Our picks · Hardware facts first
Best NAS
The NAS boxes we would buy, by number of drive bays, and the 2.5GbE, 5GbE and 10GbE switches to run them at full speed, fanless first, each chosen from its own tested review and the maker’s own spec sheet. The drives that go in them are on Best HDDs. There are no prices here: every link goes to the retailer, where the current price is shown.
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Best pick in each tier
NAS boxes · 2 bays
Photo: QNAP QNAP TS-264
Two 2.5GbE ports, which QNAP rates at up to 589MB/s together with port trunking, and a PCIe slot for a dual-port 10GbE card. TechRadar found its 2.5GbE results competitive with other two-bay boxes.
Check price at Amazon Why we picked it Paid link
NAS boxes · 4 bays
Photo: UGREEN UGREEN NASync DXP4800 GT
Two 10GbE ports built into a four-bay box. TechRadar calls it the best-value four-bay NAS with 10GbE it has seen, and editing over 10GbE felt like working from a drive on the desk.
Check price at Amazon Why we picked it Paid link
NAS boxes · 6 bays
Photo: UGREEN UGREEN NASync DXP6800 Pro
Two 10GbE ports and two Thunderbolt 4 ports built in. StorageReview measured 2.26GB/s reads in its large-block test and calls it hard to overlook for anyone after a top-tier NAS.
Check price at Amazon Why we picked it Paid link
NAS boxes · 8 bays and up
Photo: UGREEN UGREEN NASync DXP8800 Plus
Eight bays with two 10GbE ports, two Thunderbolt 4 ports and a PCIe slot built in. TechRadar calls it a masterclass in NAS hardware and a box with the capacity and bandwidth to drive a small business.
Check price at Amazon Why we picked it Paid link
Switches · 2.5GbE
Photo: TRENDnet TRENDnet TEG-S380
Eight 2.5GbE ports in a fanless metal box. ServeTheHome measured about 5W at idle and called it a solid step toward low-cost 2.5GbE switching.
Check price at Amazon Why we picked it Paid link
Switches · 5GbE
Photo: GiGaPlus GiGaPlus GP-S50-0800
Eight 5GbE ports with no fan. ServeTheHome measured 7W at idle and 8W with a 5GbE link up, and found it simply works: an unmanaged, fully passive 5GbE switch.
Check price at Amazon Why we picked it Paid link
Switches · 2.5GbE with 10GbE
Photo: TRENDnet TRENDnet TEG-S762
The low-cost way to put a 10GbE NAS on a 2.5GbE network: two 10GbE ports for the NAS and your main computer, four 2.5GbE for the rest. ServeTheHome measured 4.4W at idle, one of the lowest in its switch series.
Check price at Amazon Why we picked it Paid link
Switches · 4 to 5 ports of 10GbE
Photo: TRENDnet TRENDnet TEG-S750
Five 10GbE ports in a fanless metal box. StorageReview saw it saturate four 2.5GbE ports uplinked over 10GbE and calls it a solid choice for multi-gig connections.
Check price at Amazon Why we picked it Paid link
Switches · 8 ports of 10GbE
Photo: TP-Link TP-Link TL-SX1008
Eight 10GbE ports for a NAS, a server and several workstations. ServeTheHome found it worked fine but measured 48 to 51dBA from its fan and 12W at idle: not one for a quiet room.
Check price at Amazon Why we picked it Paid link
NAS boxes
NAS boxes · tier 1 of 4
2 bays
Two-bay boxes for a first NAS at home: photo and computer backups, a shared family folder, a small media library. Of the two-bay boxes with a tested review, none has 10GbE built in, so both picks take a 10GbE card, and two 2.5GbE ports beat one.
2 picks, best first
Best pick
QNAP TS-264 2-bay
Photo: QNAP Two 2.5GbE ports, which QNAP rates at up to 589MB/s together with port trunking, and a PCIe slot for a dual-port 10GbE card. TechRadar found its 2.5GbE results competitive with other two-bay boxes.
Suits you if
- You want two network ports on a two-bay box, and 10GbE later.
