Best Memory Card GoPro Hero 9

When selecting a memory card for your GoPro Hero 9 Black, several key features are worth considering. This camera can shoot 5K at 30 frames per second or 4K at 60 frames per second, with a high bitrate of 100 Mbps and 8-bit color support. For this reason, you’ll want to ensure your memory card is up to the task in speed and capacity.

The GoPro Hero 9 requires a U3 UHS-I card to support the max bitrate of 100 Mbps.

Recommended microSD Cards: GoPro Hero 9

Here are the latest official memory card recommendations from GoPro. For the Hero 9, do not order any cards larger than 256GB from this list, as they may cause compatibility issues.

 GoPro Hero 9 Capacity

The GoPro Hero9 Memory Card Capacity takes cards up to a maximum size of 256GB. It is not recommended to use cards larger than this.

GoPro Hero 9 Memory Card Compatibility

The GoPro Hero9 requires micro SD memory cards with a U3 speed class.

I’ve noticed a common trend in my experience testing memory cards with GoPro cameras since the Hero 5. Using the wrong or incompatible card can result in unexpected errors or issues. While some may blame the camera, most of these issues can be resolved by simply changing your memory card. Although this situation has improved over the years, you may still encounter problems such as camera freezing, lagging, corrupted clips, or excessive battery drain when the camera is off, especially if you’re using a memory card that the camera does not support. For instance, GoPros don’t get along well with Nintendo Switch Sandisk cards.

If you encounter lost clips, errors, poor battery life, a sluggish interface, or similar issues, start by replacing your memory card.

Can You Use UHS-II Cards With A GoPro Hero 9?

UHS-II cards are compatible but won’t enhance the camera’s performance because it only has a single UHS-I memory card slot. To achieve GoPro’s maximum speeds of 100 Mbps or 12.5MB/s, you only need a UHS-I U3 memory card.

However, if you want to speed up transferring footage from a UHS-II card to your computer, using an adapter to make the UHS-II card compatible could be a helpful solution.

SD Card Related Camera Specs

Sensor Size: 20 MP 4:3 1/2.3 inch CMOS SD Card Slot: Single Slot Micro UHS-I Maximum SD Card Size / Memory Card Capacity: Up To 256GB Minimum SD Card Specs: UHS-I, Class 10 or U1 Video Bitrate: Average High 96Mbps, Average Standard 58Mbps. Continuous Burst: 30 Photos / 1 Second Video Resolution: 5k UHD  30, 24 fps / 4K UHD 24/25/30/50/60 fps  Shots To Fill Buffer: 30

Best Size Memory Card For GoPro Hero9

The GoPro Hero 9 has a maximum micro SD card size of 256GB. Recording at 5K 100 Mbps will give you approximately 341 minutes of video storage on a single 256GB card.

While a 128GB card may not always be fully utilized during a weekend getaway, I recommend considering them if your budget allows. They provide the flexibility to go a few days without worrying about running out of storage space.

GoPro Hero 9 Bitrates

These bitrates will be found in the different record modes. The GoPro Hero 9 can record up to 100 Mbps, but I captured the rates at the various record settings.

Hero 9 Recording Options	Standard HEVC	High HEVC
5k
30p, 24p	58Mbps	96Mbps
4k
60p	58Mbps	96Mbps
24p, 30p	58Mbps	95Mbps
2.7k
240p	57Mbps	75Mbps
1080p
120p	58Mbps	95Mbps

GoPro Hero 9 Record Times

This chart shows the expected record times of various-sized cards when shooting at the maximum 100 Mbps bitrate.

Video Rates	Megabytes	64GB	128GB	256GB
H.265 100Mbps	12.5MB/s U3	85min	171min	341min

Use the Bitrate Calculator to see how much time each bitrate will record.

Best Memory Cards for GoPro Hero9 | Conclusions

There is no need to stress about memory cards for your GoPro Hero 9. Most of the glitches originate from using cards that fall outside the specifications or specialty ones, such as the SanDisk Nintendo Switch cards and high-endurance cards.

GoPro cameras are specifically designed to excel with SanDisk and Samsung microSD cards. The top pick is the SanDisk Extreme cards, but I’ve had solid results with Extreme Pro cards as well. The new PNY cards, as well as those from Kingston and Samsung, are also working great.

If you’re still experiencing issues like camera hiccups or sluggishness, it’s almost certainly due to your memory card. Your first move should constantly be swapping out the memory card for something different from what you used.

Good luck, and have fun!

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Have an even older camera? Check out this guide to the Best SD Cards For GoPro Cameras.