Comparison of memory cards explained

This table provides summary of comparison of various flash memory cards, .

Common information

Unless otherwise indicated, all images are to scale.

Card familyStandards organizationsVarietiesEntry dateMaximum commercially available capacityPicture[1] Main features
CompactFlashSanDiskI1994512 GB (CF5 <-- 134 px = 43 mm -->Thinner (3.3 mm), flash only, now up to 512 GB, although standard goes up to 128 PB since CF 5.0[2]
IIThicker (5.0 mm), older flash, but usually Microdrives, up to 128 PiB
CFexpressCompactFlash Association1.020171 TBCFexpress Type B: XQD form factor (38.5 mm × 29.8 mm × 3.8 mm), PCIe 3.0 x2 (1.97 GB/s), NVMe
2.02019?CFexpress Type A: 20 mm × 28 mm × 2.8 mm, PCIe 3.0 x1 (1.0 GB/s), NVMeCFexpress Type C: 54 mm × 74 mm × 4.8 mm, PCIe 3.0 x4 (4.0 GB/s), NVMe
----PCIe 3.0 x8 (8,0 GB/s), NVMe
SmartMediaToshiba3.3/5 V1995128 MB <-- 115 px = 37 mm -->Very slim (45.0 mm × 37.0 mm × 0.76 mm), no wear leveling controller, up to 128 MB. This particular example shows the write protect sticker (the silver disc).
MultiMediaCardSiemens AG, SanDiskMMC199716 GB <-- 75 px = 24 mm -->Slim and small (24 mm × 32 mm × 1.4 mm), up to 16 GB
RS-MMC/MMC Mobile2003/200516 GB <-- 75 px = 24 mm -->Compact (24 mm × 18 mm × 1.4 mm), up to 16 GB
MMCplus200516 GB <-- This is bigger, because there is border on the image -- 75 px = 24 mm -->Compact (24 mm × 32 mm × 1.4 mm), swifter, optional DRM, up to 16 GB
MMCmicro20054 GB <-- 42 px = 14 mm -->Subcompact (14 mm × 12 mm × 1.1 mm), optional DRM, 16 MB to 4 GB
Secure DigitalSanDisk, Panasonic, Toshiba, Kodak, SD AssociationSD19992 GB[3] <-- 75 px = 24 mm -->Small (32 mm × 24 mm × 2.1 mm), DRM, up to 2 GB. (2 GB cards use larger block sizes and may not be compatible with some host devices. See Article)
miniSD20032 GB <-- 62 px = 20 mm -->Compact (15 mm × 11 mm × 1 mm), DRM, up to 2 GB. (2 GB cards use larger block sizes and may not be compatible with some host devices. See Article)
microSD20052 GB <-- 47 px = 15 mm -->Subcompact (15 mm × 11 mm × 1 mm), DRM, up to 2 GB. (2 GB cards use larger block sizes and may not be compatible with some host devices. See Article)
SDHC200632 GB <-- 75 px = 24 mm -->Same build as SD but greater capacity and transfer speed, 4 GB to 32 GB (not compatible with older host devices).
miniSDHC200832 GB <-- 62 px = 20 mm -->Same build as miniSD but greater capacity and transfer speed, 4 GB to 32 GB. 8 GB is largest in early-2011 (not compatible with older host devices).
microSDHC200732 GB <-- 47 px = 15 mm -->Same build as microSD but greater capacity and transfer speed, 4 GB to 32 GB.[4] (not compatible with older host devices)