- You want M.2 slots for an SSD cache.
Skip it if
- You want to add memory later: TechRadar says it cannot be upgraded.
- You want 10GbE without opening the case: the card needs a screwdriver.
- CPU
- Intel Celeron N5095, per TechRadar
- Network
- Two 2.5GbE ports; dual-port 10GbE by PCIe card
- Speed
- Up to 589MB/s with both 2.5GbE ports trunked, per QNAP
- Bays
- 2 SATA bays and 2 M.2 NVMe slots
- Memory
- Built in, not upgradable, per TechRadar
Specs from QNAP TS-264 product page; tested in TechRadar, QNAP TS-264 hands-on review.
Check price at Amazon Paid link2nd pick
QNAP TS-262 2-bay
Photo: QNAP The two-bay box that grows to 10GbE: a 2.5GbE port out of the box and a PCIe slot for a 10GbE card later. TechRadar found it excellent value and fast once on 2.5GbE.
Suits you if
- You want two bays now and a path to 10GbE later.
- You want M.2 slots for an SSD cache in a small box.
Skip it if
- You want two network ports: it has one 2.5GbE port (the TS-264 above has two).
- You want 10GbE without opening the case: the card goes in with a screwdriver.
- CPU
- Intel Celeron N4505, 2 cores, up to 2.9GHz
- Memory
- 4GB, per TechRadar
- Network
- One 2.5GbE port; 10GbE or 5GbE by PCIe card
- Bays
- 2 SATA bays and 2 M.2 NVMe slots
- Expansion
- One PCIe Gen 3 x2 slot
Specs from QNAP TS-262 product page; tested in TechRadar, QNAP TS-262 hands-on review.
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NAS boxes · tier 2 of 4
4 bays
Four-bay boxes for a growing home or a small office: room for parity, M.2 slots for cache, and 10GbE built in on both picks.
2 picks, best first
Best pick
UGREEN NASync DXP4800 GT 4-bay
Photo: UGREEN Two 10GbE ports built into a four-bay box. TechRadar calls it the best-value four-bay NAS with 10GbE it has seen, and editing over 10GbE felt like working from a drive on the desk.
Suits you if
- You edit photos or video over the network and want 10GbE speed.
- You want two 10GbE ports for two machines or link aggregation.
Skip it if
- Your switch and computer only run 2.5GbE: TechRadar needed a 10GbE switch and adapter to see its speed.
- You want Thunderbolt: it has none.
- CPU
- AMD Ryzen Embedded R2514, 4 cores, 8 threads
- Memory
- 8GB DDR4, up to 64GB
- Network
- Two 10GbE ports
- Bays
- 4 SATA bays and 2 M.2 NVMe slots
- USB
- Three 10Gbps
Specs from UGREEN NASync DXP4800 GT product page; tested in TechRadar, Ugreen NASync DXP4800 GT review.
Check price at Amazon Paid link2nd pick
UGREEN NASync DXP4800 Pro 4-bay
Photo: UGREEN The four-bay box with 10GbE built in: TechRadar calls it ideal for backups and sync, with both M.2 slots at PCIe Gen 4 x4 and room for 96GB of memory.
Suits you if
- You have a 10GbE network or plan one.
- You want to start with 8GB of memory and add more later.
Skip it if
- You want two 10GbE ports: the DXP4800 GT above has them.
- You want Thunderbolt: it has none (the DXP6800 Pro below does).
- CPU
- Intel Core i3-1315U, 6 cores, 8 threads
- Memory
- 8GB DDR5, up to 96GB
- Network
- One 10GbE and one 2.5GbE port
- Bays
- 4 SATA bays and 2 M.2 NVMe slots
- USB
- Front USB-C and USB-A at 10Gbps
Specs from UGREEN NASync DXP4800 Pro product page; tested in TechRadar, Ugreen DXP4800 Pro review.
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NAS boxes · tier 3 of 4
6 bays
Six-bay boxes for video work and small teams: desktop or laptop-class Intel CPUs, Thunderbolt 4, and 10GbE built in or a slot to add it.
