Storage is the accessory people skip and then buy in a hurry at a worse price. Modern AAA installs routinely run to well over 100GB, and every current console ships with usable capacity meaningfully below its advertised figure once the system software is accounted for.
Each platform has different, non-interchangeable requirements. Buying the wrong thing is easy and common.
The requirements, platform by platform
| Platform | Required type | Runs games from it? | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| PS5 / PS5 Pro | M.2 NVMe SSD (PCIe 4.0), with heatsink | Yes — PS5 and PS4 titles | Must meet Sony's speed and physical size requirements |
| PS5 (external USB) | Any USB SSD or HDD | PS4 titles only; PS5 titles store but must be moved back | Fine as cold storage |
| Switch 2 | microSD Express only | Yes | Standard microSD, including fast UHS-I, will not work |
| Xbox Series X|S | Proprietary expansion card, or USB for storage | Card yes; USB for older-gen titles only | Card is the only way to run Series-optimised titles externally |
| Handheld PCs / Steam Machine | USB-C SSD or internal M.2 | Yes | Most flexible; a fast USB-C SSD is genuinely sufficient |
PS5: get the heatsink right
The internal M.2 slot needs a drive that meets Sony's stated sequential read requirement and fits within the physical dimensions of the bay, including the cooling solution. Drives sold with a low-profile heatsink pre-attached are the safe purchase — the alternative is buying a bare drive and a compatible heatsink separately and getting the height right yourself, which works but is an unnecessary variable.
An external USB SSD is a useful complement rather than a replacement: it can hold PS5 games in cold storage and run PS4 games directly, which is a cheap way to keep a large back catalogue accessible.
Switch 2: microSD Express or nothing
This is where most people waste money. Switch 2 requires microSD Express specifically. A high-end UHS-I card from your camera will not serve as game storage. Express cards command a premium over standard microSD, so buy once and buy large — the price per gigabyte falls sharply at higher capacities, and you will fill whatever you buy.
Xbox: the card is expensive but it's the only option
Series-optimised titles must run from either internal storage or the proprietary expansion card. A standard USB drive can store them and run older backwards-compatible titles, which makes a cheap external drive a genuinely good complement — move games back to internal when you want to play them. If you rotate between a handful of large games, that works fine and saves considerable money.
Storage, by platform
Buy the right standard the first time. These are the three that aren't interchangeable — an SSD that works in a PS5 does nothing for a Switch 2.
How much do you actually need?
- You play two or three big games at a time: 1TB of expansion is plenty. Delete and redownload as you rotate.
- You keep a large library installed: 2TB. This is the sweet spot for price per gigabyte on most platforms right now.
- You're on a metered or slow connection: buy the largest you can afford. Redownloading a 150GB game is a different kind of cost when your connection makes it an overnight job.
- You have a big back catalogue of last-gen games: add a cheap external HDD. It's the least expensive storage in gaming and it's perfectly adequate for older titles.
The GTA 6 install-size question
Rockstar open-world titles have historically been among the largest installs on any platform, and expectations for the November release are correspondingly high. If you intend to play it on console at launch, sort your storage out beforehand. Accessory pricing around a launch of that scale is rarely in the buyer's favour, and "I'll deal with it later" turns into deleting three games at midnight.
What holds up
- Expansion is genuinely necessary on every current console, not a luxury
- Cheap external drives are excellent cold storage for large back catalogues
- 2TB is currently the sweet spot on price per gigabyte across most formats
- Correct-standard drives are widely available and increasingly affordable
What doesn't
- Standards are not interchangeable — wrong purchases are common and non-refundable once opened
- microSD Express carries a real premium over standard microSD
- Xbox's proprietary card is the most expensive route per gigabyte
- Prices around major launch windows tend to move against buyers
The verdict
BUY, and buy the correct standard for your platform. PS5 needs an M.2 NVMe with a compliant heatsink; Switch 2 needs microSD Express and nothing else; Xbox needs its proprietary card for current-gen titles. 2TB is the value sweet spot for most people, and a cheap external drive alongside it handles the back catalogue for very little money.
Do it before November. Storage pricing around a launch of GTA 6's scale will not favour you.