Best PCIe 4.0 SSDs 2026: 5 top picks from the PC experts

Recent computing equipment typically supports the 16Gbps PCIe 4.0 protocol as its baseline data transfer/SSD storage technology.

While Gen 4 is slowly being supplanted by 32Gbps PCIe 5.0 (most computers mix the two), the difference in real-world performance is not as great as you might think. A lot of software, which unfortunately includes Windows, can’t take full advantage. Alas, PCIe 5.0 still demands a hefty surcharge.

As to surcharges… At the time we were bringing this article up to date, SSD prices were soaring and availability shrinking — thanks in large part to the AI gold rush. Hence, the newly researched prices shown below will not match the older ones in the linked reviews.

The recommendations below represent the cream of the nearly three dozen PCIe 4.0 SSDs that we’ve reviewed, best suited for a variety of needs. Whether you want to upgrade or add more storage, there’s a PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSD for you. Read on to learn more, including what to look for.