What drives are compatible with QNAP?
QNAP works with standard 3.5-inch and 2.5-inch SATA drives and does not lock you to branded drives. Use CMR NAS or enterprise drives (IronWolf, WD Red Plus/Pro, Toshiba N300, Exos, Ultrastar) and check your model against QNAP's compatibility list. Avoid SMR drives for RAID. Many models also take M.2 and 2.5GbE-class SSDs.
Last verified July 22, 2026 · 1 official source checked Updated
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QNAP uses standard SATA drives and, unlike Synology's 2025 experiment, does not restrict you to branded drives. The main job is picking the right class of drive and checking it against QNAP's per-model compatibility list.
What to use
- CMR NAS HDDs: Seagate IronWolf, WD Red Plus/Pro, Toshiba N300, the standard choice.
- Enterprise CMR HDDs: Seagate Exos, WD Ultrastar; best value per terabyte if noise is acceptable.
- SSDs: most QNAP models take 2.5-inch SATA SSDs, and many add M.2 slots for cache or fast volumes.
Check the compatibility list
QNAP publishes a compatibility list per model. A drive not on the list will usually still work, but the list confirms tested capacities and firmware behaviour: worth checking for the largest drives and for SSDs, where compatibility is more variable.
Avoid SMR
As with any NAS, keep SMR drives out of RAID arrays: they stall rebuilds. The table lists in-stock CMR NAS and enterprise drives by price per terabyte.
Looking for a specific model?
See the per-model drive guides for the QNAP TS-464 and QNAP TS-264.
Drives that solve this
Live Amazon.ca prices in CAD, ranked by price per terabyte. The Recording column is verified against manufacturer documentation. Prices checked
| Model | Capacity | Recording | Price | CA$/raw TB | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Seagate Exos X22 22TB SATA 6Gb/s 7200RPM 3.5" Enterprise Hard Drive - ST22000NM001ENewbest price per TB CMR recording, SATA enterprise drive Amazon.ca · sold by ServerPartDeals · one bare internal drive; shipping and taxes not included · checked Oct 7, 2026CA$1,108Buy on Amazon | 22 TB | CMR ✓ | CA$1,108 | CA$50.38/TB | Buy on Amazon |
 Seagate IronWolf Pro 32TB Enterprise NAS Internal HDD Hard Drive – CMR 3.5 Inch SATA 6Gb/s 7200 RPM 512MB Cache for RAID Network Attached Storage, Rescue Services (ST32000NTZ00)New CMR recording, SATA NAS drive rated for 24/7 use Amazon.ca · sold by THEKEYKEY · one bare internal drive; shipping and taxes not included · checked Oct 7, 2026CA$1,740Buy on Amazon | 32 TB | CMR ✓ | CA$1,740 | CA$54.37/TB | Buy on Amazon |
 Seagate Exos M 28TB Enterprise Internal Hard Drive HDD - 3.5in 6GB/s SATA 7200RPM 2.5M MTBF (ST28000NM003K)New CMR recording, SATA enterprise drive Amazon.ca · sold by Amazon.ca · one bare internal drive; shipping and taxes not included · checked Oct 7, 2026CA$1,543Buy on Amazon | 28 TB | CMR ✓ | CA$1,543 | CA$55.11/TB | Buy on Amazon |
 Seagate IronWolf 10TB NAS Internal Hard Drive HDD – CMR 3.5 Inch SATA 6Gb/s 7200 RPM 256MB Cache for RAID Network Attached Storage (ST10000VN0008) (ST10000VNZ008/N0008)New CMR recording, SATA NAS drive rated for 24/7 use Amazon.ca · sold by Deals2You · one bare internal drive; shipping and taxes not included · checked Oct 7, 2026CA$579Buy on Amazon | 10 TB | CMR ✓ | CA$579 | CA$57.91/TB | Buy on Amazon |
 Seagate Exos X24 ST20000NM002H 20TBNew CMR recording, SATA enterprise drive Amazon.ca · sold by THEKEYKEY · one bare internal drive; shipping and taxes not included · checked Oct 7, 2026CA$1,165Buy on Amazon | 20 TB | CMR ✓ | CA$1,165 | CA$58.25/TB | Buy on Amazon |
 Western Digital HUH721212ALE604 12TB Ultrastar DC HC520 SATA HDD - 7200 RPM Class, SATA 6 Gb/s, 256MB Cache, 3.5"New CMR recording, SATA enterprise drive Amazon.ca · sold by Seller_King · one bare internal drive; shipping and taxes not included · checked Oct 7, 2026CA$699Buy on Amazon | 12 TB | CMR ✓ | CA$699 | CA$58.25/TB | Buy on Amazon |
 Seagate Exos X24 24TB Enterprise Internal Hard Drive HDD - 6GB/s SATA 7200RPM 2.5M MTBF (ST24000NM002H)New CMR recording, SATA enterprise drive Amazon.ca · sold by THEKEYKEY · one bare internal drive; shipping and taxes not included · checked Oct 7, 2026CA$1,400Buy on Amazon | 24 TB | CMR ✓ | CA$1,400 | CA$58.33/TB | Buy on Amazon |
 Toshiba N300 PRO 8TB Large-Sized Business NAS (up to 24 Bays) 3.5-Inch Internal Hard Drive - Up to 300 TB/Year Workload Rate CMR SATA 6 GB/s 7200 RPM 512 MB Cache - HDWG780XZSTBNew CMR recording, SATA NAS drive rated for 24/7 use Amazon.ca · sold by HYPER MEGA Electronics · one bare internal drive; shipping and taxes not included · checked Oct 7, 2026CA$480Buy on Amazon | 8 TB | CMR ✓ | CA$480 | CA$60.00/TB | Buy on Amazon |
 Seagate IronWolf Pro 20TB Enterprise NAS Internal HDD Hard Drive – CMR 3.5 Inch SATA 6Gb/s 7200 RPM 256MB Cache for RAID Network Attached Storage, Rescue Services (ST20000NTZ01/ST20000NT001)New CMR recording, SATA NAS drive rated for 24/7 use Amazon.ca · sold by THEKEYKEY · one bare internal drive; shipping and taxes not included · checked Oct 7, 2026CA$1,235Buy on Amazon | 20 TB | CMR ✓ | CA$1,235 | CA$61.75/TB | Buy on Amazon |
 Western Digital 22TB WD Red Pro NAS Internal Hard Drive HDD - 7200 RPM, SATA 6 Gb/s, CMR, 512 MB Cache, 3.5" - WD221KFGXNew CMR recording, SATA NAS drive rated for 24/7 use Amazon.ca · sold by Deals2You · one bare internal drive; shipping and taxes not included · checked Oct 7, 2026CA$1,400Buy on Amazon | 22 TB | CMR ✓ | CA$1,400 | CA$63.64/TB | Buy on Amazon |
Related questions
Sources
Every technical claim on this page is checked against manufacturer and standards documentation. Dates are when each source was last reviewed.
- QNAP: Support / Compatibility (checked 2026-07-22)