2 picks, best first
Best pick
UGREEN NASync DXP6800 Pro 6-bay
Photo: UGREEN Two 10GbE ports and two Thunderbolt 4 ports built in. StorageReview measured 2.26GB/s reads in its large-block test and calls it hard to overlook for anyone after a top-tier NAS.
Suits you if
- You want 10GbE and Thunderbolt without adding cards.
- You want six bays and memory you can grow.
Skip it if
- You want the widest app catalog: StorageReview found UGREEN's still growing.
- You need iSCSI block storage: StorageReview found file sharing only when it tested.
- CPU
- Intel Core i5-1235U, 10 cores, 12 threads
- Memory
- 8GB DDR5, up to 64GB
- Network
- Two 10GbE ports and two Thunderbolt 4 ports
- Bays
- 6 SATA bays and 2 M.2 NVMe slots
- Expansion
- One PCIe x4 slot
Specs from UGREEN NASync DXP6800 Pro product page; tested in StorageReview, UGREEN DXP6800 Pro NAS review.
Check price at Amazon Paid link2nd pick
QNAP TVS-h674T 6-bay
Photo: QNAP TechRadar's pick for performance: a desktop Core i5, 32GB of memory and a Thunderbolt 4 card for editing straight off the NAS, plus a free PCIe Gen 4 x16 slot for faster networking. Its tester could not reach the full 40Gbps.
Suits you if
- You edit video from a Mac or PC and want to work over Thunderbolt.
- You want a slot free for a 10GbE or faster card later.
Skip it if
- You want 10GbE out of the box: it ships with 2.5GbE (the DXP6800 Pro above has two 10GbE ports).
- You only need file sharing and backups: a four-bay box above does that.
- CPU
- Intel Core i5-12400, 6 cores, 12 threads, up to 4.4GHz
- Memory
- 32GB DDR4 (2 x 16GB), up to 64GB
- Network
- Two 2.5GbE ports; Thunderbolt 4 card fitted
- Bays
- 6 SATA bays and 2 M.2 NVMe slots (PCIe Gen 4 x4)
- Expansion
- PCIe Gen 4 x16 slot free; the x4 slot holds the Thunderbolt card
Specs from QNAP TVS-hx74T user guide; tested in TechRadar, QNAP TVS-h674T review.
Check price at Amazon Paid link
NAS boxes · tier 4 of 4
8 bays and up
Eight-bay boxes for a small business or a large media library: room for two-drive parity across many disks, 10GbE or a slot to add it, and PCIe Gen 4 for cards.
2 picks, best first
Best pick
UGREEN NASync DXP8800 Plus 8-bay
Photo: UGREEN Eight bays with two 10GbE ports, two Thunderbolt 4 ports and a PCIe slot built in. TechRadar calls it a masterclass in NAS hardware and a box with the capacity and bandwidth to drive a small business.
Suits you if
- You want eight bays with 10GbE and Thunderbolt and no cards to add.
- You want room for a large media library or a small office’s files.
Skip it if
- You want to fit a PCIe card after filling the bays: TechRadar had to take off the feet and back to reach the slot.
- You only need a few drives: a four-bay box above covers home backups and media.
- CPU
- Intel Core i5-1235U, 10 cores, 12 threads
- Memory
- 8GB DDR5, up to 64GB
- Network
- Two 10GbE ports and two Thunderbolt 4 ports
- Bays
- 8 SATA bays and 2 M.2 NVMe slots
- Expansion
- One PCIe x4 slot
Specs from UGREEN NASync DXP8800 Plus product page; tested in TechRadar, Ugreen NASync DXP8800 Plus hands-on review.
Check price at Amazon Paid link2nd pick
QNAP TVS-h874 8-bay
Photo: QNAP A desktop Core i5 and the ZFS-based QuTS hero system in an eight-bay box. StorageReview measured 2.316GB/s reads and 2.308GB/s writes over SMB in its large-block test and calls it a compelling choice for small businesses.
Suits you if
- You want ZFS with snapshots, deduplication and compression from the maker.
