The PS5 is designed to use compatible solid state drives as expandable storage. While the PS5 doesn’t support an expansion hard drive at launch, even when the feature is enabled, not just any m.2 drive will work. A compatible hard drive must meet several criteria to work. Unfortunately, there aren’t many models on the market right now that qualify.
We’ll discuss which SSDs are compatible with the PS5 below. We’ll also cover what specs PS5 compatible hard drives must meet below so users can keep an eye out for new models.
Which SSDs are compatible with PS5?
Unfortunately, Sony has yet to confirm which expansion hard drives the PS5 supports. It’s anticipated that the list of SSDs that support the console will release shortly after launch; for now, no SSDs work with the PS5. If a user attempts to install one, the console will refuse to boot until it’s removed.
For now, we’ve found two models of SSD on the market that fit the PS5’s required specs:
- Samsung 980 Pro Series V-NAND SSD (Buy on Amazon)
- WD Black SN850 Series SSD
More compatible models are likely coming soon, but for now, those two are the only ones that theoretically fit the bill.
- Expansion SSDs for the PlayStation 5 must meet three criteria:
- Must be an m.2 drive (30, 42, 60, 80, or 110mm)
- Must be PCIe 4.0
- Must have a read speed of greater than 5,500GB/s
Unfortunately, there are PCIe 4.0 SSDs on the market that meet the first two requirements but don’t have a fast enough read speed to be compatible with the PS5. As time goes on, more drives that meet the above spec requirements will be released, but for now, there’s not much to choose from.
PS5 does have the advantage of allowing users to expand storage with an off-the-shelf m.2 SSD. However, the required specs make it a lot more confusing than the Xbox Series X|S’s plug and play approach.
