should be able to handle sequential reads at 5,500MB/s. Early tests showed that the PS5 can accept drives as slow as 4,800MB/s, and games that regularly utilize SSDs (like Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart) won’t have any issues. The only thing the PS5 will completely reject is anything that doesn’t match the Gen4 x4 specs.
However, in our opinion, using a drive that is slower than spec is a risk, and if you don’t already have that drive, it’s not worth the risk. Just because we haven’t found any issues yet doesn’t mean there aren’t games that may experience issues in the future. The price difference between these slightly slower Gen4 drives and those that meet Sony’s specs isn’t that big, so it’s better to cover all the price points.
A little more complicated than speed is cooling and size. Most new SSDs will work fine. The PS5 will fit 22mm wide SSDs of virtually any length (30mm, 40mm, 60mm, 80mm, or 110mm to be exact). The majority of drives you’ll find are 22mm wide and 80mm long, so that’s not a problem.
Note that the system will fit a 25mm wide drive, but that width must include a cooling solution. Speaking of which, Sony states that SSDs require “effective heat dissipation through a cooling structure such as a heat sink.” The maximum height supported by Sony’s slot is 11.25mm, but only 2.45mm of that can be “below” the drive.
This previously meant that some of the most popular Gen4 SSDs with heatsinks, such as Corsair’s MP600 Pro LP, wouldn’t fit in the PS5’s storage expansion slot. Since Engadget first published this guide in 2021, most NVMe manufacturers, including Samsung, have launched PlayStation-only models that meet these requirements. That said, if you’re looking to save money, bare drives are often cheaper, and finding a good cooling solution for your PS5 is easy.
The only component on an NVMe SSD that actually requires cooling is the controller. The controller will happily grill a (very small) steak without a heat sink. Most SSDs only have a chip on one side, but even double-sided SSDs have manufacturers realizing that the controller needs to be placed on top to better dissipate heat. The controller is more likely to be at the top.
So go to your PC component store of choice and buy basically anything that meets the recommended dimensions. A good search term is “laptop NVME heatsink”. That’s because it’s designed to fit into a range of gaming laptops that are even more restrictive than the PS5. It’s also usually cheaper than something labeled “PS5 heatsink.”
One recommendation is this $6 copper heatsink that attaches to your PS5 SSD with an adhesive thermal interface material. It works fine, and when I stress tested it on my PC, I didn’t find any metals that couldn’t control the temperature. When looking, make sure that the size of your desired solution is no larger than 25 mm wide or 8 mm high (including thermal interface material) and that it can be easily installed without any problems.
One last thing: If you’re buying PS5 NVMe, there’s no reason to buy the Gen5 model instead of the more affordable Gen4 model. As it stands, Sony’s consoles can’t take advantage of the new standard, and while Gen5 drives are backwards compatible, they’re more expensive than Gen4 drives. Buy the fastest, highest capacity Gen4 model you can afford.
How to install SSD on PS5
If you need guidance on how to install the new NVMe on your PS5 or PS5 Pro, we have a separate guide here that details all the steps. It’s very easy to install, but if you get stuck, our how-to will help. Please note: Before adding storage via your PS5 SSD, make sure you have installed Sony’s latest software.