SDXC20091 TB <-- = mm -->Same build as SD/SDHC, but greater capacity and transfer speed, 32 GB and higher. Standard goes up to 2 TB (not compatible with older host devices).
microSDXC20092 TB[5] <-- = mm -->Same build as microSD/microSDHC, but greater capacity and transfer speed, 32 GB and higher. Standard goes up to 2 TB (not compatible with older host devices).
SDUC2018not yet available <-- = mm -->Same build as SD/SDHC/SDXC, but greater capacity and transfer speed. Standard goes up to 128 TB (not compatible with older host devices).
Memory StickSony, SanDiskStandard1998128 MB <-- 67 px = 21.5 mm -->Slim and narrow (50 mm × 21.5 mm × 2.8 mm), optional DRM, up to 128 MB
PRO20034 GB
(not to scale)
Slim and narrow (50 mm × 21.5 mm × 2.8 mm), swifter, optional DRM, up to 4 GB
Duo2003128 MBCompact (31 mm × 20 mm × 1.6 mm), optional DRM, up to 128 MB
PRO Duo2002-200632 GB <-- 62 px = 20 mm -->Compact (31 mm × 20 mm × 1.6 mm), optional DRM, up to 32 GB
PRO-HG Duo2007-200832 GBCompact (31 mm × 20 mm × 1.6 mm), swifter, optional DRM, up to 32 GB
Micro (M2)200616 GB<-- 39 px = 12.5 mm -->Subcompact (15 mm × 12.5 mm × 1.2 mm), optional DRM, up to 16 GB
SonyPS Vita Memory Card201264 GB <-- 39 px = 12.5 mm -->Subcompact (15 mm × 12.5 mm × 1.6 mm[6]), compulsory DRM, up to 64 GB, proprietary (can be used on PS Vita only)
P2 (storage media)PanasonicMicroP2201264 GBMicroP2 is a SDXC/SDHC card conforming to UHS-II (Ultra High Speed bus), and can be read by common SDHC/SDXC card readers.
xDOlympus, Fujifilm, SonyStandard2002-2007512 MB <-- 78 px = 25 mm -->Slim and small (20 mm × 25 mm × 1.78 mm), electrically identical to SmartMedia, no wear-leveling controller, up to 512 MB[7]
Type M20052 GB <-- 78 px = 25 mm -->Slim and small (20 mm × 25 mm × 1.78 mm) but slower read/write, no wear-leveling controller, up to 2 GB
Type H20052 GB <-- 78 px = 25 mm -->Slim and small (20 mm × 25 mm × 1.78 mm) and swifter, no wear-leveling controller, up to 2 GB
XQD cardSony & NikonStandard2011-2012>2 TB<-- 38.5 mm × 29.8 mm, the card in the image is 909 pixels wide -->High-capacity, high-speed standard using PCIe as interface
Universal Flash Storage Card ExtensionsSamsungUFS Card2016>256 GBPackages the flash memory, currently soldered in shipping smartphones, into a removable card form factor. Uses the SCSI command set including queuing. The electrical interface makes use of differential signaling, which enables high bus speeds and robustness under noisy conditions and reduced pin count (compared to parallel bus alternatives such as UHS-I).
USB flash driveVariousUSB 1.1/2.0/3.0/3.12000/20011 TB+
(not to scale)
Universally compatible across most non-mobile computer platforms, their greater size suits them better to file transfer/storage instead of use in portable devices

