Here are some practical recommendations for SD cards for the GoPro HERO4 Black and Silver. Not every microSD card you can find will work--you'll need a card that's fast enough to keep up with the high-bitrate recording that these cameras are capable of.
If you’ve just picked up a GoPro HERO4 Silver or Black, you’re going to find out pretty quickly that GoPros don’t come with a memory card as standard. Some retailers put together bundles that include a memory card with the camera, but unless you buy one of those you’ll most likely have to pick up an SD card separately.
Sounds simple enough, right? But there’s a catch. Not every card will work well in the GoPro HERO4 Black and Silver editions.
When these cameras were originally released, there were relatively few memory cards that worked well. Since then, memory card manufacturers have been coming out with newer and faster cards. So it’s now quite easy to find a good SD card for them, and you don’t have to pay and arm and a leg for it. That still doesn’t mean you can just throw any old microSD card in the HERO4 Silver or Black, though.
The biggest issue is the speed of the card. And, more specifically, the write speed of the card. That’s how quickly the card can record the stream of data that’s being thrown at it as the camera films video. The GoPro HERO4 Black and Silver editions can both shoot 4K and high-framerate video. Those video modes use high bitrates of up to 60 megabits per second (In the Silver, it’s a maximum of 45 megabits per second). So to be able to use the full range of video modes on these cameras you’ll need a card that can keep up.
If you use a card that’s too slow, the most common thing you’ll run into is the video recording stopping unexpectedly. That’s usually because the card simply can’t handle the data that’s being thrown at it. If that happens, you can get some unexpected and unwanted behavior, such as the recording stopping unexpectedly, the camera overheating, or the camera shutting down.
So I’ve put together some practical recommendations on which SD cards work best in the HERO4 Black and Silver. I’m focusing here on cards that are fast enough for these cameras, readily available at major retailers, reliable, and cost-effective. I make a point to speed test as many models of microSD cards as I can get hold of, including all of the ones here. So I’ve had the chance to try these out myself in addition to consulting GoPro’s official recommendations.
I also have a more general guide to the best SD card for GoPro cameras.
If you just want to cut to the chase, here are some quick recommendations for the best SD cards to use in GoPro HERO4 Black and HERO4 Silver. These are fast and reliable, cost-effective, and readily available. Any of these make a good choice.
If you’d like more detailed recommendations or other brands and models, you can find them below.
Fast, cost-effective, reliable, and widely available, the SanDisk Extreme cards are safe bets for a wide range of uses, including the GoPro Black editions. Extreme cards are the ones that GoPro themselves often bundle with their cameras and sell on GoPro.com, and it's one of the ones they've officially recommend in their "Works with GoPro" certification program.
From my tests, it is plenty fast enough for GoPros' 4K60 and 1080p240 video, but it also has the virtue of being cost-effective.
The latest version of the SanDisk Extreme comes in 32GB, 64GB, 128GB, 256GB, 400GB, 512GB, and 1TB versions.
As with most of its product names, SanDisk recycles them with newer, faster cards. So you can find "Extreme" cards that are actually several years old. It's therefore worth checking the model number, although in practice even some of the older versions of the Extreme cards will also work well in GoPro cameras.
SanDisk uses a three-part model numbering system in the format SDSQXA1-064G-AN6MA. In this example, SDSQXA1 is the model number, 064G refers to the amount of memory, and the last 5 characters are used by the marketing departmenht for different parts of the world but the cards are otherwise the same. So the first part is the crucial part if you're looking to see which model the card is, and you don't have to take much notice of the last 5 characters.
Buy at: Amazon, B&H Photo | GoPro.com.
Samsung makes several excellent microSD cards--not surprising given how heavily they're into the mobile device market. They also have a confusing naming system that doesn't always make clear what the difference between the models is. The EVO Select is one of their better cards, but it's also very good value.
Like SanDisk, Samsung recycles the series names. The latest version of the EVO Select is available in 32GB, 64GB, 128GB, 256GB, and 512GB sizes. Ut has a rated sequential write speed of up to 90MB/s and a read speed of up to 100MB/s. If you can't find the EVO Select line at your preferred retailer, the EVO Plus line also works well.
Buy at: Amazon.
