When most of us think of where our Macs store data, we are used to saying “the hard drive”. But the truth is, not all drives are physically spinning HDDs anymore, and the Solid State Drive (or SSD) is becoming an increasingly common upgrade for MacBook Pros of all ages.

MacBook Pro 13' Core i7 2.9GHz 16GB RAM 512GB SSD 96.8% Battery Health. 2012 Core i7 2.9GHz 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD Solid State Drive. This is the newest Model of Apple MacBook Pro Unibody that includes a DVD drive. It was manufactured & sold by Apple from 2012 through 2016. Jump to MacBook Pro (Late 2016 – Mid 2017) - MacBook Pro (Mid 2012 - Early 2013). With the release of the first MacBook Pro with “Retina” screen, Apple.

Because SSDs have a number of advantages compared to HDDs, they are more speedy, reliable and quieter — yes, you won’t hear the click sound from a spinning hard drive. However, SSDs are also a little bit expensive than HDDs though the price difference is diminishing.

In this guide, we’ll walk you through picking the best SSD drive to upgrade your MacBook Pro’s old hard drive or existing SSD and point out how we chose the favorite products along the way.

Quick Summary

Need a brief summary of our top picks? Here’s the best SSD replacement for your MacBook Pro depending on your specific needs.

• For general users who want a quality, affordable SSD, you won’t go wrong with Crucial MX500 — which has exemplary read and write speeds, with awesome energy-saving features that will keep your MacBook from overheating or using up excessive amounts of battery.
• For those of you who want to shop an SSD from a reputable brand, get SanDisk Ultra 3D — which will be able to keep up with your work all day, every day with all-around improvements to your booting, loading, and processing times.
• For power users who want a drive that’s durable and built to last, pick up Samsung 860 PRO — which allows you to make the most of every gigabyte, and meet your need with a great warranty and optimized processing technology.

Who Should Get This?

It’s a digital world, and we all like to have the shiniest gadgets on the market. But do you really need to install a new internal flash storage and dump the old hard disk drive? Well, it all depends and here are our suggestions.

You should consider upgrading your MacBook Pro with an SSD if:​

• You work with large files regularly.
• Your MacBook starts up very slow or performs sluggishly in general. This is common for old MacBook Pros such as 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2012 models.
• The internal hard disk drive is showing its age and might die out any day. Here’s a guide that shows how to determine if it’s failing.
• You often use resource-intensive apps such as Adobe Photoshop for photo editing, or Premiere Pro for video editing, etc.
• You need the greater reliability of file storage or want to minimize negative experiences with overheating and potential damage.
• You want to upgrade your MacBook without purchasing an entirely new machine.

You may NOT need an SSD replacement if…

• You mainly use the Internet and document editing functions on your Mac and do not make use of heavier applications.
• You use your Mac fairly carefully or do not keep important or sensitive files on the drive.
• You are using a new MacBook (with Retina display), because “removing the SSD is possible, although it’s not an easy job. For starters, the bottom aluminum side is harder to remove. Then, the SSD is kept in place under the speaker module and has a very strong tape covering the interface port.” as pointed out in BGR.

Internal SSD Upgrade for MacBook Pro: What to Consider?

Capacity

When making a purchase, you may find yourself willing to compromise on storage capacity because of the cost compared to an HDD. Don’t do this! Because storage capacity is a key factor that determines how much use you get out of your new drive, and as computers progress, you’re going to want to have the space to keep up. Additionally, using external drives can slow down your Mac, so it’s best to splurge for extra space now rather than regret it later.

Reading and Writing Speed

Every disk drive is rated with a certain set of speed that describes how fast it can read and write files. The range of a good product usually stays between 500MB/s and 550MB/s. The higher these numbers are, the better. Please note that the advertised numbers are not representative of real-world conditions though, in which you’ll probably experience speed about two-thirds of those rated.

