Over the past weeks, months, and years, we have been keeping a close eye on SSD prices... During that time, there have been some really bad times, some good times, and some middle times. Now it's the in-between period, and while some NVMe SSDs are still available there today, you'll have to spend more than last year to get the same thing... The July 4th sale didn't change this situation much, either.

We looked to see if there was anything of note for PC gamers, and the honest answer is "no."

SSDs are a bit more expensive than they were this time last year, but this is likely due to lower production levels to alleviate the slump in demand. The WD Black SN850X is a good example. This WD Black SN850X is currently one of our favorite SSDs for PCIe 4.0 storage needs.

Amazon has the SN850X marked down from $190 to $150, which is a 21% savings. This is a 21% discount. This drive has been selling for around $150 since 2023. The last time this drive dropped to $90 was last July, right around Prime Day.

Another SN770 from WD is down to $78 for 1TB of moderately fast PCIe 4.0 storage. This is a pretty great price, but a look at past prices on this drive is not worth shouting about. Last July, we were able to get this drive for the fantastic price of $43. [Other than November, when Black Friday takes place, one of the best months to buy PC hardware is July.

This is not entirely due to Amazon's Prime Day event, which will take place on July 16-17 this year. While this event may be limited to Prime and Prime members, competition and jealousy have spread to other retailers. You don't necessarily have to be a Prime member to get tech products at a discount. Discounts are often offered during July as Best Buy, Newegg, and Amazon try to dodge summer sales slumps.

If you were hoping to do some quick shopping ahead of the July 4 Prime Day sales, I don't think you will. Instead, it's better to wait a little longer until Prime Day arrives properly. That's because the SSD market in general is holding back on further price cuts, and the lower production numbers are driving prices higher than before. At the very least, though, there should be a little more competitive pricing than retailers.

One of the best deals I can find right now is this Nextorage 1TB drive that comes with a heatsink. It's our regular because it's frequently discounted, but at $80 it's nothing special. This is probably normal for this level. Otherwise, Newegg's Independence Day sale didn't inspire me much as I'm usually looking for more than 2TB of storage, and Best Buy's current sale inventory isn't very appealing either; the $80 price is a bit too low for my taste.

Another reason to curb your worst capitalist desires for at least another week or two is that some prices are likely to rise and then fall again during a big sale event. This is one of the oldest tricks in the book, and one of the worst. Technically, you're not paying more for the product than you were a few weeks ago, but you might think you're getting a better deal than you actually are.

This Lexar NM790 is currently discounted 22% from $190 to $148. Except that this drive has been on sale for less than $148 for some time, so it looks like a pretty good deal.

We have had this same drive listed for a while on our cheap SSD deals page from another seller, down to $135.

Prices fluctuate. Retailers have the right to raise or lower prices at will. Nevertheless, raising prices only to make them appear more affordable later is a frustrating practice we sometimes see. For this reason, we recommend checking out products on price comparison sites like CamelCamelCamel.

Of course, you can also visit PC Gamer; for Prime Day SSD deals, visit our Prime Day SSD page.