Although the best laptops are becoming increasingly powerful, the solid state drives (SSDs) fitted inside of them may not always be the biggest – with plenty of models offering 1TB or less. That's why it's worth considering one of the fastest external hard drives to expand your storage or back up your data.
SSDs aren't hard drives, although there are advantages to both formats. You may well be seeking better speeds or a smaller device, in which case we'd recommend you check out the fastest SSDs. But if storage size is your priority, look no further, as we've rounded up some of the fastest best external hard drives below.
The very fastest hard drives may be on the pricier side, but you're guaranteed plenty of expansion space and speed to hold any media or content you wish. We're only taking a look at 2.5in and 3.5in external HDDs – not internal hard drives – but our guide focuses on a variety of devices, examining internal and external benchmarking to evaluate the speeds of different drives.
The fastest external hard drive of 2025 in full:
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We've extensively tested countless external hard drives over the years, and so we've pulled together the fastest external hard drive options on the market today to help you find the right external drive for your needs and budget.
The fastest external hard drive overall
The SanDisk Professional G-DRIVE Desktop offers a maximum 22TB storage capacity and incredibly fast read and write speeds when you consider other options. We wrote in our review that it's firmly aimed at those who want to spend big and get a great return on their investment. Speeds aren't as pacy as the average SSD, and it's a weighty, bulky device – weighs 1.4kg and measuring 41 x 133 x 210mm. It's far more suited, therefore, to being a permanent fixture on your home office desk.
Nevertheless, despite its relatively cumbersome exterior, and the need for a power supply, the trade-off is blistering speeds of up to 280MB/s for an HDD in the 18TB model, according to the manufacturer. This is thanks to the enterprise-class 7,200RPM Ultrastar drive fitted inside. If you’re looking to expand your desktop storage, it’s a perfect addition to your home office or desk setup. Its 22TB maximum capacity is also the largest for a single drive, rivaled by the Seagate One Touch Hub. While the Seagate might be a tad slower, it’s also much cheaper, so you’ll need to take that into account when making a buying decision too, but there’s no beating the SanDisk for speed.
Read our full SanDisk G-DRIVE review.
The fastest, most portable external hard drive
You can't shrink a hard drive beyond a certain point due to the 2.5in spinning disk embedded within – unlike external SSDs which can get much smaller. But the LaCie Mobile Drive is among the most compact and sleekest on the market – with the 2TB version as small as 10 x 85 x 118mm.
Its minimalist design is also complemented by clean laser etching, although the dimensions do expand to 20 x 85 x 118 with the 4TB and 5TB versions. That said, these are still much better than most hard drives out there. It’s not too shabby either as far as speed is concerned. With maximum read and write speeds of up to 130MB/s, it comes in at more than the average 120MB/s you’d expect from a hard drive, making it among the quickest in this category, especially if you’re looking for a small hard drive to use on the go.
What you do miss with the LaCie Mobile Drive is the lack of the rugged qualities normally associated with the LaCie brand. Nevertheless, it’s much sleeker than a variety of external hard drives including the LaCie Rugged Mini, and it’s reasonably priced, too, making it a great option if portability is what you’re looking for in a hard drive.
The fastest, most affordable external hard drive
The WD My Passport is among the cheapest external HDDs out there, offering up to 6TB of storage space for under $200. It features a 2.5in SMR-based drive with a 128MB cache – with benchmarking showing it's faster than the 2TB LaCie Mobile Drive, according to Tom’s Hardware. The LaCie, as we’ve covered, isn’t a slouch as far as HDDs are concerned – but, obviously, its average read and write speeds of 127MB/s and 124MB/s aren’t going to match the best SSDs.
With features such as password protection and AES 256-bit encryption, however, the WD My Passport is one of the best options for the security and price-conscious, and you can often find fantastic deals periodically throughout the year.
The fastest rugged external hard drive
Not everyone might love the look of the ADATA HD710 Pro, but it's highly durable and able to withstand quite a hefty amount of damage thanks to its triple-layered casing, engineered with a silicone material with military-grade resistance to shocks. You can also pick it up on a variety of colors.
The robust and rugged hard drive is also tested beyond IPX8 requirements, according to the manufacturer, meaning it goes beyond the standard IP68 you’d expect from other rugged hard drives. What does this mean in practice? The ADATA HD710 Pro can be submerged in water for up to 60mins (complete with waterproof covers for the USB port), and it can be dropped from a height of 1.5m. This is complemented by in-built shock vibration sensing technology, with a tiny red light alerting users to any disturbances.
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