MicroSD cards are ubiquitous these days and they're used in many devices, importantly phones. But you'll want to pick a different microSD card for your phone than a device with a photographic camera such as a dashcam, drone, or action camera.

That's because some are optimised for recording high-resolution video, others for running apps and accessing the small files often used on phones and tablets. Audio confusing? Don't worry. Hither we'll explain how to choose the all-time microSD carte du jour for your device, what all the symbols on the carte mean, and recommend the best ones to buy.

If you're in a rush, spring to our summit microSD recommendations.

If you lot want to empathize what all those symbols hateful, leap to our explainer below .

How to cull a microSD bill of fare

The starting time selection is chapters. You'll desire to bank check how large a card your device will accept. Some dash cams will have up to 32GB only, considering that's the limit of the SDHC standard - but most phones will support up to 256GB, cheers to the SDXC standard, with some supporting up to a massive 2TB.

The SD Express standard was announced in June 2018, that's currently but for total-size SD cards.

Do I need a specific card for a photographic camera or a phone?

Short reply: yes. Longer reply: some cards are then good, they're capable of recording 4K video in your GoPro but volition also give neat performance in your phone.

The newest standards are 'Five' and 'A', and you'll see a number after each which represents a minimum standard of performance.

Best microSD for video recording

Basically, if you're ownership a microSD card to record video, you'll want to look for one with a V10 logo or college. The number after the V is the guaranteed write speed in megabytes per second (MB/southward), although information technology may be college than this.

To tape 4K video, y'all should aim for at least V30.TheSD Association has recommendations for speeds you demand for recording at different video resolutions:

Best microSD cards

If there'southward no 'V' number, check the packaging or specifications to observe out the write speed. Lookout out because the biggest number is usually the read speed, not write.

We explain the Five standard in more particular below.

Best microSD for phones and tablets

On the other hand, yous might exist buying a bill of fare to aggrandize your phone or tablet'south storage. Here you demand good operation for reading and writing small-scale files.

That's why the other new rating organization is 'App operation', denoted past an A, followed by a number.

Information technology works in a like way to the video grade, and y'all'll see an A1 or A2 logo on a carte.

A1 bill of fare allows both storage also equally faster data usage. A step further, A2 operates offers fifty-fifty faster read/write speeds and  more avant-garde overall  functioning to ameliorate suit the e'er-advancing phones and tablets.

A2 is new er , but A1 cards should be fast enough for running  nearly  apps and games.

Which microSD card should I buy?

Stick to the well-known brands which volition offer a warranty on their cards. Reputable brands include: Samsung, SanDisk, Lexar, Kingston, Integral and Verbatim, among others.

There are plenty of fakes and counterfeit microSD cards, so make sure you purchase from a trusted seller. If yous see a carte du jour on eBay that's a lot cheaper than you expect it to be, there's probably a good reason!

We've shortlisted the all-time brands and models for you beneath.

Benchmark results - How the best microSD cards compare

Hither'south how all the cards we tested compared. While read and write speeds might be credible, 4KB read and 4KB write speeds indicate how quickly the card can retrieve small, blocks of information (i.e. 4KB of data) from random places. While that might audio similar a strange matter to measure, that process is standard to how storage drives work. This makes it a useful indicator in benchmarks for understanding the card's overall performance.

All-time microSD cards - Our reviews

1

PNY Pro Elite - Best overall

PNY Pro Elite microSDXC

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PNY's Pro Elite microSD card is a pinnacle all-rounder with a claimed 100MB/s read speed and 90MB/southward write speed.

It's available in 32, 64, 128, 256, 512GB and 1TB capacities, merely specs vary slightly across those capacities. The 512GB card, for example, is rated A2 for app performance, while the others are A1. The higher capacity options too offering V form ratings.

However, as nosotros constitute in CrystalDiskMark, even the 128GB card nosotros tested outperformed all other options including the A2-rated SanDisk Extreme PRO card for 4KB performance, managing 12.4MB/s for reading and 5.3MB/s for writing.

