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Seagate · Desktop drive · ST20000DM001

Seagate BarraCuda 20TB

Seagate's everyday desktop line, made for the inside of a PC tower.

Capacity
20 TB
Recording
CMR
Speed
7,200 rpm
Warranty
2 years
Workload
120 TB/yr
Failure rate
No failure data

Good for

  • A PC, or a backup copy you plug in now and then

Not for

  • A NAS (Seagate gives it no NAS rating)
  • A desk or bedroom (7,200 rpm is the louder class)
  • Heavy daily writes (120 TB a year rating)

Updated 27 Oct 2026 · Method 2.0

Should you buy the BarraCuda 20 TB?

Fine as the data drive in a desktop, or a backup copy that sits on a shelf. Either way that's light work for a 120 TB a year rating.

Watch out for

Seagate doesn't rate it for NAS use at all, which rules it out for an array as far as we're concerned. It's a 7,200 rpm drive and you'll hear it working.

Backblaze doesn't run enough of these for a failure rate we'd publish. On paper it makes 28 dB at idle and 32 dB seeking. Seagate lists 6.7 W at idle and 8.9 W working, which comes to 59 kWh a year for a drive that idles around the clock.

Specifications

Each value links to the Seagate page or datasheet it came from.

Seagate BarraCuda 20TB specifications
Drive type Desktop source for Drive type (seagate.com, opens in new tab)
Capacity 20 TB source for Capacity (seagate.com, opens in new tab)
Spindle speed 7,200 rpm source for Spindle speed (seagate.com, opens in new tab)
Recording technology CMR source for Recording technology (seagate.com, opens in new tab)
Cache 512 MB source for Cache (seagate.com, opens in new tab)
Interface SATA 6Gb/s source for Interface (seagate.com, opens in new tab)
Form factor 3.5in source for Form factor (seagate.com, opens in new tab)
Max sustained transfer 190 MB/s source for Max sustained transfer (seagate.com, opens in new tab)
Workload rating 120 TB/yr source for Workload rating (seagate.com, opens in new tab)
Warranty 2 years source for Warranty (seagate.com, opens in new tab)
Power at idle 6.7 W source for Power at idle (seagate.com, opens in new tab)
Power in use 8.9 W source for Power in use (seagate.com, opens in new tab)
Noise at idle 28 dB source for Noise at idle (seagate.com, opens in new tab)
Noise when seeking 32 dB source for Noise when seeking (seagate.com, opens in new tab)

Sources: seagate.com