15 Best External Hard Drives for Graphic Designers & Creatives in 2024

Searching for the best external hard drive for your Mac or PC? Search no more.

We’ve rounded up the best storage hard drives and ranked them, making it easy for you to find the right external hard drive for you.

Picking the best one though can be tricky and there are a few things that you may want to consider first.

Read on to see how to choose a hard drive and the best external hard drives you can buy today.

Power Tip: You should also use online cloud storage to back up your files, like LiveDrive or DropBox.

 

 

What is the best external hard drive?

The ADATA SE800 is our pick for the best external hard drive. Below is a full list of our choices for the Best External Storage Hard Drives for Designers & Creatives.

 

The Best Storage Hard Drives for Graphic Designers in 2024

If you’ve been working in a creative field, you know the amount of data that you can create in a week, day, or even an hour. Having a high-quality external hard drive for storage can make it easy to keep important files secure as well as have a backup for the vital information pertaining to your business.

While many of the external hard drives on our list may have the same features, they are not all considered the same and whether you choose one based on the price or brand familiarity, you want to make sure the one you pick suits your needs.

 

1. ADATA SE800 (Editor’s Choice)

The best external hard drive overall

Capacity: 1TB | Interface: USB 3.0

Finding the perfect external hard drive that fits all of your needs can be a constant struggle but the SE800 from ADATA looks to be about as close as you can get with its highly durable design that is small, light, and performs fast.

Included with the drive are cables from USB-C and USB-A even though they do tend to be a little short, it’s a minor complaint from a shirt-pocket-sized drive that can be an excellent addition to your kit.

Pros	Cons
➕ Compact, light, and fast	➖ Short cable length
➕ Durable build
➕ Both USB-A and USB-C cables are available

 

Latest Price on Amazon:

 

2. LaCie Mobile Drive

Best external hard drive for Mac users

Capacity: 5TB | Interface: USB 3.0

Many people who own either a MacBook or even an iMac, tout the design and overall look as reasons why they gravitate towards the brand, and many of the accessories that they buy for their computer match that design, such as the LaCie Mobile Device.

With its all-metal enclosure, the drive will look right at home next to any Apple product and perform just as well. Packed with a toolkit from LaCie that can easily handle backups, restores, and mirroring, although it does require a download first.

It can also be a bit hefty but for the amount of storage at a fair price, you can’t go wrong.

Pros	Cons
➕ Good speed	➖ Hefty for a portable drive
➕ Sleek design
➕ Embedded USB cable

 

Latest Price on Amazon:

 

3. Samsung Portable SSD T7 Touch

Best external hard drive for security-conscious travelers

Capacity: 2TB | Interface: USB 3.0

When you travel a lot, it can be easy to lose some things during travel and if you have sensitive data, you want to make sure it’s secure.

The SSD T7 Touch from Samsung, a credit-card-sized SSD comes with a built-in fingerprint reader as well as an LED status indicator and offers fast and versatile performance every time you use it.

Available in capacities of up to 2TB, the drive gives you a great way to protect your files, even if it is a little on the expensive side.

Pros	Cons
➕ Fast speed	➖ Not water resistant
➕ Great build	➖ Aluminum can be scratched
➕ Fast fingerprint sensor	➖ Needs USB 3.2 for best performance outcome
➕ Both USB-A and USB-C cables included

 

Latest Price on Amazon:

 

4. Seagate Backup Plus Ultra Touch

Best external hard drive for general-use storage

Capacity: 2TB | Interface: USB 3.0

Even with all the flashy bells and whistles that many other drives can come with, sometimes a basic, secure drive is all you need.

The Ultra Touch drive from Seagate is a small and light drive that protects your data with a password and AES-256 hardware encryption, providing you with the security you’re looking for. A Seagate Toolkit is available via download to handle backups and recovery as well as mirroring.

While the fabric-covered enclosure is nice, it can make it a bit slippery when you grab it.

Pros	Cons
➕ Compact and light	➖ Old SuperSpeed Micro-B USB connector
➕ Backup/recovery functions and mirroring options are available
➕ Password protected
➕ AES-256 hardware encryption

 

Latest Price on Amazon:

 

5. WD My Passport

Best external hard drive for media

Capacity: 5TB | Interface: USB 3.0

Most people who shop around for an external hard drive will know the name Western Digital or WD for short.

With their My Passport line, they offer small and light options for all of your needs, and with a capacity of up to 5TB, you can store all of your files, photos, and videos with ease. Packed with AES-256 hardware encryption plus password protection, the drive comes with apps for checking drive health, reformatting, and even backups and restoring information.