We saw fairly decent results for large files with 88.7MB/s read speeds and 81.7MB/south write speeds. The latter is more than enough for recording 4K in consumer cameras.

So, whether you need a microSD card for your phone, an action camera or dash cam, the PNY Pro Elite is a peachy option with impressive prices.

It may not exist as fast as the Samsung Extreme PRO (beneath), but at its price, PNY offers incredible value for money, making it the all-time overall.

Information technology'southward available from Currys PC World (with better prices) and Amazon. US availability is limited with some options from Amazon US and directly from PNY.

Storage sizes and prices: 32GB (£7.99) | 64GB(£ten.99) | 128GB (£24.99) | 256GB (£54.99) | 512GB (£113.39) | 1TB ($299.99)

2

SanDisk Extreme PRO - All-time for speed

SanDisk Extreme PRO microSD

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The fastest microSD card that SanDisk offers for consumer electronics, the Extreme PRO starts at 32GB and goes up to 1TB.

It's rated A2, which makes it faster for loading apps and dealing with the stuff necessary for phones and tablets. But with read speeds of upward to 170MB/s and write speeds up to 90MB/s, it'southward also ideal for 4K video recording in your drone, activity photographic camera or dash cam.

Unfortunately, most devices are limited to the UHS-I speed of 104MB/due south then unless you happen to take one that allows for faster transfer speeds y'all won't run into that 170MB/due south.

We only had a standard USB 3 microSD card reader bachelor to examination the Extreme Pro on our PC, and that's the situation most people will exist in.

We saw a read speed of 94.6MB/s and a more-than-decent write speed of 85MB/south. Information technology managed the fastest 4KB read speeds we've seen of 9.9MB/s merely write speeds of 3.3MB/s weren't peachy.

So, while the Extreme PRO may technically be one of the fastest around, most people won't run across noticeably faster speeds than are available from the Extreme Plus or even Ultra cards from SanDisk.

So the same communication applies as for the Extreme Plus: purchase if you lot can accept reward of the speeds, but if non you can save and go for an Ultra (or the Samsung Evo Plus).

Storage sizes and prices: 32GB (£12.99/$xiv.99) | 64GB(£14.99/$21.99) | 128GB (£24.99/$39.99) | 256GB (£lxxx.99/$72.99) | 400GB (£99.99/$129.99) | 512GB (£199.99/$179.99) | 1TB (£449.99/$399.99)

Prices include a lifetime limited warranty. Pick information technology up from Western Digital or from Amazon.

3

Manfrotto Pro Rugged - Best for 4K video

Manfrotto Pro Rugged microSD

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Manfrotto is a brand best known for its tripods, but storage for your photographic camera is now part of its range. In addition to CF (compact wink) and SD cards are its microSD offerings which come in 64- and 128GB capacities.

Along with the other types of storage, the microSD cards also get the Rugged branding and the company says they're congenital to be the toughest around, able to survive being submerged for 72 hours and temperatures ranging from -25C to 85C. Nosotros asked which company actually manufacturers the cards for Manfrotto, just were only told that"we source components and interact with extremely specialized partners for some production line ups".

There'southward a two-year warranty then you're protected against whatever manufacturing defects.

Although labeled V30, which ways a minimum sequential write speed of 30MB/sec, the Pro Rugged actually reads and writes at 90MB/s and this was bourne out in our tests.

CrystalDiskMark reported a read speed just shy of 95MB/s and a read speed a trivial down on the merits at 88.5MB/southward. Both excellent results and made even better at this price which is roughly one-half the RRP.

Though squarely aimed at drones, action cameras and gimbals, you could theoretically besides utilize one of these in your phone or tablet, managing a 4KB read speed was eight.5MB/s and 3.75MB/s for writing.

Overall and so, the Pro Rugged is much meliorate value than a lot of its rivals then long equally you discover it discounted on Manfrotto's site or elsewhere. US visitors can caput to Manfrotto U.s..

Storage sizes and prices:64GB(£33.95/$31) | 128GB (£44.95/$39.99).