Lexar has long been one of the top makers of memory cards. During 2017, the company went through some ownership changes, with their initial owner saying they were retiring the brand and then another company coming in a buying the brand up and saving it. The upshot is that most of the Lexar cards are still on the market, including this one, although there seemed to be some impact on their supply chain and the cards aren't always as easy to find these days.
Lexar has always to put more emphasis on marketing the read speeds of their cards--in this case, 1000x or up to 150MB/s--but several of their cards have write speeds fast enough for GoPros shooting 4K video. This isn't the fastest microSD card they make--there's one rated at 1800x which is one of the fastest cards I've tested, but this 1000x card works well in GoPros and is rated for a write speed of up to 45MB/s. It comes in 32GB, 64GB, 128GB, and 256GB versions and includes a USB thumb drive card reader.
It's a UHS-II card, which you technically don't need with GoPro cameras (the cameras have UHS-I interfaces), but it's fully backward-compatible.
PNY is another memory card brand that isn't as well known as some of the others, but in my experience they make very good cards. They have a few different ranges, but the Elite-X strikes a good balance of being fast enough and good value.
They're UHS-I cards and carry a V30 rating. The 32GB card is a sahde slower than the larger capacities, but most users will probably prefer sizes more on the 128GB-256Gb end of the range anyway.
The Extreme Pro line is SanDisk's top-of-the-range line. They're consistently among the fastest microSD cards in my tests. While it's faster and fancier than the camera technically needs, they do work very well. Extreme Pro cards are among my go-tos in all of the memory card formats because of their speed and reliability.
This latest version comes in 64GB, 128GB, 256GB, and 400GB versions. The latest version of the packaging includes both V30 and A2 on them. It gets a little confusing because SanDisk is mixing and matching model numbers even amongst the current cards, but you're looking for model numbers that start with SDSQXCY (for 64GB and 128GB) and SDSQXCZ (for 256GB and 400GB versions).
The standard version of this includes a microSD-to-SD cartridge adapter. You can also find versions that include a USB thumb reader.
Buy at: Amazon.
Delkin Devices have been making memory cards for a long time, and good ones at that. But it's only recently that they simplified and streamlined their product lines to make it clearer what the differences are between cards. The Select line isn't their fastest line--that is the Power V90 line--but the Select series are rated for V30 and are good combination of being fast enough for these cameras as well as being cost-effective.
This card is rated for V30 and has a UHS-I interface. It's available in sizes ranging from 16GB up through 512GB and it comes with an microSD-to-SD adapter.
This is not designed to be a comprehensive list of every card that works with the GoPro HERO4 Black and Silver models, and there are plenty of others that will work well that aren’t listed here. There are also other fast cards that simply aren’t easy to find or aren’t cost-effective when you do. I’m most interested in ones that are readily available and reasonably priced. What I’m trying to do is present some options so you can choose a card and be confident that it’s compatible.
This list is a combination of GoPro’s official recommendations and my own real-world testing in the cameras, not on card manufacturers’ speed claims or the microSD benchmark testing I conduct separately (although it won’t come as a surprise that the ones that top my list of fastest microSD cards work well in these cameras).
Both the Silver and Black models are fully compatible with both the microSDXC and microSDHC specifications (more on that below). This isn’t a performance rating. It refers to the formatting system used on the card. and I’ve been using 32GB, 64GB, 128GB, and 200GB cards in them. There are also some 256GB cards available now, but I haven’t yet tested any of those.
You want either UHS-I or UHS-II host specifications. This is marked with either a small I or II on the card. The cameras use the UHS-I host specification, so you won’t get added benefits if you put a UHS-II card in them, but it will still work but will roll back to UHS-I.
For the speed rating, the safest bet is to stick with one that’s rated with the new V30 category or U3, although there are also U1 cards that work just fine.
So why do you need a fast memory card in these models? Both of these cameras can create ultra-high definition video. The flagship Black edition is capable of up to 4K at 30fps and 2.7K at 60fps and 1080p at 120fps (you can find more details here). Even Silver edition can capture 4K video at 15fps, 1080p footage at 60fps, and 720p footage at 120fps. That’s going to make for some incredible video footage when you get to filming. But if you try to use a memory card that’s not fast enough, you’re going to run into trouble.
If you find that your video is stopping prematurely or that the camera is freezing while you’re trying to record video, the first thing to check is that your memory card is fast enough. (If it’s just breaking up the video file into smaller segments but keeps recording, that’s normal. Here’s an explanation of why.) You won’t see any error message that tells you what the problem is–it tends to just stop recording and lock up.
