It ’s never been easy to kick upstairs the storage in Macs , so it ’s always a good estimation to corrupt an external thrust to provide surplus storage for all your body of work data file , photos , videos , and games . And , of course , you should always have an extraneous drive available for spend a penny Time Machine backups in case anything ever choke wrong .
modernistic self-colored - res publica drives ( SSD ) are the best option as they ’re really quick , honest , and stocky . However , SSDs are still relatively expensive , with 1 TB driving costing around $ 100/£150 , whereas that same amount of money can get you a 4 TB canonical background backbreaking drive with a USB port ( drives with high - amphetamine Thunderbolt port tend to be more expensive ) .
Hard drives are slow than SSDs , but if you need lots of warehousing for your of import single file and back - ups then a secure previous - fashioned difficult private road is still the most affordable pick . ( If it ’s an SSD you are after , readBest external SSD for Mac . )
USB-A (left) and USB-C.
There are plenty of choices , too , with compact , portable hard cause designed for function with laptop computer , and screen background drives with orotund capacities if you really ask a lot of storage . Some hard drives also furnish additional features , such as built - in docks with lots of Thunderbolt and USB port , or perhaps set aside you to open up up the casing of the thrust and infix a fresh drive for an instant upgrade .
Below we rank the best hard movement we have reviewed late , plus you ’ll find general buying advice that explain what you should be looking for .
1. Seagate Ultra Touch HDD: Best Mac hard drive
Pros
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The original Seagate Ultra Touch was a scoop - size of it hard cause with an attractively slim and lightweight design . It was a reasonably old pattern though , limited to either 1 TB or 2 TB of storage , and it was still using an old USB 3.0 interface that required an adapter in gild to work with more modern Macs and microcomputer with USB - C.
This updated version of theUltra Touchupdates most aspects of the drive ’s excogitation . It ’s slightly larger and heavier , but now starts with a minimum of 2 TB storage , with 4 TB or 5 TB modeling also usable if you need extra storage . This fresh modeling now has a USB - ascorbic acid interface too , with a prolonged ( 50 centimetre ) USB - snow cable include as well .
The 2 TB manakin – which is finished in cloud white – is still fairly svelte , assess just 13.2 millimeter thick , 80 millimeter wide and 115 mm long , and weigh a modest 168 universal gravitational constant , so it ’s a good option if you just take a lightweight , portable driveway that you’re able to slip into your pocket or a bag . The 4 TB and 5 TB models are fetch up in a darker pebble grey and are more or less declamatory and heavier , measuring 23 mm thick and weigh 267 g.
You ca n’t buy the Ultra Touch straight from Seagate , so you ’ll have to shop around online , and prices do seem to vary quite a lot . Seagate pricing is as keep up : $ 164.99/£179.99 for 5 TB , $ 159.99/£154.99 for 4 TB , $ 99.99/£109.99 for 2 TB . However , the average price that we number across during examination were around $ 79.99/£99.99 for the 2 TB model that we tested , while the 4 TB and 5 TB models are around $ 124.99/£139.99 and $ 207.99/£164.99 respectively .
USB-A (left) and USB-C.
operation is similar to that of the original Ultra Touch , at 130MB / s for both read and write speed , which is around average for a portable drive such as this . The Ultra Touch includes some additional feature of speech too , such as the power to create mirror folders on your Mac and the Ultra Touch cause that are mechanically synced and updated whenever you make any changes to those brochure . The Toolkit app also provides 256 - bit encoding and password protection for extra security , making the Ultra Touch a good option for people who demand to keep authoritative files secure when they ’re work aside from the situation . Customers in the US can also use Seagate ’s Data Recovery divine service to rescue data file in the case that the drive is damaged ( although this service is n’t available in all regions).–Cliff Joseph
2. LaCie Mobile Drive: Best value
LaCie ’s Mobile Drivehas been on our tilt of the dependable hard drives for Mac drug user for a while and this version was released in 2022 . The 2022 Mobile Drive espouse an Apple - trend slimline , orthogonal intention with tranquil rounded street corner with the LaCie logo decently in the center .
terms start out at a competitive $ 79.99/£69.99 for a drive with 1 TB storage ( that ’s a toll cut from the initial £ 79.99 in the U.K. ) , but there are also models with 2 TB , 4 TB , and 5 TB available too . The 1 TB and 2 TB poser measure just 10.4 millimeter thick , 85 mm wide , and 118 mm long , and weigh 200 g , so they ’re easy to plunk up and carry around with your laptop . The 4 TB and 5 TB models are a little thicker – at 20.4 mm – and librate 300 g , but that ’s still a good size for portable hard cause that provide such high capacity . They ’re all constructed out of recycle aluminum , and hardy enough to get by with life on the route .
you’re able to use them for your Time Machine backups , but LaCie ’s ToolKit app – for macOS 10.14 or later – also let you to create a Mirror folder that is automatically updated whenever you make any changes to the files or data within that folder .
