Storage Guide

Xbox Series X & S Storage Upgrades

Running out of space? Here's every way to expand your Xbox Series storage — from official Seagate cards to M.2 SSDs.

Which Storage Do I Need? Expansion Cards External SSDs FAQ

Quick rule: For playing Xbox Series X|S games at full speed, you need either the internal SSD or a Seagate Expansion Card. External USB drives work for storage and playing older Xbox/Xbox 360/Xbox One titles, but Series X|S games must be installed on compatible high-speed storage to run.

Storage Type	Seagate Expansion Card	External USB SSD/HDD
Plays Series X\|S games	✓	✗
Plays Xbox One / 360 games	✓	✓
Stores Series X\|S games (transfer)	✓	✓
Works on Series X & S	✓	✓
Plug & play	✓	✓
Matches internal SSD speed	✓	✗
Relative Cost	£££	£

Seagate Storage Expansion Cards

Official Xbox

The Seagate Storage Expansion Card slots directly into the back of any Xbox Series console and mirrors the internal SSD's performance exactly. No speed drop, no compromise. It's the easiest and most seamless upgrade — just plug it in and it's immediately available.

Expansion Card · 512GB

Seagate Storage Expansion Card 512GB

The budget entry point for the expansion card range. Adds 512GB of full-speed NVMe storage. Good if you mostly play one or two games at a time.

512GB ~4.8 GB/s Series X & S

Expansion Card · 1TB ★ Most Popular

Seagate Storage Expansion Card 1TB

The most popular choice. 1TB doubles or triples your available storage in one shot. Recommended for most people — keeps a good library installed and ready to play.

1TB ~4.8 GB/s Series X & S

Expansion Card · 2TB

Seagate Storage Expansion Card 2TB

Maximum capacity expansion card. If you have a large library of Series X|S games and never want to worry about space, this is the one. Expensive, but the ultimate solution.

2TB ~4.8 GB/s Series X & S

Can I use any expansion card? Currently only Seagate makes the official Xbox Storage Expansion Cards. Third-party alternatives using the proprietary Xbox Velocity Architecture slot are not available. The proprietary format is why these cost more than comparable M.2 SSDs.

External USB SSDs & Hard Drives

Budget Option

External USB drives can't run Xbox Series X|S games directly, but they're excellent for archiving your library and playing Xbox One / backwards compatible titles. USB 3.0 SSDs are fast enough to play older titles without any loading time penalty.

External SSD · Portable

Samsung T7 Portable SSD

A compact, fast USB 3.2 Gen 2 SSD. Ideal for archiving Series X|S games and playing older Xbox titles directly. Fits in a pocket.

500GB / 1TB / 2TB USB 3.2 ~1,050 MB/s

External SSD · Best Value

WD My Passport SSD

Reliable WD portable SSD — solid choice for Xbox storage expansion on a budget. Available in large capacities for a reasonable price.

500GB – 4TB USB 3.2 ~1,050 MB/s

External HDD · High Capacity

Seagate Game Drive for Xbox

Seagate's dedicated Xbox external HDD. Formatted and branded for Xbox, plug and play. A cost-effective way to store a large backwards compatible library.

2TB / 4TB USB 3.0 Xbox branded

Storage FAQ

Can I play Xbox Series X|S games from an external drive?

No — Xbox Series X|S games require the internal SSD or a Seagate Expansion Card to run. You can store them on an external drive and transfer them back when needed, but you can't launch them from USB.

Is it worth buying the 2TB expansion card?

If you have a large library of Series X|S games and hate managing storage, yes. For most people the 1TB card is the sweet spot — it's roughly the same total installed storage as the PS5's internal drive and feels generous for most use cases.

Can I use multiple storage expansion cards?

No — there is only one expansion card slot per console. If you want more storage beyond the card, use an external USB drive for older game storage alongside it.