The best Cyber Monday external hard drive deals 2024: the biggest deals still live

Cyber Monday external hard drive deals on a pink background
(Image credit: Future)

Cyber Monday external hard drive deals are hanging on, so if you missed any storage savings, you might still have a chance. Plenty of deals on portable SSDs and traditional HDDs have already vanished, but since some offers weren't inherent to the event itself, they're still floating around. You'll want to be quick, though, as it normally only takes a day or two for prices to shoot back up to normal.

So, what Cyber Monday external hard drive deals are actually left? Well, I just spotted the 5TB WD Black P10 for $119 at Walmart, and Sandisk's protable 2TB drive is still down to $129.38 from $199.99. The pickings are naturally much slimmer right now, but that's exactly what's supposed to happen seeing as the event ended on November 3, right?

The TLDR is that Cyber Monday external hard drive deals are officially over, but you'll find a few stragglers worth grabbing below. I've checked each SSD and HDD to make sure they're worth using with your console and PC and are sitting at a record low priced.

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Today's best Cyber Monday external hard drive deals

WD Black 5TB P10 HDD | $139.99 $119 at WalmartSave $21-

WD Black 5TB P10 HDD | $139.99 $119 at Walmart
Save $21 - While the saving itself may not look so appealing, this 5TB HDD is just a few dollars more than significantly smaller drives, so instead of having to buy any additional storage in the future, it might be worth spending that little bit extra and getting a drive with a higher capacity.

Buy it if:

✅ You're after a fairly large storage boost
✅ You want to load games faster

Don't buy it if:

❌ You don't want to crack open your case and stick things in the motherboard

Price check: Best Buy $129.99 | Amazon $114.59 (but it won't be with you until February)

UK: £134.99 £102.99 at Amazon

WD Black P40 SSD 1TB | $139.99$99.99 at AmazonSave $40

WD Black P40 SSD 1TB | $139.99 $99.99 at Amazon
Save $40 - If the above drive's 5TB storage is just too much and you're willing to sacrifice capacity for speed and a lower price, this SSD should do the trick. It's one of the best external SSDs around, and works perfectly for expanding the storage on your PC, Xbox, or PlayStation.

Buy it if:

✅ You want a top-tier external SSD
✅ 1TB is all you need

Don't buy it if:

❌ You'd rather spend a similar amount on a larger (but slower) HDD

Price check: Walmart: out of stock | Best Buy: $179.99

UK: £150.75 at Amazon

SanDisk 2TB Extreme Portable | $199.99 $129.38 at AmazonSave $70-

SanDisk 2TB Extreme Portable | $199.99 $129.38 at Amazon
Save $70 - If you travel around a lot and need an external drive that can take a beating, this SanDisk SSD should be a good pick. We've not seen the price dip below the current level since the end of 2023, so if this is exactly the thing you're after, now might be the best time to buy in case the price shoots back up.

Buy it if:

✅ You want a faster SSD instead of an HDD
✅ You need something highly portable and a bit more rugged

Don't buy it if:

❌ 2TB isn't enough and you'd prefer a larger HDD for a similar price

Price check: Walmart $169.99 | Best Buy $134.99

UK: £147.95 at Amazon

WD 6TB Elements | $174.99 $144.99 at WalmartSave $30 -

WD 6TB Elements | $174.99 $144.99 at Walmart
Save $30 - At 2.5", this is a nifty, super portable bit of a kit for someone who's looking for a substantial upgrade to their current storage situation. Amazon previously had this at a record low of $129.99 but has since shot up, leaving this still very decent discount from Walmart as your best option on this great external hard drive.

Buy it if:

✅ You're looking to pair it with a PC or Mac
✅ You're interested in its SuperSpeed USB-A cable for transfers up to 5Gbps

Don't buy it if:

❌ You don't need 6TB

Price check: Amazon $173 | Best Buy (out of stock)

UK: £157.99 at Amazon

Seagate Expansion 14TB | $319.99 $179.99 at Best BuySave $140

Seagate Expansion 14TB | $319.99 $179.99 at Best Buy
Save $140 - This 14TB device has rescue data recovery services built-in, so if you're someone who's worried about losing massive amounts of files, it might be the HDD for you. Other sites list the RRP as significantly lower, so this might not actually be $140 cheaper, but it's still a good price for a huge capacity.

Buy it if:

✅ You're looking for a lot more storage
✅ You want to pair it with a PC or a Mac

Don't buy it if:

❌ You want something you can slip in your pocket

Price check: Amazon $222.71 | Walmart $199.99

UK: £354.99 £249 at Amazon

Cyber Monday external hard drive deals: FAQs

Crucial X10 Pro up close while sitting on a pink PS5

(Image credit: Future / Duncan Robertson)

When will Cyber Monday external hard drive deals end?

