XPG MARS 980 BLADE
PCIe 5.0 NVMe · 14,000 MB/s read · PassMark #17
Crucial MX500 2 TB
SATA · 560 MB/s · TLC
Crucial MX500 2 TB takes it — here’s why.
In our weighted Specdex score, XPG MARS 980 BLADE lands at 83 and Crucial MX500 2 TB at 84. That puts Crucial MX500 2 TB ahead by 1 points — a narrow margin driven mostly by its strengths in the categories below.
Pick XPG MARS 980 BLADE if…
- ✓PassMark Disk Score top-20 (88,359) — sustained-write class-leading
- ✓Current street price around $721
Pick Crucial MX500 2 TB if…
- ✓Cheapest reliable 2 TB SATA SSD
- ✓5-year warranty
- ✓Good for older laptops + secondary storage
Winner by scenario
Derived from the sub-score breakdown · not a separate testValue for money
Crucial MX500 2 TBSpecdex score per dollar at MSRP
Crucial MX500 2 TB more score per dollar ($119 vs $300).
Score breakdown
Specs side-by-side
| Spec | XPG MARS 980 BLADE | Crucial MX500 2 TB |
|---|---|---|
| Form factor | M.2 2280 (passive, heat-spreader label) | — |
| Interface | PCIe 5.0 x4 NVMe 2.0 | SATA III 6 Gb/s |
| Sequential read | 14,000 MB/s | 560 MB/s |
| Sequential write | 13,000 MB/s | 510 MB/s |
| Random read | 2,000,000 IOPS | — |
| Random write | 1,650,000 IOPS | — |
| Controller | Silicon Motion SM2508 (TSMC 6nm) | — |
| NAND | 232-layer Micron 3D TLC | Micron 3D TLC |
| DRAM | yes (DRAM cache buffer) | — |
| Endurance | 1,480 TBW | 700 TBW (2TB) |
| Warranty | 5 years | 5 years |
| PassMark Disk Score | 88,359 | — |
| PassMark rank | #17 of 100 consumer SSDs | — |
| Capacity | — | 500 GB / 1 / 2 / 4 TB |
XPG MARS 980 BLADE
- +PassMark Disk Score top-20 (88,359) — sustained-write class-leading
- +Current street price around $721
- −DRAM-less controllers on lower-tier variants may throttle under sustained writes
Crucial MX500 2 TB
- +Cheapest reliable 2 TB SATA SSD
- +5-year warranty
- +Good for older laptops + secondary storage
- −SATA bottleneck (560 MB/s ceiling)
- −TLC NAND
- −No NVMe option
FAQ: XPG MARS 980 BLADE vs Crucial MX500 2 TB
Which is better, XPG MARS 980 BLADE or Crucial MX500 2 TB? +
Crucial MX500 2 TB scores 84 on our weighted rubric — ahead by 1. Your best pick depends on the sub-scores above.
Is XPG MARS 980 BLADE worth the price? +
At $300, XPG MARS 980 BLADE delivers a Specdex score of 83 — strongest in passmark_disk.
Is Crucial MX500 2 TB worth the price? +
At $119, Crucial MX500 2 TB delivers a Specdex score of 84 — strongest in value.
Does XPG MARS 980 BLADE or Crucial MX500 2 TB last longer? +
Based on our long-term update and support ratings, both ship with multi-year support. Battery and reliability scores are visible in the breakdown above.
Which is the better value, XPG MARS 980 BLADE or Crucial MX500 2 TB? +
Crucial MX500 2 TB — more score per dollar ($119 vs $300). Specdex score per dollar at MSRP.