Best Memory Cards Sony A7IV – Buffer Tests With 32 Tested

The Sony A7IV has a dual memory card configuration but can take SD memory cards and CFexpress Type-A cards in the same slot.

If you want the fastest memory cards for the Sony A7IV, use the CFexpress Type-A cards. They have come down in price and are now a better option than V90 UHS-II memory cards.

Do you need CFexpress Type A memory cards in the Sony A7IV? 

No, you can use all the camera’s features with just V90 UHS-II SD memory cards. However, with the lossless compressed mode, CFxA cards allow for a nearly limitless buffer when shooting compressed RAW at 10fps or 5fps.

The CFxA and UHS-II cards are pretty close to the same price now, and some cards, like the Lexar Silver CFexpress Type-A card, are less expensive than the high-end V90 UHS-II cards, which is likely why it’s been such a popular card among Sony shooters.

Recommended Memory Cards Sony A7IV

This chart shows the best memory cards for the Sony A7IV and how they perform in the camera.

For the Sony A7 IV, I recommend looking at the Lexar Silver or Pergear Standard CFexpress Type-A cards. The value is unbeatable, and they are more than fast enough for the Sony A7IV. There are also new CF4.0 type memory cards, but the camera and likely your computer cannot take advantage of those cards yet. Only buy them if the price is right.

*In-camera speeds are how fast the cards perform when tested in-camera.

Sony A7IV – Amazon / B&H

How Should each type of memory card perform in the Sony A7IV

• CFxA Cards—The CFxA cards are the fastest memory cards for the Sony A7IV, topping out at speeds of 326MB/s. These cards aren’t necessary for the Sony A7IV, but if you want a nearly bottomless buffer, the CFexpress Type A cards are great.
• UHS-II V90 Cards—These are the best SD cards for most people with the Sony A7IV because they allow you to take advantage of all the camera’s frame rates and video modes. The fastest card I tested here was the Sony G Tough v90 64GB model, which came in at 222 MB/s. However, now budget CFxA cards are often less expensive and perform better than v90 SD cards.
• UHS-II V60 Cards—These are the best memory cards for casual video shooters and photographers who want much more data at a lower cost. However, you will be limited by some recording formats. These are also the best budget-friendly cards for casual photographers. The fastest card tested among the V60 cards was the Lexar 1800x V60 card, which came in at 174 MB/s.

Sony A7IV Memory Card Speed & Buffer Tests

I tested every memory card I had in the Sony A7IV and have included a few charts you can reference.

CFexpress Type A Sony A7IV Benchmarks

We seem to bottleneck at around 325MB/s on this camera. So, if you’re using CFxA cards, it won’t matter which brand you choose for this camera. These cards perform well beyond what the camera is capable of doing.

Many new CFexpress Type-A cards have hit the market since I tested the Sony A7IV. Still, they’ll all hit these same performance benchmarks since the Sony A7IV can only push about 325MB/s of data to the cards with its 10fps burst capabilities.

Chart Testing UHS-II SD Cards

Sony A7IV Memory Card Performance Chart

This is a text-based table showing the in-camera performance of each type of memory card I tested.

Sony A7IV Cameras Specs

Understanding Read/Write Speeds For A7IV Video Recording

Sony cameras reject memory cards that are out of spec. They will also reject that old Sony M card that was recalled.

Sony cameras have many different movie recording options; here is a chart that shows the different bitrates of these recording options and the Supported memory cards.

S&Q Memory Card Shooting

Here are the memory cards required for the different S&Q modes.

These charts are taken from the Sony Help Guide.

Sony A7IV Video Record Time

Here is a handy chart on record times in minutes based on the different record formats; you’ll need to check this chart to determine what size memory card is best for you.

You can also use my camera record time calculator to customize your results.

One last thing: When buying a new memory card, always be sure to fill it in to check that it doesn’t have a hacked memory card controller and that it is authentic or that the brand didn’t mislabel it, as that happens sometimes. If it is genuine, you should get close to the rated capacity of memory listed on the card. But generally, you won’t have this issue if you buy from trusted stores like B&H or Adorama.

If you found this guide helpful, you may also like my list of the Must-Have Accessories For The Sony A7IV. These are the accessories and brands I use with most of my cameras.