Best MicroSD Cards for Steam Deck OLED

Valve released the Steam Deck OLED not long ago after the original version (LCD) achieved great market success for a handheld device. There are new options when purchasing a Steam Deck OLED for yourself: 512GB NVMe ($549), 1TB NVMe ($649), and the 256GB LCD ($399) version has a price drop! This is a screenshot from the Steam Deck OLED pricing page on the Steam website.

With most new titles working well on the Steam Deck, averaging 80GB per game in 2023, the 256GB model is definitely in need of expansion, but you’ve probably filled up the 512GB as well! Let’s talk about the best microSD cards for the Steam Deck OLED.

Expansion with MicroSD for Steam Deck OLED

Fortunately, there is a microSD card slot on the Steam Deck OLED that allows you to upgrade your Steam Deck OLED with up to 1TB of external storage! That means you can max out your capacity at 2TB of game sorage. There is also a USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 port, which we will discuss at the end of this article. The great thing about the 256GB Steam Deck is the price, coming in at $399. However, due to the value (more storage, speed, and of course the OLED panel) that the 1TB model offers, most people are opting for the upgrade. We have a list of the best microSD cards for the Steam Deck OLED that will maximize the storage capacity of your handheld gaming platform or find a well-priced budget option.

Maxed-out Steam Deck OLED MicroSD Card

For those looking to maximize their storage, we recommend a 1TB microSD card. Consider the 1TB SanDisk Extreme Pro or Extreme. If you want as much storage as you can fit in the microSD card slot at the fastest speed possible, go with the Extreme Pro. Personally, I found that the Extreme is sufficient. Both models have an impressive U3 and A2 rating. The Extreme has a write speed of 130MB/s, and the Extreme Pro will give you 140MB/s. Although we recommend the 1TB model, both the Extreme and Extreme Pro come in various storage sizes, all available on our website.

Budget MicroSD Card for Steam Deck OLED

Chances are if you are buying a microSD card for your Steam Deck OLED, you aren’t looking for anything less than 256GB. However, the EVO Plus line from Samsung offers an incredible product at an amazing price. Still, they are U3 and A2 rated to provide top performance with your Steam Deck. The EVO Plus has microSD cards ranging from 512GB down to 128GB at lower costs than the SanDisk Extreme. We officially recommend the 512GB model because it offers plenty of storage space at a very reasonable cost per gigabyte. However, we carry all four sizes on our website.

Upgrade with USB-C Peripherals

Many Steam Deck OLED owners have found that the USB-C port on the top is great for attaching an external SSD or flash drive! It is USB 3.2 Gen 2, capable of 10Gbps, which is almost 9 times faster than the Extreme Pro microSD speed. To take advantage of this, some users have mounted an SSD on the back of their Steam Deck. With this method, you can get up to 1TB of external SSD storage! For maximum storage and speed, we recommend the 1TB Kingston DataTraveler Max. It offers up to 1000MB/s read speed, allowing you to store large game files quickly and transfer them from your PC to the SSD by plugging the drive into your computer. Additionally, we offer a 1TB SanDisk Dual Drive Luxe that provides similar benefits at a slightly lower cost.