Physical details

Note that a memory card's dimensions are determined while holding the card with contact pins upwards. The length of cards is often greater than their width. Most cards show a directional arrow to aid insertion; such an arrow should be upward.

CardWidth (mm)Length (mm)Thickness (mm)Volume (mm³)Mass (g)[8]
CompactFlash, Type I43.036.03.35,1083.3
CompactFlash, Type II43.036.05.07,740
SmartMedia37.045.00.761,2652.0
MMC, MMCplus24.032.01.41,0751.3[9]
RS-MMC, MMCmobile24.018.01.46051.3
MMCmicro14.012.01.1185
SD, SDHC, SDXC, SDIO, MicroP224.032.02.11,6132.0
miniSD, miniSDHC, miniSDIO20.021.51.46021.0
microSD, microSDHC, microSDXC11.015.01.01650.27
Memory Stick Standard, PRO21.550.02.83,0104.0
Memory Stick Duo, PRO Duo, PRO-HG, XC20.031.01.69922.0
Memory Stick Micro (M2), XC12.515.01.22252.0
Nano Memory12.3[10] 8.80.776
PS Vita Memory Card1512.51.63000.6
XQD card38.529.83.84,360
xD25.020.01.788902.8
USBvariesvariesvariesvariesvaries

Speed comparison

StandardSDUFS CardCFastXQDCFexpress
Version3.04.06.07.0[11] 1.0/1.13.01.02.01.02.01.0?
Launched2010 Q22011 Q12017 Q1?2016 Q2 / 2018 Q12020 Q42008 Q32012 Q32011 Q42014 Q12017 Q2?
BusUHS-IUHS-IIUHS-IIIPCIeUFS 2.0UFS 3.0SATA-300SATA-600PCIe 2.0 x1PCIe 2.0 x2PCIe 3.0 x2PCIe 3.0 x8
Speed(full-duplex)104 MB/s156 MB/s624 MB/s1970 MB/s (?)600 MB/s1200 MB/s300 MB/s600 MB/s500 MB/s1000 MB/s1970 MB/s7880 MB/s

Technical details

CardVarietiesdata-sort-type="number" Max storage capacity (nom. in GiB)data-sort-type="number" Theoretical max. capacity (nom. in GiB)data-sort-type="number" Max read speed (MB/s)data-sort-type="number" Max write speed (MB/s)Read-write cyclesLow-level accessOperating voltage (V)[12] Controller chip[13]
  1. of pins
CompactFlashI512data-sort-value="134217728" 128 PiB
(134,217,728 GiB)
167[14] 167NOR/NAND3.3 and 550
II12data-sort-value="134217728" 128 PiB
(134,217,728 GiB)
167167
SmartMediadata-sort-value="0.125"128 MiB
(0.125 GiB)
21,000,000NAND3.3 or 522
MMCMMC8128221,000,000[15] 3.37
RS-MMC22[16] 23.37
MMCmobile215[17] 81.8 and 3.313
MMCplus4[18] 52[19] 523.313
MMCmicro21.8 and 3.310[20]
eMMCdata-sort-value="2048"2 TiB
(2048 GiB)
1041041.8 and 3.3Varies
Secure Digital[21] SD (SDSC)512425[22] 253.39
miniSD8252511
microSD425258
SDHC32[23] 32104 (UHS-I)104 (UHS-I)1.8 and 3.39
miniSDHC4[24] 104 (UHS-I)104 (UHS-I)11
microSDHC32104 (UHS-I)104 (UHS-I)8
SDXC512[25] 2 TiB
(2048 GiB)
104 (UHS-I)1042.7–3.6[26] 9
microSDXC1 TiB [27] 104 (UHS-I)104 (UHS-I)8
Memory StickStandarddata-sort-value="0.125" 128 MiB
(0.125 GiB)
data-sort-value="0.125" 128 MiB
(0.125 GiB)
2.51.83.310
PRO42 TiB
(2048 GiB)
20203.3
PRO Duo32[28] 20203.3
PRO-HG Duo32[29] 30 (actual;[30]
theoretical: 60[31])
30 (actual; theoretical: 60)3.3
Micro (M2)16[32] 3220201.8 and 3.3
xCdata-sort-value="2048" 2 TiB
(2048 GiB)
60603.3
xDdata-sort-value="0.5" 512 MiB
(0.5 GiB)
data-sort-value="0.5" 512 MiB
(0.5 GiB)
533.318
Type M2842.5
Type H2854
Type M+2863.75
XQD64data-sort-value="2.001" 2+ TiB
(2+ GiB)
1681685
USBFull speed (USB 1)2048[33]
(2 TiB)
No hardware limit1154
High speed (USB 2.0)4040
Super speed (USB 3.0)240160

Consumer details

CardWrite protection switch[34] DRM
CompactFlash
SmartMedia, sticker (optional)
MMC, RS-MMC
MMCMobile, secureMMC
SD[35] [36] rowspan="3", CPRM
miniSD
microSD
Memory Stick Standard, PRO, MagicGate
Memory Stick Duo, PRO Duo, MagicGate
Memory Stick PRO-HG Duo, MagicGate
Memory Stick Micro (M2), MagicGate
PS Vita Memory Card, Proprietary
xD[37]
USBSometimes

Compatibility

The following chart gives details on availability of adapters to put a given card (horizontal) in a given slot or device (vertical). This table does not take into account protocol issues in communicating with the device.

