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Credit: Reviewed / Florence Ion

The Best SD Card Readers of 2024

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Credit: Reviewed / Florence Ion

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Editor's Choice Product image of Unitek Y-9324BGY
Best USB-C Card Reader

Unitek Y-9324BGY

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This is a great universal card reader for USB-C ports, with consistent read speeds and the fastest performance in our write-speed tests. Read More

Pros

  • Consistent read speeds
  • Outstanding write speeds
  • Comes in three different colors

Cons

  • None that we could find
2
Product image of Transcend TS-RDF5K
Best USB 3.0 Card Reader

Transcend TS-RDF5K

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If you’re looking for a simple little adapter you can always keep on hand, the affordable Transcend USB 3.0 card reader is a fabulous value. Read More

Pros

  • Supports both SD and microSD
  • Comes in several colors

Cons

  • Not as speedy as other readers
  • Easy-to-lose removable cap
3
Product image of Verbatim 99236

Verbatim 99236

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Undoubtedly pocket-sized, the Verbatim also offers impressive transfer speeds. It does, however, lack CF-card compatibility. Read More

Pros

  • Convenient compact design
  • Excellent transfer speeds

Cons

  • Lacks CF-card compatibility
4
Product image of IOGear GFR3C15

IOGear GFR3C15

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Offers SD, CF, and microSD slots for all your media-offloading needs. It’s also compact, with a cable short enough to wrap and tuck into your pocket. Read More

Pros

  • Sleek aluminum design
  • Compatible with SD, CF, and microSD cards
  • Excellent transfer speeds

Cons

  • None that we could find
5
Product image of Cable Matters 201058-BLK

Cable Matters 201058-BLK

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In our transfer-speed tests, this moved over 30 GB of data in a little over 8.5 minutes. It doesn’t handle CF cards, but does accept microSD. Read More

Pros

  • Excellent transfer speeds
  • Compatible with microSD

Cons

  • Doesn’t work with CF cards
  • Best USB-C Card Reader Unitek Y-9324BGY
  • Best USB 3.0 Card Reader Transcend TS-RDF5K
  • How We Tested
  • What to Know about SD Cards
  • Other SD Cards We Tested
  • More Articles You Might Enjoy

Have your SD cards been filling up and collecting over the years? If so, you'll eventually want to offload those photos and files. And the best way to do that—if you don't already have a card reader embedded into your computer or laptop—is to buy one that connects externally.

Card readers come in all sorts of shapes and sizes, with all types of connectors. They don't just read SD cards; some can read microSD cards, CompactFlash (CF) cards, and even Sony’s Memory Stick Pro Duo.

To find the best SD reader for your machine, we tested those that connect either via USB or by way of USB Type-C. The latter is a type of connection standard that's become more widely used, and many Apple laptops, Chromebooks, and Ultrabooks only come with this kind of port.

After calculating speed times for eight of the best SD card readers on the market, we discovered our favorite is the Unitek Y-9324BGY (available at Amazon) . Not only did it hail some of the fastest write speeds from the batch of readers we tested, but it also offers a multitude of connection options. The Unitek is a worthy card reader for anyone who needs to get their data off of a memory card.

Unitek SD card reader
Credit: Reviewed / Florence Ion
Best USB-C Card Reader
Unitek Y-9324BGY

Sure, the model name doesn’t exactly roll off the tongue. But this Unitek card reader is the best option for anyone who needs a universal card reader for a device with USB-C ports. The Unitek offers consistent read speeds, and it was the fastest in our write speed tests. I was able to transfer 30GB in under eight and a half minutes. It comes with a one-foot cable that leaves room for your laptop, and it supports SD, microSD, and CF cards. It comes in two other colors, in case you’re particular about that sort of thing. Professionals and casual users alike will also appreciate its affordable price point.

Pros

  • Consistent read speeds

  • Outstanding write speeds

  • Comes in three different colors

Cons

  • None that we could find

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Transcend SD card reader
Credit: Reviewed / Florence Ion
Best USB 3.0 Card Reader
Transcend TS-RDF5K

USB 3.0 is not as speedy as USB Type-C, but it doesn’t mean you’re living entirely in the past. There are plenty of accessories still available with this type of connector, including our top pick from Transcend.

If what you’re looking for is a simple little adapter you can always keep on hand, the affordable Transcend USB 3.0 card reader is a fabulous deal. It supports SD and microSD and comes in three colors. The only drawback is that if your USB ports are huddled close together, the Transcend card reader might cause some crowding. Also, be wary that it has a removable cap which can very suddenly fall to the ground and wedge itself under furniture somewhere.

Pros

  • Supports both SD and microSD

  • Comes in several colors

Cons

  • Not as speedy as other readers

  • Easy-to-lose removable cap

Buy now at Amazon

$10.99 from Walmart

How We Tested

The Tester

My name is Florence Ion, and I’ve been doling out professional buying advice for nearly a decade. I’m also a devoted Chromebook user and am often looking for USB Type-C accessories that can help transfer photos back and forth from my DSLR.

The Tests

I bundled together nearly 30GB of varying file types, including RAW images, JPEGs, GIFs, ebooks, text files, Word documents, and videos to test the write speeds of each card reader. The test was split up into three stages: moving over 10GB of data, then 20GB, and then nearly 30GB. The tests were conducted three times apiece, each time measured by a stopwatch, and the final results were then averaged to determine each card reader's top write speeds.

