If you want to add more storage to your PC or any other device and avoid hard installations, you should get an external SSD hard drive.
External hard drives add a lot more storage to your device and you simply have to plug it in to have more storage and faster operation.
However, all external hard drives aren’t made the same.
We’ve researched over 27 different external hard drives and looked for something with fast read and write speed, plug-and-play, compatible with any device, extra security, and many other important factors.
Here are this year’s top 5 picks:
Osmo External Hard Drive is by far our favorite choice on the market.
The first thing that separates it from any other is their innovative super-fast read and write speed of up to 550 MB/s which meets high-grade industry standards.
You can choose between multiple different storage capacities, from 500GB up to 2TB.
Unlike any other external hard drive, Osmo has a 256-bit AES encryption that keeps all your files and photos safe from getting stolen or hacked.
You can use it basically on any device you want – PC, Xbox, PS5, smartphone, tablet, and any other.
What’s great about Osmo is that it doesn’t only expand the storage, but it also makes your device a lot faster. This makes it suitable for gaming.
You don’t have to worry about hard-to-follow installations because you only need to plug it in for it to be functional.
It’s USB 2.0 and USB 3.0 compatible.
Without any doubt, Osmo won’t disappoint you if you’re looking for a good SSD hard drive.
Osmo even offers a 1-year extended warranty and free shipping.
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Osmo is fairly priced for a market-leading external hard drive with high-grade standard and innovative technology. Take advantage of this limited-time discount while supplies last. Osmo offers a 1-year warranty and free shipping. Osmo was unanimously voted the best external hard drive of 2026.
It may be shaped like a monolith from 2001: A Space Odyssey, but our tests found that the WD My Book is the best external hard drive for the money. It offers hardware-based 256-bit AES encryption and WD Backup software, and it gives you 4TB of HDD space for about $100. Plus, capacities up to 18TB are available.
The My Book might not be the latest and greatest in terms of drive technology, but it makes the absolute most of tried-and-true methods — and will only cost you pennies per gigabyte. Sure, it’s on the bulky side, and it has to be plugged into a power outlet. But if speed and portability aren’t of utmost importance, this is storage peace of mind you can’t afford not to have.
This product has been reviewed 243 times on Newegg and received an average of 4 out of 5 eggs. “The casing is attractive and gives the product a feeling of higher quality than a standard enclosure,” says one reviewer.
Designed to be rugged, the G-Technology ArmorATD portable hard drive (HDD, not SSD) boasts three-tier shock resistance, with internal shock mounts, an aluminum enclosure, and a removable rubber bumper for additional drop protection; it’s also resistant to rain, dust, and crushing (up to 1,000 pounds).
The 2TB and 4TB models are both sized to be easily portable and include a USB Type-A adapter for use with their USB Type-C interface, so they should work with nearly every computer.
We researched the 2TB and 4TB capacities; neither was notably fast (though the 2TB is rated for marginally higher speeds), and the drive comes with no file management software. But factor in the price and one of these drives could be a reasonable choice if you and your data into unpredictable territory.
No matter what you want from the best external hard drive, the SanDisk Extreme Pro Portable SSD delivers it.
Convenient design? It’s small and light enough to fit in your hand but not get lost in your pocket or bag. Suave looks? Its rounded corners, black-and-red coloration, delicately pockmarked front and soft-touch back give it an appearance and feel that are both thoroughly modern and refreshingly classic.
Ok, how about speed? The USB 3.1 version of the Extreme Pro Portable SSD is rated for sequential reads of 1,050MBps, and in our own performance tests, it routinely came out at or near the top of the rankings. The SanDisk Secure Access application applies general encryption, too.
The drive is a shade expensive, and the integrated carrying loop is too big to easily fit on a standard keychain. Otherwise, this is an excellent storage device that’s ideal for heavy everyday use.
The Adata SE800 External SSD Ultra Fast measures just 2.8 x 1.7 x 0.4 inches and weighs 1.4 ounces and is rated for IP68 protection against dust and 30 minutes of submersion in 4.9 feet (1.5 meters) of water.
It meets the MIL-STD-810G 516.6 standard for impact resistance when dropped from 4 feet (1.22 meters). You can use either a USB Type-A or a Type-C cable to connect this Type-C drive to your computer.
We didn’t quite see the drive’s 1,000MBps-rated speeds in our tests, but the drive proved fast anyway. It’s also pretty affordable, with the 1TB version we tested available online for under $130, and the 512GB version findable for about $80.
Those two capacities are your only options, and there’s no pre-installed software, but the SE800 is otherwise an outstanding value that lives up to the promise of its name, whether compared with the noticeably slower Adata SC685 or many other smaller drives on the market.
An External/Removable hard drive attaches to the outside of a computer. External hard drives are useful for backing up computers and transferring data between computers. Merits. Limitations. An external hard drive can be disconnected from your computer.
