Best Memory Cards for Nikon D3500

The Nikon D3500 is almost identical to the D3300, which is why the cards we recommend are the same for both DSLR cameras.

What Memory Cards can you use on a Nikon D3500?

The D3500 has 1 x SD memory card slot, and accepts SD, SDHC and SDXC cards. These are all the same size and fit the D3500, but the difference is in their maximum memory size . You want an SDHC or an SDXC card as these give you the most storage and are super affordable anyways.

You also need a fast card if you plan on recording Full HD videos or often shoot in the 5fps continuous shooting mode. Those files are big (24 megapixels) and you need a memory card that can quickly write them, otherwise you’ll end up waiting or even won’t be able to record videos.

What Size & Speed?

The Nikon D3500 fully supports UHS-I cards, which is great news as these are the fastest (max. speed is around 104MB/s) so you’ll never have to worry about speed anymore. Class 10 will also be okay though, but the UHS-I also provide you with faster reading speeds = less time waiting for your files to transfer on a computer/hard disk.

Since the D3500 has a 24 megapixel sensor, you need a relatively big memory card, especially if you often travel or shoot long events. We recommend going with 32GB or 64GB, and perhaps buying a few if you think you need more than 1.

What is better SDXC or SDHC?

You’ll see both SDHC and SDXC memory cards. In simple terms, the SDXC card is a newer generation of card.

It’s important to check that your camera can use either SDHC or SDXC memory cards. Many newer cameras can use both. As we mention above, the SDXC is the newer of the two, thus generally it will have faster writing (that means picture taking) and transfer (think downloading to your computer) speeds. These letters can be noticed on the card’s label if you look for them.

Cameras and devices that use SDXC generally accept SDHC cards as well. However, if a camera was only designed for SDHC then the newer SDXC card won’t work in it. Though even a camera like the Nikon D610 from 2013 can use SDXC cards. So speed class, as discussed above, is more often something to confirm so that you’re maximizing your camera’s features.

These are the 3 best SDHC/SDXC memory cards you can get for Nikon D3500:

• SanDisk Extreme Pro 170MB/s UHS-I U3
• Lexar Professional 95MB/s UHS-I U3
• Transcend R95/W60MB/s UHS-I U3

SanDisk Extreme Pro 170MB/s UHS-I U3

The SanDisk 64GB Extreme Pro U3 is our favorite card, seeing as it’s inexpensive and provides writing and reading speeds near 90MB/s. It’s absolutely more than enough for the D3500 and even more expensive cameras.

The speed makes it perfect for whatever you’re doing; fast bursts with large megapixel cameras, 4K video, let alone Full HD. It comes in 16GB, 32GB, 64GB, 128GB and 256GB sizes.

You can buy it at Amazon or see more reviews here.

Lexar Professional 95MB/s UHS-I U3

The Lexar Professional 32GB U3 95MB/s is cheaper than the model above, and reaches the same reading speed yet falls a bit short in the writing department. While the minimum for U3 cards is always 30MB/s, this Lexar series reaches around 60MB/s, whereas the Sandisk hits ~80MB/s.

Since the D3500 isn’t super fast in burst shooting and tops out at Full HD 60fps, the difference won’t be that noticeable, but if you always want to be on the safe side, the Sandisk above is better.

Lexar also gives you the code to download their Imaging Rescue software. It comes in 16GB, 32GB, 64GB and 128GB sizes.

You can buy it at Amazon or see more reviews here.

Transcend R95/W60MB/s UHS-I U3

The most affordable on our list, yet still UHS-I, is the Transcend 64GB UHS-I U3. In terms of reading speed it goes up to 95MB/s, while for writing the maximum is 60MB/s just like Lexar above.

Transcend, just like Lexar above, gives you the option of downloading their free image recovery program and they both work pretty good in most cases. It comes in 64GB, 128GB and 256GB sizes.

You can buy it at Amazon or see more reviews here.

Comparison of the 3 Memory Cards

What Brands are the Best?

Your photographs and videos are stored on a memory card, so you should definitely not try to save any money here by buying from unknown, cheap brands. While you save a few bucks, you probably won’t even get the advertised speeds, and are at a bigger risk of losing your shots.

We see too many beginners choosing the cheap route here, but until you transfer your shots to a computer/online, this is where they’re stored at. You want the memory card to be the most reliable piece of your equipment!

Stick to the following brands:

• Sandisk
• Lexar
• Transcend
• Kingston
• Sony
• Toshiba 

There may be a few other good brands out there, but the ones we mentioned are already more than enough and offer great prices.

What to Remember about Memory Cards

Here are a couple key things to remember.

ALWAYS buy more than one SD card

Your camera is important but the pictures saved on your card are usually more important.

This is true of professionals as well as for the hobbyist. First off, memory cards don’t last forever. Secondly, it’s a real pain when you’re in the middle of shooting to have to delete photos if you’re out of space. It’s much easier to just pop in another card.

Back on running out of room. We suggest you have two to four cards for your camera, that way you can setup a nice rotation. One card in the camera, a second with you as a backup, then a third or fourth at home where you’re loading the photos to your computer. Then rotate the cards.

I had a old base line iPad with only 16GB and I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had to try and find stuff to delete because I was out of space. Although at least with a Camera you can easily put in another memory card or upgrade to more memory for pretty cheap.

In addition, many cameras now offer two card slots. You can use these two slots in a lot of different ways. For example, one for stills and the other for videos. Another option is to use the second slot as a backup, so you have two sets of the pictures incase something goes wrong. Just make sure that you get the right kind of card for the slot. Some cameras have two slots but they are for two different types of cards.

Card size isn’t as important as buying more than one card

Cards are relatively inexpensive these days, though it’s always nice to have a card with a larger capacity.  However, don’t spend your money on buying a single memory card with a larger capacity. Instead buy two or more cards.

If the choice was between a 128GB memory card and two 64GB cards (or even three 32GB cards), you should always get the two 64GB or three 32GB cards. As mentioned above, cards don’t last forever, and it’s much nicer to have multiple cards to rotate through your camera and loading to your computer then trying to deal with a single card. If you have the need for the 128GB size or more go for it, just make sure you get a couple of them.

If you must, skip a meal rather than buy a cheap SD card

Sometimes it feels like expenses build up with photography equipment but a memory card is not a place to try and save a little money. Regardless of what you spent on your camera or your glass, if you buy a bad memory card it’s just going to slow down your ability to use your camera to its fullest. Or worse, you might loose your photos if a cheap card ends up dying on you. You’re peace of mind alone is worth the cost.

If you see a card for more than a few dollars less then the ones we recommend there’s a good chance it’s an inferior brand, or the specs are going to limit your camera’s capabilities in some way.

If you still have questions about what to buy feel free to reach out and ask for our advice.