Top 7 Best External Hard Drive for Photographers

Last Updated on 4 weeks by Touhid

Are you searching for the best external hard drive for photographers? Welcome as you are in the right spot to buy the best hard drive for photographers. As a photographer, you should have a trustworthy external hard drive that can access, store, back up, archive your photos, videos and data to keep them secure.

A portable external hard drive is a device that will give you enough space to store your images, videos, data, and documents. In this post, you will get the list of affordable and best external hard drive for photographers in 2023.

Summary of Best External Hard Drive for Photographers

Your presence on this page shows that you are really interested in buying the best external hard drive for photographers. I’ve scrutinized different brands of hard drive and finalized the best hard drive based on their storage capacity, access, speed, reliability, USB connectivity, and performance.

I’ve analyzed the listed 7 top external hard drive for photographers and found some key comparisons so you can choose your desired best external hard drive.

Best External Hard Drive for Photographers – Buying Tips

An external hard drive is a portable drive that is very easy to use, flexible, and provides a large amount of space to store photos and videos. As a photographer, you need a storage or backup solution to store your photos, videos, and documents.

If you want to use an external HDD then your idea is very good because it has more storage space and doesn’t need to install application software or apps. It allows you to transfer your images and videos at a faster speed and keep them safe.

Here is the list of the best external hard drive for photographers with a minimum budget.

1. Seagate Ultra Touch 2TB External Hard Drive
2. WD 4TB My Passport Portable External Hard Drive
3. WD 5TB Elements Portable External Hard Drive
4. Seagate Portable 5TB External Hard Drive
5. SAMSUNG SSD T7 Portable External Solid-State Drive
6. SanDisk 1TB Extreme Portable External Solid-State Drive
7. Toshiba Canvio Basics 4TB Portable External Hard Drive

1. Seagate Ultra Touch 2TB External Hard Drive

Seagate Ultra Touch 2TB external HDD is one of the best external hard drive for photographers. It has more than 1.8K reviews with 4.6 ratings on amazon (to check the latest price click here).

The Ultra Touch 2TB external hard drive securely and easily manages images, videos, movies, and documents. It has a password-activated hardware encryption system for Mac or Windows to protect data.

Specification/ Features

I strongly recommend buying this drive who want to get in touch with their data backup and also want to ensure data security. There are a number of special features of the Seagate Ultra Touch external hard drive for photographers which are as follows:

About This Item

Storage Capacity: The digital storage capacity of Seagate Ultra Touch is 2 TB (Tera Byte) so it has enough space to store. This external hard drive is used for different purposes such as photographers, personal, gaming, and business purposes.

Easy Manage: You can use this HDD as an external laptop, hard drive, or PC and easily manage your photos, videos, movies, and more with Ultra Touch hard drive.

Security: The Ultra Touch 2TB external hard drive for photographers can securely and easily manage photos, videos, movies, and documents. It has a password-activated hardware encryption system to protect data for Mac or Windows.

Automatic Backup: This external hard drive has scheduled and automatic backups (such as daily, weekly, or monthly backups), and there is an option to mirror file folders across devices.

Stylish & Spacious: You can simply plug into a USB-C or USB 3.0 Windows or Mac to back up your documents and files with a single click.

Subscription: There has one (01) year complimentary subscription to Mylio Create in order to edit, manage, and share photos with others. It has four (04) months of affiliation with the Adobe Creative Cloud Photography plan.

Pros

• Reliable
• Very easy to use
• Small and light
• Complete software package

Cons

• No rubber feet

What will you get After Purchase?

• Seagate Ultra Touch HDD 2TB External Hard Drive
• 18-inch USB 3.0 Cable
• USB-C Adapter
• Quick Start Guide
• Downloadable Toolkit Backup Software
• One (01) year complimentary subscription to Mylio Create
• Four (04) month affiliation to the Adobe Creative Cloud Photography plan.