The GoPros’ high-resolution video modes require a lot of data to get written very quickly to the memory card. And not all memory cards are equal. You can’t just put any Class 10 microSD card in the new GoPros and expect it to work flawlessly. If the card is too slow, you’ll find that the camera stops recording as the memory card just can’t keep up. The newer cards use a newer transfer technology known as UHS-I that allows for speeds that far exceed the older Class 10 technology.
Aside from reliability–which is a big issue in itself–memory cards vary widely in their speed. The key is the write speed–or, technically, sustained write speed–which is how fast the camera can write to the memory card. All of the cards that GoPro recommends with the new high-resolution video modes on the new GoPro HERO4 Black and Silver editions are rated for writes speeds of 40MB/s or faster.
Card manufacturers don’t make it easy in other ways. They often advertise “transfer speed” or “read speed.” Neither of those is the same thing as “write speed.” When memory card manufacturers put the speed on their advertising, it’s usually the read speed (ie. the maximum speed you can get data off the card). It’s often a higher number and sounds more impressive. But for our purposes, we need to know who quickly we can get data onto the card–that is, write speed.
The speed at which data can be written also depends also on the file sizes of the data you’re writing. The speed ratings provided by manufacturers are sequential write speed. They don’t typically divulge for a different kind of writing: large-block random data. That figure is typically significantly slower than the sequential write speed, and it explains why, when the GoPro HERO4 Black maxes out at 60Mb/s (7.5MB/s) and the Silver at 45Mb/s (5.625MB/s), you need a card with a speed rating that’s much higher than 7.5MB/s or 5.6MB/s (ie. they’re measuring two different kinds of data writing).
The Silver edition doesn’t have the top-end video modes of the Black; its maximum data stream is 45 Mbps. So technically it can handle a memory card that’s a little slower than the requirements of the Black.
Below are the write date speeds for all the video modes available on the GoPro HERO4 Black and Silver editions. The Black’s top data rate is 60 Mbps, whereas the Silver’s is 45 Mbps. So any of the video modes that record at 60 Mbps are only available with the Black.1
Note that these data rates are in megabits per second (Mbps or Mb/s), whereas memory card speed ratings are typically measured in megabytes per second (MBps or MB/s). There are 8 megabits to one megabyte. But it’s not as simple as doing the conversion and then comparing that to the card speed because the card speeds are maximum speeds for writing small files of sequential data. Writing large files of random data is usually much slower.
But this chart will give you ideas on which video modes to try if your memory card is struggling to keep up.
Mode | FPS | Bitrate (Megabits/s) - Protune / + Protune | Aspect Ratio | Resolution | HERO4 Black | HERO4 Silver |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
4K | 30 | 60/60 | 16:9 | 3840x2160 | ✓ | |
25 | 60/60 | 16:9 | 3840x2160 | ✓ | ||
24 | 60/60 | 16:9 | 3840x2160 | ✓ | ||
15 | 45/45 | 16:9 | 3840x2160 | ✓ | ||
12.5 | 45/45 | 16:9 | 3840x2160 | ✓ | ||
2.7K | 60 | 60/60 | 16:9 | 2704x1520 | ✓ | |
50 | 60/60 | 16:9 | 2704x1520 | ✓ | ||
48 | 60/60 | 16:9 | 2704x1520 | ✓ | ||
30 | 45/45 | 16:9 | 2704x1520 | ✓ | ✓ | |
25 | 45/45 | 16:9 | 2704x1520 | ✓ | ✓ | |