4

Samsung Evo Plus - All-time speed for mobile

Samsung Evo Plus

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Samsung is ane of the biggest brands, and then you lot're probable to sway towards ownership a Samsung-branded microSD menu, especially if you take a Samsung phone. The Evo Plus is the entry-level range, with the Pro Plus and Pro Endurance being more expensive.

We tested the 128GB card, but it's also bachelor in higher capacities (listed below).

The packaging boasts of "Write Speed upward to 90 MB/s" and we saw a sequential write speed 84.iii MB/s so it's non far off the claim. Read speeds weren't quite upward to the 100 MB/s claim but at 88.3 MB/s, you lot won't be disappointed given the cost of the Evo Plus.

For phone and tablet use, you lot're more interested in 4KB performance, and here the Evo shines, even though it'due south not A1 or A2 rated: information technology scored 10.5 MB/due south when reading and 4.7 MB/s when writing.

The score outdoes the A2-rated SanDisk Extreme Pro, making it a stiff overall choice for mobile if you lot can't get your easily on the PNY choice above – and especially if you're sticking it in a phone that'due south capable of recording 4K video.

We've listed the RRPs below, but you tin can observe the Evo Plus for much cheaper (at near half-off) from Amazon or Novatech, the official resellers. Samsung no longer sells these cards directly. On Amazon, you'll find the 128GB choice reduced to £24.99/$20.

Storage sizes and prices: 32GB (£xiii.54/$x) | 64GB(£25.99/$fourteen.85) | 128GB (£46.54/$22.49) | 256GB (N/A - marketplace sellers just) | 512GB (£89.99)

5

SanDisk Extreme Plus - Best value for 4K video & mobile

SanDisk Extreme Plus microSD

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The Extreme Plus is a pace down from the Farthermost PRO range of microSD cards, merely information technology certainly doesn't disappoint. Information technology claims up to 95MB/s read speeds and 90MB/s write. Information technology'south rated both A1 and V30, making it suitable for high-resolution video and for mobile.

The Extreme Plus managed over 87MB/s and 85MB/s for reading and writing speeds in CrystalDiskMark outdoing even the PNY Pro Elite. In fact, it went even faster in short queue depth test, with 92MB/due south for reads and most 88MB/s for writes.

That makes information technology perfect for recording video in 4K drones and action cameras, or burst photography in a DSLR. It's besides a fine performer for phones and tablets cheers to strong 4KB performance of 9.3MB/south when reading and 4MB/s when writing these tiny files.

It's only held back past its loftier toll per GB. If you need speeds this high, y'all'll observe amend value elsewhere.

Storage sizes and prices: 32GB (£xiv.99/US$43.99) | 64GB(£xvi.46) | 128GB (£29.99/$79.99) | 256GB (£91.61)

Bachelor on Amazon.

half dozen

Kioxia Exceria High Endurance - Best for security cameras

Kioxia Exceria High Endurance MicroSD (128GB)

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If you're unfamiliar with the brand name Kioxia, you might be more familiar with Toshiba, which was Kioxia's parent company until 2018.

The Exceria High Endurance microSDXC promised read speeds up to 100Mb/south and write speeds up to 65Mb/s on the box. While the cards didn't reach those accented maximums in our benchmarks, information technology came pretty darn shut.

Read speeds reached 94.79Mb/s, making it faster than the SanDisk Extreme Pro's, while write speeds capped at 64.17Mb/s. Athough that's slower than the Extreme Pro, it's virtually twice equally fast as the SanDisk Ultra.

4KB test clocked at 5.71Mb/south and 2.07Mb/s for read and write, respectively. While these aren't the almost impressive figures, information technology shouldn't exist an issue if you mainly intend to use the card for video storage.

In fact, despite the A1 rating and Android compatibility, the Exceria High Endurance is all-time for surveillance cameras and dash cams.

The menu offers a whole range of protective features that claim its High Endurance namesake. For starters, you can expect stupor resistance up to 5 meters, and temperature tolerances between -25 degrees Celcius to 85 degrees Celcius. It'due south also IPX7-rated waterproof and resistant to static shocks. Kioxia offers a 3-year warranty should you run into any issues.