How to Buy/ Price?

Click on the following Amazon button to check the price or buy this Seagate’s Backup Plus Ultra Touch, which is the best backup hard drive for photographers.

2. WD 4TB My Passport Portable External Hard Drive

My Passport is another best external hard drive for photographers which is trusted and portable storage. It has more than 30K good reviews with 4.6 ratings on amazon (to check the latest price click here).

The design of the WD 4TB My Passport drive has been redesigned which is very stylish and slim to carry. It has a storage capacity of up to 4TB; you may also buy it for 1TB to 5TB.

Specification/ Features

If you are searching for more storage space (up to 5TB) within the minimum budget then it is recommended to you buy the WD My Passport Portable External Hard Drive. There are a number of key features of the My Passport Portable external hard drive for photographers which are as follows:

About This Item

Design: You will enjoy your journey with this external hard drive because the drive has been redesigned which is very stylish and slim to carry. It is very convenient to use and is available in a variety of eye-catching colors.

Super Easy: WD My Passport portable external hard drive for photographers has a super speed USB 3.0 cable (5Gbps) so you can rapidly start backing up your photos, videos, and documents. For your kind information, this external HDD is USB 2.0 compatible.

Security: It has built-in 256-bit AES hardware encryption with a password protection system that secures your data and files.

Capacity: If you buy this WD My Passport portable external hard drive then you will get enough storage for up to 4TB capacity. Even there has the option to buy 1TB, 2TB, and 5TB storage capacity hard drives (click here to check the latest price).

Backup: The data backup system of this hard drive is awesome and doesn’t get lost backup data. You will get WD Backup software to auto-backup your photos, videos, music, and documents. You can set the time to run automatically according to your suitable schedule.

Warranty: The WD hard drive is a trusted and reliable drive, that’s why its demand is increasing day by day. One other important point is that it has 3-year warranty support to ahead in your photography journey.

Pros

• Reliable
• Fast and efficient
• Secured
• Automatic backup Software
• 3-year warranty

Cons

• Lacks cloud storage options
• No USB-C connector

 What will you get After Purchase?

• Portable external hard drive
• SuperSpeed USB 3.0 cable (5Gbps)
• WD Discovery software (Internet activation required)
• Quick Install and Start Guide
• Three (03) year warranty support

How to Buy/ Price?

Click on the following Amazon button to check the price or buy this WD 4TB My Passport Portable, which is the best external hard drive for pictures and videos.

3. WD 5TB Elements Portable External Hard Drive

WD 5TB Elements Portable is another best external hard drive for photographers which is reliable, faster, and large space data storage capacity.

The WD 5TB Elements Portable drive is compatible with computers, Mac, PS4 & Xbox. It has more than 100K good reviews with 4.7 ratings on amazon (to check the latest price click here).

Specification/ Features

If you are looking for trustworthy and more storage space (up to 5TB) within the minimum budget then it is recommended to you purchase the WD 5TB Elements Portable External Hard Drive. There are a number of important features of the WD 5TB Elements Portable hard drive for photographers which are as follows:

About This Item

Simple and Fast: You will enjoy this WD 5TB Elements™ portable external hard drive because it is reliable, has faster data transfer rates, and has large space data storage capacity.

Compatibility: Compatibility is another positive sign of this hard drive. The WD Elements Portable drive has 1TB, 2TB, 4TB, and 5TB storage capacity. The single 1TB is compatible with the latest USB 3.0 and USB 2.0 devices. And the WD 5 TB Elements external drive is compatible with computers, Mac, PS4 & Xbox.

Huge Capacity: It has a capacity of up to 5TB of data storage, although the WD portable Elements is a small and lightweight design. So as a photographer, you can carry it easily if you’re constantly on the move.

Plug-and-play: You just open the package box and plug it into your devices (such as laptops, or computers) to use this portable hard drive.

