SATA SSD Performance & Benchmark Tests
Here you can find detailed speed performance tests of SATA 6 Gb/s SSDs. The maximum speed here, limited by the SATA III interface, is only 600 MB/s* (theoretically). In practice, a speed of up to approx. 550 MB/s is possible for reading and writing. SATA SSDs are slower compared to PCIe NVMe SSDs, which makes them cheaper. Therefore, they are usually used as a backup or data grave when the speed is not that important.
We have tested 76 S-ATA SSDs:
| Product | Image | Capacity | Read | Write | Score | Price | $/GB | Test | Shop |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crucial BX500 240GB |  |
240 GB | 550 MB/s | 466 MB/s | 616 | 23 $ | 0,10 $ |  |
|
| Crucial BX500 480GB | |
480 GB | 550 MB/s | 476 MB/s | 650 | 35 $ | 0,07 $ | |
|
| Crucial BX500 1TB | |
1024 GB | 551 MB/s | 476 MB/s | 695 | 59 $ | 0,06 $ | |
|
| Crucial BX500 2TB | |
2048 GB | 551 MB/s | 474 MB/s | 605 | 115 $ | 0,06 $ | |
|
| Crucial MX500 250GB |  |
250 GB | 551 MB/s | 464 MB/s | 795 | 35 $ | 0,14 $ | |
|
| Crucial MX500 500GB | |
500 GB | 550 MB/s | 473 MB/s | 800 | 40 $ | 0,08 $ | |
|
| Crucial MX500 1TB | |
1024 GB | 551 MB/s | 475 MB/s | 784 | 63 $ | 0,06 $ | |
|
| Crucial MX500 2TB | |
2048 GB | 551 MB/s | 481 MB/s | 799 | 120 $ | 0,06 $ | |
|
| Emtec X150 Power Plus 240GB |  |
240 GB | 549 MB/s | 468 MB/s | 581 | 20 $ | 0,08 $ | |
|
| Emtec X150 Power Plus 480GB |  |
480 GB | 530 MB/s | 440 MB/s | 673 | 30 $ | 0,06 $ | |
|
| Emtec X150 Power Plus 960GB |  |
960 GB | 540 MB/s | 460 MB/s | 644 | 59 $ | 0,06 $ | |
|
| Emtec X150 Power Plus 2TB |  |
2048 GB | 541 MB/s | 471 MB/s | 695 | 92 $ | 0,04 $ | |
|
| Fikwot FS810 256GB |  |
256 GB | 550 MB/s | 470 MB/s | 686 | 21 $ | 0,08 $ | |
|
| Fikwot FS810 512GB | |
512 GB | 546 MB/s | 471 MB/s | 677 | 28 $ | 0,05 $ | |
|
| Fikwot FS810 1TB | |
1024 GB | 527 MB/s | 396 MB/s | 725 | 44 $ | 0,04 $ | |
|
| Integral V Series Plus 512GB |  |
512 GB | 536 MB/s | 442 MB/s | 720 | 28 $ | 0,05 $ | |
|
| Intenso High Performance 240GB |  |
240 GB | 552 MB/s | 472 MB/s | 646 | 22 $ | 0,09 $ | |
|
| Intenso High Performance 480GB | |
480 GB | 550 MB/s | 472 MB/s | 641 | 33 $ | 0,07 $ | |
|
| Intenso High Performance 960GB | |
960 GB | 550 MB/s | 462 MB/s | 647 | 65 $ | 0,07 $ | |
|
| Intenso Top Performance 256GB |  |
256 GB | 531 MB/s | 465 MB/s | 656 | 73 $ | 0,29 $ | |
|
| Intenso Top Performance 512GB | |
512 GB | 546 MB/s | 441 MB/s | 620 | 33 $ | 0,06 $ | |
|
| Intenso Top Performance 1TB | |
1024 GB | 548 MB/s | 462 MB/s | 632 | 49 $ | 0,05 $ | |
|
| Intenso Top Performance 2TB |  |
2048 GB | 547 MB/s | 462 MB/s | 623 | 88 $ | 0,04 $ | |
|
| Kingston A400 240GB |  |
240 GB | 550 MB/s | 462 MB/s | 688 | 27 $ | 0,11 $ | |
|
| Kingston A400 480GB | |
480 GB | 550 MB/s | 473 MB/s | 688 | 33 $ | 0,07 $ | |
|
| Kingston A400 960GB | |
960 GB | 468 MB/s | 476 MB/s | 715 | 53 $ | 0,06 $ | |
|
| KIOXIA EXCERIA 480GB |  |
480 GB | 499 MB/s | 469 MB/s | 724 | 65 $ | 0,14 $ | |
|
| KIOXIA EXCERIA 960GB | |
960 GB | 470 MB/s | 480 MB/s | 735 | 140 $ | 0,15 $ | |
|
| LC-Power Phoenix 960GB |  |
