Camera Memory Speed
Memory Card Comparison & Performance Tests for Digital Cameras
Nikon D5600 SD card slot with door open

Nikon D5600 Fastest SD Cards

Published: March 3, 2017

The Nikon D5600 is an update to the D5500 DSLR camera. It features a 24.2-megapixel DX (APS-C) CMOS sensor. It adds SnapBridge and Bluetooth communication over the previous camera model. Like its predecessor the swivel 3.2 LCD screen can be controlled by touch. The D5600 is capable of 4 frames per second continuous shooting 14-bit RAW and 5 fps in 12-bit RAW and JPEG. Its 39-point auto focus system enables action photography. Video specs include HD 1080 resolution at up to 60p.

The D5600 uses Secure Digital (SD/SDHC/SDXC) memory cards and supports UHS-I. While UHS-II cards can be used in the camera, it lacks the high speed interface so the cards will operate only at UHS-I speed. To compare memory cards and find the fastest card for the D5600, 102 SD cards were tested in the camera. Write speed was calculated using 14-bit RAW images, while continuous shooting results show the number of images captured in 30 seconds in RAW+JPEG, RAW and JPEG modes. Following the tables, an analysis contains more details observed during the tests. From these tests, the fastest SD cards for the D5600 are presented.

Nikon D5600 Camera Details and Settings

The test setup consists of a D5600 mounted on a tripod and aimed at a detailed test scene. Controlled lighting is used and the lens is manually focused with manual aperture. The shutter is actuated using a remote release which also controls 30 second intervals. Write speed is determined during the buffer full condition during which the camera is limited by the write speed of the card. The amount of data in bytes written to the card divided by the write time gives the write speed and is calculated in MB/s (1 MB = 1,048,576 bytes). The write speed results in the table below are for RAW image format (RAW+JPEG and JPEG modes result in lower write speed).