- You want two PCIe Gen 4 slots for 10GbE, 25GbE or a GPU later.
Skip it if
- You want 10GbE out of the box: this model ships with 2.5GbE.
- You want Thunderbolt: the DXP8800 Plus above has it built in.
- CPU
- Intel Core i5-12400, 6 cores, 12 threads, up to 4.4GHz (TVS-h874-i5-32G)
- Memory
- 32GB DDR4 (2 x 16GB), up to 64GB
- Network
- Two 2.5GbE ports
- Bays
- 8 SATA bays and 2 M.2 NVMe slots (PCIe Gen 4 x4)
- Expansion
- PCIe Gen 4 x16 and PCIe Gen 4 x4 slots
Specs from QNAP TVS-hx74 user guide; tested in StorageReview, QNAP TVS-h874 NAS review.
Check price at Amazon Paid link
Switches
Switches · tier 1 of 5
2.5GbE
Fanless 2.5GbE switches for a NAS with 2.5GbE ports and the computers around it: more than twice the speed of 1GbE on the same Cat5e cable.
2 picks, best first
Best pick
TRENDnet TEG-S380 8-port
Photo: TRENDnet Eight 2.5GbE ports in a fanless metal box. ServeTheHome measured about 5W at idle and called it a solid step toward low-cost 2.5GbE switching.
Suits you if
- Your NAS and computers run at 2.5GbE.
- You want a silent switch with room for eight devices.
Skip it if
- Your NAS has 10GbE: see the 10GbE tiers below.
- You want VLANs: it is unmanaged.
- Ports
- 8x 2.5GbE (RJ45)
- Switching
- 40Gbps
- Cooling
- Fanless
- Management
- Unmanaged
Specs from TRENDnet product catalog; tested in ServeTheHome, TRENDnet TEG-S380 review.
Check price at Amazon Paid link2nd pick
TRENDnet TEG-S350 5-port
Photo: TRENDnet The five-port version for a desk: fanless, unmanaged, and measured by ServeTheHome at 4.0W idle in its fanless 2.5GbE switch roundup.
Suits you if
- You have a NAS and up to four computers at 2.5GbE.
- You want a small silent switch on a desk.
Skip it if
- You need more than five ports: the TEG-S380 above has eight.
- You want VLANs: it is unmanaged.
- Ports
- 5x 2.5GbE (RJ45)
- Switching
- 25Gbps
- Cooling
- Fanless
- Management
- Unmanaged
Specs from TRENDnet product catalog; tested in ServeTheHome, fanless 2.5GbE switch buyer’s guide.
Check price at Amazon Paid link
Switches · tier 2 of 5
5GbE
A fanless 5GbE switch for NAS boxes with 5GbE ports. The MikroTik and TP-Link 10GbE switches below also run their ports at 5GbE.
1 pick, best first
Best pick
GiGaPlus GP-S50-0800 8-port
Photo: GiGaPlus Eight 5GbE ports with no fan. ServeTheHome measured 7W at idle and 8W with a 5GbE link up, and found it simply works: an unmanaged, fully passive 5GbE switch.
Suits you if
- Your NAS or your computer has 5GbE ports.
- You want a silent switch with eight ports.
Skip it if
- You want a 10GbE uplink: it has none.
- You want VLANs: it is unmanaged.
- Ports
- 8x 5GbE (RJ45), also 2.5GbE, 1GbE and 100Mbps
- Switching
- 80Gbps
- Cooling
- Fanless, per ServeTheHome
- Mounting
- Desktop or 19-inch rack
Specs from GiGaPlus GP-S50-0800 product page; tested in ServeTheHome, GigaPlus GP-S50-0800 review.
Check price at Amazon Paid link
Switches · tier 3 of 5
2.5GbE with 10GbE
A NAS at 10GbE needs a switch that runs at 10GbE. This one mixes 2.5GbE ports for the house with two 10GbE ports for the NAS and your main computer.