Best Companion: I’m suggesting to you that, WD Elements will be the ideal companion for taking your important files (such as images, videos, and documents) with you on the go.

PC Performance: The WD 5TB Elements™ hard drive will help to improve your computer security and performance. Your computer may slow down for different reasons such as computer viruses and another reason is when the internal disk will be full then it slows down your PC.

In that case, transfer the files to your portable hard drive in order to free up space and get improve your computer performance.

Warranty: The WD 5TB Elements hard drive is a reliable, faster, and large space data storage capacity which has 2-year limited warranty support ahead in your photography journey.

 Pros

• Simple, Fast, and Portable
• USB 3.0 and USB 2.0 Compatibility
• Fast data transfer rates
• Improved PC performance

Cons

• No automatic backup system

What will you get After Purchase?

• Portable hard drive
• USB cable
• Quick install and Start guide
• 2-year limited warranty support

How to Buy/ Price?

Click on the following Amazon Button to check the price or buy this WD 5TB Elements Portable, which is one of the best travel external hard drives for photographers. 

4. Seagate Portable 5TB External Hard Drive 

Seagate has designed and developed another best external hard drives for photographers which is a Portable 5TB External Hard Drive HDD. It has different storage capacities from 500GB to 20TB so you can purchase it as per your ability.

If you want to easily store and access your images and videos, then Seagate Portable 5TB drive will be the best external hard drive for you.

This external hard drive is compatible with computers, Mac, PS4 & Xbox (Xbox one s and Xbox series S). You will imagine seeing it has more than 206K good reviews with 4.7 ratings on amazon (to check the latest price click here).

Specification/ Features

The Seagate Portable 5TB external hard drive has some superior features which are as follows:

About this Item

Storage capacity: This portable black model (STGX5000400) hard drive has a digital storage capacity of up to 5TB. Although it has different storage capacities from 500GB to 20TB, so you can buy it as per your needs.

Easy Access: After purchase, you can easily store and access your photos, videos, movies, and more into this portable 5TB external drive.

Compatibility: The Seagate has been designed to work with different operating systems such as Windows or Mac and it is also compatible with PS4, PC, Gaming Console, and Mac.

Setup and Backup: An automatic recognition software is required to set up a portable external hard drive to a computer. If you’re looking for a simple backup system then you are requested to buy this portable drive because it has an easy backup process just you need to drag and drop it.

Service: A group of support members of Seagate is dedicated to giving you service. After purchasing this product, you will get one (01) year of rescue service from Seagate to set up, store, access, and manage your documents.

Pros

• Easy to use and user friendly
• Lightweight
• Portability and Durability
• Excellent for backups

Cons

• Limited-service time

What will you get after Purchase?

• Seagate Portable Drive external storage
• USB cable
• Quick start guide

How to Buy/ Price?

Click on the following Amazon Button to check the price or buy this Seagate Portable 5TB  which is the top external hard drive for photographers.

5. Samsung SSD T7 Portable External Solid-State Drive

This is another awesome and best external HDD for photographers to store photos, games, movies, and sensitive documents. Samsung Portable SSD T7 is lightweight, pocket-sized, fast-speed, and reliable data storage for moving large documents.

The drive is typically used for Multimedia, Personal, and Business purposes. It has more than 17K good reviews with 4.8 ratings on amazon (to check the latest price click here) although the date of the first available product is May 19, 2020.

Specification/ Features

The Samsung SSD T7 Portable External Solid-State Drive is available in three sizes to suit your ability and needs, such as 500GB, 1TB, or 2TB. However, there are some exceptional key features of this SAMSUNG SSD T7 Portable hard drive which are as follows:

About This Item

Light Weight: Samsung Portable SSD T7 is lightweight, pocket-sized, fast speed, and reliable data storage external hard drive.