The High Endurance is available to buy from Amazon.

Storage sizes and prices: 32GB (£17.44/$19.99) | 64GB (£23.53/$26.99) | 128GB (£37.49/$42.99) | 256GB (£54.99/$76.99)

7

SanDisk Ultra - All-time value for storage

SanDisk Ultra microSD

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If y'all don't fancy going for SanDisk'south height tier cards, its Ultra range besides offers solid performance for much lower prices per GB - along with the option of stepping up to a capacious 1TB!

In our CrystalDiskMark testing it managed sequential read speeds of 89MB/s - but a piddling shy of the 95MB/s SanDisk claims - though write speeds were a more modest 27MB/s. That'southward fine for recording full Hard disk video, merely falls a little curt of what you'd require for quality 4K video recording.

If you want to use the carte in a phone or tablet (or a Nintendo Switch, for that matter) you'll probably be more concerned with the 4KB speeds, and this is where the SanDisk Ultra is more impressive, managing to read at 9.4MB/south and write at 2.4MB/s. That's not the very best out at that place, but it's improve than most and very solid functioning for a carte du jour this toll.

Storage sizes and prices: 16GB (£8) | 32GB (£7.23/$9.99) | 64GB(£x.99/$fourteen.29) | 128GB (£19.99/$24.99) | 200GB (£35.99/$34.99) |256GB (£48.99/$47.99) | 400GB (£76.99/$69.99) | 512GB (£94.99/$77.99) | 1TB (£217.99/$229.99)

Bachelor on Amazon.

viii

Integral - All-time for cheap everday storage

Integral microSD

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Integral was the showtime company to offer 512GB of storage (£58.99), though now like options are bachelor from other brands in this chart.

Integral'due south card isn't just for phone or tablet users, though. It'due south ideal if you take a Nintendo Switch and desire to install a whole library of games.

Similarly, if you want a huge menu for recording Hd video on an action camera or drone, information technology'll handle that chore with ease every bit well. It's particularly good for a home security camera that records continuously to microSD.

What it tin can't do is handle 4K recording. The model we reviewed was rated V10, the lowest of the new video recording standards – but the same card now is marked C10, which is a non-video standard.

In our tests, nosotros found it managed a sustained write speed of 19.3MB/s. That's plenty for Total Hard disk 1920x1080 resolution though.

Read speeds are much quicker at 83.6MB/southward – a whisker short of the 85MB/southward claim.

For employ in phones and tablets, you should be more concerned virtually a carte du jour's 4KB file functioning. Hither, the Integral scored 7.3MB/s for reading and 1.7MB/s for writing. It much lower than SanDisk, Samsung's and PNY's scores, so there are better options if yous're more focused on mobile use, but for day-to-mean solar day storage, Integral offers bully value for money.

Storage sizes and prices: 32GB (£vii.14) | 64GB(£11.99) | 128GB (£xviii.99).

Available on Amazon.

SD, SDHC, SDXC – what does it all hateful?

Best MicroSD cards SDHC vs SDXC

If you're shopping for a MicroSD card, you've probably come across a number of confusing symbols on the characterization. Let'due south break them downward.

In a nutshell, each of those denominations suggests capacity, with SD significant Secure Digital.

SD, just on its own, is the oldest and supports up to 2GB of storage. These are now pretty much obsolete. Instead, you're more likely to see:

  • SDHC which ways SD High Capacity and supports upwardly to 32GB of storage; or
  • SDXC, which means SD Extended Capacity, and supports up to 2TB of information.

There's also a rarer SDUC, or SD Ultra Capacity, that was introduced in 2022 that supports upward to 128TB simply information technology's unlikely you'll observe SDUC microSD cards on retailers similar Amazon.

What is UHS-I, UHS-Two, and UHS-Iii?