Nikon D5600 SD Card Write Speed

+ Show more prices
Memory CardSize
(GB)
Average Write Speed (MB/s)Price
Lexar Professional 2000x UHS-II 64GB6480.3$125.50
Lexar Professional 2000x UHS-II 32GB3279.9$86.50
SanDisk Extreme Pro 95MB/s 256GB25679.1$139.99
SanDisk Extreme Plus 95/90 MB/s microSD 64GB6479.1$47.99
SanDisk Extreme Pro 95MB/s 64GB6478.9$59.99
SanDisk Extreme Pro 95MB/s U3 32GB3278.8$18.08
SanDisk Extreme Pro 95MB/s 32GB3278.7$18.08
SanDisk Extreme Pro 95MB/s 128GB12878.5$99.99
SanDisk Extreme Pro 95MB/s microSDXC 64GB6478.5$14.29
SanDisk Extreme Plus 95/90 MB/s microSD 32GB3278.0$13.99
SanDisk Extreme Pro 95MB/s microSDHC 32GB3278.0$15.23
SanDisk Extreme Pro UHS-II 275MB/s microSDXC 64GB6476.2$68.13
Transcend Ultimate UHS-II U3 64GB6475.6
Kingston U3 90/80 MB/s 64GB6475.6$59.40
Transcend Ultimate UHS-II U3 32GB3275.5
Kingston U3 90/80 MB/s 32GB3275.2$69.95
Sony M Series UHS-II 64GB6475.0$39.99
Patriot EP Series microSDXC 64GB6474.6
PNY Pro Elite microSDXC 64GB6474.2$10.99
Patriot EP PRO microSDXC 64GB6473.9$33.17
Samsung PRO Select microSDXC 128GB12873.6$99.99
Toshiba Exceria Pro UHS-II 32GB3273.6
Samsung PRO Plus microSDXC 128GB12873.2
Panasonic Gold 95/90 64GB6473.0
PNY Pro Elite 64GB6472.6
Kingston U3 (90/80) microSD 64GB6472.4$64.66
Kingston U3 (90/80) microSD 32GB3270.4$187.76
SanDisk Extreme 90MB/s U3 128GB12868.5$42.99
Kingston Class 10 UHS-I 64GB6468.3$36.38
Gobe Magic 104MB/s 32GB3267.6
Lexar Professional 1800x microSD UHS-II 32GB3267.3$29.95
Gobe Magic 104MB/s 64GB6466.9
Transcend 95/85 MB/s U3 32GB3266.8
Delkin Black 32GB3266.6
Delkin Elite 633x 32GB3266.5$19.99
Transcend Ultimate 633x microSD 64GB6466.2$125.99
Transcend 633x microSDHC 32GB3265.0$33.91
Transcend R95 W85 U3 64GB6464.9$49.99
SanDisk Extreme Plus 90MB/s 64GB6463.1$89.98
Sony 95MB/s U3 32GB3262.7$15.99
SanDisk Extreme Plus 90MB/s 32GB3262.3
Lexar Professional 1000x UHS-II 32GB3262.0$44.99
Samsung PRO microSDXC 64GB6462.0
Lexar Professional 1000x UHS-II 128GB12861.5$54.95
Lexar Professional 1000x UHS-II 64GB6461.0$47.40
Sony 95MB/s U3 64GB6461.0$34.99
Samsung PRO U3 64GB6460.1$89.98
PNY Elite-X microSDHC 32GB3259.4$19.99
Samsung PRO Select microSDXC 64GB6459.2
Samsung PRO Plus 64GB6459.0$118.00
Samsung PRO Plus microSDXC 64GB6458.9$52.99
SanDisk Extreme 90MB/s U3 V30 256GB25657.1$61.77
SanDisk Extreme 90MB/s U3 V30 microSDXC 128GB12856.7$55.88
PNY Elite-X microSDXC 64GB6455.0$23.99
Samsung EVO Select microSDXC 256GB25654.0$60.50
Lexar Professional 633x U3 256GB25652.7$51.97
Transcend 95/60 MB/s U3 64GB6452.5$29.95
Transcend 600x 128GB12852.0$18.95
Transcend 600x 64GB6451.6$31.98
PNY Elite Performance U1 64GB6451.6$19.99
Transcend 95/60 MB/s U3 128GB12850.1$104.31
PNY Elite Performance U3 128GB12850.0$39.99
Toshiba Exceria UHS-I Class 3 32GB3249.6
Toshiba Exceria UHS-I Class 3 64GB6449.4
SanDisk Extreme 90MB/s U3 64GB6444.9$17.98
Delkin 1900x UHS-II 32GB3244.3
SanDisk Extreme 90MB/s U3 32GB3244.2$21.19
SanDisk Extreme 90MB/s microSDHC 32GB3243.6$27.71
Lexar Professional 1000x microSD UHS-II 32GB3243.1$19.99
PNY Elite Performance U3 256GB25642.0$99.89
Kingston Ultimate 32GB3241.3
Patriot EP Pro 90MB/s 32GB3241.3$31.58
SanDisk Extreme Pro 280MB/s UHS-II 32GB3239.7$69.00
Panasonic Gold Series 32GB3238.7
SanDisk Ultra 80MB/s 32GB3237.8$8.76
SanDisk Extreme 90MB/s microSDXC 64GB6436.6$13.00
Patriot EP Pro 128GB12834.1$58.57
Transcend 600x 32GB3234.1$17.99
Patriot EP Pro 90MB/s 64GB6433.7$24.99
PNY Elite Performance U1 32GB3233.1
Lexar Professional 633x microSDXC 200GB20032.7$89.99
Samsung PRO Plus 32GB3231.6
Panasonic MicroP2 UHS-II 32GB3231.3
Samsung PRO U3 32GB3230.7
SanDisk Ultra 80MB/s microSD 128GB12830.0$14.97
PNY Elite microSDXC 64GB6427.7$27.98
Lexar Professional 633x U1 128GB12825.3$17.95
PNY Elite microSDXC 128GB12824.7$36.99
Samsung EVO Select microSDXC 64GB6424.5$22.99
Samsung EVO microSD 32GB3221.6$31.70
Lexar Professional 633x microSDXC 64GB6421.0$9.99
Lexar Professional 633x U1 32GB3220.1$9.99
Samsung EVO microSDXC 64GB6419.5$38.00
Lexar Professional 633x microSDXC 128GB12819.4$15.99
Samsung EVO Plus 128GB microSDXC12819.4$49.00
Samsung EVO Select microSDXC 128GB12819.3$59.95
SanDisk Ultra 80MB/s microSD 64GB6419.0$11.68
SanDisk Ultra 80MB/s 32GB Card 23218.5$8.76
SanDisk Ultra 80MB/s 128GB12818.3$19.69
SanDisk Ultra 90MB/s microSD 200GB20015.6$58.50
SanDisk Ultra 80MB/s 64GB6415.2$9.98
SanDisk Ultra 80MB/s microSD 32GB3213.6$8.50

