How to Check USB Speed on Windows [100% Working Solution]

Updated by

Linda 

Written by

Cici 

Updated on April 22, 2024

As an essential storage gadget, one of the primary functions of a USB flash drive is to facilitate data transfer between devices. If you encounter slow write and read speeds with your USB, you might feel the need to report these performance issues to the manufacturer. If you're searching for a professional USB speed testing tool, you've landed in the right spot!

This article will present two efficient and quick methods to test USB flash drives. Let's explore how these two approaches function in determining USB speed.

View the Necessary Tools to Run USB Speed Test on Windows:

How to Check USB Speed with a Third-Party Tool

tools Partition Master Free is a versatile software available in the market for addressing issues related to disks and partitions. You can adjust various parameters within this software to test the speed of your USB.

When it comes to speed testing, it features:

Here are the translations in English:
• Easy to use, even for beginners.
• Available to export the results after finishing the speed test.
• Supports speed testing for any storage device, such as HDD, SSD, external hard drive, and SD card.
• Provides accurate USB read speed data and sequential and random read/write speeds, disk I/O test, and latency.

Follow these steps to check USB speed:

Step 1. Launch AOMEI Partition Assistant. Click the download button to activate the "DiskMark" feature under the "Tools" section.

Click the “Download” button of DiskMark.

Step 2. Click the drop-down box to select the target drive, test data, and block size.

Step 3. Once everything is set up, click "Start" to begin the disk testing. You'll then see the Sequential or Random read/write speed, I/O, and Delay data.

Wait a moment, and you'll see detailed data about USB speed. If your USB speed is slowing down, the all-in-one disk management tool Partition Master has the following features to help you identify and resolve slow USB speed issues. It can:

Translate the following text into English:
• Check USB health
• Check the hard drive temperature
• Run disk surface test to detect USB bad sectors
• The best USB format tool to format USB to a compatible file system format

Each of these functions can help you better manage your USB to increase read and write speeds. If you encounter any issues related to disk partitioning, you can find a solution using tools like Partition Master.

How to Check USB Speed Using Task Manager

If you don't want to download third-party software, Windows provides built-in tools to help you check the speed of your hard drive. Task Manager can help you test the speed of your target hard disk. However, it can only provide real-time speed of the hard disk and doesn't reach the disk's maximum performance capabilities.

Here are the step-by-step instructions to check the speed of a 64GB USB drive using Task Manager in English: 1. **Plug in the USB Drive**: Connect your 64GB USB flash drive to your computer's USB port. 2. **Open Task Manager**: - On Windows, right-click on the taskbar at the bottom of your screen and select "Task Manager" from the context menu. Alternatively, you can press the `Ctrl + Shift + Esc` keys simultaneously. - On Mac, press `Command + Space` to open Spotlight Search, type "Activity Monitor," and then click on it. 3. **Access Performance Tab**: In Task Manager (Windows) or Activity Monitor (Mac), click on the "Performance" tab. 4. **View Disk Information**: - On Windows, under the "Disk" section, you should see your USB drive listed. It might be labeled as "USB Drive (E:)" or something similar, depending on the drive letter assigned to it. - On Mac, click on the "Storage" tab, then look for your USB drive under "Devices." 5. **Monitor Read/Write Speed**: - On Windows, observe the "Disk Activity" graph to see the read and write operations. You can also view the transfer rate in MB/s under the "Details" tab by selecting your USB drive from the list. - On Mac, look at the "Read" and "Write" rates under the "Activity" column for your USB drive. 6. **Run a Transfer Test**: To get a more accurate measurement of the speed, you can copy a large file or a folder to and from the USB drive and monitor the transfer speed during the process. Please note that Task Manager and Activity Monitor provide real-time performance data, but they may not offer the most precise benchmarking results. For more comprehensive testing, consider using dedicated software like CrystalDiskMark or HD Tune.

Step 1. Search for "Task Manager" in Windows and open it.

Step 2. From the menu at the top of the newly opened window, choose "Performance."

Step 3. In the left column, select the drive to display read/write speeds.

Then, you can view the read and write speed of the USB. Windows also offers CMD, which refers to the command prompt, that can perform several operations using different command parameters to check the speed. However, it can only check the speed of an internal hard drive, such as checking the SSD speed in cmd.

AOMEI Partition Assistant is the best choice for speed testing. If you need more detailed disk I/O testing on Windows or need to export data, go with AOMEI Partition Assistant. Additionally, if you're experiencing slow USB speeds, click on the link below for solutions to boost your USB transfer speed on Windows 10/8/7.

