The best SSD should ideally balance speed with capacity and price, although you might want to prioritize one category over the others depending on what you need it for. In our testing for the best portable SSD, we've examinedd read/write speeds, connectivity, and the overall design, including the build quality, to find our top-rated solid-state drives for on-the-go storage.
When my team and I review portable SSDs, we test for speed and much more. The Samsung T9 is the best portable SSD for most people – there's up to 2TB storage capacity here and speedy file transfer speeds. The device we previously recommended, the Samsung T7 Touch, now comes out on top as the best SSD for professionals, but it's a close runner-up and even has a fingerprint scanner for extra security. That's a big bonus in my book.
For more storage solutions, we've also tested the best external hard drives, best external hard drives for Mac, the best USB flash drives, so we know what to look for when assessing the best portable solid-state drives on the market.
Best portable SSD in 2025
Why you can trust TechRadar We spend hours testing every product or service we review, so you can be sure you’re buying the best. Find out more about how we test.
Below you'll find full write-ups for each of the best portable ssd candidates on our list. We've tested each one extensively, so you can be sure that our recommendations can be trusted.
Best portable SSD overall
The T9 is the first new Samsung SSD since the T7 Shield in 2022, and its release marks three years since the original T7 launched. It's a resilient portable SSD that combines great speeds with a sturdy build – borrowing elements from the aforementioned T7 Shield – and is a great proposition for most people looking for an external SSD that's highly portable and quick.
With the latest Gen 2x2 specs, this SSD is capable of maximum read and write speeds of 2,000MB/s – and it also takes advantage of a caching system to maintain writing performance. In practice, our testing registered reads of between 1,700MB/s and 2,000 MB/s as well as writes between 1,300MB/s and 1,900MB/s depending on the workload. It's considerably higher than the previous generation of SSDs and it's a great performer that reaches the limits of the USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 standard.
Samsung's latest SSD is a welcome addition to an already crowded market – with the likes of Crucial, Corsair, SanDisk and Kingston all providing viable alternatives. But the successor to the classic T7 is a real winner for most uses, with a great design, build quality as well as high performance (especially in larger capacities). It's especially worth investing in if you can find a great deal.
Read our full Samsung T9 review.
Best portable SSD on a budget
If you're looking for an affordable SSD for under $100, the 1TB SL500 is a fantastic option that also benefits from an excetional design. It's part of a new generation of slimline portable SSDs designed to appeal to videographers, photographers and others who work with visuals very often and need to travel around quite often. This happens to be one of the slimmest and most lightweight options out there – and it's also exceptional value for money.
Its lightweight design makes it ideal for hooking it up to cameras that need extra storage, like the Blackmagic 6K, and it can even be linked with an iPhone 15 Pro and Max and used to store Apple Pro Res recording at up to 4K 60FPS. This completely elevates iPhone filming. We recorded read speeds of 1,034MB/s and writes of 942MB/s in testing, so it's plenty quick, although you may not hit the up-to 2,000MB/s that you get theoretically get with USB 3.2 Gen 2x2.
We wrote in our review that this is a sleek and all-around portable SSD that makes it an easy choice. Its minimalist size and weight is extremely appealing, making it an ideal partner for imaging professionals or anyone who works with large media files. That's because it benefits from being very zippy – especially under heavy workloads.
Read our full Lexar SL5000 review
Best portable SSD for professionals
Professionals will love the Samsung T7 Touch – it's a fantastic all-rounder with plenty of features, including great security addons, and blazing fast read and write speeds of up to 1,050MB/s and 1,000MB/s. All of this comes in a palm-sized package. We previously highlighted the T7 Touch as the best portable SSD overall. While this has been eclipsed by the new T9, the T7 Touch still has plenty to offer professionals, as we wrote in our Samsung T7 Touch review.
The built-in security features are, by far, the biggest draw for most professionals. This SSD uses AES 256-bit encryption and gives you the option to use fingerprint sign-in, which you can set up through the device’s own management software. There are very few SSDs out there that can offer the same levels of security, speed and portability in a single package. By adding biometrics to password protection, it really raises the bar.
hile it lacks IP68 and the security certifications of more expensive rivals, the price point makes it an attractive choice. The Samsung T7 SSD could do with a rugged case, but it remains our pick for best portable SSD on the market, and well worth your consideration.
Read our full Samsung T7 Touch SSD review.
Best lightweight portable SSD
For a slim, lightweight drive, the SanDisk Extreme Portable one of the best portable SSDs – the clue is in the name. Weighing just 50g and at 8.85mm thick, it's one of the most compact and lightweight SSDs you can buy right now. While the likes of the Samsung T5 is thinner, it's a little older and the latest models have gotten progressively weightier.