1 pick, best first
Best pick
TRENDnet TEG-S762 6-port
Photo: TRENDnet The low-cost way to put a 10GbE NAS on a 2.5GbE network: two 10GbE ports for the NAS and your main computer, four 2.5GbE for the rest. ServeTheHome measured 4.4W at idle, one of the lowest in its switch series.
Suits you if
- You have one 10GbE NAS and one 10GbE computer, and 2.5GbE for the rest.
- You want a silent switch on a desk.
Skip it if
- You want more than two 10GbE ports: see the tiers below.
- You want VLANs: it is unmanaged.
- Ports
- 4x 2.5GbE and 2x 10GbE (RJ45)
- Switching
- 60Gbps
- Cooling
- Fanless
- Management
- Unmanaged
Specs from TRENDnet product catalog; tested in ServeTheHome, TRENDnet TEG-S762 review.
Check price at Amazon Paid link
Switches · tier 4 of 5
4 to 5 ports of 10GbE
Every switching port at 10GbE, fanless, for a NAS and up to four computers. Each port also runs at 2.5GbE and 1GbE.
2 picks, best first
Best pick
TRENDnet TEG-S750 5-port
Photo: TRENDnet Five 10GbE ports in a fanless metal box. StorageReview saw it saturate four 2.5GbE ports uplinked over 10GbE and calls it a solid choice for multi-gig connections.
Suits you if
- You want every port at 10GbE and no fan noise.
- You want plug-and-play with no setup.
Skip it if
- You want VLANs or port monitoring: it is unmanaged.
- You need more than five ports.
- Ports
- 5x 10GbE (RJ45), also 2.5GbE and 1GbE
- Switching
- 100Gbps
- Cooling
- Fanless
- Power
- 15W maximum
- Warranty
- Lifetime
Specs from TRENDnet TEG-S750 support page; tested in StorageReview, TRENDnet TEG-S750 review.
Check price at Amazon Paid link2nd pick
MikroTik CRS304-4XG-IN 4-port
Photo: MikroTik Four 10GbE ports plus a management port in a small fanless switch that runs RouterOS. ServeTheHome calls it a clear category leader and measured about 7.5 to 7.8W at idle.
Suits you if
- You want a managed switch with VLANs.
- You want to power it over PoE from another switch.
Skip it if
- You want five 10GbE ports: the TEG-S750 above has five.
- You want plug-and-play: RouterOS takes some learning.
- Ports
- 4x 10GbE (RJ45), also 5GbE, 2.5GbE and 1GbE; 1x 1GbE management
- Software
- RouterOS v7, managed
- Cooling
- Passive
- Power
- PoE in, DC jack or 2-pin terminal; 21W maximum
Specs from MikroTik CRS304-4XG-IN product page; tested in ServeTheHome, MikroTik CRS304-4XG-IN review.
Check price at Amazon Paid link
Switches · tier 5 of 5
8 ports of 10GbE
Eight 10GbE ports for a small studio or office: a NAS, a server and several workstations at full speed. None of the 8-port 10GbE switches we found tested is fanless, so this one has a fan.
1 pick, best first
Best pick
TP-Link TL-SX1008 8-port
Photo: TP-Link Eight 10GbE ports for a NAS, a server and several workstations. ServeTheHome found it worked fine but measured 48 to 51dBA from its fan and 12W at idle: not one for a quiet room.
Suits you if
- You need eight devices on 10GbE.
- The switch lives in a rack or a closet.
Skip it if
- It sits on your desk: its fan is loud.
- You want VLANs: it is unmanaged.
- Ports
- 8x 10GbE (RJ45), also 5GbE, 2.5GbE, 1GbE and 100Mbps
- Switching
- 160Gbps
- Cooling
- One fan with adjustable speed
- Power
- 31.2W maximum
- Mounting
- Desktop or rack, kit included
Specs from TP-Link TL-SX1008 product page; tested in ServeTheHome, TP-Link TL-SX1008 review.
