An in-camera memory card speed comparison of the most popular SD memory cards and their performance when shooting with the Canon T7i (800D).
Fastest Memory Card For The Canon EOS T7i / 800D
General Performance And Speed Chart
With the new Digic 7 processor, the Canon T7i offers a noticeable speed increase over previous models. With speeds up to 74 MB/s, the camera performs better with UHS-I cards than many UHS-II cameras such as the Panasonic GH5 or the Sony A99 II.
That’s kind of crazy, right? The little old Canon T7i delivers faster UHS-I memory card performance than Sony’s flagship A99 II, which uses UHS-II cards.
Anyway, check out the results to find the best card for your needs.
All USB 3.0 tests were performed using CrystalDiskMark on Windows 10 with the Lexar SR2.
| SD Memory Cards | USB 3.0 Read | USB 3.0 Write | Canon T7i Write |
| UHS-II | |||
| Lexar 2000x | 272.7 MB/s | 244.5 MB/s | 73.49 MB/s |
| Transcend | 290.2 MB/s | 182.1 MB/s | 72.90 MB/s |
| Delkin 250 | 245.1 MB/s | 164.6 MB/s | 72.01 MB/s |
| Sandisk Extreme Pro 300 | 263.2 MB/s | 233.4 MB/s | 71.12 MB/s |
| Sony M | 253.2 MB/s | 91.62 MB/s | 69.12 MB/s |
| Toshiba Exceria Pro | 258.8 MB/s | 226.5 MB/s | 67.25 MB/s |
| Delkin 1900X | 273.3 MB/s | 97.3 MB/s | 60.26 MB/s |
| Lexar 1000x | 147.4 MB/s | 78.4 MB/s | 58.11 MB/s |
| Sandisk Extreme Pro 280 | 260.5 MB/s | 214.8 MB/s | 39.79 MB/s |
| UHS-I | |||
| SanDisk Extreme Pro U3 | 98.6 MB/s | 90.8 MB/s | 74.76 MB/s |
| Samsung Pro+ U3 | 97.5 MB/s | 87.3 MB/s | 71.74 MB/s |
| Kingston U3 | 98.1 MB/s | 90.4 MB/s | 70.71 MB/s |
| Samsung Pro U1 | 96.3 MB/s | 82.2 MB/s | 69.69 MB/s |
| Sony U3 – Old Model | 96.5 MB/s | 84.5 MB/s | 69.68 MB/s |
| Delkin 633x U3 | 98.3 MB/s | 88.7 MB/s | 67.41 MB/s |
| Samsung Pro U3 | 97.7 MB/s | 78.6 MB/s | 67.35 MB/s |
| Transcend U3 | 96.7 MB/s | 68.4 MB/s | 58.36 MB/s |
| Sandisk Extreme Plus U3 | 99.0 MB/s | 64.4 MB/s | 56.52 MB/s |
| PNY Elite Performance U3 | 96.5 MB/s | 66.1 MB/s | 56.08 MB/s |
| PNY Elite Performance U1 | 96.5 MB/s | 66.5 MB/s | 55.41 MB/s |
| Lexar 600x U1 | 95.4 MB/s | 64.8 MB/s | 53.99 MB/s |
| Sony U3 – New Model | 96.7 MB/s | 56.2 MB/s | 52.99 MB/s |
| Lexar 633x U3 | 93.3 MB/s | 67.3 MB/s | 49.66 MB/s |
| Sandisk Extreme U3 | 72.43 MB/s | 54.1 MB/s | 48.51 MB/s |
| Samsung U1 EVO | 47.7 MB/s | 27.3 MB/s | 20.22 MB/s |
Recommended SD Memory Cards For The T7i / 800D
Since the Canon T7i doesn’t use UHS-II technology, there’s no need to spend extra money on UHS-II cards unless you want very fast transfer speeds to your computer via a UHS-II memory card reader.
The best-performing and probably the best all-around card for the T7i is the SanDisk Extreme Pro. Second place would be the Samsung Pro+ card, but any of the top performers functioned great in this camera, as to be expected – it’s a Canon, and everything always just works.
Fastest UHS-II Memory Cards
Although the Canon T7i doesn’t support the extra speed you can get with UHS-II memory cards, many people still prefer UHS-II for faster transfer speeds when moving files from their cards to their computers. You will need a fast UHS-II memory card reader.