Memory Type – MLC and SLC

SSDs have two types of memory: multi-level cell and single-level cell. The first is cheaper to make and stores more information, but the later has a lower rate of error. However, some SSDs come with error-correcting features to minimize this difference, so it’s up to you to decide which best fits your needs.

Reliability

While judging a book by its cover is generally frowned upon, when it comes to flash storage, it’s perfectly acceptable to judge performance and reliability from the brand name alone. Well-known companies usually have good reputations for reliability and quality control of their products, and you’ll want that name-brand security when it comes to something as critical to daily functions.

Best SSD for MacBook Pro (Internal Upgrade): Our Picks

Note that the SSD drives we recommend below are rated based on our own opinions and preferences. They are by no means made in this order.

1. Crucial MX500 250GB 3D NAND SATA 2.5 Inch Internal SSD

If you are on a budget and need dependability and security for your data, this drive from Crucial fits the bill. Its energy efficient features will protect your MacBook from overheating or draining of the battery. This is an SSD that should meet most users’ needs. In our opinion, 250 GB is the best choice, but you may also choose a larger one such as 2TB.

• Pros: It has four different capacities available for you to choose from. The drive is speedy as it’s rated for read and write speed of 560MB/sec and 510 MB/sec respectively. Also, the drive includes energy adaptive features to prevent overheating and excessive battery use — this is especially helpful if you’re still using an old MacBook with a battery under fairly poor conditions.
• Cons: It’s not the fastest drive on the market and some users may need a spacer to make this fit correctly inside their MacBook.

2. SanDisk Ultra 3D NAND 500GB Internal SSD

SanDisk is a world-famous storage solution provider that offers many types of products especially memory cards, flash drives, etc. If you’re a photographer, chances are you’re using or have used an SD card manufactured by SanDisk. What you may not know is that the company also offers solid state drives. If you need a drive that will perform well under pressure, then Ultra 3D NAND SATA III from SanDisk can definitely fill that need. With lightning-fast read and write speeds, improved startups, and shorter loading times all around, this drive will keep up with you throughout a busy working day.

• Pros: It’s very fast as rated at 560 MB/sec in reading and 530 MB/sec in writing. The drive also comes with specialized caching methods to enhance performance while maintaining a cool and quiet operation. Plus, there are a variety of available storage capacities to choose.
• Cons: It doesn’t come with a cloning software which means you need to take some time to transfer the data from the old drive to the new one.

3. Samsung 860 PRO V-NAND 1TB SSD

Boasting a 5-year warranty, cloning software, and a respected name, it’s hard to know where to start with this Samsung drive’s best attributes. You’ll benefit from increased speeds for loading applications and saving files, as well as a variety of options for storage capacity to meet your specific needs.

• Pros: It’s extremely dependable and known for use among heavy users, will work efficiently with your MacBook (reads 560 MB/sec, writes 530 MB/sec), and includes an outstanding warranty. Also, it uses 3D V-NAND to increase speed and rated for 150 terabytes written — more than enough to outlast your MacBook Pro itself.
• Cons: Some users reported that they had problems with the built-in data migration software.

Useful Tips and Resources

Whenever you consider making any significant changes to your MacBook Pro, it’s always a good practice to make sure you have a recent backup of all the important files. See this Apple guide for different ways to back up a Mac machine. Therefore, when it comes to replacing your Mac’s internal hard drive with a new SSD, you’ll want to make sure that everything is backed up properly in case any potential risk.

Download flash update for mac computer. Scheduled updates can contain enhancements and nonurgent security updates. This option provides the best protection for your system.Urgent security updates install automatically without notification.For scheduled updates, Adobe attempts to notify you before automatically installing them.

The SSD installation process is fairly simple to computer geeks, but general users may find it challenging. That’s why this guide from CNET is worth checking out, it features a step by step tutorial on how to upgrade the internal drive and walks you through the precautions and help you stay on your feet.