Following labels are used:

CFCFastSMMMCMemory StickSDSCSDHCSDXCxDXQD
IIIMMCRS-MMC, MMCmobileStdPROPRO DuoMicroSDSCminiSDmicroSDSDHCminiSDHCmicroSDHCSDXCmicroSDXCStdMH
ExpressCardE[38] EE[39] E[40] EEEEE[41] EEEEM
PCI Express Mini CardEM
mSATAXM
PC CardEM[42] EME[43] <-- also 3.5 in floppy -->E[44] EEE
PCMCIAEMEME <-- also 3.5 in floppy -->EEEE
CF I++EE[45] E[46] EE[47] EE[48] EE
CF II+EEEEEEEE
CFast+
SM+X[49] XX
xDE[50] +++
XQD+
MMC+MD[51]
MSX[52] ++MMXXE[53]
SDSCDM+EMEM
miniSD+EM
microSD+
SDHCD[54] EMEM+EMEM
miniSDHCDEM+EM
microSDHCD+
SDXCuscbD[55] EMEMDEMEM+EM
microSDXCDD+
IDE PATAEM[56] EME[57] [58]
Serial ATAE[59] EEM
PCI ExpressEM
USBX[60] XXXXXE[61] EE[62] E[63] XXXX<-- USB 3.0 SuperSpeed -->
FloppyE[64] E<-- JVC Flashpath CUVFM40U -->E + ME<-- Sony MSAC-FD1A/MSAC-FD1B and MSAC-FD2M/MSAC-FD2MA -->E
Nintendo DS Slot-1E[65]
Nintendo DS Slot-2E[66] EE

