Endurance (TBW)
Total Bytes Written — the cumulative write volume an SSD is rated to survive under warranty. A 1 TB consumer drive typically rates 600–1,200 TBW.
SSDs wear with writes. Each NAND cell can be programmed/erased only so many times before it fails. TBW is the manufacturer's published total — past this number, the drive is out of warranty even if still functional.
Reading the number
- TLC 1 TB consumer: 600–1,200 TBW.
- QLC 1 TB consumer: 200–400 TBW.
- Enterprise / data-center SSDs: 3,000+ TBW per TB.
How fast do drives consume it?
A typical desktop user writes 5–20 GB per day — under 7 TB per year, less than 1% of a 600 TBW budget. Heavy users (video editors, developers compiling daily) may hit 50+ GB per day but still take 30+ years to wear out a 600 TBW drive.
In comparisons
TBW matters more for buyers running databases, surveillance, or constant video capture. For typical use, both TLC and QLC drives last well beyond the 5-year warranty window. Always check whether the warranty terminates on years OR TBW, whichever comes first.
How to use Endurance (TBW) in a real comparison
Total Bytes Written — the cumulative write volume an SSD is rated to survive under warranty. A 1 TB consumer drive typically rates 600–1,200 TBW. In practice, this is most useful as one part of a decision rather than a standalone quality badge. Compare it alongside the workload, room, ecosystem, budget, and ownership constraints that apply to you; the strongest published figure is not automatically the best outcome for every buyer.
What to check next
Open a product page and check the stated value, configuration, price, and related trade-offs before treating this term as decisive. It is especially relevant in .
Avoid the one-number trap
Manufacturers can describe the same capability under different conditions. Compare like-for-like variants, check the unit and test condition where available, and use a head-to-head page to see whether a measurable difference is material for your own use.
vsMars presents structured catalog values to make trade-offs legible. The linked product and spec pages are the right place to inspect the underlying values before buying.