The combination of storage and apps makes this drive to consider even as a backup.

Pros	Cons
➕ Compact design	➖ Design is simple but might not be appealing to everyone
➕ Automatic backup	➖ No USB-C
➕ 256-bit AES superstrong hardware encryption
➕ Great performance

 

Latest Price on Amazon:

 

6. G-Techno ArmorATD

Best external hard drive for on-the-go users

Capacity: 5TB | Interface: USB 3.0

When you’re on the go and need an external hard drive, many of the options out there either don’t have the capacity you need or are so fragile that you break one every month.

The ArmorATD from G-Techno comes with a protective bumper all around that you can remove when you need to.

While the design gives it a rugged appeal, the drive doesn’t come with an activity light, backup utilities, or photo/video subscriptions but the capacity offered at an affordable price makes this a great option.

Pros	Cons
➕ Sleek design	➖ Average performance
➕ Sheer capacity
➕ Fast speed

 

Latest Price on Amazon:

 

7. LaCie 2big RAID

Best external hard drive for creatives who need extreme storage

Capacity: 16TB | Interface: USB 3.0

Graphic designers and other creatives regularly handle large amounts of data. This can require an incredible amount of storage space.

The LaCie 2big RAID comes with a whopping 16TB of storage with two hot-swappable, high-capacity drives that come with a wide variety of settings that allow you to use the drive with maximum flexibility and complete data protection.

Pros	Cons
➕ Solid performance	➖ Noisy
➕ During the warranty period, free data recovery service is provided	➖ Blue light is intense
➕ Easy to use

 

Latest Price on Amazon:

 

8. JOIOT 2TB Portable External SSD

 

Best hard drive for photo backup

Capacity: 2TB | Interface: USB 3.1

The read and write speeds of the Joiot External SSD are 430MB/s and 340MB/s, respectively. With its Type-C physical interface and USB 3.1 Gen 1 interface protocol, this hard drive provides outstanding performance.

Given that it offers quick storage and data transfer, this is the greatest option for content designers and reviewers of videos and photos. It could transmit high-definition content like 4K videos, games, and other things.

It can speed up efficiency and cut down on transfer time. This external SSD is the finest option if you need to replace your hard drive and USB flash drive in a Windows PC system. The device is portable for work, travel, and business because it is incredibly thin and light.

Pros	Cons
➕ Best photo backup for traveling	➖ Tiny SSD
➕ Amazing price and quality	➖ Slow when handling an OS
➕ Shock and vibration resistant
➕ Highly portable and high speed

 

Latest Price on Amazon:

 

9. Portable NAS External Wireless Hard Drive

Best hard drive with one-click backup

Capacity: 2TB | Interface: WI-FI, USB 2.0

This wireless external hard drive is called Portable NAS External Wireless Hard Drive, and already it’s one of the better ones around. It can transport data at a rate of 10 MB/s over WiFi. While this may not be the speediest, it truly makes up for it in battery life, ringing in a 3800mAh battery capacity. In comparison to other hard drives, it is more portable and contains an extendable micro memory card backup slot too.

What’s more, while most hard drives can only connect up to 5 devices at a time, this one allows you to simultaneously stream and share with up to 10!

Pros	Cons
➕ Protects private data	➖ May be challenging to configure
➕ Allows multiple usages in devices at the same time.	➖transport data rate can be faster
➕ Provision of memory cards up to 1TB.

 

Latest Price on Amazon:

 

10. WD 5TB Elements Portable External Hard Drive HDD

Best external hard drive for gamers

Capacity: 5TB | Interface: USB 3.0

In a list full of giants, Western Digital’s 5TB beast is one of the strongest contenders. If you are looking for something small and lightweight to take along on the go, this is the one for you.

The simple design and reliable performance make it a good fit for computers, laptops, and gaming consoles as well. With many features and great storage, it is a good deal considering the reasonably low price.

Pros	Cons
➕ Can store games on gaming consoles	➖ Fragile
➕ Easy to use
➕ Doesn’t require its own power source

 

Latest Price on Amazon:

 

11. Seagate Expansion 16TB External Hard Drive HDD

Best budget external hard drive with extreme storage

Capacity: 16TB | Interface: USB 3.0/2.0

Known for its amazing creations, Seagate’s 16TB HDD is here to offer you a great storage experience at an affordable price. It works well for graphic designers on multiple platforms/devices for a versatile range of storage purposes. The 18″ 3.0 USB provides a faster data transfer speed, making it an ideal pick for quick connectivity and long-term performance.

