Nikon Coolpix SD and CF Memory Card Compatibility

Table of Contents

165 of the 188 Nikon Coolpix cameras use SD memory cards.

20 use Compact Flash (CF) cards with a maximum capacity of 2GB.

The last 3 have internal memory.

Older Nikon Coolpix cameras have hardware limitations that prevent them from working with newer, larger capacity memory cards. It’s like they can make a phone call, as long as it doesn’t require an area code. As a result, a camera might be limited to using up to 2GB or 32GB maximum capacity.

SD Card Standards

There are four specifications for SD (Secure Digital) memory cards. Each standard has different transfer speed requirements, and file system.

Type	Max Capacity	File System
SD – Secure Digital	2GB	FAT12/FAT16
SDHC – High Capacity	32GB	FAT32
SDXC – eXtended Capacity	2TB	exFAT
SDUC – Ultra Capacity	128TB	exFAT

The first SDUC card is planned to be released in 2025 by SanDisk. It will be the 4TB SanDisk Extreme PRO SDUC UHS-I memory card. (Western Digital Official Press Release)

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SD Compatible Cameras (39 Models)

The maximum capacity SD card these cameras can use is 2GB. Using a card with a larger capacity will result in errors. The camera will not be able to capture photos.

2200	7900	L10	S3
3200	L1	L11	S4
3700	L2	L12	S5
4100	L3	P1	S6
4200	L4	P2	S7
4600	L5	P3	S7c
4800	L6	P4	S8
5200	L7	SQ	S9
5600	L8	S1	S10
5900	L9	S2

Some Nikon Coolpix digital compact cameras are also compatible with MultiMediaCards (Wikipedia). This memory card standard was extended to Secure Digital (SD) cards, which is the cards can be used in the same slot.

If you have a MultiMediaCard (MMC), you can use it. It should work in most SD card readers, and will work in the “7-in-1” card readers. I would not recommend buying one as they are more expensive than SD cards.

Recommended SD Cards

The only reasonably priced 2GB SD card is from Transcend.

Avoid buying used cards.

See current price and information:

Amazon Adorama

SDHC Compatible Cameras (33 Models)

Recommended SDHC Cards

I recommend any 32GB SD card with UHS-I.

A card with UHS-I will be able to write data at 10MB/s. That’s more than fast enough for any model that can record video.

Trying to use a larger capacity card will result in errors.

L14	P50	S51c
L15	P60	S52
L16	P80	S52c
L18	P90	S60
L19	P100	S70
L20	P5000	S230
L21	P5100	S500
L22	P6000	S510
L23	S50	S700
L24	S50c	S710
L100	S51	S1000pj

Transcend 32GB SDHC

• UHS Speed Class 1 (U1) supports Full HD video and burst shots.
• Built to survive tough conditions and heavy usage, whether you’re at home, outside, or on the go.
• Highly durable with comprehensive 7-proof protection.

See current price and information:

Amazon eBay

PNY Elite 32GB

• Sequential read speed of up to 100MB/s
• Class 10, U1 rating delivers speed and performance for full HD photography and HD videography.
• V10 video speed rating to capture uninterrupted HD video at 1920x1080 format
• Compatible with point & shoot cameras, DSLR cameras, standard & advanced HD-enabled video cameras, and more
• Reliable & Durable: Magnet Proof, Shock Proof, Temperature Proof, Waterproof

See current price and information:

Amazon eBay

SanDisk Ultra 32GB

• Quick transfer read speeds up to 90MB/s.
• Write speeds are not capable of recording 4k video.
• Class 10 rating for Full HD video (1080p).
• Waterproof, temperature proof, X-ray Proof, magnet-Proof, and shockproof.

See current price and information:

Amazon eBay

SDXC Compatible Cameras (93 Models)

SDXC are the most commonly used cards. 2TB is the maximum capacity memory cards these cameras can use.

Any card that has UHS-I will be fast enough. That includes 32GB SDHC cards.

A 64GB memory card will hold thousands of pictures. The only reason to get a card larger than 128GB is if lots of video will be recorded.

