Deeper Dive: Our Top Tested Picks
Best Cheap M.2 PCI Express 4.0 SSD for Most Buyers
Samsung SSD 990 EVO
- Supports AES 256-bit full-disk hardware encryption
- TCG/Opal V2.0 security compliant
- Heat-spreader label minimizes throttling
- Five-year warranty
- Tested sequential write speed well short of rating
The SSD 990 EVO is an excellent-value mainstream M.2 internal SSD, with whizzy performance and the class-leading warranty, software, and security that you’d expect from Samsung.
Internal or External
Internal
Internal Form Factor
M.2 Type-2280
Interface (Computer Side)
M.2 Type-2280
Capacity (Tested)
2 TB
NAND Type
TLC
Controller Maker
Samsung
Bus Type
PCI Express 4.0
Rated Maximum Sequential Read
5000 MBps
Rated Maximum Sequential Write
4200 MBps
Terabytes Written (TBW) Rating
1200 TBW
Warranty Length
5 years
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Best Cheap M.2 PCI Express 4.0 SSD for Gamers
Addlink AddGame A93
- Moderately priced for an elite PCI Express 4.0 SSD
- Comes in capacities up to 4TB
- Compatible with PlayStation 5
- Includes compact heatsink
- Strong benchmark results and good durability ratings
- Lacks AES 256-bit hardware-based encryption
- DRAM-less architecture could affect sustained large-file transfers
The Addlink AddGame A93 is a high-performance, inexpensive internal M.2 SSD that’s great for gamers (or anyone else) upgrading or building a new PC on a budget.
Internal or External
Internal
Internal Form Factor
M.2 Type-2280
Interface (Computer Side)
M.2 Type-2280
Capacity (Tested)
4 TB
NAND Type
TLC
Controller Maker
Maxio Technology
Bus Type
PCI Express 4.0
Rated Maximum Sequential Read
7400 MBps
Rated Maximum Sequential Write
6500 MBps
Terabytes Written (TBW) Rating
3000 TBW
Warranty Length
5 years
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Best Cheap 2.5-Inch SATA SSD for Most Buyers
Samsung SSD 870 EVO
- Record-setting 4K results for SATA drives
- Strong write-durability rating
- Samsung Magician is the gold standard of SSD management software
- SATA drives still have a lower ceiling than PCI Express for large file transfers
The Samsung SSD 870 EVO offers the peak of Serial ATA SSD performance, and moves so fast in 4K random read and write operations you’d almost be forgiven for confusing it with PCI Express 3.0.
Internal or External
Internal
Internal Form Factor
2.5-Inch
Interface (Computer Side)
SATA
Capacity (Tested)
4 TB
NAND Type
TLC
Controller Maker
Samsung
Bus Type
Serial ATA
Rated Maximum Sequential Read
560 MBps
Rated Maximum Sequential Write
530 MBps
Terabytes Written (TBW) Rating
2400 TBW
Warranty Length
5 years
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Best Cheap M.2 PCI Express 3.0 SSD
Crucial P3
- Available in capacities up to 4TB
- Low cost per gigabyte for all models
- Includes link for Acronis True Image cloning software
- Good benchmark results for a PCI Express 3.0 drive
- Relatively low write-durability (TBW) ratings
- Lacks 256-bit AES hardware-based encryption
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.
Internal or External
Internal
Internal Form Factor
M.2 Type-2280
Interface (Computer Side)
M.2 Type-2280
Capacity (Tested)
2 TB
NAND Type
QLC
Controller Maker
Phison
Bus Type
PCI Express 3.0 x4
Rated Maximum Sequential Read
3500 MBps
Rated Maximum Sequential Write
3000 MBps
Terabytes Written (TBW) Rating
440 TBW
Warranty Length
5 years
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Best-Performing Cheap M.2 PCI Express 3.0 SSD
Samsung SSD 980
- Edges out the Intel SSD 670p in 4K random reads
- Competitive pricing for its performance class
- Field-leading SSD software suite
- Good durability rating for MLC
- Five-year warranty
- Still capped at PCI Express 3.0’s natural ceiling
Samsung’s SSD 980 M.2 drive provides a stellar mid-tier option for new or returning fans of the company’s SSDs, squeaking the most performance possible out of PCI Express 3.0 in 2021.
Internal or External
Internal
Internal Form Factor
M.2 Type-2280
Interface (Computer Side)
M.2 Type-2280
Capacity (Tested)
1 TB
NAND Type
MLC
Controller Maker
Samsung
Bus Type
PCI Express 3.0 x4
Rated Maximum Sequential Read
3500 MBps
Rated Maximum Sequential Write
3000 MBps
Terabytes Written (TBW) Rating
600 TBW
Warranty Length
5 years
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Best Cheap M.2 SSD for the Very Tightest Budgets
Addlink S70
- Great value.
