Buy now or wait? SD card prices are shooting through the roof – here’s how to navigate the ‘memory crisis’ | Tech Radar

Overview

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SD and micro SD cards have been reliable, cheap memory for years, but prices have shot through the roof in 2026. You can thank a 'global memory crisis' – a perfect storm of an AI 'memory tax', production pivot, strategic underproduction, and increasing component costs.

Details

Take the standard San Disk 128GB Extreme PRO SDXC Class 10 V30 UHS-I card. As recently as Black Friday last year (November 28 2025), it cost less than £20, with a record-low price of £14 the previous year. Guess how much it costs now? Around £50 at the time of writing.

I've included a price tracker chart below for said card, and the 2026 price increase of approximately 100% is typically lower than most other standard-speed and capacity SD cards.

If you're in the market for a high-speed, high-capacity SD card, price hikes are even more extreme, up to 300%. That's even if a card is in stock – many historically readily available cards are out of stock or no longer available.

This reliable, long time favorite memory card of mine has seen a huge price spike in 2026 (Image credit: Camel Camel Camel / Amazon)

If you're in desperate need of a new SD card, you're going to have to suck up the extra layout, and now is likely the best time for what could be the next 18 months.

Industry analysts predict prices will continue to climb through the middle of 2026, and relief could be as long as 18 months away, once infrastructure is in place to increase global supply amidst an AI boom.

But if you're doing OK with the supply you have, and believe you will be for the next 18 months, I'd argue against panic buying and make do with what you have.

Knowing the above, it should come as no surprise that there are no record-low prices for SD cards right now. But I've put together some of the most readily available cards that are least affected by the hikes, and of course, these are only cards that I would recommend as reliable, based on my own experience.

If you didn't already know, Amazon features a price tracker for products it sells and ships, with 30-day and 90-day options – the latter clearly demonstrates the 2026 price hikes.

And a word of warning, if you do see great deals on SD cards from unknown brands, I would be highly cautious – the marketplace will likely fill with counterfeit, fake, unreliable capacity cards. Avoid.

For further information, check out our in-depth guide on how to navigate the memory crisis.

We've reviewed multiple SD cards for speed, performance and reliability, and only recommend cards that we would happily use ourselves. (Image credit: Future)

The least affected card by the price hikes, this San Disk Extreme card, specifically the 128GB, 180MB/s, V30, UHS-I, Class 10, U3 version, is practically the same price that it was in December. Sure, it's not a record-low price, but the price increase since the global spike is negligible.

In the last 90 days, this U3 Lexar card with a 140MBs write speed has increased from approximately £40 to £50, making it another card to avoid the worst of the price hikes. It's available in 64GB to 1TB version, but the 256GB, available via the link, is the best GB to Pound Sterling ratio. If you'd like more grunt, Lexar sells a 'Silver Pro' version with twice the speed, but it's twice the price since 2025.

For a cheap and cheerful SD card, try the Kingston Canvas Go! Plus. The 128GB version costs just 50p more than the 64GB version, with both SDXC, Class 10 UHS-I U3 V30 cards offering a 170MB read speed. Amazon's price checker illustrates this card cost around £17 in December 2025

More of today's best Amazon Spring Deal Days deals

Tim is the Cameras editor at Tech Radar. He has enjoyed more than 15 years in the photo video industry with most of those in the world of tech journalism. During his time as Deputy Technical Editor with Amateur Photographer, as a freelancer and consequently editor at Tech Radar, Tim has developed a deeply technical knowledge and practical experience with cameras, educating others through news, reviews and features. He’s also worked in video production for Studio 44 with clients including Canon, and volunteers his spare time to consult a non-profit, diverse stories team based in Nairobi. Tim is curious, a keen creative, avid footballer and runner, and moderate flat white drinker who has lived in Kenya and believes we have much to enjoy and learn from each other.

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Key Takeaways

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission
SD and micro SD cards have been reliable, cheap memory for years, but prices have shot through the roof in 2026
Take the standard San Disk 128GB Extreme PRO SDXC Class 10 V30 UHS-I card
I've included a price tracker chart below for said card, and the 2026 price increase of approximately 100% is typically lower than most other standard-speed and capacity SD cards
If you're in the market for a high-speed, high-capacity SD card, price hikes are even more extreme, up to 300%