Expert Consulted: Adrian Gardiner. Years of experience building and looking after customer PCs have given me useful knowledge on anything computer-related. In this article, I’ll be sharing my knowledge and tips on how much storage you need for a gaming PC.
Trying to work out how much storage you need for a gaming PC can be tricky with so many variables involved. The last thing you want is to run out of space too quickly. You also don’t want to waste your hard-earned money on the wrong hardware.
So, how much storage do you need for a Gaming PC?
The amount of storage needed for your gaming PC will depend on your budget, the games you wish to play, and how many. Based on the size of games available today, you’ll need at least 1 TB but I recommend at least 2 TB or more. The fastest storage format for gaming is an M.2 NVMe PCIe v4 SSD but a 2.5″ SATA SSD will also provide great performance.
In the rest of my article, I’ve covered the most important things you need to consider when trying to decide on the best amount and type of storage. There are a number of key points we need to consider.
Related Article: SSD vs HDD Gaming
How Much Storage Do You Need for a Gaming PC (including Which is Fastest & Best Value)?
With so many choices available from cheap conventional SATA hard disk drives, to 2.5″ SSDs and M.2 SSD drives it’s a bit of a maze if you’re not used to having to navigate it.
Most of us only have to do it every once in a while and then upgrade in a few years when we’re short on space, only to find that the technology has changed.
How much storage you need for your gaming PC will depend on the specification of your computer in terms of how much space it has and what type of motherboard it has (i.e., does it have any M.2 slots?).
The amount of storage will also depend on what sort of games you play and of course your budget.
Current Storage Types and Which Is Best
Currently, there are 3 main types of storage devices in use and I’ve described each below.
Out of these 3, for a gaming PC, I would recommend, if your budget allows, the M.2 NVMe PCIe v4 SSD. Other versions of the M.2 SSD are fine too but while slower, will be more affordable.
Conventional HDDs will be way too slow for today’s performance-hungry gaming computers (including the demanding games they run too) and apart from their low cost and good long-term cheap storage qualities, aren’t necessarily the best way forward.
2.5″ M.2 format hard drives are a great option too and will be fine for a low-budget gaming computer and as many current motherboards now include an M.2 slot you can always upgrade to a faster drive later as and when your budget allows.
Hard disk drive (HDD)
Mechanical hard disk drives have been in use since the 1960s and are still included in some new computers because of their low cost per GB in comparison with newer types of storage devices.
These drives, with their sensitive and highly delicate moving parts, whilst good for long-term archival storage, are vulnerable to knocks and vibration.
Advantages
- Cheapest form of storage
- Best for long-term data storage
- Largest capacity drives.
Disadvantages
- Susceptible to damage from knocks and vibration
- Can be noisy with clicking sounds during operation
- Can get hot during use
- Compared to newer drive formats, can take up a lot more space
Solid State Drive (SSD)
Provided in a handy 2.5″ laptop hard drive format for ease of upgrading, SSD drives hit the mainstream in 2006 with a Samsung 32 GB drive, offering a huge increase in performance over the much older HDD format.
SSD drives are noticeably faster everywhere with much faster computer start-up, programs loading and running quicker, and just generally better all round responsiveness – great for gaming.
Advantages
- Much faster than HDDs
- More reliable than HDDs
- Do not get hot
- Resistant to shock and vibration
- Make no noise during operation
- Lighter than HDDs
- Easy to upgrade from HDD
Disadvantages
- More expensive than HDDs
- Not the best option for long-term archival storage – for that you need HDDs
M.2 NVMe PCIe v4 SSD
M.2 NVMe PCIe v4 SSD drives are the current top dog in terms of performance, representing another leap in performance over the 2.5″ SSD drives.
Bear in mind that these M.2 drives can get hot, and so they will need their own heatsink and good case cooling to keep temperatures down to avoid performance throttling.
Advantages
- Faster than 2.5″ SSDs
- Considerably smaller so minimal space needed
- Resistant to shock and vibration
- Much easier to fit with no cabling required
Disadvantages
- Like 2.5″ SSD drives, M.2 SSDs are not best suited to long-term storage
- Can run hot, requiring a heat sink and case cooling considerations to ensure good airflow.
Choosing the Fastest Storage for Your Gaming Build
As you can see from the table below, the very fastest storage you can buy today is an M.2 NVMe PCIe v4 SSD drive representing a colossal improvement in performance. There are of course slower versions of this drive at lower cost.