The drive has a USB - 100 interface , with a USB - C cable let in in the box , and record write and read focal ratio of 126MB / s and 130MB / s respectively when start the BlackMagic Disk Speed Test . There are quicker difficult drive available , but that ’s still a healthy speed for a compact heavy drive such as this , and the Mobile Drive 2022 remains a safe , affordable backup cause for MacBook owners – and even owners of desktop Macs who may need the larger 4 TB or 5 TB models . — Cliff Joseph
3. SanDisk Professional G-Drive ArmorATD: Best rugged portable drive
TheArmorATDstarts at $ 99.99/£89.99 for 1 TB , come up to $ 229.99/£225.99 for the new 6 TB model .
It ’s an natural enclosure with a 2.5 - inch hard drive inside that ’s daze - mounted , and the rugged Al event is surrounded by a silicon sock for extra trade protection . It will hold up minor abuse , more when off than on and the disks are spinning , but your best stakes with any hard thrust is not to treat it like a hockey Robin Goodfellow . The connection is USB - C with a hurrying evaluation of 5Gbps ( USB 3.1 / Gen 1)–plenty tight enough for any hard crusade . The drive warranty is for three years .
You ’ll get around 120MBps penning and 127MBps read maximum ( with large files ) from the ArmorATD on your Mac . skilful stuff . The Armor ATD get in formatted to exFAT so you ’re respectable to go out of the corner under both macOS and Windows . However , exFAT will express a 5 percent max penalization , so Mac users will want to reformat the drive.–Jon L. Jacobi
4. Western Digital My Passport Ultra for Mac – Big storage in a small case
TheWD My Passport Ultra for Macis a 2.5 - column inch external USB hard parkway that offers a fairly decent storage capacity of 6 TB for around $ 200/£200 . The 5 TB building block currently tender the best smash for your buck at $ 28 per terabyte .
The drive delivers 110MBps read and write swiftness , making it suited for media streaming and Time Machine backups unravel in the scope .
The My Passport Ultra for Mac features a USB - snow embrasure . Until recently , external 2.5 - inch USB hard driving nem con used USB micro - B SuperSpeed connectors ( for spare power ) on the crusade and USB - A on the other oddment of the cable . WD bundles a USB - C to USB - snow cable and a USB - C to USB - A adapter to admit older and current connection scenario .
The first time you impound the drive a.dmg file for installing WD ’s Discovery coating appears . Discovery can import your data point from your Dropbox , Google Drive , or OneDrive explanation . You ’ll also feel links for the WD Drive Utilities , WD Security ( encryption , password protection ) , and a branded interpretation of Acronis ’s True Image relief computer software . It ’s not a bad software bundle , you do n’t have to use it of trend .
In our tests the My Passport Ultra for Mac fork out a transfer of training rate of up to 110MBps , which is fast enough for several audio recording or moving picture streams . But in a creation becoming accustom to 3GBps speed on USB4 / Thunderbolt external SSDs you may not obtain this tight .
It is still a majuscule warehousing gadget for a large multimedia aggregation and is suitable for background stand-in with Time Machine . The My Passport Ultra for Mac is a groovy storage equipment for a bombastic multimedia accumulation and can stream across the web at 2.5Gbps .
5. Western Digital My Passport: Best budget drive
Western Digital has updated its pop portable hard cause . The 2024 adaptation ofMy Passport , useable in coloured blue , offers the world ’s first 2.5 - in 6 TB model ( claims the troupe ) . There is no longer a 1 TB interpretation . Instead , the range starts with 2 TB for $ 84.99/£75.99 . There are also 4 TB and 5 TB models , while the 6 TB model costs a reasonable $ 184.99/£165.99.The 2 TB model is slight and lighter than the others , measuring 13.5 mm thick , 75 mm wide-cut , and 107 millimeter foresighted , and weighing just 140 g. The 4 TB and 5 TB models increase to a thickness of 19.2 mm , while the 6 TB good example is 20.6 millimeter thick , weigh 210g . The My Passport drive still habituate an ageing USB Micro - B interface , but Western Digital includes a USB - A cable’s length with a separate USB - nose candy adapter for compatibility with New Macs with USB - C and older Macs with USB - A. We ’ve also looked at the My Passport Ultra for Mac ( above ) , which use USB - A pr USB - C via an adapter .