- Fast sequential speeds.
- High durability rating.
- Five-year warranty.
- 4K speeds proved lacking in our tests.
- No software management tools.
If you’re on a budget but still want blisteringly quick sequential read and write speeds from your new SSD, look no further than what the new Addlink S70 has to offer.
Internal or External
Internal
Internal Form Factor
M.2 Type-2280
Interface (Computer Side)
M.2 Type-2280
Capacity (Tested)
1 TB
NAND Type
TLC
Controller Maker
Phison
Bus Type
PCI Express 3.0 x4
Rated Maximum Sequential Read
3400 MBps
Rated Maximum Sequential Write
3000 MBps
Terabytes Written (TBW) Rating
1200 TBW
Warranty Length
5 years
Learn More
Best Cheap High-Capacity 2.5-Inch SATA SSD
Samsung SSD 870 QVO
- Excellent price-to-performance ratio for a SATA-based SSD
- Very fast 4K read and write speeds
- Feature-rich Magician management software
- 8TB version coming soon
- Warranty is only three years
- QLC’s modest durability ratings make it less suited to heavy write duty
If you’re looking for one of the best 2.5-inch SATA SSDs in terms of value and performance for the money, search no further than Samsung’s SSD 870 QVO, a stellar followup to its first QLC-based outing.
Internal or External
Internal
Internal Form Factor
2.5-Inch
Interface (Computer Side)
SATA
Capacity (Tested)
2 TB
NAND Type
QLC
Controller Maker
Samsung
Bus Type
Serial ATA
Rated Maximum Sequential Read
560 MBps
Rated Maximum Sequential Write
530 MBps
Terabytes Written (TBW) Rating
720 TBW
Warranty Length
3 years
Learn More
Best Cheap External SSD
Crucial X9 Pro
- Lightweight and compact
- Good PCMark 10 benchmark score
- IP55-rated for dust and water resistance
- Drop-proof up to 7.5 feet
- 256-bit AES hardware-based encryption
- Five-year warranty
- Included USB-C cable is short
- Lacks USB-C-to-A cable or adapter
The Crucial X9 Pro is a tiny, near-perfect external SSD with a sturdy, ruggedized frame, hardware-based encryption, a long warranty, and up to 4TB of capacity.
Internal or External
External
Interface (Computer Side)
USB-C
Capacity (Tested)
2 TB
NAND Type
TLC
Bus Type
PCI Express 3.0 x2
Rated Maximum Sequential Read
1050 MBps
Rated Maximum Sequential Write
1050 MBps
Warranty Length
5 years
Learn More
Best Cheap Rugged External SSD
ADATA SD810
- Modestly priced for a USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 SSD
- Fast in PCMark 10 Data Drive benchmark
- Meets IP68 water- and dust-resistance specification
- Rated drop-proof to MIL-STD-810G 516.6 standard
- Supports PS5 and Xbox One
- Few computers natively support the Gen 2×2 standard
The compact ADATA SD810 external SSD is rugged, fast at everyday tasks, and inexpensive, making it an obvious choice if you have a computer that supports its USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 interface.
Internal or External
External
Interface (Computer Side)
USB-C
Capacity (Tested)
1 TB
NAND Type
QLC
Bus Type
PCI Express 4.0
Rated Maximum Sequential Read
2000 MBps
Rated Maximum Sequential Write
2000 MBps
Warranty Length
5 years
Learn More
Buying Guide: The Best Cheap SSDs for 2024
Interface changes and manufacturing advances aren’t the only forces making SSDs super bargains these days. Other factors, such as NAND manufacturing efficiencies, have caused prices per gigabyte to fall 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)
Overall, changes in how SSDs are made are likely to make this a permanent condition. Improvements in production processes, among other efficiencies, allow companies to fit more storage in a smaller space, decreasing the cost of materials and passing 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. Disappointment will be rare, 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, though, to ensure you’re getting the fastest, potentially longest-lasting drive for your budget dollar, we’ll detail many of these considerations below to help you make the smartest choice. (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 found in many mainstream laptops. While these drives are still common, SSDs have been changing shape for years.
If you have a recent slim laptop or 2-in-1, it may use 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: Recent generations of desktop PCs and their motherboards usually 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 about M.2.
(Credit: Molly Flores)
For example, just because your laptop or desktop may have 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, and PCIe 5.0 is becoming a thing), 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 to store stuff 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.
(Credit: Zlata Ivleva)
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 kind for those looking for a 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 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 that gets mailed to you 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 software 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 1TB aren’t really “budget”-class drives these days, although you can find a handful of PCI Express 3.0 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 7 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?
So, onward to our top drive picks. We’ve chosen our favorite tested 2.5-inch Serial ATA SSDs and PCI Express M.2 drives alike; 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.
