5 Of The Smallest USB Flash Drives That Still Offer A Ton Of Storage Space

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There was a time when you wanted something small, but you had to make a compromise. If you wanted a compact USD drive, then you would get 4GB of space, 8GB at max. Anything past that meant a chunky plastic body sticking out of your laptop like a loose tooth. Fast forward to the present, that trade-off barely exists. Technology has evolved so much that brands have cracked the code to pack serious storage space into drives smaller than a fingernail. And when comparing USB drives to external HDDs, you would know how these little drives beat other formats for quick, grab-and-go transfers.

You might think that cloud storage has replaced USB drives now, but it hasn't. USB drives are more relevant now than ever, since we want as much storage at our disposal as possible. With cloud storage, you need the internet to upload and download; you need a subscription, and even SSDs or HDDs, while available in compact sizes, are still bigger than a USB drive. With a USB drive, all you need to do is plug it into your laptop or smartphone, and you have all your files there.

We have compiled a list of five USB drives that offer 256GB or more of storage space, which is more than enough for a serious photo library or a full backup of your laptop's work folder. Size, price, and everyday reliability all played a part in picking these five.

What better way to start our list than with the world's smallest 1TB USB-C drive? Some drives are meant to travel in your pocket without much bulk. This one from SanDisk is made to disappear into your laptop and stay there like it is a part of it. The SanDisk Extreme Fit USB-C flash drive is built with a design language, small enough that it barely registers as sticking out once it is plugged in. Yet, it holds up to 1TB, which is more room than most people fill up on a laptop's internal drive.

If you don't want 1TB, there are options from 64GB, 128GB, 256GB, and 512GB to choose from. In the Blackmagic Disk Speed Test, the SanDisk Extreme Fit USB-C flash drive hit 389.8MB/s read and 134.2MB/s write, which is close to the company's claim of 400MB/s read speeds. Writes are slower, which means that the drive isn't the drive for constant heavy editing, but for taking files from it, the SanDisk Extreme Fit USB-C drive is fine for everyday use.

For the 1TB variant, you have to shell out $249.99, while the 256GB model costs $67.99. It doesn't sit flush with the port, so there is a chance that you might bump it with a wall or a door. But this isn't the only USB drive with this caveat. Still, if you want extra space without something that pokes out of your laptop, this USB drive is one to go for.

If you really want something that is "forget it is even there," then the PNY Elite-X Fit USB 3.1 flash drive is a good option. The PNY Elite-X Fit USB 3.1 flash drive is less than an inch long and comes with read speeds of up to 200MB/s, and once it is in a USB port, it barely pokes out further.

It is a good buy if you want a USB drive to plug into a laptop full-time rather than carrying it around loose. Upon testing the PNY Elite-X Fit USB 3.1 512GB version in the CrystalDiskMark test (via Techaeris), the read speed came out to be 260.65MB/s and the write speed was 169.36MB/s. This clearly shows that the drive has faster read speeds than what is officially claimed. The build is plastic rather than metal, which helps keep the price of the flash drive down. But this also means it feels less solid than some pricier alternatives in this list.

There are different storage sizes available – 64GB, 128GB, 256GB and 512GB, with the 512GB variant costing $79.99 on Amazon. It is backward compatible, meaning you can use it with USB 2.0 port, as well. Since it has a compact form factor, you won't need to take it out after each use.

If you are on a tight budget but want a compact flash drive, then you can go for the SanDisk Ultra Fit USB 3.1 flash drive. Not every entry on this list needs to have superfast speeds. They can earn their place based on cost and size alone. You can get the 16GB variant of the SanDisk Ultra Fit USB 3.1 flash drive, which costs $17.90 on Amazon. For more storage, you can opt for the 1TB model, which costs $169.99. Then there are 128GB, 256GB, and 512GB variants as well.

It comes with a five-year limited warranty and rated read speeds of up to 400MB/s. You get a huge amount of storage with a flash drive barely the size of a car key fob. When tested by EverythingUSB, the SanDisk Ultra Fit USB 3.1 flash drive came up with 339.31 MB/s read speed and hit 190.46 MB/s write speeds, which is close to what the company claims. You will find some slowdowns, especially with small file writes, and it is more suited to moving big files.

Thanks to the small form factor, it won't snap in half as easily as a regular USB drive. SanDisk has been refining its approach and moving toward a small-shell design for years, something Slashgear noted over a decade ago.

The Samsung Fit Plus USB 3.1 flash drive is one of the toughest compact flash drives that we have on our list. If durability matters to you, plus you want high-speed transfers, then this is a good option. At under an inch long, the Samsung Fit Plus flash drive barely sticks out of a USB port; Samsung backs it with a five year warranty and a rating to survive being submerged in a meter of water for 72 hours. It can operate in extreme temperature conditions from -25 degrees C to 85 degrees C.

Tom's Hardware put the Samsung Fit Plus flash drive to the test, and in a DiskBench 10GB test, it produced a read speed of 319.7 MB/s and a write speed of 58.4MB/s. Compared with the officially stated 400 MB/s, that's quite low. But then, you are paying for the size and toughness, not transfer speed. Where Samsung Fit Plus shines is its value. It usually retails for under $50 for the low-storage variant, well below the price of most drives on this list.

Spending more on a USB drive usually means you either buy more capacity or more speed, but rarely both at once. The Fit Plus USB 3.1 flash drive from Samsung is one of those USB drives in our list that you can plug into your laptop and forget about it.

If you want a durable USB flash drive from a reputable company, choose the Kingston DataTraveler Micro. It swaps plastic for metal, and it shows the moment you hold it. The DataTraveler Micro uses a low-profile metal casing with a built-in key-hoop, so you can attach it to your car or bike keys and keep it with you, anywhere, everywhere. The Kingston DataTraveler Micro flash drive is rated for USB 3.2 Gen 1 and has stated read speeds of 200MB/s.

This USB flash drive is available in 64GB, 128GB, and 256GB storage space. Kingston offers a five-year warranty on it and is a popular option for those looking for small, plug-and-play storage. The 256GB model is good enough to carry documents, school files, or a solid chunk of photos, all while staying connected to your laptop. The metal casing also means that the cap won't slip off or break easily, which is a common complaint with plastic-built USB drives.

While the Micro USB drive doesn't offer as much storage as the other options on this list, it's designed to give users storage in a compact form factor. You can get the highest-storage DataTraveler Micro USB flash drive for $49.99 on Amazon.