The My Passport drive also includes Western Digital ’s Discovery app for Mac and Windows , providing password protection and encryption features .
6. WD Black P10: Best for gamers
TheWD Black P10provides a more portable option to the WD Black D10 , which is pitch for desktop use . It ’s not as fast as the D10 , but it can draw magnate from a USB larboard , so you may simply plug it into any Mac , PC , or games cabinet when you need to back up your file . It ’s comparatively big for a portable drive , measuring a chunky 20 millimeter thick , 88 millimetre all-embracing , and 118 mm long , but its reinforced casing is sturdy enough to deal with being bumped around in a backpack when you ’re traveling .
The drive is fink at a relatively modest 140MB / s for both read and write carrying out , although our tests actually enter speeds of 120MB / s and 110MB / s for read and write performance severally . That ’s not going to break any record , but it ’s hunky-dory for the occasional Time Machine backup or for stack away lots of secret plan , photos , videos , and other multimedia filing cabinet . The P10 is also competitively priced , starting at just $ 89.99/£80.99 for a sizeable 2 TB of storage . There are 4 TB and 5 TB models available too , so the P10 is a practiced choice for Mac exploiter who have really large collection of photos and videos that they ca n’t go onto their Mac ’s internal private road .
The only rarity is that the P10 use an aging USB 3.2 user interface . There ’s a USB line admit , but it has a USB - A connection , so you ’ll need to bring home the bacon an adaptor for Macs that only have USB - C. — Cliff Joseph
7. Seagate Expansion Desktop: Smart and fast
You will ask to reformat the Mac you will postulate to reformat the Seagate Expansion Desktop with a Mac . Once all over , the drive should be notice and you will be capable to use it as you would any hard thrust .
It measure approximately 7 - inch long , by 4.9 - inches encompassing , by 1.65 - in thick and weighs around 2.5 - pounds and comes in black with great deal of breathing grating , and sloping grooves zest up importantly what would otherwise be a bland countenance . It ’s not bad look .
The Seagate Expansion Desktop is useable in a variety of capacities and can supply up to 24 TB in a single unit . You wo n’t get that much storage in an SSD , and even if you could this will cost a lot less than the same apportioning in an SSD . Of course , the departure is that an SSD is a lot faster , but our 16 TB exam unit was a fortune faster than you might think . alternatively of the common 120- to 140MBps its small 2.5 - column inch cousins record and compose at , the Expansion Desktop managed almost 280MBps .
While it ’s not fast compare to an SSD , the Expansion Desktop is workable for streaming and background surgical operation , is far faster than 2.5 - inch external HDDs , and you sure as heck ca n’t drum the capacity .
8. Western Digital My Book: Great if you need A LOT of storage
More and more multitude are now using a MacBook as their main computer , so the course with operose drives in recent years has been towards little , more portable drives that you’re able to easily comport around with your laptop computer . That ’s fine if you only need 1 TB or 2 TB of computer storage , but there are time when you may postulate a larger , desktop drive that can store several terabytes of files and data .
Western Digital ’s My Bookrange of desktop drives has been around for quite a few years , but the range provides up to 24 TB of entrepot ( we looked at the 22 TB model ) – which should be more than enough for photographers , intriguer and video - editors who shape with large , high - res files every solar day . price really start at$134.99/£120.99for a My Book crusade with 4 TB of storage , and there are several other models along the means before you get through the 22 TB drive that we review here , which cost $ 499.99 / £ 502.99 , and the 24 GB drive that costs $ 579.99 / £ 570.99 .
Not amazingly , the My Book is very much designed for background use . It measures 6.7 x 1.9 x 5.5 - inches ( 170 x 49 mm x 139 mm ) , and consider 2.20 pounds ( 1 kg ) , and also requires a mains power supply , so it ’s not a campaign that ’s going to go forth your home or federal agency very often .
It ’s a number remaining that the drive still uses an get on USB 3.0 interface , with a USB - A cable’s length allow for for connecting to a Mac or PC , so you may ask to provide a USB - cytosine adaptor for Macs that no longer have USB - A embrasure . However , the My Book does provide proficient protection and security for all your Indian file , with 256 - bit encoding and password protection available in the WD Security app for Mac and Windows .
The movement itself has a three - class warranty , and professional users might also need to sign up for WD ’s Data Recovery plan – from $ 9.99 / £ 9.99 for two years – which can find lost data if the driveway does get gravely damaged .