Nikon D5600 Continuous Shooting

The table below shows the number of shots taken in 30 seconds with the D5600 using continuous high release mode. The time does not include the write time (buffer clearing). Three different image modes are used (RAW+JPEG, RAW, and JPEG). The RAW image setting is 14-bit NEF while the JPEG setting is large, fine quality. The test subject produces 29.0 MB RAW files and 12.8MB JPEG files.

+ Show more prices
Memory CardSize
(GB)
Continuous Shooting – Images in 30 SecondsLowest
Price
RAW+JPEGRAWJPEG
Lexar Professional 2000x UHS-II 64GB645886147$125.50
SanDisk Extreme Pro 95MB/s 64GB645885147$59.99
SanDisk Extreme Pro 95MB/s U3 32GB325885147$18.08
SanDisk Extreme Plus 95/90 MB/s microSD 64GB645885147$47.99
SanDisk Extreme Pro 95MB/s 256GB2565885147$139.99
SanDisk Extreme Pro 95MB/s 128GB1285884147$99.99
SanDisk Extreme Pro 95MB/s microSDXC 64GB645884147$14.29
SanDisk Extreme Pro 95MB/s microSDHC 32GB325884147$15.23
Lexar Professional 2000x UHS-II 32GB325786147$86.50
SanDisk Extreme Pro 95MB/s 32GB325785147$18.08
SanDisk Extreme Plus 95/90 MB/s microSD 32GB325784147$13.99
Samsung PRO Plus 64GB64576680$118.00
Samsung PRO Plus microSDXC 64GB64576581$52.99
Samsung PRO Select microSDXC 64GB64576581
Samsung PRO Plus 32GB32563778
Kingston U3 90/80 MB/s 64GB645581147$59.40
Kingston U3 90/80 MB/s 32GB325580147$69.95
SanDisk Extreme Pro UHS-II 275MB/s microSDXC 64GB645482147$68.13
Sony M Series UHS-II 64GB645481147$39.99
Transcend Ultimate UHS-II U3 32GB325481147
Toshiba Exceria Pro UHS-II 32GB325480147
Samsung PRO Plus microSDXC 128GB1285479147
Samsung PRO Select microSDXC 128GB1285479147$99.99
Transcend Ultimate UHS-II U3 64GB645381147
PNY Pro Elite microSDXC 64GB645280147$10.99
Samsung PRO U3 64GB64526578$89.98
Samsung PRO U3 32GB32523777
SanDisk Extreme 90MB/s U3 128GB1285174147$42.99
Transcend 633x microSDHC 32GB325171146$33.91
Samsung PRO microSDXC 64GB64516779
Patriot EP Series microSDXC 64GB645080147
Patriot EP PRO microSDXC 64GB645079147$33.17
PNY Pro Elite 64GB645078147
Transcend Ultimate 633x microSD 64GB645072139$125.99
Panasonic Gold 95/90 64GB644979147
Kingston U3 (90/80) microSD 64GB644978147$64.66
Kingston U3 (90/80) microSD 32GB324976147$187.76
Lexar Professional 1800x microSD UHS-II 32GB324973147$29.95
Gobe Magic 104MB/s 32GB324973144
Gobe Magic 104MB/s 64GB644972147
Transcend 95/85 MB/s U3 32GB324972142
Samsung EVO Select microSDXC 256GB2564960139$60.50
Kingston Class 10 UHS-I 64GB644772147$36.38
SanDisk Extreme Plus 90MB/s 64GB644769141$89.98
SanDisk Extreme Plus 90MB/s 32GB324768139
Delkin Black 32GB324672144
Transcend R95 W85 U3 64GB644671146$49.99
Delkin Elite 633x 32GB324572144$19.99
Sony 95MB/s U3 32GB324568132$15.99
Sony 95MB/s U3 64GB644567135$34.99
Lexar Professional 1000x UHS-II 64GB644567132$47.40
PNY Elite-X microSDHC 32GB324565132$19.99
Lexar Professional 1000x UHS-II 32GB324468134$44.99
Lexar Professional 1000x UHS-II 128GB1284467134$54.95