24 | 45/45 | 16:9 | 2704x1520 | ✓ | ✓ | |
2.7K SuperView | 30 | 45/60 | 16:9 | 2704x1520 | ✓ | |
25 | 45/60 | 16:9 | 2704x1520 | ✓ | ||
2.7K 4:3 | 30 | 45/60 | 4:3 | 2704x2028 | ✓ | |
25 | 45/60 | 4:3 | 2704x2028 | ✓ | ||
1440p | 80 | 60/60 | 4:3 | 1920x1440 | ✓ | |
60 | 45/60 | 4:3 | 1920x1440 | ✓ | ||
50 | 45/60 | 4:3 | 1920x1440 | ✓ | ||
48 | 30/45 | 4:3 | 1920x1440 | ✓ | ✓ | |
30 | 30/45 | 4:3 | 1920x1440 | ✓ | ✓ | |
25 | 30/45 | 4:3 | 1920x1440 | ✓ | ✓ | |
24 | 30/45 | 4:3 | 1920x1440 | ✓ | ✓ | |
1080p | 120 | 60/60 | 16:9 | 1920x1080 | ✓ | |
90 | 60/60 | 16:9 | 1920x1080 | ✓ | ||
60 | 30/45 | 16:9 | 1920x1080 | ✓ | ✓ | |
50 | 30/45 | 16:9 | 1920x1080 | ✓ | ✓ | |
48 | 30/45 | 16:9 | 1920x1080 | ✓ | ✓ | |
30 | 30/45 | 16:9 | 1920x1080 | ✓ | ✓ | |
25 | 30/45 | 16:9 | 1920x1080 | ✓ | ✓ | |
24 | 30/45 | 16:9 | 1920x1080 | ✓ | ✓ | |
1080p SuperView | 80 | 60/60 | 16:9 | 1920x1080 | ✓ | |
60 | 30/45 | 16:9 | 1920x1080 | ✓ | ✓ | |
50 | 30/45 | 16:9 | 1920x1080 | ✓ | ✓ | |
48 | 30/45 | 16:9 | 1920x1080 | ✓ | ✓ | |
30 | 30/45 | 16:9 | 1920x1080 | ✓ | ✓ | |
25 | 30/45 | 16:9 | 1920x1080 | ✓ | ✓ | |
24 | 30/45 | 16:9 | 1920x1080 | ✓ | ✓ | |
960p | 120 | 30/45 | 4:3 | 1280x960 | ✓ | ✓ |
100 | 30/45 | 4:3 | 1280x960 | ✓ | ||
60 | 30/45 | 4:3 | 1280x960 | ✓ | ✓ | |
50 | 30/45 | 4:3 | 1280x960 | ✓ | ✓ | |
720p | 240 | 60/60 | 16:9 | 1280x720 | ✓ | |
120 | 30/45 | 16:9 | 1280x720 | ✓ | ✓ | |
60 | 30/45 | 16:9 | 1280x720 | ✓ | ✓ | |
50 | 30/45 | 16:9 | 1280x720 | ✓ | ✓ | |
30 | 30/45 | 16:9 | 1280x720 | ✓ | ✓ | |
25 | 30/45 | 16:9 | 1280x720 | ✓ | ✓ | |
720p SuperView | 120 | 30/45 | 16:9 | 1280x720 | ✓ | ✓ |
60 | 30/45 | 16:9 | 1280x720 | ✓ | ✓ | |
50 | 30/45 | 16:9 | 1280x720 | ✓ | ✓ | |
WVGA | 240 | 30/30 | 16:9 | 848x480 | ✓ | ✓ |
Here are some quick answers for some of the common questions I get about the SD card for these models.
All of the cards I’ve tried get hot, along with the rest of the camera, when recording the top-end video modes that write at 60 Mbps on the Black (making anti-fog inserts a good idea in cold, wet, or humid shooting conditions).
SDHC and SDXC aren’t really direct versions. SDHC applies to cards that are between 4GB and 32GB. They use a filesystem known as FAT32. SDXC applies to cards 64GB and larger; they use a filesystem known as exFAT. You won’t find a 64GB card that’s SDHC or a 32GB card that’s SDXC. Both the HERO4 Black and Silver cameras work with both SDHC and SDXC cards.
The short version is that any size will work. In terms of convenience, 32GB or larger make the most sense so that you’re not constantly filling it up. In terms of a good mix of convenience, price, and availability, cards in the 64GB to 128GB range probably make the most sense right now.
I’ve put together a more detailed post on this topic
Yes. Or, more precisely, some do. So long as it meets the other speed requirements outlined on this page, it should work just fine. There are some cards, like those in SanDisk’s Ultra range, that don’t work as well.
But cards like the Lexar Professional 1000x 128GB SDXC card and I’ve not had any issues using ones in SanDisk’s Extreme, Extreme Plus, and Extreme Pro lines.
Here are some general tips about using SD cards in the HERO4 Silver and Black:
You can find GoPro’s official list of microSD card recommendations here.
Images and product information from Amazon PA-API were last updated on 2020-11-13 at 20:08. Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon Site at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.
