IGN: The Best PS5 SSDs 2022 – IGN

You’ll be hard-pressed to find a better SSD for the PS5 than the Corsair MP600 Pro LPX. It faster than Samsung, WD, and all the other major drives and yet it’s one of the most affordable options at $170. With a 7,100 MB/s read speed, which well exceeds Sony’s second drive requirements, excessive load times are a thing of the past with this drive. And with 5,800MB/s write speeds, it’s a perfectly fast drive to make all quick saves in all of your favorite games.

One of the best inclusions on the Corsair MP600 Pro LPX is the integrated heatsink that’s designed to fit into the PS5’s M.2 slot. You won’t have to buy a drive without a heatsink and scour the sites to find one that fits. This drive is designed to fit into your console, and it’s thermally protected. With a 1TB storage capacity, you will be able to load up your system twice as many games and other data than the base console.

2 Crucial P5 Plus

Best Budget PS5 SSD

The Crucial P5 Plus comes with all the chops you’d expect in a Gen 4 SSD while costing a bit less than competitors. This drive totes Crucial’s Micron Advanced 3D NAND technology, which allows it to easily clear all of the speeds Sony has targeted for the PS5’s M.2 slot. It’s faster than the gaming console’s own internal storage. It has a 1TB capacity so that you have plenty of storage space for extra downloads.

Important to know that the P5 Plus doesn’t include a heatsink. It is necessary for heat dissipation to be achieved when the P5 Plus is used with your PS5. But, if you’re familiar with PC builds, it should be easy to remedy this issue by attaching your own heatsink. Make sure it fits within the slot’s height restrictions.

3. Samsung 980 Pro with Heatsink

Best Runner-Up PS5 SSD

Although slightly edged out of our top spot, the Samsung 980 Pro with Heatsink is still a solid contender to be the newest resident of your PS5’s M.2 slot. The SSD is equipped with 3D TLC memory, which is arranged in an unusual V-shape. You’ll find that this increases the drive’s write speeds and helps it perform better overall. The drive has a much higher throughput than the SSD slot that Sony originally designed. All this additional speed could come in handy if you’re recording a lot of gameplay clips and images to share later.

Better yet, the heat sink included on the Samsung 980 Pro is designed to fit into the cramped quarters of the PS5’s M.2 slot. This integrated heatsink is essential, as it helps the SSD control temperatures to maintain high-speed operation, so you’ll get the best performance out of it at all times.

4. Seagate FireCuda530

High Performance PS5 SSD

Seagate FireCuda 530 storage is the ideal partner for your PS5. Seagate and Sony share a history. Many of the PS4 and PS3’s officially licensed external hard drives were manufactured by Seagate. The FireCuda 530 will fit perfectly in your PS5. It also has all the specs you’d want to back it up. This Gen 4 SSD offers up 7,300MB/s read speeds, on par with Sony’s requirements. Also, write speeds of 6,900MB/s are impressive. The 3D TLCNAND technology gives it the durability and endurance to handle any task, including rewriting your entire drive up to 1,200x.

The Seagate FireCuda 530 is a great choice for your system, with its solid read/write speeds. It can be used in a range of capacities, from 500GB up to 4TB. You can download just a few games or a lot of data from the drive. A heatsink is integrated to ensure all data is downloaded safely and steady.

5. Sabrent Rocket 4 Plus 4TB

Best PS5 SSD with High Capacity

Sabrent Rocket 4 Plus 4TB SSDs are great options for gamers with a huge gaming library. The PS5 doesn’t come with much storage. It also only has room for one storage upgrade. So, if you’re looking to have a ton of quickly accessible data, then you might as well go big with a high-capacity drive. And, with the Rocket 4 Plus, you’ll get a great 4TB SSD at a much more attainable price than others on the market.

You’ll find this drive offers speedy load times, and the write times will exceed your expectations too. There’s even a heatsink built-in, so the Rocket 4 Plus will slide easily into the M.2 slot of your PS5. You can be assured that the drive will last for five years or 3,000TBW.

6. WD_Black P50 Gaming Drive

Best External PS5 SATA SSD

Okay, this might not be an SSD that you can slot into the PS5, but maybe you’re just looking for a simple way to store some of your older PS4 games. That’s where an external SSD like the WD_Black P50 Game Drive can step in. This drive is specifically designed for gaming, with 1TB storage, 20GB/s read speeds and an aluminum chassis to keep it cool. You should have enough storage space to store all your favorite video games, and you can access them whenever you want.

This is a great option to store the library of PS4 games you’ve collected, but the WD_Black P50 Game Drive does not run PS5 games – you can use the internal storage of the gaming console for that. You can also use the drive with your PC, Mac or Xbox. This makes it a smart investment.

Heatsink for Model M.2 2280 Model

If you purchase a compatible PS5 SSD, you can save money or have more availability. However, if you don’t heatsink it, you will be in trouble. These are the most effective PS5 SSD heatsinks.

Best PS5 SSDs for the UK

Heatsink for 2280 Model M.2 UK

What are the key features of a PS5 SSD?

You need to be sure you are not just jumping on Amazon and selecting the cheapest SSD available to expand your PS5’s storage. This drive must meet certain measurements and specifications to work with your console. And, Sony does not guarantee the compatibility of any SSD’s. Sony is exempted from any responsibility for any issues you may have with the drives. Follow their advice.

Sony recommends installing an NVMe PCIe 4.0 SSD that has a sequential read speed of at least 5500MB/s. This will ensure your games load quickly and run at their best. Having fast write speeds also helps to minimize the time you’re waiting for games and other content to download.

You should also consider how much storage space your system will need. Only one M.2 slot is available on the PS5, which allows you to add a SSD with a capacity of 250GB-4TB. If you’re just looking to add a few games to the internal storage, then save money and grab an SSD with less space. But, if you’re looking to load your entire gaming library and then some on to it, you’ll be better off with the maximum storage available. We’ve found that 1TB seems to be the sweet spot when it comes to your internal storage needs.

It’s also essential you purchase an SSD that will fit into the narrow and shallow M.2 SSD slot. The dimensions of the PS5 are 110x25x11.25mm or 4.33×0.984×0.442 inches. However, most SSDs should fit. However, adding a heatsink can make it a little more difficult. The heatsink is required for the PS5, since these fast SSDs are hot. It ensures that all your data remains safe and that your drive runs at its best.

Luckily, most of the drives we’ve selected offer an integrated heatsink that fits into the expansion slot, but if not, it’s important to make note of the dimensions of the whole package to ensure it’s compatible.

Also, make sure to check out our guide on installing a PS5 SSD. This guide will show you how to install an SSD and check that it is compatible with your PS5. Of course, all of our picks are perfect options to increase your console’s storage space.

Kevin Lee is IGN’s SEO Updates Editor. Follow him on Twitter @baggingspam.