SanDisk Extreme 90MB/s U3 V30 256GB2564363131$61.77
SanDisk Extreme 90MB/s U3 V30 microSDXC 128GB1284362130$55.88
PNY Elite-X microSDXC 64GB644361127$23.99
PNY Elite Performance U3 128GB1284056121$39.99
Transcend 95/60 MB/s U3 128GB1283956121$104.31
Transcend 95/60 MB/s U3 64GB643858114$29.95
Toshiba Exceria UHS-I Class 3 64GB643755115
PNY Elite Performance U1 64GB643657114$19.99
Toshiba Exceria UHS-I Class 3 32GB323555113
SanDisk Extreme 90MB/s U3 64GB643551108$17.98
SanDisk Extreme 90MB/s U3 32GB323550106$21.19
SanDisk Extreme 90MB/s microSDHC 32GB323549105$27.71
Delkin 1900x UHS-II 32GB323548104
Lexar Professional 633x U3 256GB2563458117$51.97
Transcend 600x 64GB643457119$31.98
Lexar Professional 1000x microSD UHS-II 32GB323449103$19.99
Transcend 600x 128GB1283257119$18.95
Kingston Ultimate 32GB32324798
Patriot EP Pro 90MB/s 32GB32324796$31.58
SanDisk Extreme Pro 280MB/s UHS-II 32GB32314594$69.00
SanDisk Ultra 80MB/s 32GB32314394$8.76
Panasonic Gold Series 32GB32304492
SanDisk Extreme 90MB/s microSDXC 64GB64294289$13.00
Transcend 600x 32GB32284081$17.99
Patriot EP Pro 128GB128274089$58.57
Patriot EP Pro 90MB/s 64GB64273988$24.99
PNY Elite Performance U1 32GB32273781
Panasonic MicroP2 UHS-II 32GB32263776
PNY Elite Performance U3 256GB256254890$99.89
SanDisk Ultra 80MB/s microSD 128GB128243577$14.97
Lexar Professional 633x microSDXC 200GB200233975$89.99
Lexar Professional 633x U1 128GB128223175$17.95
PNY Elite microSDXC 128GB128213071$36.99
Samsung EVO Select microSDXC 64GB64212965$22.99
PNY Elite microSDXC 64GB64203368$27.98
Samsung EVO microSD 32GB32182751$31.70
Lexar Professional 633x U1 32GB32182655$9.99
Samsung EVO microSDXC 64GB64182553$38.00
SanDisk Ultra 90MB/s microSD 200GB200182149$58.50
Lexar Professional 633x microSDXC 64GB64172765$9.99
Samsung EVO Select microSDXC 128GB128172555$59.95
Lexar Professional 633x microSDXC 128GB128172554$15.99
Samsung EVO Plus 128GB microSDXC128172455$49.00
SanDisk Ultra 80MB/s 128GB128172454$19.69
SanDisk Ultra 80MB/s 32GB Card 232172453$8.76
SanDisk Ultra 80MB/s microSD 64GB64172453$11.68
SanDisk Ultra 80MB/s 64GB64142146$9.98
SanDisk Ultra 80MB/s microSD 32GB32141944$8.50

Nikon D5600 Analysis

The Nikon D5600 performed slightly better than the D5500 which was tested previously. The highest average write speed measured in the D5600 was 80.3 MB/s. While the test settings varied slightly from the previous model (slightly smaller RAW file size and slightly faster shutter speed), the write speed and buffer-limited shooting measurably improved. (Non-buffer limited JPEG shooting with fast cards was only different due to the shutter speed difference over 30 seconds of shooting.)

Using UHS-II cards in the D5600 provided no real benefit because they operate at UHS-I speed in the camera and have the same performance limitations. However, in a UHS-II card reader UHS-II cards can provide much faster download speed.