Forth with HC or XC, yous'll often see UHS markings in Roman numerals on SD cards and microSD cards. There are iii UHS specifications you might encounter: UHS-I, UHS-Two, and UHS-Three – though yous'll quite often only see the shorthand Roman numeral noted on the bill of fare.

This refers to the UHS or "Ultra High Speed" bus speed (a bus is a office on the card, or any calculator, that communicates data betwixt components). So UHS bus speed essentially indicates the maximum information transfer, or read and write rates.

UHS motorcoach speeds emerged as a response to growing demands for faster speeds, peculiarly with high-resolution video and big RAW format photography.

Best microSD card UHS class

The college the number the higher the transfer speed:

  • UHS-I allows transfer rates up to 104Mb/due south
  • UHS-Ii allows transfer rates upwardly to 312Mb/due south
  • UHS-Three  allows transfer speeds of 624Mb/s

UHS-I cards are the most common of the three, while UHS-Iii microSD cards is the least common and may not even exist supported by your device.

It'due south ever worth checking what standards your phone or camera supports earlier you splash your greenbacks on a new microSD.

What are Speed Classes?

C2, C4, C6 and C10 Speed Grade

You might also see the number 2, 4, 6 or 10 inside a circumvolve (which is actually the letter C!). The number refers to sustained writing speed in MB/s.  A microSD card marked Class x then means a minimum sustained writing speed of 10MB/s. Go on in mind, it's simply the minimum, and typically the cards can write faster than what'southward on the label.

Sustained speed matters when it comes to video recording, which requires writing data in a steady stream. The slower the sustained writing speed, the more probable you are to drop frames and lose information.

C Classes are pretty much on their way out, though you might still come across C10 ratings.

MicroSD symbols

UHS Speed Class

A step upwards from the standard Speed Class, and more mutual today, is the UHS Speed Class rating, which handles faster sustained writing speeds.

Information technology's worth noting: "UHS Speed Class" is different from the "UHS Bus Speed Class". 1 refers to the minimum sustained writing speeds, while the other indicates the maximum transfer rate.

Cards marked with a UHS speed class rating use the UHS bus for data transfer (while C Form cards without the UHS marks wouldn't), so you're likely to see both UHS speed course and UHS charabanc speed symbols on virtually microSD cards these days.

How do you tell the two apart?

Well, unlike the UHS-ane, UHS-II and UHS-Iii ratings, which are marked in Roman numerals, the UHS speed grade is marked with a U with a number within it. Quite frequently, you'll meet a U1 or U3 rating.

A faster write speed also means you spend less time waiting between capturing videos and photos.

  • U1 allows writing at a sustained speed of 10Mb/s
  • U2 allows writing at a sustained speed of 20Mb/ s
  • U3 allows writing at a sustained speed of 30Mb/south

Video Class speed

It would exist likewise like shooting fish in a barrel if the distinctions ended there, but there's too a newer Video Class or V Form – which promises even faster sustained writing speeds for video recording.

Westward ith the ever - growing appetite for 4K and 8K video , 5 classes allow continuous writing rates at 10 Mb/south , thirty Mb/southward , threescore Mb/s and 90 Mb/s. You'll see this noted with a V beside the corresponding write speed.

MicroSD Video Class

Is Class 10 and U1 the same thing?

This is debated, but what's certain is both permit a writing speed of 10MB/due south. You lot might see microSD cards sporting both the U ane and C10 symbols. Similarly, you might run across both the V30 and U3 symbols (equally in the image above) – over again both bespeak a 30Mb/s writing speed.

All this confirms is you can expect a sustained writing speed of 30Mb/south and the menu is suitable for video recording.

How we examination microSD cards

We use CrystalDiskMark vi to test the read and write speeds of each card. This tests both the sequential speeds (reading and writing big blocks of data) and small-file performance, using 4KB reads and writes.

Tests are carried out on our Intel Core i7-based test rig over USB iii.0. Nosotros use the full-size SD adapters which come with cards and a Lexar Professional USB 3.0 Dual-Slot Reader. If a card comes with its own USB iii.0 adapter, as with Lexar'southward own card, we use that instead.