Super Speed: The Samsung Portable has a super speed other than a hard drive to transfer large files within seconds with USB 3.2 Gen 2 on the T7. Data read and write speeds of up to 1,050 MB/s and 1,000 MB/s, respectively

Reliable: This hard drive is really reliable for photographers, gamers, students, and professionals because it has faster speeds for storing large files and ensures reliability.

Strong and Resistant: The Portable SSD T7 is more resistant to shock than other HDDs because it has no moving portions and parts. If the HDD falls up to 6 feet high, then your data will remain safe and it’s solid aluminum construction enhances it is further strong and protection.

Device Compatibility: The SSD T7 is compatible with multiple devices such as computers, Mac, Android, and gaming consoles. It added convenience by including USB Type-C-to-C and Type-C-to-A cables.

Advanced Heat Control: Advanced Heat Control is a great advantage of this HDD because its thermal solution uses ePCM technology and a Dynamic Thermal Guard to resist and control the heat of the HDD. So, when you transfer data at a fast speed, the Portable SSD stays at an ideal temperature.

Security: The Samsung Portable external hard drive for photographers can securely and easily manage photos, videos, movies, and documents. It has AES 256-bit hardware encryption and SSD with password security to protect data for Windows, Mac, and Android.

Pros

• Lightweight
• Reliable
• Strong and Resistant
• Faster speed
• Compatibility and Portability

Cons

• Data storage capacity is not more than 2TB

What will you get After Purchase?

• SAMSUNG Portable external hard drive
• USB cable

How to Buy/ Price?

Click on the following Amazon Button to check the price or buy this SAMSUNG Portable SSD T7, which is the best SSD drive for photographers.

6. SanDisk 1TB Extreme Portable Solid-State Drive

As a photographer, your life is an enjoyable and exciting one because every day you are getting to experience new places to take photos, videos, and documents. To capture your daily activities, you need a fast, portable, and high-capacity drive like SanDisk Extreme Portable external SSD, which is the best external hard drive for photographers.

The SSD is typically used for Multimedia, Personal, and Business purposes and it is available in four sizes to suit your ability and needs such as 500GB, 1TB, 2TB, and 4TB.

Specification/ Features

SanDisk 1TB Extreme Portable External Solid-State Drive has some excellent key features which are as follows:

About This Item

Portable: SanDisk is a lightweight, Portable, and high-capacity hard drive for storing amazing content that accelerates you to every move.

Super Speed: The SanDisk Portable external hard drive has also wonderful speeds other than hard drives respectively, up to 1,050 MB/s for reading and 1,000 MB/s for writing.

Security: It can help you to keep your content private with password protection and has an AES 256-bit hardware encryption system which is supported by Windows 8, Windows 10, and macOS.

Faithful: The brand professional photographers in the world trust the SanDisk Portable external hard drive to store their photos, videos, and documents and handle their best shots and footage

Resistant: It has the capability of up to two-meter drop protection and IP55 water & dust resistance. It is noted that the drive should be clean and dry before use.

Easy File Management: SanDisk has developed a file management mobile app called SanDisk Memory Zone App, which is available in the Google Play™ store. The app will help you to access, unlock, and back up your phone files. This app automatically moves files from your phone to an external hard drive in order to free up space.

Warranty: After purchasing a SanDisk portable drive, you will get 5-year limited warranty support from SanDisk whenever you travel near and far. So, don’t worry, and their support will give you calmness of mind.

Pros

• Portable
• Faithfull
• Super Speed
• Easy File Management
• IP55 dust and water-resistant

Cons

• Price is expensive than other HDDs

What will you get After Purchase?

• SanDisk 1TB Extreme external hard drive
• USB cable

How to Buy/ Price?

Click on the following Amazon Button to check the price or buy this SanDisk 1TB Extreme HDD, which is the top external hard drive for photographers.

7. Toshiba Canvio Basics 4TB Portable HDD

Toshiba Canvio Basics 4TB portable drive is the another best external hard drives for photographers, gamers, and professionals, which allows you to store your files and access them anywhere.