External links

Notes and References

  1. Pictures are given in relative scales; they're sized to be WYSIWYG when viewing using 81 PPI monitor.
  2. http://compactflash.org/2010/cfa-announces-availability-of-cf50/ CompactFlash Association announces CF 5.0 standard supporting up to 128 PiB of storage
  3. Web site: 2020-12-11 . Capacity (SD/SDHC/SDXC/SDUC) SD Association . 2022-03-28 . www.sdcard.org . en-US.
  4. Web site: Why Do microSD Cards Have a Maximum 32GB capacity? - Pocketnow. 31 July 2010.
  5. Web site: Kioxia 2 TB micro sd .
  6. Web site: PS Vita Memory Card Instruction Manual . Sony Computer Entertainment Europe . 27 June 2018.
  7. http://www.fujifilm.com/products/digital_cameras/accessories/card/ FUJIFILM Global | xD-Picture Card and Adapters
  8. http://plex.us/outbursts/dc_memory.html Plexus Outbursts specifications
  9. http://www.apacer.com/en/products/Multimedia_Card.htm Apacer's MMC specifications
  10. Web site: Lexar nCARD NM Card - Lexar . 2021-09-01 . 2021-09-01 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210901091758/https://www.lexar.com/portfolio_page/ncard/#specifications . dead .
  11. Web site: SD + PCIe/NVMe card New Innovations in SD Cards Lead the Way to Mobile Everything. Pinto. Yosi. Flash Memory Summit.
  12. http://www.allmemorycards.com/glossary/operating-voltage.htm Voltage table at All Memory Cards
  13. Web site: Parked at Loopia. www.allmemorycards.com.
  14. http://compactflash.org/2010/cf-6-0-introduces-industry-leading-performance-and-feature-enhancements/ CompactFlash Specification Rev. 6.0
  15. http://www.acp-ep.com/rs_mmc_card_specs.html ACP-EP Specifications
  16. http://www.acp-ep.com/rs_mmc_card.html ACP-EP RS-MMC card features list
  17. http://www.acp-ep.com/mmcmobile_card.html ACP-EP MMCmobile card features list
  18. http://www.transcend.nl/Products/ModDetail.asp?ModNo=77&LangNo=0 Transcend MMCplus 4 GiB
  19. http://www.mmca.org/technology MMC transferred at up to 52 MiB/s
  20. https://manualzz.com/doc/2560076/transcend-mmcmicro Transcend MMCmicro card (TS128MMCM) datasheet
  21. Maximum transfer speed is not defined by SD standards. Bus speeds are quoted.
  22. Web site: Bus Speed - SD Association . 2014-02-09 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20140209080244/https://www.sdcard.org/consumers/speed/bus_speed/ . 2014-02-09 .
  23. Web site: Toshiba : Press Releases 22 August, 2007. www.toshiba.co.jp.
  24. http://www.sandisk.com/Products/Item(2318)-SDSDM-4096-SanDisk_miniSDHC_Card_4GB_miniSD_HighCapacity.aspx New 4 GiB miniSDHC card
  25. Web site: PNY Technologies . PNY 512GB Elite Performance Class 10 U3 SDXC Flash Memory Card : Electronics . Amazon . 2022-08-07.
  26. Web site: Capacity (SD/SDHC/SDXC) - SD Association. www.sdcard.org.
  27. Web site: Amazon.com: SanDisk 1TB Extreme MicroSDXC UHS-I Memory Card with Adapter - A2, U3, V30, 4K UHD, Micro SD - SDSQXA1-1T00-GN6MA. www.amazon.com.
  28. Web site: Sony bumps the Memory Stick PRO Duo capacity up to 32GB. Matt. Burns. 2009-10-30. 2009-10-25. https://web.archive.org/web/20091025205430/http://www.crunchgear.com/2009/08/21/sony-bumps-the-memory-stick-pro-duo-capacity-up-to-32gb/. dead.
  29. http://www.sonystyle.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10551&storeId=10151&langId=-1&productId=8198552921666322869&tab=featuresTab
  30. http://www.digitalcamerainfo.com/content/Sony-Introduces-Faster-MS-Pro-HG-Duo-Card-.htm Sony Introduces Faster MS Pro HG Duo Card
  31. Web site: Sony Global - News Release - SANDISK AND SONY DEVELOP "MEMORY STICK PRO-HG" FORMAT. www.sony.net.
  32. Web site: SANDISK MOBILE ULTRA MICROSDHC AND MEMORY STICK MICRO (M2) PREMIUM MOBILE MEMORY CARDS INCREASE CAPACITY TO 16 GIGABYTES. SanDisk®. www.sandisk.com.
  33. Web site: Press. Kingston Technology Company.
  34. Web site: Write protection switch at All Memory Cards . https://web.archive.org/web/20160420082221/http://allmemorycards.com/glossary/write-protection-switch.htm . 2016-04-20 . dead .
  35. Some early SD cards may not have a write protection switch.
