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For a Plex library · updated 27 Oct 2026 · prices coming soon

Best hard drive for a Plex server

Our pick

WD Ultrastar DC HC550 16 TB

Backblaze has 26,208 of these running at 0.54% a year, the best record of the big CMR drives we list.

  • CMR
  • 7,200 rpm
  • 5-year warranty
  • 550 TB/yr
  • Data-centre
  • AFR 0.54% low

Why the WD Ultrastar DC HC550 16 TB

A media library gets written once and read for years, so what you're paying for is terabytes, plus CMR so a rebuild doesn't crawl. On Backblaze's numbers the WD Ultrastar DC HC550 16TB is the safest of the 18 big CMR drives we list, with 452 failures in 84,197 drive-years. It spins at 7,200 rpm, which puts it in the louder and warmer class, and it's happiest in a box that lives in a cupboard or under the stairs.

Close behind

  1. WD Ultrastar DC HC570 22 TB Bigger, 22 TBBackblaze 0.58% a year

    Price soon

    Amazon for WD Ultrastar DC HC570 22TB (affiliate link, opens in new tab)
  2. Toshiba MG11 24 TB Bigger, 24 TBBackblaze 0.50% a year

    Price soon

    Amazon for Toshiba MG11 24TB (affiliate link, opens in new tab)
  3. Toshiba MG10 20 TB Bigger, 20 TBBackblaze 0.79% a year

    Price soon

    Amazon for Toshiba MG10 20TB (affiliate link, opens in new tab)

How we pick this one

Until prices land, it's the CMR drive from 12 TB up with the best Backblaze record. We judge that on the top of the 95% interval, so a small fleet can't win on luck. Right now 18 drives qualify, and the list re-ranks every time prices or Backblaze's figures update.

Method 2.0, 27 Oct 2026. The full method and what's changed