It is a reliable, simple plug-and-play operation, and high storage (4TB) capacity to store your growing files and content. The price of this drive is reasonable and it has more than 51K good reviews with 4.7 ratings on Amazon (to check the latest price click here).

Specification/ Features

Toshiba Canvio Basics 4TB portable external hard drive has some outstanding features which are as follows:

About This Item

Easy to Use: The Canvio Basics 4TB portable external hard drive is ready to use with your computer and no software installation is required to transfer the files. You can even drag and drop the files from your computer to the Canvio drive.

Portable: The Canvio Basics drive is a smooth and matte-black design that is more concise than ever and other HDDs. This is really portable and you may carry it in your pocket or bag whenever on the move.

Plug and play: Just plug and play operation. This is one of the simple ways to store your files in Canvio drive and access them from Canvio drive. The Canvio Basics store your files easier and conveniently than other HDDs.

Compatibility: Toshiba has designed the Canvio Basics 4TB portable external hard drive to work with different operating systems such as Windows or Mac, and it is also compatible with USB 3.0 and USB 2.0.

More Capacity: As a photographer, you can store your huge collection of photos, music, and videos because the drive has enough storage with up to 4TB capacity. You can keep adding new files and can access them anywhere and anytime.

Pros

• Portability
• Durability
• Easy to use
• Compatibility

Cons

• Limited warranty.
• No USB-C

What will you get After Purchase?

• Toshiba Canvio Basics Portable Hard Drive
• USB 3.0 Cable (works with USB 2.0)
• Quick Start Guide
• One (01) Year Limited Warranty

How to Buy/ Price?

Click on the following Amazon Button to check the price or buy this Toshiba Canvio Basics 4TB portable HDD, which is the best external hard drive for pictures and videos.

FAQs

Which external hard drive is best for photographers?

As a photographer, you should have a reliable and best external hard drive that is portable, flexible and provides a enough amount of space to archive your photos, and videos. There are several brands of external hard drives available in the market, but the best brand of hard drives for photographers are as follows:

• Seagate Ultra Touch External Hard Drive
• WD 4TB My Passport Portable External Hard Drive
• WD 5TB Elements Portable External Hard Drive
• Seagate Portable 5TB External Hard Drive
• SAMSUNG T7 Portable External Solid-State Drive
• SanDisk Extreme Portable External Solid-State Drive
• Toshiba Canvio Basics 4TB Portable External Hard Drive

Is a 1TB or 2TB hard drive enough for photographers?

A 1TB portable external hard drive is enough to store so many quality images and videos. As a photographer, if you want to store up to a decade of images, then a 1TB external hard drive is sufficient.

In addition, most photographers want to store up to a decade of photos within a limited budget. So, this 1TB storage space is considered an ideal space for photographers.

Moreover, a 2TB external hard drive has more capacity to store at least 80,000 RAW files and millions of images in JPEGs. So, many photographers consider that a 2TB hard drive is ideal for storing images and video files.

If you’re a professional photographer and want to hold up to two decades of photos, then you may choose the 2TB external hard drive.

Should photographers use an external hard drive?

As a photographer, you need a lot of space to hold so many images, and video files for a long time. If you already use cloud storage, but the limitation is you need internet connectivity to store your images and files. So, in that case, a portable external hard drive can be a perfect solution for photographers.

You can quickly, easily, and efficiently transfer your photos to an external hard drive. On the other hand, an external hard drive provides better security than SD cards and its price is more reasonable than SD cards.

Conclusion

Lastly, all the listed external hard drives in this post are the best external hard drive for professional photographers and they have huge positive reviews on Amazon and are affordable.

I’ve discussed the best hard drive for photographers which is more secure, has data transfer speeds, and has high storage data capacity.

Hope the article will be helpful to find out the top best external hard drive for photographers . As a photographer, you can choose one of them and carry on with your journey.