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Portable media storage device reviews

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Product reviews

Last updated: 29 September 2025
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Steve By Steve
Elias By Elias

Portable storage lets you take all your files anywhere in your pocket, but what type of drive will best suit your needs? We lab test and review the latest portable storage drives to help you find the best one for your needs. 

Our buying guide reveals what to look for and how we test explains how our experts get their results.

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Our test covers high-capacity USB flash drives, solid state drives (SSDs) and hard drives (HDs).

  • USB flash drives are the most portable
  • Portable SSDs are usually the fastest
  • Portable HDs cost the least per gigabyte (GB).

Our interactive comparison tool helps you find out which drives are the fastest, come with back-up software and have hardware encryption. Our recommended list will help you quickly see which models come out on top.

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Samsung Portable SSD T5 (1TB)
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Samsung Portable SSD T5 (1TB)

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Cost per GB 0.29
Buy now <a href="https://www.amazon.com.au/gp/product/B074WZZ1D5/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=247&creative=1211&creativeASIN=B074WZZ1D5&linkCode=as2&tag=choice041-22&linkId=72e9e89a1c706966e493764b789f2c32" target="_blank" class="cta cta-button cta-primary">Buy now</a>
$269
Samsung Portable SSD T7 (2TB)
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Samsung Portable SSD T7 (2TB)

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Cost per GB 0.31
Buy now <a href="https://www.amazon.com.au/gp/product/B087DG39V8/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=247&creative=1211&creativeASIN=B087DG39V8&linkCode=as2&tag=choice041-22&linkId=d76dedf0a31c233e5fab6075f28c4a28" target="_blank" class="cta cta-button cta-primary">Buy now</a>
$569
SanDisk Extreme Portable SSD (1TB)
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SanDisk Extreme Portable SSD (1TB)

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Cost per GB 0.32
$299
SanDisk Extreme Pro Portable SSD (2TB)
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SanDisk Extreme Pro Portable SSD (2TB)

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Cost per GB 0.37
Buy now <a href="https://www.amazon.com.au/gp/product/B07TNR2CXJ/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=247&creative=1211&creativeASIN=B07TNR2CXJ&linkCode=as2&tag=choice041-22&linkId=3dbd173de06f454d3be88dd7704d855f" target="_blank" class="cta cta-button cta-primary">Buy now</a>
$669
Samsung Portable SSD T5 (500GB)
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Samsung Portable SSD T5 (500GB)

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Cost per GB 0.38
Buy now <a href="https://www.amazon.com.au/gp/product/B07Q41P7B7/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=247&creative=1211&creativeASIN=B07Q41P7B7&linkCode=as2&tag=choice041-22&linkId=40676cf5ce26bc849d0e583953b37ed6" target="_blank" class="cta cta-button cta-primary">Buy now</a>
$175
WD My Passport SSD (1TB)
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WD My Passport SSD (1TB)

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Cost per GB 0.31
$299
Verbatim Vx500 SSD External Solid State Drive (480GB)
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Verbatim Vx500 SSD External Solid State Drive (480GB)

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Cost per GB 0.37
$165
Harris Technology Portable Pocket Drive (1TB)
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Harris Technology Portable Pocket Drive (1TB)

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Cost per GB 0.26
$244
WD My Passport SSD (512GB)
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WD My Passport SSD (512GB)

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Cost per GB 0.38
$180
Seagate Barracuda Fast SSD (2TB)
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Seagate Barracuda Fast SSD (2TB)

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Cost per GB 0.31
$569
SanDisk Extreme Pro USB 3.1 Solid State Flash Drive (128GB)
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SanDisk Extreme Pro USB 3.1 Solid State Flash Drive (128GB)

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Cost per GB 0.66
$79
LaCie Portable SSD (1TB)
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LaCie Portable SSD (1TB)

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Cost per GB 0.4
$371
Seagate FastSSD (1TB)
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Seagate FastSSD (1TB)

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Cost per GB 0.33
$311
LaCie 500GB Rugged Thunderbolt USB-C (STFS500400)
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LaCie 500GB Rugged Thunderbolt USB-C (STFS500400)

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Cost per GB 0.93
$445
WD My Passport Go (SSD 2TB)
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WD My Passport Go (SSD 2TB)

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Cost per GB 0.25
$449
Seagate Expansion Portable Drive (5TB)
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Seagate Expansion Portable Drive (5TB)

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Cost per GB 0.05
Buy now <a href="https://www.amazon.com.au/gp/product/B07TNVBLNT/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=247&creative=1211&creativeASIN=B07TNVBLNT&linkCode=as2&tag=choice041-22&linkId=85343079a882f5953d26242e6bf86822" target="_blank" class="cta cta-button cta-primary">Buy now</a>
$209
LaCie Rugged RAID Pro (HDD 4TB)
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LaCie Rugged RAID Pro (HDD 4TB)