Pros	Cons
➕ Powerful and reliable performance	➖ Noisy while writing data
➕ Great storage device for data backup
➕ Easy to use

 

Latest Price on Amazon:

 

12. Toshiba Canvio Advance 2TB Portable External Hard Drive

Best budget external hard drive

Capacity: 2TB | Interface: USB 3.0

Size comparable to a deck of cards, Toshiba’s Canvio Advance is much more portable than traditional drives. With a glossy, slim design, the LED indicator lets you know when you read/write data. Creators can store their designs and extra data with ease. Comparable in size to a deck of cards, Toshiba’s Canvio Advance is much more portable than traditional drives.

With a glossy, slim design, the LED indicator lets you know when you read/write data. Creators can store their designs and extra data with ease. It is low-priced, offers a moderate speed, and portability makes it perfect for those on the go.

Pros	Cons
➕ Sleek design	➖ No travel pouch
➕ Good read/write speed
➕ Compact

 

Latest Price on Amazon:

 

13. SanDisk Professional 4TB PRO-G40 SSD

Best hard drive with Thunderbolt 3 compatibility

Capacity: 4 TB  Interface: USB 3.2

SanDisk is one of the world’s leading companies that produce flash memory products for all things tech. So, it goes without saying that what they put out makes people’s lives better and easier.

On that note, SanDisk Professional 4TB PRO-G40 SSD provides flexibility with fast performance. With such flexibility, it is unsurprising that the 2TB and 4TB storage capacities carry high price tags. The disappointing part is the drive lacks weatherproofing when compared to its competitors. It can also slow down significantly during a large transfer of files.

It’s also designed with a pro-grade enclosure, making it very strong and unbreakable. 

A true dual-mode Thunderbolt 3/USB drive. Compared to most external SSDs in the market, this pick offers USB-style universal compatibility.

Pros	Cons
➕ Sleek look	➖ 4TB is the largest capacity
➕ USB and Thunderbolt-3 compatibility	➖ Lacks weather-proof capacity

 

Latest Price on Amazon:

 

14. Vansuny 1TB USB 3.1 Portable External SSD

Best hard drive for ultra-fast transmission

Capacity: 1 TB Interface: USB 3.1

Vansuny s a solid-state drive that measures 12 inches and has a 1024 GB storage capacity. Amazing write and read speeds of 1050 MB/s and 1000 MB/s are provided by this SSD. By doing this, you may transfer high-definition photographs and 4K videos in less time.

It is a small and tiny SSD that measures 4.04*1.1*0.39 inches and weighs 1.8oz. Both work and play are perfect for it. It has a durable metal body without any moving parts, which offers superior protection for the data inside.

Pros	Cons
➕ Tough and durable	➖ Slow in downloading files
➕ Mini and portable	➖ Deletes data when unplugged

 

Latest Price on Amazon:

 

15. Seagate STEA2000400 External Hard Drive

Best for easy functionality hard drive

Capacity: 5TB | Interface: USB 

Are you hunting for the best and easy functionality of an external hard drive that makes your work easier? Seagate STEA2000400 External Hard Drive is a perfect choice that features simple drag-and-drop functionality. It helps in expanding the capacity of your computer with a lightweight and compact solution by 5TB. 

It is compatible with a normal plug allowing you to transfer with USB 3.0 and is backward compatible with USB 2.0 for additional system compatibility. It is compatible with both Windows and Mac computers. 

This lightweight and compact external drive make backup a snap. You can just drag and drop the portable hard drive into a computer to automatically recognize it, then plug and play it with the included USB 3.0 cable. An external power supply is not necessary since the drive is powered by a USB cable. Also, it is automatically recognized by Windows operating system, so there is no need for software to install or configuration to do.

Pros	Cons
➕ Easy to use	➖ Slow compared to others.
➕ Good for automatic file backups
➕ Reasonable price
➕ Works on both Windows and Mac systems

 

 

Latest Price on Amazon:

 

How to choose an External Hard Drive

When you choose to save your important files on something a little more secure and portable than your desktop or laptop hard drive, it may be enticing to buy the first one you see, because hey, all storage hard drives are the same right?

Wrong. These are many things to consider when it comes to buying a hard drive for storing your important files.

Here’s what we feel like you should consider before you start shopping:

• HDD vs SSD
• Storage Capacity
• Portability & Durability
• Security
• Extra Features

HDD vs SSD

When you start looking around at all of your options for an external hard drive, you may come across two different acronyms pretty often: HDD and SSD. Both of these storage formats can have their benefits and restrictions. To give you some help, let’s take a closer look at each and how they may be a possible option to suit your needs.