Buffer capacity is is very small and similar to the D5500. Because the D5600 is limited by its buffer, memory card speed has a big impact on how the performs during continuous shooting. Faster cards clear the buffer faster and allow a higher frame rate with the buffer full. The image subject and camera settings affect camera performance, including the number of shots that can be taken in a given time interval and frame rate during extended shooting. With more detailed subjects the file size increases which means more data must be written, effectively reducing the frame rate in buffer-limited shooting. Fast memory cards clear the buffer quickly and allow more shots to be taken in a given time interval.

In continuous shooting RAW+JPEG mode the D5600 was only able to capture 5 at full frame rate at which point the buffer was at capacity. This number was constant with all memory cards tested. Faster cards allowed a higher frame rate with the buffer filled: 1.8 fps for the fastest card versus 0.3 fps for the slowest card.

In 14-bit RAW mode faster memory cards allowed up to 10 shots at full frame rate, while slower cards reduced this number to as low as 6 shots before the buffer reached capacity. The difference is due to fast cards clearing the buffer at a faster rate while the camera continues to shoot. The difference between a fast card and a slow card meant getting 4 additional images before the camera paused to clear the buffer. This rate will vary with camera settings and image subject which can affect the image size and the ability of the camera to process images. With the buffer full, the frame rate was 2.8 fps with the fastest card and 0.5 fps with the slowest card.

During JPEG shooting a several cards were able to sustain full frame rate for the duration of the 30 second shooting test. The JPEG setting and image subject affects this, for this test the setting was large, fine quality and produced 12.8MB file size with the detailed test subject. Slower cards reduced the number of images at full frame rate before the buffer limited shooting. The slowest card reached 15 shots before it was limited because it could not clear the buffer fast enough and it slowed to 1.1 fps.

During testing a number of Samsung cards exhibited unexpected write speed behavior. These include 32 and 64GB capacity SD and microSDXC cards of the Samsung PRO (U3), Samsung PRO Select and Samsung PRO Plus. Their write speed sometimes was cut in half, and affected the results for JPEG shooting for all the cards, and RAW shooting for several 32GB capacity cards and sometimes affected RAW+JPEG shooting. While these cards did not cause errors, there is apparently a compatibility issue which causes the D5600 to occasionally revert to a slower UHS-I mode with some Samsung PRO cards. The two 128GB capacity cards did not exhibit this issue.

Recommended SD Cards for the Nikon D5600

Fastest UHS-II card:
Lexar Professional 2000x UHS-II SD Card
Lexar Professional 2000x UHS-II SD Card
Fastest UHS-I card:
SanDisk Extreme Pro 95MB/s UHS-I SD Card
SanDisk Extreme Pro 95MB/s UHS-I SD Card

The fastest SD card in the Nikon D5600 was the Lexar Professional 2000x UHS-II card which reached 80.3 MB/s write speed. While it is a UHS-II card, it operates in UHS-I mode in the D5600 and is not signifiantly faster than the SanDisk Extreme Pro 95MB/s UHS-I card that was runner up at 79.1 MB/s. The advantage of the UHS-II card would be its much higher read speed in a UHS-II card reader for downloading images to a computer.

Kingston 90/80 U3 cards performed very well up to 75.6MB/s average at a slightly lower price point compared with the SanDisk Extreme Pro.

Nikon D5600 USB cable to camera port with door open

Downloading images from D5600

The D5600 has a micro USB 2.0 port that can be used to download images directly from the camera with a USB cable. To test the transfer rate 85 RAW images were downloaded from the camera to a computer with a SSD drive. Both the Lexar 2000x UHS-II 64GB card and Sandisk Extreme Pro UHS-I 64GB card were tested. The 2.4GB transfer took just over 83 seconds and averaged 29.6MB/s with the Lexar card and 29.8MB/s with the SanDisk card. This is about what should be expected with USB 2.0, however much faster transfers are possible using a separate USB 3.0 card reader. The UHS-I card is capable of above 90MB/s, while a UHS-II card can transfer over 250MB/s in a UHS-II card reader. Card reader benchmark tests are available in the Card Reader Reviews.