Best Canon 60D SD Memory Card

The Canon 60D can use SD, SDHC, and SDXC memory cards. Video and burst shooting need SD memory cards with high card write speeds.

The card you purchase has a considerable bearing on the performance of your camera.

Don’t care about the tech specs? This is my recommendation on the SD memory card for use in your Canon 60D:

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SanDisk Ultra 64GB SD Card
SanDisk Ultra 64GB SD Card
Check prices on: Amazon
  • UHS-I, U1, and Class 10 Speed Rating. Can sustain 10MB/s write speeds.
  • Excellent choice for photos.
  • Capable of recording Full HD (1920x1080) Video.
  • Inexpensive with more than good enough performance.
  • Larger capacities are available for a reasonable price.

In the time since the intro of Canon 60D, the cost of SD memory cards has come way down.

Since prices are low, it would not make sense to buy anything besides a high-quality SD card.

SanDisk Extreme Pro, Lexar Professional, and PNY Elite Performance cards are great. I have never experienced unusable data or a card failure with those SD memory cards.

Each and every trouble I have had has been with no-name unbranded SD cards. Seeking to save a small amount of money isn’t worth it if your 60D is likely to experience complications.

A good way to save money is to buy a lower capacity memory card from a quality company. By doing this, you’ll know your photographs are safe on the SD card.

SanDisk Ultra 64GB SD Card
SanDisk Ultra 64GB SD Card
Check prices on: Amazon
  • UHS-I, U1, and Class 10 Speed Rating. Can sustain 10MB/s write speeds.
  • Excellent choice for photos.
  • Capable of recording Full HD (1920x1080) Video.
  • Inexpensive with more than good enough performance.
  • Larger capacities are available for a reasonable price.

PNY Elite-X 128GB SD Card
PNY Elite-X 128GB SD Card
Check prices on: Amazon
  • UHS-I, U3, V30, and Class 10 Speed Rating. Can sustain 30MB/s write speeds.
  • Good for burst shooting photos and recording 4K video.
  • Larger capacity cards are available.
  • Reliable & Durable: Magnet Proof, Shock Proof, Temperature Proof, Waterproof.

SanDisk Extreme PRO 128GB SD Card
SanDisk Extreme PRO 128GB SD Card
Check prices on: Amazon
  • Comparatively expensive for faster read speeds.
  • UHS-I, U3, V30, and Class 10 Speed Rating. Can sustain 30MB/s write speeds.
  • Only makes sense for professional use or if you need the largest storage capacity available.
  • Temperature-proof, waterproof, shock-proof, and X-ray-proof.

The memory cards that will work in the Canon 60D are SD, SDHC, and SDXC. Make sure you have the current firmware installed on your camera for the best overall performance.

The newest SDUC (Secure Digital Ultra Capacity) cards, will not be compatible with the 60D.

Four different types of Secure Digital (SD) cards that you should pay attention to. You can identify them based on their storage capacity.

  • SD (Secure Digital) - 128MB to 2GB.
  • SDHC (Secure Digital High Capacity) - 4GB to 32GB.
  • SDXC (Secure Digital eXtended Capacity) - 64GB to 2TB.
  • SDUC (Secure Digital Ultra Capacity) - 4TB to 128TB.
SD Card Contacts
SD Card Contacts

Below is a quick approximation of how many max-quality JPEGs pictures you can expect to store on a SD memory card:

  • 16GB - 4,640 images
  • 32GB - 9,280 images
  • 64GB - 18,560 images
  • 128GB - 37,120 images

The speed rating of an SD card is determined by the sequential read and write transfer speeds of the card. The transfer speed of a SD memory card is very important for video in addition to continuous shooting.

Slows cards can decrease the number of continuous images the Canon 60D can take. This is because the camera’s buffer is not able to write to the SD card fast enough.

When recording video, a slow SD card can cause recording to end. The video file could also end up being corrupted. If you are going to shoot video, it is critical the memory card you use meets the required minimum continuous write speed for video.

Read speed is nice to have for file transfers to a computer or laptop. If you have cards that are full, a memory card with a fast transfer speed will reduce the time it takes the transfer to complete.

SD Card Speed Class
SD Card Speed Class

An SD memory card receives a Class rating according to its continuous write speed. Memory cards that have a minimum write speed of at least 10MB/s will be labeled Class 10.

  • Class 2 - 2MB/s
  • Class 4 - 4MB/s
  • Class 6 - 6MB/s
  • Class 8 - 8MB/s
  • Class 10 - 10MB/s or faster

Every brand-name SD memory card that you can find for sale will be Class 10. You can verify the class rating of a SD card by searching for a number inside of the C on the sticker.

Example of UHS Rating
Example of UHS Rating

The Ultra High Speed bus (UHS) comes in SDUC, SDXC, and SDHC memory cards. The UHS bus allows provides a way to increase data transfer rates.

There are three separate versions. The three are UHS-I, UHS-II, and UHS-III.

Look at the front of the SD card to figure out the rating of a SD memory card. A Roman numeral I, II, or III on the front of the SD memory card, that is going to be the rating of your SD memory card.

  • UHS-I - Maximum transfer rate of 104 MB/s
  • UHS-II - Maximum transfer rate of 312 MB/s
  • UHS-III - Maximum transfer rate of 624 MB/s

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