Lexar 2000x UHS-II
In-Camera Speeds: 73.49 MB/s
The Lexar 2000x is one of the fastest UHS-II memory cards and is very reliable. Lexar, as a brand, has discontinued production of memory cards, and Lexar, with its lifetime warranty, may be gone soon. – Amazon
Transcend 64GB
In-Camera Speeds: 72.90 MB/s
The Transcend UHS-II memory card performed very well in the Canon T7i. It has very fast write speeds but also fantastic read speeds when transferring data from the card to a computer. Transcend cards have always been a good and reliable option for Canon shooters. – Amazon
Delkin 250 64GB
In-Camera Speeds: 72.01 MB/s
Delkin isn’t a very popular brand for memory cards, but they always perform well in in-camera speed tests. I use Delkin cards for many of my cameras and have always loved their performance. Their UHS-II card is a great option, and its read speeds are very fast. – Amazon
Sandisk Extreme Pro 300 64GB
In-Camera Speeds: 71.12 MB/s
The SanDisk UHS-II memory card is one of the best on the market. Not quite the fastest UHS-II card in the Canon T7i, but an amazing card nonetheless. If you’re buying a SanDisk UHS-II memory card, only buy this model, as the slower model doesn’t work well with UHS-I cameras. – Amazon
Fastest UHS-I Memory Cards
UHS-I cards are among the best for the T7i, simply because they perform well and are very reasonably priced.
Sandisk Extreme Pro U3 64GB
In-Camera Speeds: 74.76 MB/s
The Sandisk Extreme Pro is the best memory card for the Canon T7i. They are priced great, very fast, and have great warranties. In terms of reliability, no other memory card beats Sandisk. – Amazon
Samsung Pro+ 64GB U3
In-Camera Speeds: 71.74 MB/s
Samsung makes a really nice memory card. It’s fast and reliable; some brands like Sony don’t like Samsung cards, but they work great for the Canon T7i. Sometimes these cards are hard to find, so they may not be the best option. – Amazon
Kingston 64GB U3
In-Camera Speeds: 70.71 MB/s
Kingston has been a very reliable and trusted brand for years. The Kingston UHS-I memory card is almost always among the top 5 fastest memory cards, and its U3 model works great with the Canon T7i. I highly recommend this card as an alternative to the Sandisk.- Amazon
Camera Specs
Sensor: APS-C 24.2MP CMOS / Processor: DIGIC 7
SD Memory Card Type: UHS-I
Video: 1080p 60fps
Continuous Burst: 6fps
Est. Size of Buffer: 500MB
Uncompressed Shots Till Buffer Fills: 29
Est. Time Taken To Clear Buffer: 6 seconds
Canon T7i Memory Card Stats & Performance
The Canon T7i has a buffer size of about 500MB. This allows you to fire off about 29 RAW shots before the buffer fills. Once the buffer is full, it will take a full 6 seconds to clear it. This is with the Sandisk Extreme Pro cards.
With a slower memory card, you won’t be able to capture as many shots in the buffer before it fills. This is because, as you are burst shooting, the camera will simultaneously write to the memory card. A slow card means you will fill the buffer much more quickly because it’s not offloading data as fast.
JPEG files are much smaller, so you’ll be able to shoot a considerable amount more before filling the buffer. Many cameras can shoot JPEG endlessly without filling the buffer, so I no longer test JPEG burst shooting in this latest generation of Canon cameras.
Canon T7i Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use microSD memory cards in the Canon T7i?
There is a lot of discussion about this with various cameras. Some people love microSD memory cards for their versatility. They can shoot in camera, pop them into a phone, and send shots to friends. Or swap cards between the camera and other devices, like action cameras or drones.
While Micro SD cards work fine, I personally don’t like them for my cameras. They are too small and easy to misplace. I’ve also had problems with the micro SD-to-SD adapter losing connection while shooting, which gives me errors.
What Cards Work Best For Video?
Since the Canon T7i is still only capable of shooting 1080p video, any decent memory card will work just fine.
My Card Isn’t Fast, What’s Wrong?
If you’re having issues with your memory cards, here is a list of a few things that could be causing the problem.
- Sometimes cards are just bad. You can usually get them replaced without hassle, and many have really good warranties.
- There are a lot of counterfeit cards out there. If you bought on eBay, chances are you got duped. Stick with BHphoto, Adorama, Amazon or other trusted stores.
- Make sure the cards and connection pins are all clean and undamaged.
What Size Memory Card Should I Get, 32GB or 64GB?
I use 32GB cards when I’m just shooting photos, and I rarely fill them. If I’m shooting photos with some videos here and there, I’ll need a 64GB card.
If I’m traveling and shooting on a card that I don’t clear for a few days, I’ll usually fill up a 32GB card.
Learn more with the camera memory card guide.
Best SD Memory Card Canon T7i | Bottom Line
The Canon T7i can really take advantage of memory card performance, but its burst rate of only 6 fps isn’t all that great, though it’s probably fine for most people. This means you may not need super-fast cards, since you may not be using the camera for much burst photography. However, if you do shoot in burst mode a lot and want that buffer cleared quickly, then you may want to consider getting the Sandisk Extreme Pro cards. I always buy these anyway, since they’re typically the best.
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