960 GB | 550 MB/s | 458 MB/s | 662 | 58 $ | 0,06 $ | |
|
| Lexar NQ100 480GB |  |
480 GB | 536 MB/s | 466 MB/s | 636 | 31 $ | 0,06 $ | |
|
| Lexar NQ100 960GB | |
960 GB | 527 MB/s | 424 MB/s | 668 | 43 $ | 0,04 $ | |
|
| Lexar NS100 512GB |  |
512 GB | 530 MB/s | 443 MB/s | 670 | 28 $ | 0,05 $ | |
|
| Lexar NS100 1TB | |
1024 GB | 527 MB/s | 395 MB/s | 702 | 50 $ | 0,05 $ | |
|
| Magix Alpha EVO 240GB |  |
240 GB | 542 MB/s | 441 MB/s | 641 | 20 $ | 0,08 $ | |
|
| Magix Alpha EVO 960GB | |
960 GB | 466 MB/s | 477 MB/s | 745 | 50 $ | 0,05 $ | |
|
| Patriot Burst Elite 240GB |  |
240 GB | 543 MB/s | 454 MB/s | 640 | 19 $ | 0,08 $ | |
|
| Patriot Burst Elite 480GB | |
480 GB | 526 MB/s | 474 MB/s | 714 | 27 $ | 0,06 $ | |
|
| Patriot Burst Elite 960GB | |
960 GB | 518 MB/s | 422 MB/s | 643 | 42 $ | 0,04 $ | |
|
| Patriot Burst Elite 1.88TB | |
1920 GB | 513 MB/s | 385 MB/s | 679 | 83 $ | 0,04 $ | |
|
| Patriot P210 256GB |  |
256 GB | 538 MB/s | 420 MB/s | 607 | 19 $ | 0,07 $ | |
|
| Patriot P210 512GB | |
512 GB | 490 MB/s | 468 MB/s | 754 | 28 $ | 0,05 $ | |
|
| Patriot P210 1TB | |
1024 GB | 520 MB/s | 431 MB/s | 595 | 42 $ | 0,04 $ | |
|
| Patriot P210 2TB | |
2048 GB | 516 MB/s | 385 MB/s | 691 | 83 $ | 0,04 $ | |
|
| PNY CS900 250GB |  |
250 GB | 550 MB/s | 467 MB/s | 716 | 25 $ | 0,10 $ | |
|
| PNY CS900 480GB | |
480 GB | 473 MB/s | 315 MB/s | 698 | 55 $ | 0,11 $ | |
|
| PNY CS900 960GB | |
960 GB | 481 MB/s | 466 MB/s | 718 | 79 $ | 0,08 $ | |
|
| PNY CS900 1TB | |
1024 GB | 477 MB/s | 480 MB/s | 736 | 45 $ | 0,04 $ | |
|
| Samsung 860 EVO 500GB |  |
500 GB | 550 MB/s | 486 MB/s | 805 | 97 $ | 0,19 $ | |
|
| Samsung 860 EVO 2TB |  |
2048 GB | 550 MB/s | 486 MB/s | 802 | 240 $ | 0,12 $ | |
|
| Samsung 870 EVO 250GB |  |
250 GB | 549 MB/s | 483 MB/s | 810 | 44 $ | 0,18 $ | |
|
| Samsung 870 EVO 1TB | |
1024 GB | 550 MB/s | 485 MB/s | 811 | 95 $ | 0,09 $ | |
|
| Samsung 870 EVO 2TB | |
2048 GB | 549 MB/s | 484 MB/s | 802 | 166 $ | 0,08 $ | |
|
| Samsung 870 QVO 1TB |  |
1024 GB | 549 MB/s | 486 MB/s | 808 | 100 $ | 0,10 $ | |
|
| Samsung 870 QVO 2TB |  |
2048 GB | 549 MB/s | 481 MB/s | 792 | 144 $ | 0,07 $ | |
|
| SanDisk SSD Plus 240GB |  |
240 GB | 530 MB/s | 421 MB/s | 397 | 30 $ | 0,13 $ | |
|
| SanDisk SSD Plus 480GB |  |
480 GB | 547 MB/s | 471 MB/s | 550 | 37 $ | 0,08 $ | |
|
| SanDisk SSD Plus 1TB | |
1024 GB | 526 MB/s | 487 MB/s | 789 | 64 $ | 0,06 $ | |
|
| SanDisk Ultra 3D 500GB |  |
500 GB | 356 MB/s | 489 MB/s | 798 | 53 $ | 0,11 $ | |
|
| SanDisk Ultra 3D 1TB | |
1024 GB | 525 MB/s | 483 MB/s | 801 | 83 $ | 0,08 $ | |
|
| SanDisk Ultra 3D 2TB | |
2048 GB | 381 MB/s | 484 MB/s | 790 | 119 $ | 0,06 $ | |
|
| Silicon Power Ace A55 256GB |  |
256 GB | 551 MB/s | 407 MB/s | 525 | 50 $ | 0,20 $ | |
|
| Silicon Power Ace A55 512GB |  |
512 GB | 550 MB/s | 465 MB/s | 601 | 35 $ | 0,07 $ | |
|
| Silicon Power Ace A55 1TB |  |
1024 GB | 505 MB/s | 470 MB/s | 755 | 46 $ | 0,04 $ | |
|
| Silicon Power Ace A55 2TB |  |
2048 GB | 544 MB/s | 454 MB/s | 633 | 79 $ | 0,04 $ | |
|
| TeamGroup T-Force Vulcan Z 1TB |  |
1024 GB | 503 MB/s | 453 MB/s | 727 | 46 $ | 0,04 $ | |
|
| Transcend SSD220Q 500GB |  |
