External hard drive vs. SSD: what are the advantages and disadvantages of each type of disk?

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External drives are great for adding more storage to a laptop, as swapping or adding internal laptop drives is generally not possible today. But they are also a good option for transporting data between locations, creating backup archives, or any other data storage needs. And just like when purchasing an internal drive, you’ll need to choose between solid-state drives (SSD) and hard drives (HDD) when purchasing external storage.

Even though SSDs are more modern, they are not automatically the right choice in all scenarios. They both have their place, which means having one of each is a good idea. But when storage and RAM prices are high, this isn’t always feasible, so buying the right type of drive is even more important.

The main advantage of external SSDs is their speed. All SSDs use flash storage, which allows random sections to be loaded instantly. For an internal drive, using one of the best SSDs means your system drive boots the operating system and opens applications quickly. On an external drive, the speed increase is mainly applicable when transferring and opening files.

How important this is depends on how you use the device. If you move gigabytes of files between devices daily or regularly load photos and videos from an external drive for editing, this makes a huge difference. If you want to create an archive of files and rarely touch them, the speed increases aren’t as significant.

SSDs are also more suitable for transport. Because they have no moving parts inside, they are not very susceptible to bumps and drops. If you’re clumsy or often carry a drive outside, an SSD will likely last longer. Their simpler internal composition also makes them lighter and smaller, which is something to consider if you keep them in your backpack or bag.

External SSDs don’t make any noise, which those around you will appreciate. The lack of internal motors also means that SSDs require less power to operate than a traditional hard drive, which is a factor if you often use your laptop without a charger and don’t want to purchase a laptop power bank.

Despite all these advantages, the biggest disadvantage of SSDs is their cost per gigabyte. Even when storage prices aren’t inflated, the best external SSDs offer much less space for the money than a hard drive. For example, at the time of writing, Amazon is offering the Samsung T9 1TB Portable SSD for around $232, while the Seagate 2TB Portable HDD costs $130. Of course, there are different standards and configurations for each, but you’ll get less space for your money with an SSD no matter what.

HDDs offer the opposite value of SSDs. The main reason to opt for an external hard drive is the amount of storage you add for the money. Especially with today’s prices, any external SSD around 4TB or larger becomes prohibitive, while external hard drives are available in these massive sizes for more reasonable costs.

Otherwise, HDDs fall short wherever SSDs excel. They are much slower than SSDs; an average external hard drive will hover around 100 MB/s read and write, while an external SSD can easily reach 500 MB/s or more. Hard drive speeds are usable for many tasks, but not what you’re used to with the built-in storage of any modern laptop or desktop. As long as you’re not recording 4K video, loading games, or moving dozens of gigabytes around regularly, you may not have a performance issue.

Otherwise, the mechanical head that writes data to the turntables will make noise, especially when working hard. These internal components also consume more power than an SSD and are sensitive. If you drop a hard drive or leave it in extreme temperatures, it could malfunction.

Consider your use case to decide which drive type is best for you. If you want to keep a drive permanently connected to your desktop for backup purposes, a hard drive makes more sense. As long as you don’t need regular access to these files and don’t care if the backup takes a while, opting for a hard drive means you can store more data for the same price.

Alternatively, if you need to quickly transfer files from one device to another at any time, or plan to use the drive as additional storage for playing games or editing videos, you’ll appreciate the speed of an SSD. An SSD is worth it if you want to treat a drive as an extension of your existing internal storage, rather than a separate device to hold files you don’t use all the time.

External drives are usable with more devices than you think, which may affect your decision. Although the PS5 and Xbox Series You can connect an external drive to your router’s USB port for simple network storage. If formatted with the correct file system, you can even connect external drives to your phone to watch videos or move data.

Being external drives, both types connect via USB, which is generally slower than an internal SATA connection unless both the port and the drive support connections of 10 Gbps or higher. It is important to check the USB standard of any drive before purchasing it, as well as the USB ports on your computer. You won’t get the speed benefits of an external SSD if you plug it into a USB 2.0 port, for example.

If you have a spare internal drive, you can also purchase a USB enclosure like this Sabrent model to turn it into an “external” drive. Just be sure to check that it’s the right physical size (the most common are 2.5 and 3.5 inches) and that it has the same internal connector as your drive.