Using a MacBook Pro with Retina display (most models after the year 2013)? These Macs don’t officially support being taken apart so you should consider carefully whether or not you want to go through with it. However, if you do decide to take a look under the hood, LaptopMag has a great tutorial on how to do so without jeopardizing your Retina MacBook in the process.

Also, if you decide to replace the old drive and install a new SSD all by yourself (aka, DIY), make sure you get the right screwdrivers ready as you need them to open the bottom case of your MacBook Pro. The RION Pentalobe 6 Pentalobe 5 Phillips Tri-wing Screwdrivers is a great choice.

Final Words

It may seem like SSDs have been slow to take off, but they really are the drives for many laptop computers in the future. They’re generally faster, more durable, and more efficient than any similar-sized HDD, and you can count on them to store your files and applications safely.

If you’ve decided to make the internal SSD upgrade for your Mac, tell us what your experience was like. We’d love to hear which drive you chose and how your MacBook Pro functioned afterward.

In this article I will show you, how to install a SSD into the Apple MacBook Pro. All the essentials of material and tool that is required for the installation are linked in the article.

For the installation of the SSD we have to unscrew the MacBooks, therefore it makes sense to upgrade the main memory (RAM) right now. In a a previous article I have already put together suitable memory recommendations: Apple MacBook Pro: RAM upgrade (HowTo)

Difficulty level:

1. Data migration
2. Installation

Frequently asked questions

What are the advantages of a SSD?

• short start times for operating system and apps
• comfortable and faster work under Mac OS X
• SSD work completely silent
• SSD has no mechanical parts, thus insensitive to hits and external influences

To what should I pay attention with a SSD?

When choosing the SSD, care should be taken that the memory size of the new SSD is not too low. It is advisable to choose an SSD with at least 120 GB or better even 240GB. With regard to the height both SSDs with 7 and 9.5 mm can be installed. All SSDs recommended below meet these requirements.

What are the differences between Samsung EVO/Pro series?

The main difference is the flash memory which is used in the SSD. The new Evo series is designed for the home user and relies on TLC flash memory. This one is reasonable to produce but on the other hand a bit slower. Therefore Samsung could recover this performance disadvantage in the EVO series with a so-called turbo-Write buffer and achieve a similar performance to the Samsung Pro.

I have a detailed explanation of the differences (incl. Advantages and disadvantages) in a separate article: SSD Comparison: Differences between Samsung 860/850 Pro and EVO series

Can I install an SSD with SATA 3 in a MacBook Pro with SATA2?

Yes, SATA3 is fully backward compatible. Therefore SSDs with SATA 3 can be easily operated on SATA2.

Which MacBook Pro models can be upgraded with a SSD?

Suitable SSDs for Apple MacBook Pro

[Last update: 15.04.2018]

Notation
On the market there are a variety of solid-state drives (SSD), but they differ seriously in speed and durability. For this reason I have compiled only high quality and fast SSDs that I could test in MacBook personally in my professional life and as a result I can recommend in good conscience.

MacBook Pro Non-Retina (2008 / 2009 / 2010 / 2011 / 2012)

• Samsung 860 Pro Series, 2,5 Zoll, SATA IIITip
  (Available sizes: 256GB / 512GB / 1TB / 2TB)
• Samsung 860 EVO, 2,5 Zoll, Sata IIITip
  (Available sizes: 250GB / 500GB / 1TB / 2TB / 4TB)
• Samsung 850 Pro, 2,5 Zoll, SATA III
  (Verfügbare Größen: 256GB / 512GB / 1TB / 2TB)
• Samsung 850 EVO, 2,5 Zoll, SATA III
  (Available sizes: 120GB / 250GB / 500GB / 1TB / 2TB / 4TB)
• Crucial MX500, 2,5 Zoll, SATA III
  (Available sizes: 250GB / 500GB / 1TB / 2TB)

My recommendations were helpful?
Then just say 'thank you' with a coffee!

