Best 960GB PCIe 3.0 DRAM SSDs
There are 8 960GB PCIe 3.0 DRAM SSDs compared here. The fastest is the Corsair M.2 Force Series MP510 de at 3480 MB/s read at 960GB. Sequential reads across the group span 1500–3480 MB/s at 960GB.
Why this configuration
A 960GB PCIe 3.0 DRAM SSD is an affordable NVMe step up from SATA. Gen3 is roughly six times SATA's throughput yet often costs little more, making it the easy default for a first NVMe drive or a laptop that only supports Gen3.
Usually chosen for: budget builders, laptop upgraders and anyone leaving SATA behind.
Good fit: workstation and creative loads that hammer random I/O.
Ranked list
Speeds on this page are the manufacturer's 960GB ratings where published (8 of 8 drives), not the family headline figure. 1 of the 8 are rated slower at 960GB than at their fastest capacity. Rated writes at 960GB run 1000–3100 MB/s.
| # | Model | Tier | Controller | Read MB/s (at 960GB) | TBW | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Seagate IRONWOLF 510 250GB, 500GB, 960GB, 1.92TB | Top-tier | Phison PS5012-E12DC | 3150 | 3500 | Find on Amazon |
| 2 |  Corsair M.2 Force Series MP510 de 250GB, 500GB, 4TB, 960GB, 1.92TB | High-end | Phison PS5012-E12 (4-Core, 8-Canai | 3480 | 6820 | Find on Amazon |
| 3 |  Mydigitalssd BPX PRO 250GB, 500GB, 960GB, 1.92TB | High-end | Phison E12 (PS5012-E12) | 3400 | 3115 | Find on Amazon |
| 4 |  ADATA XPG GAMMIX S11 PRO 250GB, 500GB, 1TB, 2TB, 960GB | High-end | Silicon Motion SM2262EN (2-Core 62 | 3150 | 1280 | Find on Amazon |
| 5 |  Kingston KC1000 250GB, 500GB, 960GB | Mid-range | Phison PS5007-E7 | 2700 | 1000 | Find on Amazon |
| 6 |  Corsair MP300 128GB, 250GB, 500GB, 960GB | Value | Phison PS5008 | 1600 | — | Find on Amazon |
| 7 |  KLEVV CRAS C700 RGB 250GB, 500GB, 960GB | Value | Silicon Motion SM2263EN (2-Core, 4 | 1500 | 400 | Find on Amazon |
| 8 |  KLEVV CRAS C700 250GB, 500GB, 960GB | Value | Silicon Motion SM2263EN (2-Core, 4 | 1500 | 400 | Find on Amazon |
The parts, explained
PCIe 3.0 x4 reaches about 3,500 MB/s — plenty for everyday use and gaming, and cheaper than Gen4.
An onboard DRAM cache keeps the flash mapping table on the drive, holding random performance steady under sustained load.