Welcome to my Sony A9III (ILCE-9M3) memory card guide that will help you to find the best cards for your shooting needs and budget for this 120 FPS global shutter speed demon.
In-Camera Write Speed Comparison
Because the Sony A9III has only just launched I’ve not yet had the opportunity to perform my extensive in-camera tests.
Therefore the following results are based on my Sony A1 In-Camera Tests. As soon as I have the A9III in my hands these results will be updated to reflect the actual in-camera speeds of the A9III.
Best CFexpress Type-A Memory Cards
| Memory Card | * In-Camera Write Speed (A1) | * Max Shots/Burst | Price Check |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Lexar Professional CFexpress Type-A Gold 160GB | 655 MB/s | 90 | B&H Photo | Amazon |
| 2. Delkin Devices BLACK CFexpress Type-A 160GB | 617 MB/s | 89 | B&H Photo | Amazon | Memory Wolf UK |
| 3. Delkin Devices POWER CFexpress Type-A 160GB | 617 MB/s | 89 | B&H Photo | Amazon | Memory Wolf UK |
| 4. Sony CEA-G CFexpress Type-A 160GB | 600 MB/s | 87 | B&H Photo | Amazon |
| 5. ProGrade Digital CFexpress Type-A Cobalt 160GB | 600 MB/s | 87 | B&H Photo | Amazon |
| 6. Exascend Essential CFexpress Type-A 240GB | 463 MB/s | 89 | B&H Photo | Amazon |
| 7. Pergear Professional CFexpress Type A 260GB | 450 MB/s | 87 | Pergear | Amazon |
| 8. Angelbird AV Pro CFexpress 2.0 Type A 1TB | Not yet tested | B&H Photo | Amazon | |
| 9. Sony CEA-M Series CFexpress Type A | Not yet tested | B&H Photo | Amazon |
Best UHS-II Memory Cards
| Memory Card | * In-Camera Write Speed (A1) | Price Check |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Kingston Canvas React Plus | 260 MB/s | B&H Photo | Amazon |
| 2. Sony SF-G Tough | 260 MB/s | B&H Photo | Amazon |
| 3. ProGrade V90 | 257 MB/s | B&H Photo | Amazon |
| 4. SanDisk Extreme Pro | 247 MB/s | B&H Photo | Amazon |
| 5. Delkin Devices POWER | 246 MB/s | B&H Photo | Amazon |
| 6. Angelbird AV Pro Mk 2 V90 | 246 MB/s | B&H Photo | Amazon |
| 7. Sony SF-M Tough | 150 MB/s | B&H Photo | Amazon |
| 8. Sony SF-M | 150 MB/s | B&H Photo | Amazon |
| 9. Lexar Professional 2000X | 141 MB/s | B&H Photo | Amazon |
| 10. Transcend SD 700S | 140 MB/s | B&H Photo | Amazon |
Which Memory Cards are Compatible?
The Sony A9III has two memory card slots and both are compatible with CFexpress 2.0 Type A cards and also UHS-I/II cards.
Here’s a quick speed comparison between the different supported card formats.
- UHS-I: theoretical maximum transfer speeds of up to 104MB/s
- UHS-II: theoretical maximum transfer speeds of up to 312MB/s
- CFexpress 2.0 Type-A: theoretical maximum transfer speeds of up to 1,000MB/s
Please note that CFexpress Type-B cards are not supported by the Alpha 9 Mark III, these are physically much larger than the Type-A cards.
CFexpress 4.0 Compatibility
Unfortunately the Sony A9III does not support the new CFexpress 4.0 standards that should double the theoretical maximum throughput from 1 GB/s (CFexpress 2.0) to 2 GB/s.
However, CFexpress 4.0 cards should still be backwards compatible with the A9III, you just won’t be able to take advantage of them in-camera.
Still, at the time of writing this article there are no CFexpress 4.0 Type-A cards on the market.
Number of Images That Can Be Recorded on a Memory Card
The table below shows the approximate number of images that can be recorded on a memory card formatted in-camera when using a Sony memory card with the aspect ratio set to 3:2 and JPEG/HEIF size set to L:24M.
The values may vary depending on the shooting conditions and the type of memory card used.
Movie Record Times
The table below shows the approximate total recording times using a Sony memory card formatted in the Sony A9III. The recording times are with Proxy Recording set to [Off].
The maximum continuous recording time for a single movie shooting session is approximately 13 hours (a product specification limit).
Note: The recordable time of movies varies because the camera is equipped with VBR (Variable Bit-Rate), which automatically adjusts image quality depending on the shooting scene. When you record a fast-moving subject, the image is clearer but the recordable time is shorter because more memory is required for recording. The recordable time also varies depending on the shooting conditions, the subject or the image quality/size settings.
Movie Recording: Compatible Memory Cards
Compatible memory cards for movie recording with the A9III can be found in the below tables.
Movie Recording When Proxy Recording is set to Off
Movie Recording When Proxy Recording is set to On
S&Q Motion Shooting When Proxy Recording is set to Off
S&Q Motion Shooting When Proxy Recording is set to On
Time-lapse Shooting When Proxy Recording is set to Off
Time-lapse Shooting When Proxy Recording is set to On
Sony A9III Forum & Facebook Group
If you are looking for further help and advice on the A9III or would simply like to share your photos and videos, then please head over to our friendly full-frame Forum. If you prefer Facebook then I also run the new Sony A9III Shooters Group.
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