Check price at Amazon Paid link
How we pick
A box becomes a pick when the maker publishes a spec sheet that names its CPU, its memory, its network ports and its drive bays, and a published review of that exact model, by TechRadar or StorageReview, is saved in our library. Within a tier, boxes with 10GbE built in, or a slot to add it, come first, because a NAS moves files no faster than its network port. Without 10GbE, two 5GbE or two 2.5GbE ports beat one, and no pick here has only 1GbE. A switch becomes a pick when its maker publishes its ports and switching capacity and a tested review of it, by StorageReview, ServeTheHome or TechRadar, is saved in our library. Fanless switches come first in every switch tier, because a switch near a desk runs all day. Every spec on a card comes from the maker’s own page or user guide; what a reviewer measured or found is credited to the review by name.
Popularity and commission play no part: a box is here because of its specs and a test, not because it sells well. We check the picks again when new reviews come out.
Reading the cards
A NAS moves files no faster than its network port. In TechRadar’s DH2300 test, two drives that reached 296MB/s over a 2.5GbE adapter managed 118MB/s over the built-in 1GbE port. A faster port only helps when the computer on the other end and the switch between them run at that speed too. M.2 slots hold SSDs for a cache or a fast pool in front of the hard drives; which of those jobs pays off, and what an SSD needs to survive it, is in SSDs in a NAS.
These boxes ship without drives. For the drives that go in them, see the NAS tier on Best HDDs: CMR drives rated for 24/7 use in multi-bay boxes. This page does not show prices, because a page built once cannot keep a price current.
Also considered
Products the reviews we read tested that did not make the cut, and the reason each one missed.
NAS boxes · 2 bays
- TerraMaster F2-425. TechRadar's pick for beginners for its tool-free setup, but it names the single 2.5GbE port as the limit on network upgrades, where both picks above take a 10GbE card. TechRadar, best NAS devices roundup
- UGREEN NASync DH2300. TechRadar calls it a perfect starter NAS, but it has a single gigabit Ethernet port and an ARM chip, and this page does not pick boxes with only a 1GbE port. TechRadar, UGREEN NASync DH2300 review
NAS boxes · 4 bays
- TerraMaster F4-424 Pro. TechRadar found dual 2.5GbE ports and an eight-core Intel chip, but no 10GbE ports and no PCIe slot for an upgrade path, where both picks above have 10GbE built in. TechRadar, TerraMaster F4-424 Pro review
Switches · 2.5GbE with 10GbE
- QNAP QSW-2104-2T-A. ServeTheHome names it its choice among fanless switches with four 2.5GbE and two 10GbE ports, and says it appears identical inside to the TEG-S762 above, so the pick already covers that hardware. ServeTheHome, fanless 2.5GbE switch buyer’s guide
Questions before you buy
How many bays do I need?
Count what you will store and how much of it you want to survive a failed drive. Two bays suit a first NAS for backups and a family folder, four bays add room for parity, and six or eight bays suit video work and large libraries. Pools and filesystems on a NAS.
Is a NAS a backup?
Not by itself. Parity lets a pool survive a failed drive, but a deleted folder, ransomware, a fire or a theft hits the NAS and everything in it together. Keep a second copy on another device or off site. Apps and backing up the NAS.
Which drives go in a NAS?
Hard drives sold for NAS use, since they spin all day in a shared case. Best HDDs has a NAS tier, and the M.2 slots on most boxes here take SSDs for cache. Best NAS hard drives.
Do I need 2.5GbE or 10GbE, and a new switch?
A NAS port only runs as fast as the switch and the computer at the other end. 2.5GbE runs on the cable you likely have and is more than twice the speed of 1GbE, while a 10GbE NAS needs a 10GbE switch and a 10GbE port in your computer to show its speed. Tuning the NAS network.
Can I run my own operating system on a NAS?
On some boxes. A NAS that can boot another system can run one such as OpenMediaVault or Unraid in place of the maker’s, which gives more control and gives up the maker’s apps and support. Check that your model is known to work with it. NAS operating systems compared.
Does the CPU matter for media transcoding?
If you stream to TVs or phones that need video converted on the fly, check that the box does hardware transcoding before you buy. A box that only plays files as they are does not need it.