This SSD is primarily aimed at those likely to use the device outdoors, with a rubberized chassis and an orange plastic loop at the top-right that can be used to securely attach it to your items. The textured top and bottom surfaces also mean it can be handled much easier – and could even be confused with a Bluetooth speaker.
While it's a winner in many ways, you can get faster devices in today's market thanks to the introduction of USB 3.2 Gen 2x2. This SSD maxes out with reads and write speeds of approximately 550MB/s, which is less than you'd expect from the fastest SSDs.
Even though it has a maximum theoretical data transfer rate of 10Gbps, in reality, it never reaches that due to the inherent limitations of the physical port. Overall, however, it's a brilliantly lightweight and portable SSD that's durable and reliable, especially if you need to use it away from the desk.
Read our full SanDisk Extreme Portable SSD review.
Best portable SSD for speed
For sheer speed, the Adata SE920 is unrivalled. In our Adata SE920 SSD review, we registered read speeds of between 3,100MB/s and 3,200MB/s and writes of up to 3,330MB/s – whch is absolutely staggering at the sight of the competition.
We described these speeds as exceptional, and it utterly delivers on the promise of fast speeds, closely matching advertised rates. This is largely thanks to the use of the USB4 standard, which offers theoretical maximum speeds of 40Gbps. We must also note that its price is pretty reasonable for the punch that you get.
The device impresses with its full metal exterior, which underlines its premium build, but the unique expanding mechanism for activating the internal cooling fan highlights the lack of thought that went into some elements. It does have a slightly cheaper feel, which is a shame and detracts from otherwise great build quality. But we'd still advise taking care when handling this device.
We'd recommend this device if you're looking for the best possible speeds at a reasonable price, but there are still a few drawbacks to consider. It's perfect, however, if you need high-performance data transfers in a sleek package for use primarily on the go.
Read our full Adata SE920 SSD review.
Best portable SSD for students
With its thin, lightweight design, four different colors, good speeds, and a reasonable price, the WD My Passport SSD is our top pick for students. The device comes in a range of storage capacities up to 4TB, which makes it perfect for storing lots of documents, reports, essays, and media files.
The compact size of this portable SSD is what first caught our eye during our review. At 46g, measuring 10 x 5.5 x 0.9cm, this is an impressively slim-line footprint. We were just as impressed with its sleek, ridged metal design, which improves grip while reducing the chance of causing damage to anything else thanks to its curvy, pebblesque shape.
Inside, you’ll find a SN550E, a PCIe Gen3 x4 NVMe drive that pairs an ASMedia ASM2362 bridge with a SanDisk 20-82-10023 controller and SanDisk BiCS 4 96L 3D TLC flash memory. During our benchmarking with CrystalDiskMark, the drive reached 1046MBps (read) and 1013MBps (write). Other benchmarks delivered the same range of results but transferring a single 10GB file proved to be slower than expected.
Overall, expect a fast, compact portable SSD with an excellent five-year warranty that will last throughout your course. Expect to pay for it for the higher-capacity 4TB model - it’s the drive’s biggest black mark, especially as smaller, nimble rivals are taking the lead when it comes to value for money. Otherwise, there's something for everyone here.
Read our full WD My Passport portable SSD review
Visit our Western Digital coupon page for the latest deals and discounts.
Best portable SSD for freelancers
The Seagate OneTouch is a flawless portable SSD, offering exactly what you’d expect - and then a bit more.
Built from plastic, metal, and cloth, it’s an elegant design in itself. But at a mere 70 x 50 x 10mm and weighing 43g, this drive is ridiculously small and portable, too. The kit includes both USB Type-C and Type-A cables, although we wished they were longer than they were. The drive is available in 500GB, 1TB, and 2TB capacities, with a black, blue or silver finish.
Performance is excellent. Benchmarking on CrystalDiskMark gave us speeds of 1047MBps (read) and 1027MBps (write). This means we actually managed to beat the rated speed by just over one percent. In other words, this is a speedy drive with plenty to give. In real life, rather than the simulated tests, we transferred a 10GB file in 18 seconds which is equivalent to a transfer rate of more than 500MBps.
The drive uses a USB 3.2 Gen 2 connector, making it one of the fastest external solid state drives in its category, and matching the likes of the Samsung T7 or the Crucial X8. It also comes bundled with a raft of premium software, including a year’s subscription to Create by photo management firm MyLio, and four months of Adobe Creative Cloud.