Black Friday 2024 kicked off on November 29 this year, with Cyber Monday taking place on December 2. That means we're coming to the end of the official sales period now, and while many retailers will put a stop to things at midnight on the Monday, others may keep their reductions a little longer while stock is still available. At this point, it's very unlikely that any Cyber Monday deals will get better, so if you see something you need then now is the time to make a purchase if you haven't already.

Where will the best external hard drive deals be?

If you're looking for an external hard drive during Black Friday weekend and Cyber Monday, then you don't really have to look far and wide, with practically all major tech retailers offering discounts.

US Retailers:
Amazon: Wide range of brands and sizes on sale
BestBuy: Discounts on hard drives exclusive to BestBuy
Walmart: Deals on portable hard drives of different sizes
Newegg: Money off of big brands like WD_Black

UK Retailers:
Amazon: Sales on all different brands and sizes
Currys: Money off of tons of hard drive options
OverClockersUK: Sales on top brands like Seagate and WD
eBuyer: Discounts on a range of external hard drives

Cyber Monday external hard drive deals: what to expect

WD_Black P40 in situ working with a pink PS5

(Image credit: Future / Duncan Robertson)

For the most part, you'll find that most of the cheapest Cyber Monday external hard drive deals take the form of 1TB SSDs. While 500GB drives would traditionally represent the entry-level storage scene, capacity standards are switching, so you'll find that larger options are available for less. Last year, we came across quite a few models for around the $50 mark, including the Crucial X6 for $49.99 at Best Buy and the Lexar SL200 for $47.95.

Where things will start to differ is when it comes to speed. Drives like the WD Black P40 will cost near double compared to their cheaper counterparts, but boast faster USB 3.2 connectivity and PCIe Gen 4 tech inside. This could be important if you want to run games straight off external storage using something like a gaming handheld, as you'll want to match internal drives on specs as much as possible.

Speaking of which, you'll be wanting to eye up a specific sub-section of the external SSD market if you've got a Steam Deck OLED. The idea is to find something small enough to not weigh down the handheld, and there were plenty of offers that check that box last year. Notable editions to watch for this year the the likes of the PNY RP60 and the Lexar SL500, both of which should receive decent price cuts.

If it's sheer capacity you need, traditional HDDs are still a thing. You'll typically find 4TB portable drives for cheaper during Black Friday that are still considered "portable." Beyond that, you're looking at data banks designed to hold masses of data like the Seagate Expansion 8TB external hard drive. You're talking $159.59 for that model, but with any luck, we'll see it draw closer to the $100 mark on Cyber Monday.

Should I get SSD or HDD for PS5?

WD Black SN850P close up in a PS5's SSD tray

(Image credit: Future / Duncan Robertson)

SSD is the superior type of storage. Its read and write speeds are enormously faster, and if you want quicker transfer times for content creation or gaming, this is absolutely the type of external drive you should seek out. Most of the time, portable SSDs are a lot more expensive, which is our only real caveat to recommending them, but if you can find them cheap for Black Friday, definitely go for these over HDD.

Having said that, HDD still has its uses. If you're buying in larger capacities or you don't really see the need for faster speeds and transfer times, HDD can be a great backup. It's also cheap as anything, especially during Black Friday. Be wary, though, if these drives get damaged or have to put up with falls, they can be an absolute nightmare to try and fix. On the whole, external SSDs tend to be a bit more foolproof.


Complete your gaming setup for less in the Black Friday gaming chair deals and Black Friday gaming monitor deals. Be sure to take a look at Black Friday gaming PC deals for more.

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Phil Hayton
Hardware Editor

I’ve been messing around with PCs, video game consoles, and tech since before I could speak. Don’t get me wrong, I kickstarted my relationship with technology by jamming a Hot Wheels double-decker bus into my parent’s VCR, but we all have to start somewhere. I even somehow managed to become a walking, talking buyer’s guide at my teenage supermarket job, which helped me accept my career fate. So, rather than try to realise my musician dreams, or see out my University degree, I started running my own retro pop culture site and writing about video games and tech for the likes of TechRadar, The Daily Star, and the BBC before eventually ending up with a job covering graphics card shenanigans at PCGamesN. Now, I’m your friendly neighbourhood Hardware Editor at GamesRadar, and it’s my job to make sure you can kick butt in all your favourite games using the best gaming hardware, whether you’re a sucker for handhelds like the Steam Deck and Nintendo Switch or a hardcore gaming PC enthusiast.

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