Not all card readers were tested using the same computer. The USB 3.0-compatible card readers were tested with a Windows 10 laptop, while the USB Type-C readers were tested with a MacBook Pro.

sd card readers
Credit: Reviewed / Florence Ion

To test the read speeds of each card reader, I used a program called USB Flash Benchmark to measure the USB 3.0-connected card readers on PC and Xbench on the USB-C card readers tested with the Mac. The SanDisk Extreme Pro 32GB, which tested the fastest in our SD card test, served as the benchmark for each card reader since it can handle up to 95 MB/s transfer speeds.

What to Know about SD Cards

As you're shopping for an SD card reader, you should consider things like speed, size, and overall ease of use.

If your laptop has a USB-C port (many models these days only have one to work with), you'll want to stick with that type of connection for your card reader. If you have a laptop with traditional USB ports, there are also two USB 3.0 options tested here.

USB ports
Credit: Getty Images

A USB-C connector on the left is becoming more common than the more traditional USB 3.0 connector on the right.

Don't bother with USB 2.0 card readers, as they're generally considered an outdated standard and are much slower than what's out now. USB 3.0 card readers are also backward compatible, so they're worth checking out even if you have an older computer.

You don't have to buy the card reader with all the slots. Skip the CF reader if you don't have an older DSLR, for instance, as it will likely also save you some room. CF cards are bigger than SD cards and thus require more housing. The fewer the slots, the smaller the reader, which bodes well if you want to keep things light.

Removable cables are nice, but if you're always on the go, consider a card reader with one that's permanently attached. Cables can be easily misplaced, which can later cause a headache. Also, just because a card reader is small and compact doesn't mean it offers you access to all of your computer's ports.


Other SD Cards We Tested

Product image of Verbatim 99236
Verbatim 99236

Need something small and compact without the additional cable tail? The Verbatim USB-C Pocket Card Reader is undoubtedly pocket-sized, though it also offers some of the quickest transfer speeds—it’s even faster than our top pick, the Unitek, as it successfully transferred 30GB of data from the desktop to the SD card in 8 minutes. It doesn’t offer CF card compatibility, however, which makes it only a second-choice pick in our lineup.

Pros

  • Convenient compact design

  • Excellent transfer speeds

Cons

  • Lacks CF-card compatibility

$20.99 from Amazon

$21.82 from Walmart
Product image of IOGear GFR3C15
IOGEAR Quantum

The IOGEAR Quantum card reader has a cool name and an even cooler chassis. Its sleek aluminum exterior pairs well with any MacBook Pro or the Google Pixelbook. It offers an SD card, CF card, and microSD slot for all your media offloading needs. It’s also compact-sized, with a permanent cable that’s short enough to fold over and stuff in a jacket pocket. It’s a bit faster at transferring over large amounts of data than the other model from IOGEAR featured here, though that difference in time will cost you a few extra bucks.

Pros

  • Sleek aluminum design

  • Compatible with SD, CF, and microSD cards

  • Excellent transfer speeds

Cons

  • None that we could find

Buy now at Amazon

$77.99 from Walmart
Product image of Cable Matters 201058-BLK
CableMatters USB 3.1 Type-C

Looking for a multipurpose card reader to stuff into a purse? The CableMatters Type-C Card Reader is a speedy little thing and cute to boot. It comes with a six-inch USB-C cable offering USB 3.1 transfer speeds. In the write-over speed tests, it moved over 30GB of data in a little over eight and a half minutes—that’s a few seconds more than our top pick from Unitek. It doesn’t handle CF cards, though it accepts microSD. It also comes in white.

Pros

  • Excellent transfer speeds

  • Compatible with microSD

Cons

  • Doesn’t work with CF cards

Buy now at Amazon
Product image of IOGear GFR3C13
IOGEAR Reader-C

For a no-fuss card reader that can also handle CF cards, try the IOGEAR Reader-C. It’s black, with a permanently-affixed USB-C cable that’s easy to tuck away in case you want to stuff it into a pencil pouch. This card reader isn’t the fastest of the bunch, however, as it takes about 10 minutes to transfer over 30GB of data from your desktop. But it’s affordable, and it offers that extra, elusive CF card slot.

Buy now at Amazon

$72.44 from Walmart
Product image of Ugreen 30333
Ugreen 30333

Ugreen isn’t a particularly well-known brand nor is it a consistent performer, but it is one of Amazon’s Choice products in this product category. The UGreen USB 3.0 card reader supports a wide variety of formats, including SD, microSD, CF, and Sony Memory Stick Duo cards. Its one-and-a-half-foot cable is long enough to reach around large devices and doesn’t crowd up port space. But its transfer rates are too slow for a USB 3.0 card reader and it was no faster at moving over 30GB of files than the poorest performer, the Kingston Media Reader.

Buy now at Amazon
Product image of Kingston FCR-HS4
Kingston FCR-HS4

The Kingston media reader is bulky and offers slow sync speeds. This card reader can support SD cards, CF cards, microSD cards, and Sony’s Memory Stick Duo. It comes with a three-foot-long cable that can reach behind a large computer case with relative ease, though its Micro USB 3 connection is outdated and hard to replace. Its transfer speeds were far behind the other two USB 3.0 card readers featured here. It took almost 16 minutes to transfer over 30GB of data. For comparison, the Transcend RDF5K managed to transfer the same batch of files in 10 minutes and 30 seconds.

Buy now at Amazon

$24.50 from Walmart

Meet the tester

Florence Ion

Florence Ion

Contributing Writer

@Ohthatflo

Florence Ion is a freelance journalist and prolific podcaster. She's written for Ars Technica, PC World, Android Central, The Verge, and Engadget. Her reviews and how-tos can usually be found on Lifehacker, Tom's Guide, and Reviewed. She can also be heard weekly on All About Android on the TWiT network and Material on Relay FM.

See all of Florence Ion's reviews

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