Most microSD cards are fast enough for stashing photos, recording video and transferring files, but some will get you a little more bang for your buck than others. If you\u2019re looking to boost the storage of your Nintendo Switch 2<\/a>, Steam Deck<\/a>, GoPro<\/a> or any other device that still accepts microSD cards, we can help. We\u2019ve thoroughly researched the market and several cards through a suite of benchmark tests. Here are the best that we\u2019ve tested, along with some general advice on what to look for when buying a new card.<\/p>\n Lexar<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Storage capacity<\/strong>: 128GB, 256GB, 512GB, 1TB | Speed classes<\/strong>: U3, V30, A2, Class 10 | Warranty<\/strong>: Lifetime limited<\/p>\n A good UHS-I card is quick enough for most people\u2019s needs, and the Lexar Professional Silver Plus<\/a> is the best value of the ones we\u2019ve tested. Paired with Lexar\u2019s USB card reader<\/a>, it consistently delivered faster sequential reads and writes than any other UHS-I model across our benchmark tests. It\u2019s rated for read speeds up to 205 MB\/s and write speeds up to 150 MB\/s, both of which are relatively high to begin with, but we found the latter to reach into the 180-190 MB\/s range in synthetic benchmarks like CrystalDiskMark, ATTO and AJA.<\/p>\n Our 12GB test folder wrote to the card in 76 seconds on average, which was roughly 30 seconds quicker than the Samsung Pro Plus and Samsung Pro Ultimate, our two previous top picks. It effectively tied the Pro Ultimate to lead all UHS-I cards we\u2019ve tried in reading that test file back to our PC. (That one averaged about 67 seconds, if you\u2019re keeping score at home.) Both Samsung cards and a few others beat the Silver Plus in some random performance benchmarks, though it was still plenty competitive in that regard. Either way, it has all the requisite ratings \u2014 U3, V30, A2 \u2014 and it\u2019s more than speedy enough for working with 4K videos or moving files between devices without major delays (so long as you have a reader and\/or host device that can enable those max speeds).<\/p>\n The card itself is waterproof with an IPX7 rating, and Lexar backs it with a lifetime warranty. Sizes range from 128GB to a spacious 1TB. The optional reader<\/a> \u2014 which you can buy separately or as part of a bundle \u2014 is a bit large, but it conveniently includes both USB-A and USB-C ports, so you shouldn\u2019t need any dongles to connect it to a phone or PC.<\/p>\n The Silver Plus’ pricing has usually been the thing that’s put it over the top. For most of the past several months, the 128GB model<\/a> sold for around $15, while the 256GB, 512GB and 1TB variants have gone for about $23, $40 and $80, respectively. Those aren\u2019t the cheapest prices we\u2019ve ever seen, and the math will change a bit if you need to factor in a card reader, but they\u2019ve either undercut or matched competitors like the Pro Plus, Pro Ultimate or SanDisk Extreme despite the Silver Plus being the more performant card overall. So, to recap: It\u2019s fast, it\u2019s durable and it\u2019s often reasonably affordable. That\u2019s the recipe for an easy recommendation.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\nTable of contents<\/h2>\n
Best microSD cards of 2026<\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n