March 29, 2024

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Best SSDs of 2022: Give Your Rig Some Love

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Best SSDs of 2022: Give Your Rig Some Love

This post includes the best internal solid-state drives (SSDs) I’ve reviewed that are relevant and available to purchase.

Migrating your computer from a hard drive to a solid-state drive (SSD) or from a SATA SSD to an NVMe is the most gratifying upgrade.

So, getting the correct drive is naturally an important task, and you will be able to pick one today!

Dong’s note: I last updated this frequently revised post on November 23, 2022.

Best SSDs : Internal SSDs come in different shapes and sizes.
Best SSDs: Solid-state drives generally comes in 2.5-inch (SATA) and M.2 (NVMe) designs

Best SSDs of 2022: The lists

You’ll find standard SATA and NVMe drives here, divided into two lists in reviewed order, with the latest on top.

NVMe and SATA are two different internal storage types — more about them in this post on SSD basics.


Seven best NVMe SSDs of 2022 (and alternatives): A must for a top-performing computer, server, or game console

Newer and much faster NVMe SSDs require a host with an M.2 slot. Most computers released in the past five years have this slot built-in, but you can upgrade to one on almost all desktop computers via a PCIe adapter.

7. Sabrent Rocket 4 series

This is the latest drive on this list. The number is not the rating.

Sabrent Rocket 4 Plus vs Rocket 4 Plus G Underside
Best SSDs: The Rocket 4 series includes two SSD.

Sabrent’s Rocket 4 series includes:

Both are excellent SSDs.

Pros

Excellent NVMe performance, available in up to 8TB (the Plus model) capacity, high endurance

Useful Dashboard software; valuable bundle backup software

Microsoft DirectStorage API support (Rocket 4 Plus-G model)

Cons

Only a 2-year warranty without registration

No hardware encryption or user-accessible feature


6. Samsung 990 PRO

Samsung 990 PRO SSDs front on hand
Best SSDs: The PRO is the latest in Samsung 990’s internal SSDs.

The Samsung 990 is Samsung’s latest in its flagship NVMe SSDs with an incremental improvement to previous models, which remain to be excellent.

Similar alternatives from Samsung:

Pros

Excellent PCIe 4.0 performance

Helpful Samsung Magician software with lots of useful settings and features

Cons

No new or break-through features


5. Silicon Power XPower XS70

Silicon Power XS70 PCIe .0 SSD
Best SSDs: The Silicon Power XPower XS70

The Power XPower XS70 is the best PCI 4.0 NVMe SSD from Silicon Power.

Alternative:

Pros

Fast performance with up to 4TB of capacity

High endurance with competitive pricing

Cons

Bulky, no non-heatsink version

No security or any user-accessible features


4. WD Black SN850

WD Black SN850 PCIe Gen NVMe SSD
Best SSDs: The WD Black SN850

The SN580 is not the latest NVMe SSD from WD, but it remains the best deal.

Similar alternatives from WD:

Pros

Helpful Dashboard software

Available in heatsink version

Cons

Different performance grades between capacities


3. Seagate IronWolf 525

Seagate IronWolf 525 SSD
Best SSDs: The Seagate IronWolf 525

The IronWolf 525 is an excellent PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSD for PCs and NAS servers with the best endurance rating.

Alternative:

Pros

Excellent real-world, including RAID, performance

Three years of data rescue services included

Cons

Slower than PCIe 4.0 rivals


2. Micron Crucial P5 Plus

Micron Crucial P5 Plus PCIe Gen 4.0 NVMe SSD
Best SSDs: The Micron Crucial P5 Plus PCIe Gen 4.0 NVMe SSD

The Crucial P5 Plus is the top PCIe 4.0 from Micron and has remained one of the best among its peers.

Alternative:

Pros

PCIe 4.0 support, backward compatible with PCIe Gen 3

Helpful Storage Executive software

Cons

Comparatively modest endurance


1. SK hynix Gold P31

This is the oldest drive on this list. The number is not the rating.

SK hynix Gold P31
Best SSDs: The SK hynix Gold P31 NVMe SSD

Pros

Fast performance, high endurance


Three best SATA SSDs of 2022 (and alternatives): Kind of slow but still plenty fast and relevant

The SATA standard is much slower than the NVMe above but still significantly faster than any traditional hard drive.

A SATA SSD will fit in the place of any regular hard drive and, therefore, will make an easy and satisfying upgrade in any computer that still runs on a hard drive.

Or you can use one as a secondary backup drive of a pimped-out rig that runs on the top NVMe drive.

3. Samsung SSD 870 EVO: Arguably the best SATA drive to date

This is the latest drive on this list. The number is not the rating.

Samsung 870 EVO SSD on Box
Best SSDs: The Samsung 870 EVO

The 870 EVO is the latest SATA SSD from Samsung and might be the company’s last drive of the standard.

Similar alternatives from Samsung:

Pros

Top-notch SATA performance

Useful software with an excellent feature set


2. WD Red SA500: A versatile SATA NAS SSD that’s also great for PCs

WD Red SA500 Hand
Best SSDs: The WD Red SA500

The WD RED SA500 is unique since it’s available in both M.2 and SATA form factors. It’s an excellent choice for a NAS server or a budget PC.

Pros

Affordable with extended warranty

2.5-inch and M.2 form factors

Cons

Relatively low endurance when compared to competing drive

No NVMe version, 2.5-inch to 3.5-inch mounting bracket not included


1. Micron Crucial BX500: The low-cost replacement SSD for a budget computer

This is the oldest drive on this list. The number is not the rating.

The new Crucial BX500 SSD from Micron.
Best SSDs: The Crucial BX500

Pros

Good performance and endurance

Useful software and features

Cons

No encryption, bare-bone specs

No higher capacities than 960GB


Sequential (copy) performance

This chart shows how fast solid-state drives perform when copying a large amount of data from one place to another. It applies to general data transferring tasks, such as when you want to back up or recover data.

Best SSDs Copy Performances
Best SSDs: Sequential Performance

Random access performance

Random access performance shows how a solid-state drive affects the host computer’s overall performance. It represents tasks like launching an application or editing a large data file.

Best SSDs Random Access Performances
Best SSDs: Random Access Performance

Now that you have found out which drive you should get. Check out how you can migrate a hard drive to an SSD or do an MVMe upgrade on your Windows machine.