Best SD Cards Nikon P1000 | In-Camera Buffer Test

A detailed comparison between SD memory card performance. Each card has been tested in-camera to find the best memory card for the Nikon P1000.

A great feature of the Nikon P1000 besides the 4k video is the camera now allows you to shoot RAW the previous model only shot JPG and only had 1080p video, which means you now need to be a little more careful about which memory cards you buy.

Memory Card Speed Test

The Nikon P1000 camera has a very small buffer of about 150MB that will be filled much quicker when shooting RAW. Here are the results from doing the in-camera buffer test.

You can see from the test that UHS-II didn’t offer any advantage as the Nikon P1000 is a UHS-I-capable camera. UHS-II cards would only benefit files to a computer.

Recommended Memory Cards For The Nikon P1000

The top-performing memory cards in the Nikon P1000 were the Kingston cards and the Transcend cards. Although the Sandisk card performed a little behind some of the other cards when testing this camera, their newest cards have been great, so I’ve included them in the recommendations.

Nikon P1000

Sensor: 16MP BSI CMOS Sensor Processor: EXPEED Image Processor Card Slots: 1 UHS-I Video: 4k30 /1080p60 Screen: 3.2″ 921,000 Dot Vari-Angle TFT LCD Screen EVF: 2.36m-dot Continuous Shooting: 7 fps at 16 MP Estimated Buffer Size: 150MB RAW Shots To Fill Buffer: 7 Time To Clear Buffer: 4:48 seconds

What Size Memory Card To Buy

In my years of shooting, I’ve found 64GB size cards to be pretty much perfect. The Nikon P1000 doesn’t create huge RAW files so it will take you a while to fill a 64GB card.  However, with the price of cards being so affordable now, it’s a good idea to start with a 128GB card.

Nikon P1000 Best Memory Card For 4k Video

Now that the Nikon P1000 shoots 4k video you will have to be a little careful not to use a card that is too slow.

4k will shoot with a bitrate somewhere around 90 to 100mbps.

This means you’ll need a memory card that is rated to at least provide a minimum write speed of 10-12MB/s. This should rule out buying U1 cards.

U1 cards or Class 10 are only rated to maintain a maximum write speed of 10MB/s.

Buy U3 cards, v30 or v60 cards.

U3 cards are rated to maintain a maximum bitrate of 30MB/s. This will be enough to maintain the data stream of the Nikon P1000 4k video.

Best Memory Cards For The Nikon P1000 | Conclusions

The Nikon P1000 took an amazing step in the right direction by enabling RAW shooting, pairing that with the amazing lens and 4k video and it’s now this extremely powerful superzoom camera. The versatility is almost unlimited.

Stick with a good SD UHS-I U3 memory card and your P1000 will give you amazing results for the years to come.

What The Buffer Clear Time Means in Practice

The P1000 has a small 150MB buffer — at 7fps in RAW, that fills in about one second. After that, the camera continues shooting but slows to the card’s write speed until the buffer drains. With the top UHS-I cards in testing, that clear time came in at 4 minutes and 48 seconds for a full buffer, which sounds alarming but is mostly a non-issue for how most people shoot this camera.

The P1000 is a superzoom used primarily for wildlife, sports at distance, and travel. You’re rarely hammering the buffer in continuous bursts. The more likely scenario is a few frames at a time, in which case the buffer barely registers. For airshows or fast-moving subjects where you might hold the shutter down, pause briefly between sequences and the buffer clears incrementally. Alternatively, shooting in JPEG Fine largely sidesteps the buffer constraint entirely.

Can I Use a microSD Card in the Nikon P1000?

The Nikon P1000 uses a full-size SD card slot. MicroSD cards work with an adapter, but from experience they can lose connection inside the adapter — I wouldn’t use one for anything critical. See the microSD memory card guide if you need to use one.

Nikon P1000 Memory Card FAQ

Does the Nikon P1000 support UHS-II cards?

No. The P1000 has a UHS-I interface, so UHS-II cards work but only at UHS-I speeds. There is no in-camera write performance benefit from buying a V60 or V90 card — those speed classes exist for UHS-II cameras. A fast UHS-I U3 card is the correct choice.

Do I need a V60 or V90 card for 4K video on the P1000?

No. The P1000 shoots 4K at around 100Mbps, which requires a sustained write speed of roughly 12.5MB/s. A U3 card is rated to 30MB/s minimum — more than sufficient. V60 and V90 are UHS-II speed classes, and since the camera is UHS-I, they add nothing here. Any UHS-I U3 card handles the P1000’s 4K reliably.

What size card should I buy for the Nikon P1000?

RAW files from the P1000’s 16MP sensor run roughly 20–25MB each. JPEG files are smaller. For a mix of RAW stills and 4K video, a 128GB card is a solid starting point. If you’re doing extended video work or long trips without offloading, 256GB keeps you covered without overspending.

The P1000 only buffered 7 RAW shots — is that a problem?

It’s a real limitation worth understanding, but usually not a dealbreaker in practice. The P1000 isn’t designed for rapid-fire sports burst work — it’s a 125x superzoom for deliberate, targeted shooting. For wildlife or aviation where you need sustained bursts, shoot JPEG Fine; it bypasses most of the buffer constraint and still delivers excellent files from the 16MP sensor.