Read our full Seagate OneTouch review
Best portable SSD for gamers
Much like the excellent Lexar Professional SL600, the gaming-oriented SL660 iteration offers lightning-fast speeds and a host of excellent features, including 256-bit AES encryption software as well as a fantastic design and build quality. The detachable stand is also a great touch and adds to the whole gaming aesthetic, meaning it won't look out of place next to a console or a PC.
The two devices (the SL600 and SL660 Blaze) are practically identical, apart from the lighting effect in the latter that's a nod toward the gaming market – the use case it's largely designed for. Its sleek, aluminum exterior lends itself to this gaming aesthetic, with or without the RGB light effects, and it's very sturdy. In terms of its performance, it also delivers where it matters. In our sister site Tom Hardware's review, they registered extremely fast loading times — only 0.04 seconds slower than the Samsung X5 1TB SSD, and much faster than a handful of alternatives.
There aren't any particular features or aspects that set an SSD specifically suitable for gaming, where it would otherwise not be useful for other needs. While it's comparable in performance with plenty of alternatives on the market, what you're really investing in is the look and feel. But the Lexar SL660 Blaze does deliver where it matters, with excellent scene loading times in testing, and great transfer speeds. If you're working to a budget, however, you might get better value for money elsewhere.
Read our full Lexar Professional SL600 review.
Best compact portable SSD
Small, light, solidly built, the Kingston XS2000 USB 3.2 Gen 2 x 2 external SSD is an impressive portable SSD. And we mean portable. This one’s a pocket-sized drive that can be carried anywhere. measuring 13 x 31 x 67mm without the sleeve, weighing just 29g. Popping the sleeve on might add a little extra, but it adds protection against shocks, water, and dust.
Testing the drive, we found speeds were good. Our benchmarking with CrystalDiskMark: showed read speeds of 1062MBps and write speeds of 999MBps. In fact, the drive is touted as the world's fastest native USB SSD. The key word here is ‘native’, since it uses the USB 3.2 Gen 2 x 2 interface.
Performance, then, is hamstrung in part by Kingston’s baffling decision to release it right before the launch of the speedier USB 4.0. During our review, we noted “it really, really needs a compatible system to hit its headline speed of 2GBps, allowing it to rival Thunderbolt 3.” A misstep for an otherwise excellent portable SSD with 500GB, 1TB, 2TB, and 4TB models available.
Read our full Kingston XS2000 external SSD review
Best portable SSD: Frequently asked questions
What is the best portable SSD for laptops?
All of the portable drives we’ve tested pair well with laptops – especially when you’re looking for portability. The most important distinction between laptops is its connectivity, with USB-A and USB-C the main options, but even within those the speeds you can unlock depend on the specific standard. For the best speed, you're looking for Thunderbolt 4 support. The SSD itself also has a standard that you need to keep an eye on, with USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 and USB4 (which is less common) the two to look out for for the best speeds. But, ultimately, all SSDs are compatible with laptops.
Are portable SSDs good for gaming?
Yes, many of the top portable drives are great for gaming. For example, the Adata SE770G connects to games consoles if you need extra storage while heavily leaning into the gamer aesthetic with its mesmerizing RGB design. We have also highlighted the Lexar SL660 Blaze in our guide thanks to its gaming-friendly design and stand. However, make sure your SSD has a fast connection speed – preferably Type-C or Thunderbolt 4. You also want to choose a device with plenty of storage capacity – 1TB and above is a good benchmark, especially when you have a large library packed with newer games, as they take up a lot of space
What is NAND flash?
Anthony Spence, from SSD and memory specialist Silicon Power , answers this question.
"NAND Flash is a type of non-volatile storage technology. Non-volatile simply means that NAND, unlike DRAM (or system memory), does not require power to retain data. The ability to retain data after turning off the power makes NAND a great option for external on-the-go storage devices.
In contrast to hard disk drives (HDD), NAND Flash isn’t a magnetic technology, instead it makes use of electric circuits and a number of memory cells to store data.
NAND holds several advantages over HDD, for instance it has no moving parts, thus in theory data won’t be affected by accidental drops or falls. NAND Flash devices tend to be smaller and lighter in comparison to HDD, but most importantly, the performance of NAND Flash devices is considerably larger than the one from HDD ones.
The major drawback from NAND comes from the fact that they tend to be expensive on a dollar per gigabyte basis, especially when compared to more traditional hard drives. The two most common ways to offset this problem are by either adding bits per cell or by moving away from 2D planar technology to 3D NAND technology and beyond."
What is 3D NAND flash?
3D NAND also known as V-NAND technology enables NAND cells to be layered up. Layering NAND contributes to overcoming planar NAND capacity limitations. As NAND cells are stacked vertically instead of horizontally higher density can be achieved without sacrificing data integrity.