Performance is good too – despite the aging USB port – with the My Book recording read and publish speeding of 215MB / s. That ’s almost twice as fast as most of the little , portable drives that we review here , so the My Book will be a good option for people who need a lot of warehousing for their of import work filing cabinet . And if 22 TB is n’t enough , there ’s also a example forebode theMy Book Duo , which provides RAID entrepot choice using two national unvoiced drive for a total of 44 TB of storehouse for$1,119/£1,289.99 .
9. Seagate Special Edition Firecuda: Best for collectors
Seagate has a range of special version Firecuda drives that sport designs taken from Marvel and Star Wars films . There are drives with Spiderman , Boba Fett and the Mandolorian , but our favorite is the ‘ little and powerful’Baby Yoda drive(yes , we know his name is Grogu , but he ’ll always be Baby Yoda to us ) . And , when attached to your Mac , the drive is even displayed on your desktop with a Baby Yoda icon as well .
These special edition drive are only available with 2 TB storage . They ’re priced at $ 139.99/£139.99 on Seagate ’s website , which is a little dear for a 2 TB driving force so you ’re paying a bit extra for the Star Wars vibration . Some are now ignore including Grogu , who is now $ 59.99 in the U.S. , and we have seen them at lower prices elsewhere online .
It ’s a small heavy than some portable drives , measuring 14.5 millimetre thick , 80 millimeter wide-cut , and 122 mm long . It ’s sturdily built though and only weighs 167 gram , so it ’s still light enough to just break up it up and drop off it onto a bag with your laptop when you ’re traveling . The only minor oddity with the design is that it uses a USB 3.2 interface with a USB - A cable length – to supply compatibility with Xbox consoles , apparently , so you ’ll need a USB - light speed adapter if your Mac only has USB - C.
The Firecuda drive is formatted in the ExFat data format for Windows PCs , but you canreformat it for Macs using Disk Utility , and Seagate ’s ToolKit app will run on any Mac with macOS 10.14 or later . The drive will work withTime Machineon your Mac , but the ToolKit app also grant you to produce a especial Mirror booklet on your Mac that is always kept in sync with a matching Mirror folder on the Firecuda drive . The app even lets you customize the colored lighting effects for the condition light on the front of the cause too .
Seagate does n’t quote a speed for the private road , but we recorded read and spell speeds of 130MB / s in our tests . Professional users might prefer a quicker hard private road or SSD , but that ’s a honorable hurrying for a portable hard effort such as this , and the Firecuda is a really undecomposed – not to mention seriously cute – option for day - to - day backups on your Mac.–Cliff Joseph
10. LaCie 1big Dock: Best for pro and creative users
As the name suggest , LaCie ’s 1big Dockis more than just a straight hard parkway . It get at $ 369/£349.99 for a campaign with 4 TB storage , run up to $ 889/£869.99 for 18 TB , and its 7,200rpm IronWolf Pro concentrated driving force provides strong performance with read and drop a line speeds of 235MBps via its Thunderbolt 3 port wine . That makes it a good option for anyone that need a dissipated drive for large television , photos , and audio files .
The basal Thunderbolt port also provide baron for charge a MacBook laptop computer as well . You even have the option of belt down start the front venire to swap out the standard hard drive and insert a new drive to leave an insistent upgrade .
But the thing that really make the 1big Dock stand out from most of its hard private road challenger is its built - in hub and connectivity features . There ’s a second Thunderbolt embrasure that will let you to connect additional Thunderbolt and USB - one C devices , and a DisplayPort 1.4 user interface for an external monitor .
The front of the drive also provides a standard USB 3.0 port and expansion slot for both SD and CompactFlash ( CF ) storage cards , making it a heavy option for creative users who require to import files from camera and other devices .
There ’s also a interpretation of the 1big Dock available that uses faster solid - state reposition too – of course , it ’s quite a bit more expensive.–Cliff Joseph
11. WD Black D10: Best budget performer
Western Digital ’s WD Blackdrives are primarily get at gamers who need a flying ride to advance lading time for their games , which explains why the forbidding blackened design of this D10 desktop drive look like a piece of heavyweight munitions from the Call Of Duty games . But a fast driving will also invoke to anyone that has a flock of photos , video recording , and audio files that they desire to store on their Mac , and the D10 has other features that can amount in ready to hand too .
Some aspect of the pattern are a little odd . There ’s only one version usable , with 8 TB memory board , although its $ 240/£199.99 price tag end on Amazon is still militant for a fast drive such as this . It ’s fit with only an one-time USB A interface ( even though it is USB 3.2 ) perhaps to put up compatibility with sometime games consoles , so you ’ll need an adapter if your Mac only has USB - C.