Data migration

Before the existing disk is exchanged for a SSD, all data and settings must be saved. There are different approaches.

Option 1: Clone hard drive to SSD

1. Before making any modifications create a backup via Time Machine, in case of emergency there is a backup
2. Connect the SSD via USB to the MacBook Pro (e.g. using SATA to USB3.0 Adapter)
3. The new SSD must first be formatted using Disk Utility (as “Mac OS Extended Journaled“)
4. Then subsequently create a fully bootable 1:1 copy of your hard drive to the SSD with SuperDuper! or Carbon Copy Cloner. (This process may take several hours).

Option 2: OS X reinstall and restore the backup

1. Before making any modifications create a backup via Time Machine for later restore.
2. Create a bootable OS X recovery stick (instruction)
3. Now the new SSD have to be installed in the MacBook Pro (introduction see installation)
4. After the SSD is installed into the MacBook, insert the USB flash drive. Then turn on your MacBook while holding down the ALT key.
5. You will be asked which medium should be used for booting. Select the USB stick.
6. Before reinstalling the SSD, it first must be formatted (as “Mac OS Journaled Extendet”) via the Disk Utility. After that OS X can be installed on the new SSD. In order to this just follow the instructions on the screen.
7. Finally, the data and settings from the Time Machine backup will be restored now.

Installation

In principle, everyone who doesn’t have two left feet can do the installation. The important thing is to allow oneself plenty of time for the installation and proceed with caution. There are two ways to install a SSD in the MacBook Pro:

Option 1: Install SSD as a second drive

Everybody who needs a lot of memory or uses the DVD drive rarely, can install a second hard drive / SSD to the place of the Super Drive. For this purpose, a special frame (conversion kit) is required in which the hard disk will be installed. Then the removed SuperDrive comes in an portable USB enclosure, which is included in the conversion kit.

I made very positive experience with the following four conversion kits:

• OWC Data Doubler Optical Bay Hard Drive/SSD Mounting Solution (~ $20)
• Hard Drive Caddy Tray for Apple MacBook Pro 13/15/17 inch (~ $8)

Option 2: Replace hard drive with SSD

The replacement of the existing hard drive with a SSD is the easiest way. This reconstruction is completed quickly with little effort (about 10 minutes). For this purpose, no special accessories or conversion kits are required, only a proper SSD and the appropriate screwdrivers.

After the SSD is built into the MacBook, it makes sense to use the removed hard drive as an portable hard drive. A good portable enclosure with a fast USB3.0 interface is, for example ORICO portable USB3.0 enclosure

Tools

If you decide on the installation variant 1, the conversion kits I mentioned have already all tools needed for. At the Flancrest kit there is even a SATA-USB adapter enclosed to clone the hard drive without a separate 2.5 “USB hard drive. Otherwise, the mini screwdriver set from Hama is recommended that contains the required PH00 and Torx6 screwdrivers.

Safety recommendation

Basically, it is recommended when working within range of electronic components, to wear an antistatic wrist strap. It protects against electrostatic charging, thus preventing possible damage to electrical components in the Macbook. The bracelet is slipped over the arm and has a cable with alligator clip which is simply clamped to the radiator. Corresponding bracelets are already available for a few dollars (e.g. Rosewill Anti Static Wrist Strap).

Preparation

Basically a Time Machine backup should be created. If this is completed, the MacBook Pro can be shut down. Afterwards unplug the power cord and other cables and place them upside down on a soft surface.

Instruction

The following Youtube video explains the installation procedure in great detail:

Starting up / completion

After installation, the MacBook can now be started for the first time from the SSD Pro. Please do not be alarmed if the boot should not be noticeably faster after a new installation. Because Spotlight must rebuild the index from scratch, which can take some time.

Should there still be any problems (e.g. durable high-revving fan), in addition the SMC (introduction) and NVRAM / PRAM (introduction) should be reset.

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