How much SSD space do you really need? We break down the math

Whether you’re buying a laptop or building your own PC, you’re going to want an SSD as the main storage drive — and you’re also going to want to make sure it’s the right size for your needs.

Sure, you might be able to crack open that laptop and swap out the main drive for a bigger one, or even install a second drive alongside it for additional storage. And yes, you can definitely do that with a desktop PC.

But if you have zero affinity for computer tinkering, then it’s just way more convenient to buy the right amount of storage from the get-go. Working on a computer with a too-small-for-your-needs SSD can be miserable, but you also don’t want to overspend on unused capacity.

Here’s everything you need to know about how much SSD storage space you should have in 2024, as well as how big you can reasonably go without wasting your hard-earned money.

64GB storage is too little

Officially, Microsoft’s system requirements for Windows 11 say that 64GB of storage is the absolute minimum for the operating system.

Yet while you might be able to cram Windows 11 onto such a small drive, it won’t be comfortable. You won’t have much — if any — room to install third-party applications, download files, or manage PC games.

That said, a computer with a 64GB SSD can technically run Windows 11 as long as you’re willing to forego lots of applications and store all of your files on the cloud, on an SD card, on a USB drive, or a separate SSD. If you do that, it might be usable. But I don’t recommend it.

128GB is the true bare minimum

As we near the end of 2024, 64GB of SSD storage simply isn’t realistic for most users. To me, a 128GB SSD is the actual bare minimum.

If you aren’t doing a lot of demanding stuff — meaning as long as you stick to lightweight applications, avoid downloading huge files, and don’t store everything on your primary drive — then you could get away with an SSD that has a 128GB capacity.

But 128GB really isn’t a lot these days, especially if you’re a gamer. Plenty of modern PC games take up between 20GB to 30GB each, and then you have games like Baldur’s Gate 3 and God of War Ragnarök that are each larger than 150GB and wouldn’t even fit on an SSD of that size.

On top of that, SSDs that are too full and near capacity begin to slow down and lose performance, so you can’t truly utilize the full 128GB of space on your drive without consequences. Do you really want to be micromanaging your files and storage space all the time?

Related: Buying a budget laptop? Don’t go below these specs

256GB is good for average PC users

A 256GB SSD is a much more reasonable size and adequate for most typical users. With 256GB of space, you can install some large applications, store many gigabytes of data, and still have room to spare. You don’t have to think about your storage limit as often.

256GB also happens to be the minimum SSD size requirement for Microsoft’s Copilot+ PCs. More and more PCs will likely settle on this as a “new minimum” as Copilot+ PCs become more mainstream. That makes this a good minimum capacity to hit if you care about future proofing.

512GB (or more) for avid gamers, downloaders, and power users

When you move beyond 256GB, it really starts to become about your specific needs. For basic web browsing, office work, and streaming media, 256GB is more than enough — but if you plan on storing lots of big video files or installing PC games, you’ll want more.

For PC gaming, the more storage the better. As mentioned before, PC games are massive and only getting bigger, so you’ll likely want at least 1TB of SSD capacity if you’re a heavy gamer who digs AAA titles. But it really depends on the types of games you play. You could get by with just 512GB if your Steam library is mostly small, niche, indie games.

Likewise, for content creation and media editing, files are usually quite large. Depending on bitrate, an hour of 4K video footage could reach 50GB or even double that. (Then again, if you create and edit content, you probably already have some idea of how much space you need for the type of files you work with.)

If you’re a data hoarder, the situation is a little different. You’d likely be better off with a moderately sized SSD and storing your big data files on external drives connected over Thunderbolt. In fact, for long-term storage that’s infrequently accessed, HDDs still prevail over SSDs.

Related: The best external drives for backups and storage

How big should your SSD be? In a nutshell

When in doubt, shoot to have at least 256GB of SSD storage if possible. While you could get by with 128GB in a pinch, it’ll be a lot less comfortable. And don’t even consider dropping down to 64GB — it may be technically possible, but it won’t be fun at all.

If you plan on playing modern PC games, you’ll want at least 512GB of storage, but aim for 1TB or more if your budget allows. If you work with large files, you should have a good idea of what you need. It isn’t unusual for power users to want 512GB, 1TB, 2TB, or more.

How much does SSD storage cost?

The only real downside to a bigger SSD storage size is the cost. Bigger capacities can be cheaper per gigabyte, but they still cost more overall and you don’t want to overspend for unused space.

Here’s a rough ballpark of prices for internal SSDs these days:

256GB: $15 to $25
512GB: $25 to $40
1TB: $50 to $75
2TB: $90 to $150
4TB: $150 to $300

If you’re buying a laptop or a pre-built desktop PC, upgraded configurations with larger SSDs may be more expensive than opting for a cheaper configuration with a smaller drive and upgrading the drive yourself. If you can buy the drive on sale, even better.