Coolpix A	L25	P300	S30	S3700	S8000
A10	L26	P310	S31	S4100	S8200
A100	L27	P330	S32	S4150	S9100
A300	L28	P240	S33	S4200	S9200
A900	L29	P500	S100	S4300	S9300
A1000	L30	P510	S800c	S5100	S9600
L330	L31	P520	S1100pj	S5300	S9700
AW100	L32	P530	S1200pj	S6100	S9900
AW100s	L110	P600	S2500	S6150
AW120	L120	P610	S2600	S6200
AW130	L310	P900	S2700	S6300
W100	L610	P950	S2900	S6400
W150	L620	P1000	S3000	S6500
W300	L810	P7000	S3100	S6600
B500	L820	P7100	S3200	S6800
B600	L830	P7700	S3300	S6900
B700	L840	P7800	S3600	S7000

Lexar Professional 128GB

• UHS-I, U3, and V30 Speed Rating. Can sustain 30MB/s write speeds.
• Excellent choice for photos.
• Capable of recording 4k Video.
• Larger capacities are available.

See current price and information:

Amazon eBay WEX

SanDisk Ultra 64GB

• 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.

See current price and information:

Amazon eBay

PNY Elite-X 128GB SD Card

• 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.

See current price and information:

Amazon eBay

SanDisk Extreme PRO 128GB

• 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.

See current price and information:

Amazon eBay WEX

CompactFlash Compatible Cameras (20 Models)

CompactFlash cards were used in some of Nikon’s first digital point and shoot cameras. The maximum capacity compatible cards will be 2GB. This is due file system limitations.

600	995
700	2000
775	2100
800	2500
880	4300
885	5000
900	5400
900S	8400
950	8700
990	8800

Recommended CF Cards

Just like with SD cards, Transcend is the only option. Other similarly priced cards are trying to fool people into thinking they are SanDisk cards.

It can also be cheaper to use a SD to CF card adapter.

2GB Transcend	Amazon	Adorama
SD to CF Adapter	Amazon	eBay

Internal Memory (3 Models)

These 3 cameras only have internal storage. No memory card can be used to expand the storage.

This means needing to track down a proprietary USB cable.

Model	Released	Interface	Memory
100	1997	PCMCIA
300	1997	Serial & SCSI
S01	2012	USB - UC-E16	8GB

There are other models that have internal storage and can also use memory cards.

Memory Card Readers

A memory card reader is the fastest way to read data from a card. Images and video can also be transferred to a phone with a USB-C card reader.

Plugging a camera into a computer via USB will result in slow USB 2.0 transfer speeds. If you don’t have the USB cable, Nikon has a support page. It will help you find which of the 9 proprietary cables is needed.

• UC-E21
• UC-E16
• UC-E12
• UC-E10
• UC-E6
• UC-E5
• UC-E3
• UC-E2
• UC-E1

SD Card Speed Ratings

MB/s is often used to represent the peak transfer rate of a memory card. Recording video requires knowing what the sustained write speed of a memory card is.

Marketing loves finding new ways to explain transfer rate requirements for video. Everything

• SD Association SD, SDHC, SDXC and SDUC Card Capacity Choices
• SD Association Speed Class Standards for Video Recording

The speed ratings of an SD card all revolve around the maximum continuous read and write speed a memory card is able to maintain. This is important to know to make sure the card can handle video recording.

If the card can not keep up with the video output of a camera, the recording will stop. This isn’t much of an issue as the cards currently being sold will be more than fast enough.

Using a card reader can allow for much faster transfers to a computer or phone. This can be a big time saver if the card is full of photos and videos.

Speed Class Rating

The sustained write speed of an SD memory card is the criteria for the Class rating. Cards that have a write speed of 10MB/s will be rated Class 10.

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

Class 10 is the maximum rating. Newer cards can has sustained write speeds over 90MB/s.

There will be a number inside of a ‘C’ on the SD card label that signifies the card’s Class rating.

Ultra High Speed (UHS) Bus

The Ultra High Speed bus (UHS) is found in SDUC, SDXC, and SDHC cards. UHS makes it possible for increased file transfer rates.

Three separate specifications have been made. The three are UHS-I, UHS-II, and UHS-III.

Look at the front of the SD card to figure out the UHS rating of a SD card. If the memory card has UHS, a Roman numeral I, II, or III will be on the label.

• 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

Memory Card Image Capacity

Listed below is a quick estimation of the volume of high-quality JPEGs photos you should expect to save on a card:

• 2GB - 580 images
• 4GB - 1,160 images
• 8GB - 2,320 images
• 16GB - 4,640 images
• 32GB - 9,280 images
• 64GB - 18,560 images
• 128GB - 37,120 images