Western Digital WD Red SA500 1TB SATA SSD
Here you will find a detailed speed, performance and benchmark test review. Tested was the SATA SSD WD Red SA500 with 1TB (WDS100T1R0A) from the brand Western Digital.
| Technical specifications (manufacturer information) | |
| Product image | 
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| Manufacturer | Western Digital |
| Model number | WDS100T1R0A |
| Capacity | 1024 GB (932 GiB) |
| pSLC cache | >400 GB approx. |
| Read speed | 560 MB/s |
| Write speed | 530 MB/s |
| Interface | SATA 6 Gbps |
| Connector | 2.5" |
| Memory module (NAND) | TLC |
| TBW (Total Bytes Written) | 600 terabyte |
| Warranty | 5 Years |
| Controller | Silicon Motion SM2259H |
Compare product Compared to the test winner*
We put the Western Digital SATA SSD through a detailed test. You can find the test result / test report here:
AS SSD Benchmark
Standard performance test
The standard test was performed with a 1 GB file. A total score of 796 points was achieved.
Copy performance test
A common everyday scenario is simulated here. Three test folders are created:
- ISO (folder with two large files)
- Program (folder with many small files)
- Game (folder with small and large files)
The three folders are copied using the Windows copy command (cache remains enabled). The real-world test from 22 July 2025 shows performance during simultaneous write and read operations. The lower the duration, the better.
| AS SSD Copy Benchmark | Transfer rate: | Duration: |
|---|---|---|
| ISO two large files |
928.11 MB/s |
1.16 s |
| Program typical program folder with many small files |
1,201.17 MB/s |
1.17 s |
| Game a game folder with small and large files |
1,456.65 MB/s |
0.95 s |
Compression performance test
Here, speed is measured depending on how compressible the data is.
CrystalDiskMark Benchmark
Similar to AS SSD, two sequential and two random performance tests are carried out here and the write and read speed (manufacturer specs: 560 MB/s and 530 MB/s) the Western Digital SATA SSD is measured.
| CDM | Read [MB/s] | Write [MB/s] |
|---|---|---|
| SEQ1M Q8T1 |
454.86 |
483.63 |
| SEQ1M Q1T1 |
531.95 |
477.35 |
| RND4K Q32T16 |
232.49 |
194.02 |
| RND4K Q1T1 |
39.31 |
91.14 |
IOPS (Input/Output operations per second)
| CDM | Read [IOPS] | Write [IOPS] |
|---|---|---|
| SEQ1M Q8T1 |
433.80 |
461.20 |
| SEQ1M Q1T1 |
507.30 |
455.20 |
| RND4K Q32T16 |
56,759.80 |
47,368.20 |
| RND4K Q1T1 |
9,597.20 |
22,251.70 |
Average latency
| CDM | Read [µs] | Write [µs] |
|---|---|---|
| SEQ1M Q8T1 |
18,394.70 |
17,286.50 |
| SEQ1M Q1T1 |
1,970.33 |
2,195.11 |
| RND4K Q32T16 |
9,009.01 |
10,792.20 |
| RND4K Q1T1 |
104.08 |
44.83 |
HD Tune Pro long-term test
A long-term test was performed to fully utilize the storage. You can see at what point the cache (if present) becomes full and write performance drops. A test file of 400 GB was written to the medium. The exact cache size could not be determined because the test file did not exhaust (push to the limit) the cache. The test file could at least be read with an average read speed of 525 MB/s and written at 469 MB/s.
ATTO Disk Benchmark
Here, a 256 MB file is written to the Western Digital SATA SSD multiple times. The I/O block size varies (from 512 bytes to 64 megabytes). The larger the blocks, the faster writing and reading usually becomes.
SSD-Z Benchmark
Similar to HD Tune, a 500 MB file is written to the Western Digital SATA SSD here. The transfer data is displayed. The more consistent the line, the better. Unfortunately, the tool no longer works correctly from around 4,000 MB/s and no line is displayed (and sometimes incorrect min/max data is shown).
You can find information about the test system at the bottom of the homepage.
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