Prices of consumer SSDs (Solid-State Drives) have surged by up to 300%, reports said on Thursday, while noting that the average prices have risen by 50-80% since November 2025.
The surge in rates will affect an array of gadget users as laptops and desktops rely on SSD to store memory.
These memory components are also preferred by people who wish to access large files and applications quickly, making it a useful feature for gaming PC enthusiasts.
According to data from the PC Part Picker website, the average price of a SSD SATA 256 GB in November 2025 was below $40 and neared $80 after March 2026.
The surge has been sharper for various products, including Samsung's 990 Pro 4TB drive, whose price from $320 in 2024 to $1,000 in 2026. The Western Digital Black SN850X drives retailed at $173 in 2024 and are now priced at $649.
External SanDisk SSDs, mainly used by photographers, also saw their price spike by 200% at the Apple Store during March 2026.
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A similar phenomenon was observed with smartphones prices in India, with brands like Samsung, Xiaomi, Oppo and Realme charging 40% more for select smartphone models, leading to consumers putting off buying new models, instead opting to repair and maintain old ones.
The hike in SSD prices is linked to the extensive expansion of artificial intelligence infrastructure. AI companies are aggressively purchasing specialised high-bandwidth memory (HBM) modules for data centres, diverting supply away from consumer electronics.
Attracted by significantly higher margins—reported to be nearly 10 times greater—memory manufacturers have increasingly shifted production from traditional smartphone and PC memory to HBM chips for AI workloads.
These chips require more silicon and manufacturing capacity, leading companies to reallocate resources accordingly.
Companies such as Samsung, Micron and SK Hynix command the global market share when it comes to both hard disk drives as well as SSDs.
ALSO READ: Samsung, Oppo, Xiaomi, Realme Among Brands Raising Smartphone Prices By Up To 40% — This Is Why
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