500 GB | 550 MB/s | 460 MB/s | 606 | 73 $ | 0,15 $ | |
|
| Transcend SSD220Q 1TB | |
1024 GB | 524 MB/s | 473 MB/s | 672 | 75 $ | 0,07 $ | |
|
| Verbatim Vi550 S3 256GB |  |
256 GB | 550 MB/s | 466 MB/s | 536 | 25 $ | 0,10 $ | |
|
| Verbatim Vi550 S3 512GB | |
512 GB | 535 MB/s | 466 MB/s | 636 | 32 $ | 0,06 $ | |
|
| Verbatim Vi550 S3 1TB | |
1024 GB | 522 MB/s | 421 MB/s | 654 | 88 $ | 0,09 $ | |
|
| Verbatim Vi550 S3 2TB | |
2048 GB | 550 MB/s | 462 MB/s | 658 | 120 $ | 0,06 $ | |
|
| Western Digital WD Blue 3D 1TB |  |
1024 GB | 474 MB/s | 483 MB/s | 805 | 76 $ | 0,07 $ | |
|
| Western Digital WD Green 120GB |  |
120 GB | 532 MB/s | 314 MB/s | 198 | 59 $ | 0,49 $ | |
|
| Western Digital WD Green 480GB | |
480 GB | 547 MB/s | 474 MB/s | 549 | 45 $ | 0,09 $ | |
|
| Western Digital WD Green 1TB | |
1024 GB | 436 MB/s | 348 MB/s | 281 | 77 $ | 0,08 $ | |
|
| Western Digital WD Green 2TB | |
2048 GB | 542 MB/s | 451 MB/s | 422 | 122 $ | 0,06 $ | |
*) The SATA Express (SATAe) successor with 8 and 16 Gbit/s has also been available since 2013, but it did not succeed because of the faster M.2 interface.
When does a SATA SSD make sense?
here are actually only two applications where a SATA drive still makes sense: 1. in older laptops that do not have an M.2 slot and 2. as a fast storage expansion in a desktop PC.
Regarding 1): often, older laptops still have a mechanical 2.5" HDD installed, which is connected to the SATA port. You can achieve a significant and noticeable speed increase by removing the mechanical HDD and installing a SATA SSD instead.
Regarding 2): the use of an M.2 SSD is absolutely recommended for desktop PCs. If your mainboard does not have an M.2 slot, you can also use a PCI Express adapter to use an M.2 SSD. The operating system and programs should definitely be installed on the fast M.2 SSD. Here, 256 or 512 GB are often sufficient. If you need more storage space (for MP3s, photos or videos), you can buy a cheap SATA SSD. SATA disks are a bit cheaper than M.2 disks with about 0.10 Euros per gigabyte.
SATA and X570 = Bad Performance
After testing several SATA disks, and none of them achieved write rates over 460 MB/s (although the manufacturers had specified 530 MB/s), I became a bit suspicious whether this could be due to my test system. I connected the disks to different SATA ports of my mainboard and performed several tests with different programs (AS SSD, ATTO, CDM). The resulting values were poor every time (especially in the 4K test).
I then did some research online and came across an article of a Reddit user, which also showed this problem and was able to trace it back to the AMD X570 chipset. The same SATA disk delivers much better transfer rates on a B550 motherboard.
However, since my test system (see home page below) uses an X570 motherboard (only this currently supports M.2 SSDs of Gen. 4), it does not make sense to test more SATA SSDs here, since it is not the SSD that is the bottleneck, but the AMD chipset . I hope that a future BIOS firmware update will fix this problem. Until then, I will post the tests here (status: December 2020).