There can be several reasons why photos and videos go missing from memory cards. But you can often recover at least some of them. I have a more detailed post on how to recover deleted GoPro videos and photos from SD cards, but here's the quick version:
This post was last modified on October 9, 2020 2:44 pm
View Comments
Hi , is the SD card extreme V30 A1 SDSQXBO-032G AP6AA is compatible with Gopro 4 Silver? Is the only one i could fine. Thanks in advanced.
Yes, the Extreme cards will work well.
60 Mb/s it's only 7,5 MB/s so i guess many memory cards can handle it just don't buy noname china and the cheapest one with not stable speed.
Hello David, I’ve recently bought a 256gb Samsung EVO plus SDXC card (model code MB-MC256GA/APC) and been informed it might not work in my GoPro hero 4 silver even tho it has a read speed of up to 100MB/s, I wanted to get your opinion before I open it. Any advice would be great?
While I've not tested the 256GB version of that card specifically, I have tested other sizes in the MB-MC model range and found them to have a write speed that's plenty fast enough even for the newer GoPro models like the HERO6 Black. The card you have should have the U3 rating on it, which provides extra assurance. So you should be good to go.
Hi again David,
This Sandisk extreme pro SDSQXXG-128G-GN6MA. It's not on the list. But do you think it Will work on the gopro Hero black 4 recording 4K?
https://m.ebay.com/itm/SanDiskSDXC-128GB-Extreme-PRO-microSD-micro-Card-95MB-s-Class-10-UHS-1-U3-4K/273044244470?hash=item3f92b487f6:g:yf0AAOSwXOhabS0g
Best regards,
Christofer
Yes, that model is plenty fast enough.
Awesome, Thanks!!
Hi,
How is this card: Lexar 128GB MicroSDXC UHS-II U3 1000x Class 10 R150/W45 with USB 3.0 Card Reader
compared to the Lexar 1000x you have on the list?
(https://www.ebay.com/itm/Lexar-128GB-MicroSDXC-UHS-II-U3-1000x-Class-10-R150-W45-with-USB-3-0-Card-Reader/162842540305?hash=item25ea2bf911:g:aK0AAOSwCMtaWIl1)
Best regards//
All the cards in Lexar's 1000x range are fast enough for the HERO4 Black.
Does this count for the lexar 1000x 512GB too? Because it writes with a speed of only 20 MB/s
Thank you very much David!!
Have you thought about updating all of this since the gopro 4 silver has 4 and 2k recording now?. Just asking since you put a lot of work into this site.
Hi David,
thats a very interesting threat! Thanks for the effort.
Still I am unsure about buying the SD card for my GoPro Hero4 Black with the prouct number: SDSDQXL-064G-Q46A
The last four digits are not the same as the recommended cards, I am buying in Australia so maybe thats why its different?
Here are the websites I am looking at (it's really good deals which is part of why I am wary):
https://www.itspot.com.au/sandisk-sd-micro-extreme-64gb-p451002.html
http://www.ht.com.au/cart/1/part/BF280-SanDisk-Extreme-Flash-memory-card-microSDXC-to-SD-adapter-included-64-GB-UHS-Class-1-Class10-microSDXC-UHS-I/detail.hts
Hope you can help me out.
Thank you :)
Yes, that card will work well.
With the SanDisk cards the last 4 characters are purely marketing codes for geographical regions. In this case, the Q46A is specific to Australia. The most important part is the first section of code (SDSDQXL).
Hey thank you so much! :)
David,
Will this Samsung memory card work with the Hero 4 Black and Hero 5?
Samsung 128GB 100MB/s (U3) MicroSDXC EVO Select Memory Card with Adapter (MB-ME128GA/AM)
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B06XWZWYVP/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER
Thanks
Yes, it's easily fast enough. Will be posting the results of my speed tests of it shortly.
Hi david i would like to ask if you have tried Strontium 466x 32gb in your hero 4 silver? i need some inputs on this microsd card. thanks
No, I'm afraid I haven't.
Hi David,
I just bought a GoPro Hero 4 Silver. Would a Lexar 64 GB with part number LSDMI64GBB1EU633R work? I'm assuming it's European manufactured; is there issue with using this for my camera (I live in the US).
Thanks in advance!
It's the version marketed to Europe and is otherwise exactly the same card, so it should work just fine.