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Cost per GB 0.13
$469
Samsung USB 3.1 Flash Drive Bar Plus (128GB)
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Samsung USB 3.1 Flash Drive Bar Plus (128GB)

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Cost per GB 0.33
$39
Seagate Backup Plus Portable (5TB)
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Seagate Backup Plus Portable (5TB)

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Cost per GB 0.05
Buy now <a href="https://www.amazon.com.au/gp/product/B07MY44VNM/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=247&creative=1211&creativeASIN=B07MY44VNM&linkCode=as2&tag=choice041-22&linkId=0c77262c103674dd4eff10888637abb8" target="_blank" class="cta cta-button cta-primary">Buy now</a>
$219
Adata HD710 Pro 2.5" External HDD Durable (5TB)
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Adata HD710 Pro 2.5" External HDD Durable (5TB)

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Cost per GB 0.06
$255
LaCie Mobile Drive (HDD 5TB)
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LaCie Mobile Drive (HDD 5TB)

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Cost per GB 0.05
$249
Samsung USB Type-C Flash Drive Duo Plus (128GB)
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Samsung USB Type-C Flash Drive Duo Plus (128GB)

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Cost per GB 0.74
$88
SanDisk Extreme Go USB 3.1 (SDCZ800-128G-Q46)
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SanDisk Extreme Go USB 3.1 (SDCZ800-128G-Q46)

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Cost per GB 0.43
$50
Verbatim Vx400 SSD USB (128GB)
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Verbatim Vx400 SSD USB (128GB)

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Cost per GB 1.01
$116
Seagate Backup Plus Portable Storage 4TB
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Seagate Backup Plus Portable Storage 4TB

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Cost per GB 0.05
$188
Seagate Backup Plus Ultra Touch (STHH1000301)
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Seagate Backup Plus Ultra Touch (STHH1000301)

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Cost per GB 0
Verbatim Store 'n' Go (HDD 4TB)
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Verbatim Store 'n' Go (HDD 4TB)

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Cost per GB 0.05
$199
WD Elements SE (HDD 5TB)
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WD Elements SE (HDD 5TB)

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Cost per GB 0.05
$229
LaCie 4TB Porche Design Mobile P9227 (STFD4000400)
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LaCie 4TB Porche Design Mobile P9227 (STFD4000400)

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Cost per GB 0.06
$208
LaCie 4TB Rugged USB-C (HDD 4TB)
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LaCie 4TB Rugged USB-C (HDD 4TB)

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Cost per GB 0.07
$239
Toshiba Canvio Basics USB 3.0 hard Drive (4TB)
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Toshiba Canvio Basics USB 3.0 hard Drive (4TB)

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Cost per GB 0.04
$149
WD My Passport Ultra (HDD 4TB)
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WD My Passport Ultra (HDD 4TB)

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Cost per GB 0.05
$174
LaCie Rugged Secure (HDD 2TB)
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LaCie Rugged Secure (HDD 2TB)

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Cost per GB 0.12
$212
SanDisk Ultra Flair USB 3.0 Flash Drive (128GB)
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SanDisk Ultra Flair USB 3.0 Flash Drive (128GB)

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Cost per GB 0.61
$70
WD Elements SE (HDD 4TB)
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WD Elements SE (HDD 4TB)

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Cost per GB 0.04
$159
WD My Passport (HDD 4TB)
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WD My Passport (HDD 4TB)

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Cost per GB 0.05
$165
WD My Passport (HDD 5TB)
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WD My Passport (HDD 5TB)

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Cost per GB 0.04
$199
LaCie DJI CoPilot (HDD 2TB)
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LaCie DJI CoPilot (HDD 2TB)

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Cost per GB 0.27
$495
SanDisk Ultra Dual Drive USB Type-C (128GB)
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SanDisk Ultra Dual Drive USB Type-C (128GB)

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Cost per GB 0.43
$49
SanDisk iXpand Flash Drive (128GB)
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SanDisk iXpand Flash Drive (128GB)

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Cost per GB 1.08
$129
Samsung USB 3.0 Flash Drive BAR (MUF-128BA)
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Samsung USB 3.0 Flash Drive BAR (MUF-128BA)

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Cost per GB 0.49
$58
Kogan KAUSB128V3A (128GB)
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Kogan KAUSB128V3A (128GB)

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Cost per GB 0.42
$49
Samsung USB Type-C Flash Drive (128GB)
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Samsung USB Type-C Flash Drive (128GB)

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Cost per GB 0.49
$58