  36. The write protect switch signals to the host, which is responsible for write protection. The write protect switch is not connected to the internal circuitry of the card. (SD Card Simplified Physical Layer Specification)
  37. Web site: Fujifilm accessories xD-Picture Card . https://web.archive.org/web/20070711173526/http://fujifilm.ie/digital/digital/accessories/xdcard/index.htm . July 11, 2007 . dead .
  38. Web site: DataFab Systems Inc.-The Leader of Innovative Technology in Portable Storage Systems. www.datafab.com.
  39. http://www.datafab.com/product/flash_card_adapter_express_12in2.asp DataFab EXP 12 in 2
  40. http://www.datafab.com/product/flash_card_adapter_express_8in1.asp DataFab exp 12 in 1
  41. http://www.datafab.com/product/flash_card_adapter_express_M2microSD.asp DataFab exp M2+microSD
  42. Web site: Loading.... www.transcendusa.com.
  43. Web site: Loading.... www.transcendusa.com.
  44. Web site: Loading.... www.transcendusa.com.
  45. Web site: Minolta SD-CF1 SD-to-CompactFlash adapter . 2007-01-04 . https://web.archive.org/web/20060616141535/http://www.dooyoo.co.uk/other-memory-adapters/minolta-sd-cf1-compactflash-card-adapter/ . 2006-06-16 . dead .
  46. Web site: Transcend MemoryStick-to-CompactFlash adapter . 2007-01-04 . https://web.archive.org/web/20070224135029/http://www.dooyoo.co.uk/other-memory-adapters/transcend-card-adapter-memory-stick/ . 2007-02-24 . dead .
  47. Web site: Shortage everywhere! Sony MSAC-MCF1N Memory Stick Duo Adaptor for CompactFlash Slot. www.camerahacker.com.
  48. http://www.olympus-europa.com/consumer/198_MACF-10.htm Olympus MACF-10 xD-to-CompactFlash adapter
  49. Web site: Hama xD-to-SM adapter . 2007-01-04 . https://web.archive.org/web/20070930181419/http://www.dooyoo.co.uk/other-memory-adapters/hama-xd-sm-adapter/ . 2007-09-30 . dead .
  50. In March 2008, Olympus started shipping the MASD-1 microSD-to-xD adapter along with its latest compact digital cameras, with a shape designed to fit only in those latest cameras . The physical adapter is in fact purely electromechanical, although the xD and SD protocols are completely incompatible. This demonstrates that the cameras themselves must understand the SD protocol, and thus the adapter is more properly termed an electronic adapter, with the electronic logic contained in the camera rather than the physical accessory.
  51. SD cards are usually thicker than MMC ones, and although it uses perfectly compatible pins, not every MMC slot may allow thick SD card to be inserted
  52. Web site: PSP Expand Memory Converter. Amazon.
  53. http://www.kingmaxdigi.com/news/box/combo_b.jpg KingMax microSD to MS PRO Duo Adapter
  54. SDHC devices are backward-compatible with normal SD cards. (Web site: About Compatibility with Host Devices - SD Association . 2012-01-03 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20111121065335/https://www.sdcard.org/consumers/compatibility/ . 2011-11-21 .)
  55. SDXC devices are backward-compatible with SD and SDHC cards. (Web site: About Compatibility with Host Devices - SD Association . 2012-01-03 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20111121065335/https://www.sdcard.org/consumers/compatibility/ . 2011-11-21 .)
  56. Web site: PC Engines flash storage solutions. www.pcengines.ch.
  57. http://www.shentech.com/stemptsdcato.html Star Empery PT110 SD Card To ATA IDE 3.5 inch Hard Drive Adapter
  58. Web site: The do-it-yourself SSD adapter.
  59. Web site: Tom's Hardware Articles - Find and Filter Our Latest Articles. Tom's Hardware.
  60. There are many USB-connected "n-in-1" memory card readers, for example Belkin's "Hi-Speed USB 2.0 15-in-1 Media Reader & Writer".
  61. MS Duo and M2 adapters have appeared in the last 12 months which look like USB memory sticks
  62. Web site: SanDisk @ CES - SD card with built-in USB adapter.
  63. http://www.adata.com.tw/adata_en/product_show.php?ProductNo=AMCSRZZZGH A-Data microSD to USB Adapter
  64. http://www.dcresource.com/FlashPath/index.html DCRP Special Report: FlashPath Adapter
  65. http://www.r4ds.com/index-en.htm R4 microSD to NDS Slot-1 Adapter
  66. http://eng.supercard.cn/products.htm Supercard to NDS Slot-2 Adapter