If you choose to buy an M.2 NVMe PCIe v4 SSD, make sure you either get one that has a heatsink included or that you get a heatsink separately to ensure the drive is adequately cooled as they can run hot.
It’s worth noting that you’ll see considerable reductions for in-game loading times for new levels and the time taken to load assets with the new NVMe SSDs, especially the 4th generation products. Games will also load much more quickly.
Drive Format
HDD
2.5″ SATA SSD
M.2 NVMe PCIe v4 SSD
Cost
$49.99
$119.99
$149.99
Speed (r/w)
220 MB/s (average)
560 / 530 MB/s
7000 / 6550 MB/s
The above drives can be found on a range of websites including Amazon and Newegg – I’ve added links to each product.
What Will Fit in Your PC
All 3 drive types will fit easily in the most commonly used computer cases, including Mini-ITX, Micro ATX (mATX), and ATX formats.
It’s worth noting, that when it comes to assembly, if you’re building your own Gaming PC, an M.2 drive is a great choice as it’s so simple to fit, with no messy cabling required and a much neater-looking case.
HDD: Usually there will be at least 1 x HDD drive bay in Mini-ITX cases, and multiple drive bays in Micro ATX and ATX cases.
2.5″ SSD: Many cases now come with a specific mounting just for these drives inside the case, usually just the one, and additional mounting points on the other side of the panel used for the motherboard mount.
M.2 SSD: Most current motherboards now include at least 1 x M.2 slot on Mini-ITX, Micro ATX boards, and 2 or more slots on ATX boards. I recommend you check carefully before buying to ensure that your board includes the slot(s) you need, especially with Mini-ITX cases.
How Much Space Do Current Games Need?
The amount of storage taken up by games you can buy right now is growing rapidly and is considerable. Here is a quick selection of popular games and the amount of storage each one needs:
| Game | Required Storage |
| Halo – The Master Chief Collection | 43 GB |
| The Sims 4 | 50 GB |
| Overwatch 2 | 50 GB |
| Dota 2 | 60 GB |
| Hitman 3 | 60 GB |
| Ark – Survival Evolved | 60 GB |
| Apex Legends | 65 GB |
| Quantum Break | 68 GB |
| Middle Earth – Shadow of War | 70 GB |
| Borderlands 3 | 75 GB |
| Gears of War 4 | 80 GB |
| Destiny 2 Shadowkeep | 105 GB |
| Grand Theft Auto V | 120 GB |
| Mass Effect – Legendary Edition | 120 GB |
| Call of Duty – Cold War | 125 GB |
| Call of Duty – Warzone 2.0 | 125 GB |
| Microsoft Flight Simulator | 150 GB |
| Red Dead Redemption 2 | 150 GB |
| Call of Duty – Warzone Caldera | 175 GB |
My Storage Recommendations
It doesn’t really matter whether you’re using a platform like Steam or just downloading from the game developers’ website, you’ll need a minimum of at least 1 TB of storage. Prebuilt Gaming PCs now usually all ship with at least 1 TB of storage but it’s not enough in my opinion.
With many games now hovering between 50 GB to well over 200 GB in size you’re going to need all the space you can get.
I would recommend going for 2 TB or higher if your budget allows (the 1 TB version is half the cost), to save you from having to upgrade to a larger drive too soon as 1 TB is going to fill quickly.
The more storage you can afford, the better, as you’ll just not have to worry about lack of space for that much longer.
As mentioned earlier, whatever size drive you decide to buy, I recommend you go for an SSD drive and if you can afford it, go for an M.2 NVMe PCIe v4 SSD. PCIe v3 is ok too, slower but still very quick.
NOTE: Check to make sure you’re motherboard will handle a 4th generation M.2 NVMe SSD. A lot of boards still only support PCIe v3.
I’ve built gaming computers for customers who said they’d only play the odd game now and then only to find out they downloaded loads of games and quickly ran short on space, even with 2 TB drives!
Conclusion
The install size of today’s computer games is getting huge, with Call of Duty Warzone Caldera needing 175 GB! You can easily see, therefore, that having enough storage is important.
Additionally, having the right type of storage will make all the difference to your gaming experience, so the super fast M.2 NVMe PCIe v4 SSD drives are the ideal drive.
If you need to save costs, you can fit a Team Group CX2 2.5″ 2 TB SATA SSD at only $67.00 and upgrade later to an M.2 drive – you’ll have a good deal of space with great performance too.