SSDs now cost 16x more than HDDs — hybrid SSD + HDD datacenter deployments are now significantly cheaper to deploy than SSD-only equivalents

SSD prices have surged to be 16 times higher than HDDs due to a memory/NAND flash shortage, making hybrid SSD + HDD datacenter setups more cost-effective than SSD-only configurations. VDURA's analysis shows a 257% increase in pricing for 30TB TLC enterprise-grade SSDs from Q2 2025 to Q1 2026, while HDD prices only rose by 35% in the same period. The cost disparity between SSDs and HDDs for datacenter storage has widened significantly, leading to the recommendation of transitioning to hybrid setups to save money. The shortage is predicted to persist into 2027, affecting both SSDs and HDDs, with hard drive prices also on the rise due to AI demand.