We put four mini USB drives from PNY, Samsung, and Sandisk to test. These compact drives by design can always stay plugged as a semi-permanent storage to free up precious storage space on your laptop. While not as fast as SSD-grade thumb drives and portable SSDs, they are good enough for everyday tasks.
Contents
Our Picks
If performance is your top priority, the Samsung Fit Plus is the best choice, topping other mini USB drives in our tests. Whereas the SanDisk Ultra Fit has an edge in overall read performance and large-file writes, the Fit Plus performs noticeably better with small-file writes. Our only notable complaint with the Fit Plus is its size, which is larger than both the PNY Elite-X Fit and the SanDisk Ultra Fit.
If you want a plug‑and‑forget-it USB‑C drive for your phone, tablet, or laptop, the SanDisk Extreme Fit is an easy pick. It sits flush and inserts perpendicular to the USB‑C port, so it stays out of the way. Performance is solid, though not as fast as the Samsung Fit Plus.
Who Would Need Such a Small Drive?
Buyers who want a drive that only protrudes as little as possible from a USB port should consider one. Thumb drives in general stick out quite conspicuously so they could easily get bent when being bumped repeatedly. This could easily result in data loss and maybe even worse, a broken USB port.
By design, compact drives can always stay inserted into a USB-enabled car stereo or into a notebook as semi-permanent storage for media. They can also free up precious space on the laptop’s speedy SSD for mission-critical tasks. For this reason, a mini USB drive can actually prove to be quite practical for some of us who might need an effortless storage expansion option.
Feature Comparison
 PNY Elite-X FIT $69.99 for 512GB |  Samsung FIT Plus Price not available for 512GB |  Sandisk Ultra Fit $54.08 for 512GB |  Sandisk Extreme Fit $79.99 for 512GB |
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| Interface: | USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A | USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A | USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A | USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-C |
| Read Speed: (10GB video) | 190.56MB/s | 336.49MB/s | 339.31MB/s | 334.95MB/s |
| Write Speed: (10GB video) | 28.47MB/s | 114.65MB/s | 190.46MB/s | 88.89MB/s |
| Read Speed: (5GB photos) | 173.08MB/s | 294.54MB/s | 308.49MB/s | 284.50MB/s |
| Write Speed: (5GB photos) | 16.36MB/s | 92.48MB/s | 25.16MB/s | 69.16MB/s |
| Storage: | 32 - 512GB | 32 - 512GB | 16GB - 1TB | 64GB - 1TB |
| Dimensions: | 20.8 x 15.2 x 6.4mm | 23.6 x 18.8 x 7.8mm | 19.1 x 15.9 x 8.8mm | 18.54 x 13.7 x 16mm |
| Build Material: | Plastic grip, aluminum body | Plastic grip, aluminum body | Plastic body | Plastic body |
| Activity Light? | No | No | No | No |
| End Cap? | Yes | No | No | No |
| Color(s): | Black | Gray | Black | Black |
| Aug 2016 | June 2018 | May 2023 | Dec 2025 | |
| Warranty: | 1 year | 5 years | 5 years | 5 years |
| Country of Origin Label: | Made in Taiwan | Made in Taiwan | Made in Malaysia | Made in Malaysia |
Pricing is last updated by Amazon on 2026-01-24 at 20:40. When you buy through Amazon affiliate links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.
Benchmark Analysis
Through Nodesoft’s DiskBench, the SanDisk Ultra Fit emerged as the most well-rounded performer for large file operations. In our 10GB MP4 transfer tests, it led at 339.31 MB/s read speed, closely followed by the Samsung FIT Plus at 336.49 MB/s and SanDisk Extreme FIT at 334.95 MB/s. The Ultra Fit also dominated large file write operations at 190.46 MB/s, nearly double the speed of the Samsung FIT Plus (114.65 MB/s).
However, the drive showed a notable weakness in small file writes at only 25.16 MB/s, barely edging out the PNY Elite-X FIT’s 16.85 MB/s. This was where the Samsung FIT Plus excelled with a speed of 92.48 MB/s, followed by the SanDisk Extreme FIT at 69.16 MB/s. Keep in mind the Samsung Fit Plus offered a more balanced middle ground in both large and small file write performance.
If you are coming from 256GB, it’s worth noting that both the Samsung FIT Plus and SanDisk Ultra Fit demonstrated a considerable speed improvement over the 256GB version. Samsung’s 512GB drive was at least 2.5 times faster than the 256GB. The 512GB SanDisk Ultra Fit also delivered a significant upgrade, with speeds about 2.5 to 8 times faster than its 256GB sibling.
The SanDisk Extreme Fit was a bit of a mixed bag. From our benchmarks, it was faster than the Ultra Fit on small file writes, yet slower on large file writes. The drive boasts UASP support , which improves queuing and reduces latency under heavy I/O. It is also one of the first mini drives to feature USB-C – likely your only option if your laptop does away with all legacy USB-A ports.
The surprise was the PNY Elite-X FIT. Despite its “Elite” moniker, it actually performed the poorest across the board, managing only about 190 MB/s large file read and as low as 16 MB/s in small file writes.
Note these two tests focused primarily on sequential performance, because we felt most people would rely on a mini drive primarily as intermediary or secondary storage for media data. These mini drives, without a decent flash controller, would struggled with applications that require fast random access. For this reason, we didn’t run additional tests.
Design & Build
All four low-profile USB drives are all similarly small, but when placed side-by-side, the SanDisk Ultra Fit’s diminutive size compares favorably to the others — even if only by a fraction. When inserted, the drive protrudes just 6mm from the edge of the laptop. This makes it a no-brainer for semi-permanent storage. The Samsung Fit Plus, in comparison, is noticeably larger, likely to aid in heat dissipation. The SanDisk Extreme Fit — the only USB-C drive in the round-up — sits perpendicular to the port and extends about 8mm from the edge of the laptop. Except for the Extreme Fit, all the other drives come with a keyring loophole should you need one.
In terms of durability, the Sandisk Ultra Fit took a step backward with its squishy plastic connector. This is a concern that is already echoed by a number of user reviews on Amazon. Having said that, if you intend to leave the drive plugged at all times, this shouldn’t be that big of a problem. We would have to say the other drives with their metal USB connectors protecting the flash components could likely survive if being stepped on.
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Pricing is last updated by Amazon on 2026-01-24 at 20:40. When you buy through Amazon affiliate links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.