< strong > Further Reading: < /strong >< a href="/computer-instruction/fix-slow-usb-transfer-speed.html" > How to Fix Slow USB Transfer Speed and Speed Up USB < /a >

Bonus Tip: How to Check USB 3.0 Port and USB Port Speed Here's how you can verify the speed of your USB 3.0 port and other USB ports on your computer: 1. **Windows:** a. **Using Device Manager:** - Press `Win + X` and choose "Device Manager" from the menu. - Expand the "Universal Serial Bus controllers" category. - Look for any entries with "USB 3.0" in their names, such as "USB 3.0 Root Hub." - Right-click on each entry and select "Properties." - Go to the "Advanced" tab, and under "Property," click on "Device Descriptor." - In the "Value" field, check if it says "USB 3.1 Gen 1" (which is equivalent to USB 3.0) or a higher version. b. **Using Command Prompt:** - Open "Command Prompt" as an administrator. - Type `powercfg /devicequery wake_armed` and press Enter. - Look for "USB Composite Device" or devices with "USB 3.0" in the list. The speed won't be directly mentioned, but seeing USB 3.0 devices indicates they support high-speed connections. 2. **MacOS:** a. **Using System Information:** - Click on the Apple menu and select "About This Mac." - Click on "System Report." - In the left sidebar, navigate to "Hardware" > "USB." - Check the "Speed" column for each USB device listed. It should show "SuperSpeed USB 5Gbps" for USB 3.0 or higher. 3. **Linux:** a. **Using Terminal:** - Open a terminal window. - Type `lsusb -t` and press Enter. - Look for entries mentioning "USB 3.0" or "SS" (SuperSpeed) in the output. The speed might not be explicitly mentioned, but USB 3.0 devices will usually have "10/100/1000" Mbps speeds, which are faster than USB 2.0. Keep in mind that actual transfer speeds may vary depending on the device connected, cable quality, and other factors.

USB 3.0 introduces the new SuperSpeed operating speed. It supports 5.0 Gbps. To test the port speed of USB 3.0, you need a USB 3.0 controller that works with all existing USB devices.

Before we check the USB port speed, we can first verify whether it is USB 3.0 or USB 2.0 by checking the USB settings in Windows:

1. Right-click the Windows button and open "Settings." 2. Choose "Bluetooth & Devices" and scroll down to select the USB flash drive. 3. You'll then see if it's being used as USB 3.0 or 2.0. If you use a USB 3.0 device in a USB 2.0 port, its performance will be limited.

Next, follow these steps to test your USB 3.0 port speeds on Windows:

Step 1. Make sure you have the USB 3.0 hardware.

Step 2. Open Device Manager to view the Universal Serial Bus controller.

Step 3. View the bus speed with USBView.

Step 4. View the bus speed programmatically.

If you find this passage useful for testing USB speed, feel free to click the button to assist others in need.

Conclusion

Knowing the speed of the USB helps to fully test the health of the USB so you can find targeted solutions to maintain normal data transfer speed. This article presents two methods to test USB speed. Use CMD for a rough estimate if that suffices. For more detailed read and write speed measurements and a health check of your USB, Partition Master is a highly recommended tool.

Aside from providing an accurate USB speed test, the tool Partition Master offers various methods to optimize USB performance. It also has the capability to check disks and fix issues. Don't hesitate to download and give it a try!

Frequently Asked Questions About How to Check USB Speed

You can opt for any of the above two methods of testing USB speed based on your requirements. There are a few additional questions regarding USB speed in this section. Keep reading if you're interested! And I hope these answers will be beneficial to you.

**1. What is the speed of my USB?**

The two most common types of USB available today are USB 2.0 and USB 3.0. Here's a summary of their speeds: - USB 2.0/Hi-Speed: 480 Megabits per second (Mbps) - USB 3.0/SuperSpeed: 5 Gigabits per second (Gbps) To determine the speed of your USB, you can utilize a professional USB benchmarking tool like Partition Master.

USB 3.0 transfer speeds are nearly ten times faster than USB 2.0. USB 3.0 offers transfer rates of 4.8 to 5 Gbps. However, the actual transfer rate also depends on all the devices involved.

3. How can I tell if my USB is 3.0 speed?

You can check your USB type in Device Manager:

Step 1. In the Control Panel, click Hardware and Sound, and then click "Device Manager."

< strong >Step 2. < /strong >Find "Universal Serial Bus Controllers" and expand the section.

Then you can see that your computer is equipped with USB 3.0.

4. How to run a USB flash drive speed test on Mac?

Mac doesn't provide additional tools to test USB speed. You can do this by copying large files to the USB and observing the write and read speeds in the Activity Monitor. Alternatively, you can test the speed next week using the Blackmagic Disk Speed Test tool.