3D NAND not only offers higher memory density when compared to 2D NAND, but also is able to achieve lower power consumption, better endurance, higher read and write speeds and an overall lower cost per gigabyte.
Can an internal SSD be used as a portable SSD drive?
The answer is - unsurprisingly - yes. See an internal SSD is just a bunch of components inside a casing (either plastic or metal), an enclosure that actually protects the electronics inside. Protecting it with an outer case is therefore superfluous unless you want to physically hide the drive for whatever reason or want to make it look more aesthetic.
Just remember that they are no match for the best secure drives or the best rugged drives because they lack extra protection that will either prevent third parties from accessing the actual NAND chips or improve their imperviousness to harsh environments.
SATA SSD drives are the cheapest solid state drives so if you want the cheapest external SSD, you just need to take an internal SATA SSD and connect it to an external connector like the Sabrent EC-SSHD et voila! Even accounting for the cost of the latter (around $12), at the time of writing, you're looking at a saving of almost 20%. Every little helps.
The gap widens significantly the bigger the drive; An 8TB SSD costs about $430 (Samsung 870 QVO at Amazon) while a comparable portable model costs about $200 extra (VectoTech Rapid).
Note that you cannot do it with a PCIe NVMe internal SSD as its components are actually exposed. You will need to put the module into an external enclosure before being able to use it. They are not that expensive (about twice the price of the EC-SSHD) and have the benefit of using USB 3.2 Gen 2, which delivers speeds of up to 10Gbps, enough for the PCIe SSD which are usually faster than SATA SSDs.
Is a portable HDD slower than an external SSD?
Yes. I cannot think of any scenario where it wouldn't be the case and just to confirm, we're talking of portable hard drives (the ones that can be carried around, smaller cousins of desktop or external hard drives). Hard drives are slower because they are mechanical; the data is stored on physical platters and accessed via a head located on an arm; similar to a turntable reading vinyls.
Your average external HDD such as the Seagate Backup Plus has a throughput of 140MBps, that is, it can transfer data up to that speed. The slowest external SSDs we've tested would hit about 450MBps (and that's the SL200), which is about 3X the speed.
So a folder that take about three minutes to be transferred on a portable hard drive will take less than one minute on all but the slowest portable SSD.
How to choose the best portable SSD for you
When choosing which portable SSD is best, the main focus is usually on storage capacity, transfer speeds, size and weight, and durability,
The best portable SSDs offer a range of capacities - they can be anywhere from 50GB (ideal for more casual use or lots of smaller files like Word docs) to 2TB, which is a better choice when throwing images, videos, and other media into the mix. If you’re working to a specific budget, remember the more storage space, the higher the price.
Some SSDs can reach seriously fast speeds, even when transferring or sharing big files. But not all of them have the ability - and a frustratingly slow drive has a big impact on workflows. We’ve benchmarked all the best portable SSD options during our reviews, letting you compare simulated and real-life transfer speeds to the manufacturer's claims. A Thunderbolt 3 PCIe interface offers the fastest connectivity over USB, but the connection isn’t supported by every PC and laptop, so check before committing especially if you’ll be hooking it up to lots of different devices.
Portable drives come in all shapes and sizes - all of them compact. Slimline and lightweight designs are key for anyone tired of lugging around standard external drives. Some are so small, you can slip them in your pocket like a mobile phone. If you’re worried about damaging your drive while on the move, many offer shock-resistance (and unlike HDDs, there are no moving parts to break). But for truly rugged portable SSDs, make sure it’s IP68-rated. This means it’s dust- and water-proof.
How we test the best portable SSDs
We've tested a massive range of HDDs and solid-state drives, including the fastest SSDs and the fastest external SSDs.
When testing, reviewing, and rating the best portable SSD devices, we benchmark performance in a simulated environment and record real-world results when actually transferring files between devices and drives. This lets you see how well the manufacturer claims match real-world performance. As part of this benchmarking, we also looked at connectivity and interface, with options ranging from USB Type-C to the speedy Thunderbolt 3.
Storage capacity is a key area when comparing the best portable SSD. Ideally, we want to see a broad range for a broad user-base. Several models are now capable of storing up to 2TB of data, but not everyone requires this much space, and opting for a model with less capacity may be one way to save some money.
Lastly, we've considered design. The best portable SSDs need a size and weight that are bag- or pocket-friendly. At minimum, they should exhibit shock-resistance, but those marketed as rugged or robust devices should also be dust- and water-proof.
Today's best SSD deals
Get in touch
- Want to find out about commercial or marketing opportunities? Click here
- Out of date info, errors, complaints or broken links? Give us a nudge
- Got a suggestion for a product or service provider? Message us directly
