Top Storage Picks for Your PS5: Enhance Your Gaming Experience

Are you experiencing limited storage on your PlayStation 5 (PS5), which offers just 825GB of internal space? This capacity might be insufficient to accommodate a significant number of games, especially as the average game size continues to increase. To minimize the downtime associated with downloading games on your PS5, it’s crucial to consider backup options for expanding your storage. In this article, we’ll guide you through choosing the best storage options based on our top storage picks for your PS5 to enhance your gaming experience.

Regarding storage expansion for your PS5, here are two primary options:

Option 1: External Drive

This option may initially seem appealing, as many gamers already own an external hard drive. However, it’s important to note a crucial limitation: PS5 games cannot be played directly from an external drive. They must first be transferred to the PS5’s internal storage, which also needs to have sufficient space available.

Despite this, using an external drive is often a better choice than re-downloading games from the internet, a process that can be time-consuming for larger titles. Additionally, you can play PS4 games directly from an external drive.

Here are some top storage picks for your ps5 to enhance your gaming experience:

An external hard drive is a cost-effective solution, typically offering the lowest cost per unit of storage. For those seeking faster performance, an external Solid State Drive (SSD) is a viable alternative, providing superior read and write speeds at a slightly higher cost. Here is our top pick for external SSDs:

Option 2: Internal NVMe SSD

This option may initially appear costly. But it’s worth considering carefully before making a decision, as it offers significant advantages that could be regrettable to overlook. The most notable benefit of an internal NVMe SSD is the ability to play PS5 games directly from it. This eliminates the need for transferring games back and forth between storage devices.

Here are some top storage picks for your ps5 to enhance your gaming experience:

OK, let’s delve into the exciting part. You may have observed that external hard drives or SSDs with a capacity of around 4-5TB are typically priced between $100 and $150. Interestingly, this price range is also where you’ll find many 2TB NVMe SSDs, which represent a sweet spot in terms of value. The key consideration here is whether to opt for the additional 2TB of storage space or to choose the significantly faster read and write speeds (at least 10 times faster) offered by NVMe SSDs, all for a comparable price.

Another important note: We haven’t mentioned PCIe 3.0 NVMe SSDs. This is deliberate, as the PS5 is only compatible with PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSDs. This distinction, though subtle, is crucial for ensuring compatibility and achieving the best performance with your PS5.

Conclusion

In my view, selecting a high-quality NVMe SSD such as the Samsung 980 or 990 Pro 2TB or Western Digital Black 2TB represents the most viable options for the majority of users. These models offer a balance of speed, capacity, and reliability, making them excellent choices for enhancing your PS5 experience.

Personally, I use the Samsung 990 Pro 2TB and have found it to be an outstanding investment. Its performance, durability, and speed justify the cost, providing a seamless gaming experience with quick load times. This has significant advantages over the older but popular Samsung 970 EVO Plus for a very small price gap.