Get the very best WD My Passport deals – the best external hard drives out there.
(Image credit: Future)
WD My Passport deals come fairly regularly, which is great if you're looking for a new external hard drive because the standard retail prices can be very high. Western Digital's My Passport is the company's best-known range of external hard drives, especially among creatives. They're compact and portable but reach massive storage capacities. Whether you're looking for a secure home for hefty RAW photo files, your music and film library or precious work files, it makes some top-draw HDDs and SSDs.
In this guide, you'll find a selection external hard drives that often come in for the best WD My Passport deals. Choosing which is best for you will depend on how much capacity you need and how much you want to pay – and whether you're prepared to pay more for a faster SSD over an HDD. You can read more about the difference at the end of the article, but you'll see that a 1TB SSD can cost as much as a 4TB HDD. We'll cover both types of drive in the guide below, and while we've suggested the best value capacities for each, you'll find that other capacity options are available if you follow the links to retailers' sites.
If you're looking for more external hard drives to choose from, including options from other brands, see our guide to the best external hard drives. And if you have a PS5, see our guide to the best SSD for PS5.
Capacity: 1TB / 2TB / 4TB / 5TB | Interface: USB 3.2 Gen 1 | Dimensions (L x W x D): 107mm x 75mm x 19mm
Massive capacity for all needs
Really good data transfer speeds
Sleek design, relatively small
Not as fast as an SSD
The 4TB iteration of the Western Digital My Passport is a top choice. In fact, we rate it so highly, it takes the top spot in our round-up of the best external hard drives (mentioned above). You can also get it in 1TB, 2TB and 5TB iterations, but for value for money, this is our choice. It's got a huge capacity to store all your favourite media – perfect for creatives that deal in massive digital files.
With the 4TB version, you'll get cloud storage and 256-AES encryption, plus Western Digital's own backup software. Best of all is its great data transfer speeds and, though this hard disc drive (HDD) doesn't offer the speed of a solid-state drive (SSD) device (see WD My Passport SSD below), the Western Digital My Passport offers a great balance of quick transfer speeds and massive storage without a huge price tag. The 4TB HDD retails at $119 / £116, but the best WD My Passport deals often see that reduced at least to around $95 / £85.
(Image credit: WD)
02. WD My Passport SSD 1TB
The best WD My Passport SSD for faster transfer speeds
Capacity: 256GB / 512GB / 1TB / 2TB | Interface: USB 3.0 / USB 3.1 Gen 2 | Dimensions (L x W x D): 90mm x 45mm x 10mm
Super-fast transfer speeds
Shock-resistant shell
Password protected
More expensive than a HDD
As detailed below on this page, there are some key differences between a solid state drive (SSD) like this one, and a hard disc drive (HHD). In short, the SSD version of WD's My Passport is far faster at transferring data, and it comes in a smaller shell. You'll have to pay a little more to get the storage up to 1TB or 2TBs, but if you value speed and portability over all else, it'll be worth it.
Built for both PC and Mac, the My Passport SSD is compatible with a range of ports – both the USB Type-A and Type-C ports, with the latter able to reach speeds of up to 540MB a second. It's also a sturdy model, made to stand a drop of up to two metres. And it's as compact and portable as they come, proving that great things really can come in small packages. Even with the best WD My Passport SSD deals, an SSD will still set you back more than the equivalent storage in HDD form. This 1TB model started at $199 / £221, but we've seen deals for as low as half of that price.
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(Image credit: WD)
03. WD My Passport Ultra
The best WD My Passport deals for a three-year warranty
Capacity: 1TB / 2TB / 4TB / 5TB | Interface: USB 3.0 | Dimensions (L x W x H): 110mm x 81.6mm x 12.8mm
Three-year warranty
Hardware encryption
Suite of applications
The WD My Passport Ultra 4TB stands out from the My Passport crowd by offering a three-year warranty – a nice addition if you aim to get a lot of use out of it and want peace of mind – and also having a Mac-specific version of the hard drive available (all the models on this page can be reformatted to work with Macs, but this version is ready out of the box).
Ever so slightly wider than the WD My Passport 4TB, but a little shallower, the Ultra comes with a metal cover and WD Discovery software for WD Backup, WD Security and WD Drive Utilities. It's USB-C ready and USB 3.0 compatible with an adapter provided, and there is a range of storage sizes, including the huge 5TB option. The 4TB model retails at $139.99 / £132.99, but we've seen regular deal offering savings of up to $20 / £20.
(Image credit: WD)
04. Western Digital My Passport Wireless Pro
The best wireless Western Digital My Passport
Capacity: 2TB – 4TB | Interface: USB 3.0 and Wi-Fi | Dimenssions: 12.60 x 12.60 x 2.40 cm
Can be used wirelessly
USB 3.0 connectivity
Great battery life
Low availability
This wireless addition to the best WD My Passport external hard drives has its own look, which is square and compact, and it will work seamlessly with most mobile devices. It's also got an SD card reader built-in, so you don't have to rely on wireless, but that really is the selling point for this My Passport.
Built with 802.11ac technology, it's super-fast in transferring data, and it's smooth whether streaming, image transferring, or editing while wired up to a tablet or laptop. And you can do this with no risk of losing data due to a weak battery – the Western Digital My Passport Wireless Pro's battery life will last you all day. The main difficulty may be finding one in stock. WD has discontinued the model, but that means you may find some good deals from those retailers that do still have stock. Check the links above.
WD My Passport deals: which model should I buy?
When choosing the right WD My Passport for you, foremost on your mind should be its storage capability. Even though many come in massive multi-terabyte iterations, 500GB is plenty to get you started. But if you want to store lots of large video and/or RAW files, or you want to use your external hard drive for housing games, investing in few more terabytes is a good idea.
Other important information to consider before making a purchase is the hard drive's connectivity. The rectangular USB-A ports are slowly being replaced by the newer, smaller reversible USB-C ports, found in all newer generation Macs and PCs.
The difference between HDD and SSD
There are two types of external hard drive: hard disk drives (HDD, also known as mechanical or traditional hard drives) or solid state drives (SSD). An SSD is faster, lighter and less power-hungry, whereas an HDD drive will be cheaper and slower than an SSD. HDDs are also good for storing lots of data as they often have a high capacity.
So, if you want to store huge amounts of data while keeping prices low, a HDD is the way to go. But if speed is your top priority – for example, if you move a lot of large files, or want to run programs off the drive – then choose an SSD. Or, you can always use a smaller SSD for files that you need to access or move around often, and then store the other data that you use less often on a higher capacity HDD.
Beren has worked on creative titles at Future Publishing for over 13 years. Cutting his teeth as Staff Writer on the digital art magazine ImagineFX, he moved on to edit several creative titles, and is currently the Ecommerce Editor on the most effective creative website in the world. When he's not testing and reviewing the best ergonomic office chairs, phones, laptops, TVs, monitors and various types of storage, he can be found finding and comparing the best deals on the tech that creatives value the most.