Its 7,200 - rev drive provide very ripe functioning , achieve read and compose speeds of 245MBps and 240MBps , respectively . The D10 demand an external power supply , so it ’s very much designed for desktop use , but it also has two extra USB 3.2 ports on the back of the campaign that can render power to other devices , such as an iPhone or iPad . These ports are only for charge , though , so you ca n’t use the D10 as a dock for connecting peripherals such as a printer or memory stick.–Cliff Joseph
USB-A (left) and USB-C.
How to choose the right Mac hard drive
We ’ve round up the good Mac hard drives above , but before making a purchasing decision you need to think about how you ’ll be using the machine . To receive the adept hard crusade for your penury , you need to answer a few questions .
How much storage do I need?
Hard campaign storehouse is relatively cheap . Unless you are really out to keep your centime , the smallest size of hard drive we ’d recommend is 1 TB .
Upgrades to 2 TB , 3 TB , and even 4 TB are also cost - effective – the price per megabyte goes down the higher the mental ability , so making the extrusion up to the next model is a good thought . Each tebibyte can salt away around 11,000 euphony album at 192kbps lineament , but such entrepot does n’t seem so grand when you begin archiving 4 K television .
Portable or desktop?
If you think you ’ll be glad with a 1 TB to 4 TB hard drive , you could purchase a portable movement . These use small 2.5 - in disks , and they fit happily into a coat pocket . Portable drives are usually bus - power , too . This means you just need to punch them into your screen background or laptop , no separate power supply is required . There ’s just one cable television service , and the drive will barely take up any infinite .
If only an radical - eminent capacity grueling drive will do , consider a screen background unit . These use big 3.5 - inch driving force and tend to track capability from 4 TB to 18 TB . They ’ll need to be plugged in for mightiness ; that ’s hunky-dory if it stay home all of the time , or motion from berth to billet .
Rugged drives for travel
Some portable crusade offer ruggedization . Shock protection is the most important sort for a hard drive , as unlike an SSD they have moving parts that can be permanently damage following a drop . Rugged drives usually have some form of rubber coat that soaks up impact forces , and a toughened natural enclosure that wo n’t dent , crack or crack up under any normal amount of pressure .
A few also have water underground . While few are rated IP68 like aniPhone 11 professional , meaning they can be submerged in water without damage , several can handle rain or water jets / splashing .
What extra features do you need?
Buy a larger private road , though , and you ’re more probable to get other features . Desktop unit may have a built - in “ hub ” , letting you plug - in memory board notice or peripherals using USB ports . These are particularly utilitarian if your current setup has limited connectivity , or the USBs you do have just are n’t that ready to hand .
Which connector do you need?
match the strong drive ’s connector to those of your laptop or desktop is also essential . You ’ll get a cable in the box , but it will either give the axe with a USB - A or USB - century shaped male plug , as seen here :
Unless you have an old Mac or MacBook that only extend the one-time USB - A larboard , you ’ll will want the newer USB - C connector , which also doubles up as Thunderbolt . Every Mac sold by Apple in the past few years features a USB - deoxycytidine monophosphate expressive style connector , although some Mac screen background still extend the previous USB criterion as well .
Not all USB - Cs are the same , though . The USB - 100 embrasure on Macs also supports Thunderbolt 3 and in some eccentric Thunderbolt 4 . USB - C is establish on USB 3.1 and offers up to 10Gbps . Thunderbolt 3 offer up to 40Gbps . bolt of lightning 4 also offer 40Gbps , but has a few other advantage , including a 32Gbps information rate , which will be a benefit to anyone who postulate to transfer enceinte video files to from the drive to their background for editing . There ’s also a new USB 4 banner that offers between 20Gbps and 40Gbps bandwidth that you will see alongside the newer Thunderbolt 4 standard , but note that USB 4 does n’t offer all the features of Thunderbolt .
It ’s unmortgaged that Thunderbolt is a dependable selection than USB if you are attend for the best port for your hard drive , but Thunderbolt choice are likely to be more expensive than their USB counterparts .
Wireless and NAS
Not every hard drive involve to be plugged in : you could also choose for a web - attached storage ( NAS ) campaign which enable to to wirelessly transplant files and backups . These internet - attach storage drives connect to your home Wi - Fi to share their data with other equipment in your home . That might be a overbold TV , Apple TV , a tab or laptop computer .
A NAS is particularly useful if you need to set up a media server at home . This is like a wireless jukebox you’re able to fill with videos , photos and music . Read ourbest NAS drivesfeature for more .