HDD

A traditional external storage device will typically have an HDD, otherwise known as a Hard Disk Drive within it. The construction of these types of drives is much like the hard drive within your computer. Inside the casing, when you transfer data to the device, the discs within the drive spin, writing the data on its surface. Many traditional external hard drives that use this type will be larger in size, but also relatively inexpensive in accordance with the storage size of the drive.

SSD

Conversely, an SSD or Solid State Drive can be much faster when it comes to transferring data to the drive than traditional drives. This is because SSD’s don’t have any mechanical or moving parts. These types of drives tend to be smaller in size and a bit more expensive than traditional drives, especially at larger storage sizes. If you’re looking for a hard drive with the best speed, you will likely want to go with an SSD. If you want a larger capacity, for a cheaper price go for HDD.

Storage Capacity

Out of all of the things to consider when you purchase an external hard drive for storage, the capacity has to be number one. Buying a top-of-the-line hard drive only to have the storage space not be what you need for your work wastes not only your time but your money as well.

When you are considering the right size storage for your needs, think about how you are going to use it. If you have a lot of documents, photos, and videos that you want to keep, a hard drive with a capacity of 1TB will suit most people’s needs. However, if you need more space, those options are available as well. It all comes down to how much space you think you’re going to need.

Transfer speed

Like many things in technology, the faster that something can be completed the better. People don’t really have time to wait around for files to take all day to transfer or download, especially if those files are sensitive business information. Choosing an external hard drive with a fast transfer speed is affected by two factors: the storage tech being used and the connector that it uses.

While most connectors used by external hard drives will use a standard USB connection, there can be some significant differences depending on the generation of the USB connector. USB 2.0 is the old boy on the block and unless there is no other option, shouldn’t be used. USB 3.0 is a good step forward in terms of speed (up to 5Gbps), but the latest updates to 3.1 or 3.1 Gen 2 is quickly becoming more common and offers speeds up to 10Gbps. Thunderbolt 3 devices offer the fastest transfer speeds on the market, reaching transfer speeds of up to 40Gbps.

Portability and Durability

Like storage capacity, the portability and durability of the external hard drive you select are really dependent on how you will be using the device. If you are primarily going to only use the hard drive in your home office to save work files, the portability and durability of the hard drive isn’t a major thing to consider.

On the other hand, if you’re always on the go, having meetings away from the office, and like the idea of having a mobile backup drive for all of the files that you take with you everywhere, it becomes a real thing to consider. With these types of drives, the lighter is naturally better so it doesn’t weigh you down. One that doesn’t use an external power cable is important as well.

Many portable external hard drives are packaged in rugged casings or in the case of one of the choices on our list, a rubber enclosure that can protect it if you accidentally drop it.

Security

If you don’t consider the security features of the external hard drive that you are going to purchase, you are only inviting people to not only steal your hard drive but steal your files. This can be a major problem, especially if those files are sensitive in any way.

Many hard drives available today are compatible with software encryption solutions that are available. For those who consider their files even more sensitive and the security of their data is very important, you may want to look at drives with hardware encryption

Security features for external hard drives can run the gamut from stronger casings that can prevent it from being physically tampered with to those with pin-code inputs and even those with additional security including PCB’s that have been dipped in resin to make accessing internal memory chips even harder.

Extra Features

External hard drives can have any number of extra features. From Wi-Fi connectivity for easy file access to a better warranty, many manufacturers will add extra features to attract a buyer into choosing their product. If you like two hard drives and one has a longer warranty, choose that one if you have any concerns about the reliability of the hard drive you pick.

 

Frequently Asked Questions 

 

The Best External Hard Drives of 2024

Choosing the right external hard drive can help make your work easier and help you succeed. With our list of the best external hard drives in 2024, we hope that by choosing the right hard drive for your needs, you can not only get your work done but also grow your business and make 2024 your best year ever.

 

Choosing the Best Storage Hard Drive for You

Throughout your career in whatever creative field you choose, it is very likely that you will end up creating a lot of information you want to keep safe. Choosing the right backup storage device to not only save those files but keeping them safe and secure and accessible can be what makes one favorable over another.

We wanted to share our thoughts on the best external hard drives and maybe give you some options if you are in the market for one of your own.

Is there one that is tried and true for your files that’s not on our list? Tell us more in the comments.

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