2024 Best External Hard Drives and SSDs for Mac (MacBook Pro)

To expand the storage of a Mac computer, you may use an external hard drive for a Mac. Still, backing up your Mac to an external drive can help protect your data and avoid permanent data loss. What is the best external hard drive for Mac? This post offers some choices for your reference.

2024 Best External Hard Drives for Mac

There are many external hard drives that are compatible with Mac and offer reliable performance. Check some of the best Mac external hard drives below.

1. LaCie Rugged USB-C Portable Hard Drive

This is a durable external hard drive that can withstand rough conditions. It is compatible with the latest MacBook Pro models. It is compatible with macOS 10.12 or later, and Windows 7 or later. It is also Time Machine compatible for easy Mac backup.

It offers up to 5TB of storage capacity and includes a USB-C cable to let you easily connect it to Macs. It offers storage capacities of 1TB, 2TB, 4TB, and 5 TB. The price is starting at $84.95.

This external HDD also comes with two years of Rescue Data Recovery Service.

2. WD Easystore External USB 3.0 Portable Hard Drive

This external hard drive for Mac offers reliable storage at an affordable price. It offers 1TB, 2TB, 4TB, and 5TB choices. It features a USB 3.0 interface and offers fast data transfer speeds. It is designed to be portable in a small and compact form.

This drive comes with WD Backup software and allows you to schedule automatic backups of your important data. It also features hardware encryption to help keep your data safe.

3. Western Digital My Passport for Mac

This is a popular hard drive choice among Mac users and offers up to 5TB of storage capacity. You can use it to store your files, photos, videos, and a large amount of data.

This drive comes with both USB-C and USB-A cables and allows you to easily connect to your Mac or Windows computers. It also includes Time Machine backup software for easy backups. It is a good option for backing up and transferring data between different devices.

4. Seagate Ultra Touch HDD

This top Mac external hard drive combines reliable storage with lightweight design and security features.

It features USB-C or USB 3.0 interface which offers fast data transfer speeds. It also comes with password protection and hardware encryption to help keep your data secure.

It offers capacities from 1TB to 5 TB. It is compatible with Windows, macOS, and ChromeOS, making it a great option for users who need to use different operating systems.

5. Seagate Backup Plus Slim

This is another popular external hard drive for Mac users, known for its slim design and reliability. It has a capacity of up to 5TB and offers fast transfer speeds.

It includes Seagate Dashboard backup software and is compatible with USB-C and USB-A ports. It also comes with a USB-C adapter for compatibility with MacBook Pro.

6. G-Technology G-Drive USB-C External Hard Drive

This is a high-performance external hard drive that is designed for Macs. It offers capacities ranging from 1 TB to 18 TB. It features a USB-C interface and offers data transfer speeds of up to 560MB/s. It is an ideal choice for data-intensive applications like video editing software.

This hard drive is formatted for macOS and is compatible with Time Machine to let you easily back up your Mac data. It is compatible with the latest Mac and Windows computers.

2024 Best External SSDs for Mac

If you want a fast external SSD for your Mac, you can check some of the top choices below.

1. LaCie Rugged SSD Pro External Drive

This external solid-state drive for Mac maximizes Thunderbolt 3 capabilities and offers speeds five times faster than traditional SATA SSDs. It offers extreme durability like IP67-rated water resistance and three-meter drop resistance.

It works with Thunderbolt 3 and USB-C on both Mac and Windows computers. This top SSD includes a five-year limited product warranty featuring Rescue Data Recovery Services.

You have 1TB and 2 TB options. The price starts at $299.95.

2. SanDisk Extreme Portable External USB-C NVMe SSD

This external solid-state drive is also a great choice for MacBook Pro/Air users. It offers fast data transfer speeds, a durable design, and advanced security features.

It offers capacities from 500 GB to 2TB. It features a USB-C interface and offers data transfer speeds of up to 1050MB/s. It features 256-bit AES encryption to make your data secure. You can use it on both Mac and Windows computers.

Its NVMe technology, rugged design, and water resistance make it a great option for users to take data with them on the go.

3. Samsung T5 SSD

This external SSD for Mac offers fast transfer speeds, a compact design, and reliable performance.

It features a USB 3.1 Gen 2 interface which offers a fast data transfer speed of up to 540MB/s. It offers capacities from 250 GB to 2TB. It is compatible with both Mac and Windows computers.

4. Western Digital My Passport SSD

WD My Passport SSD offers fast transfer speeds, a compact design, and a durable build. It comes with a USB-C cable and is available in capacities up to 4TB. It offers data transfer speeds of up to 1050MB/s. This drive features a sleek and compact design that fits easily in your pocket. It is compatible with both Mac and Windows computers.

5. G-Technology G-Drive Mobile SSD

This best SSD external hard drive for Mac offers fast transfer speeds, a rugged design, and advanced security features. It comes with a USB-C cable and is available in capacities from 500 GB to 2TB. It can transfer data at a speed of up to 1050MB/s.

How to Connect External Hard Drive to MacBook

Most external hard drives come with a USB cable with it. You can plug the hard drive into an open USB port on your Mac with a USB or USB-C cable.

If the hard drive comes with a USB-A cable, you can use a USB-C to USB adapter to connect it to your MacBook Pro or Air computer.

How to Find and Open External Hard Drive on Mac

After you connect a drive to your Mac computer, it should display on your Mac desktop. You can double-click it to open it.

If you don’t see the hard drive on the desktop, you can open the Finder app and find the target external hard drive under Devices to open it.

Mount External NTFS Drive Read-Write on Mac

Hard drives formatted with APFS, HFS+, exFAT or FAT32 will work fine on a Mac.

If you plan to use the drive on both Mac and Windows operating systems, the best format for Mac external hard drive is the exFAT or FAT32.

How about if you have an NTFS-formatted hard drive? Unfortunately, Mac only offers read support for NTFS drives by default.

However, if you have an easy-to-use free NTFS for Mac software program like BuhoNTFS at hand, you can easily read and write NTFS drives on your Mac. BuhoNTFS helps you easily mount NTFS drives in read & write mode in one click.

Best Mac Cleaner Tool – BuhoCleaner

You can clean your Mac if it runs slow or freezes a lot. BuhoCleaner is a professional Mac cleaner program. You can use BuhoCleaner to easily clean your Mac from all aspects.

You can use this tool to clean and remove junk files on your Mac to free up more hard drive space. It also lets you uninstall apps completely on your Mac. You can use it to automatically detect large files and duplicate files and remove unneeded files. To boost the Mac startup speed, you can also use it to manage the startup items on your Mac.

Download and install BuhoCleaner on your Mac computer and use it to speed up your Mac now.

Conclusion

In conclusion, it depends on your specific needs and preferences when choosing the best external hard drive for your Mac. You may consider factors like storage capacity, speed, durability, and price to choose the right external hard drive for you. This post introduces some popular external HDDs and SSDs for Mac for your reference.