Alternatives to HDDScan

A free Windows utility for testing hard drives and SSDs, reading SMART data and running surface tests. The listings below can replace it for an important use case. Each note says what changes if you switch.

  • HDDScan

    A free Windows utility for testing hard drives and SSDs, reading SMART data and running surface tests.

    FreeProprietaryWindows

Replacements

Listings that take over the same core job as HDDScan.

  • CrystalDiskInfo

    Reads the health data your drives already record and tells you plainly whether one is dying.

    FreeOpen sourceWindows

    CrystalDiskInfo is open source under MIT and gives a plain health verdict with tray alerts, but has no surface tests.

  • GSmartControl

    A graphical interface for smartctl that shows the health of hard drives and SSDs.

    FreeOpen sourceWindowsLinux

    GSmartControl is an open-source graphical SMART tool for Windows and Linux that runs self-tests but depends on smartmontools.

  • smartmontools

    Reads the SMART health data built into disks and runs self-tests, giving advance warning before a drive fails.

    FreeOpen sourceWindowsmacOSLinuxCommand line

    smartmontools is cross-platform open-source command-line software with scheduled smartd monitoring, instead of a Windows graphical interface.

  • SeaTools

    Seagate's free diagnostic tool for checking the health of hard drives and SSDs.

    FreeProprietaryWindows

    SeaTools is Seagate's free diagnostic tool for quick health checks, aimed mainly at Seagate drives.

  • SpinRite

    A bootable maintenance and data recovery utility for hard drives and other mass-storage devices, from GRC.

    PaidProprietaryWindows

    SpinRite is a paid bootable utility that combines drive maintenance with recovery attempts, running outside the installed system.

  • DriveDx

    A Mac utility that monitors SSD and HDD health through SMART data and warns before failure.

    PaidProprietarymacOS

    DriveDx monitors SMART health and runs self-tests on macOS instead of Windows, and is paid after the trial.

  • Scrutiny

    A self-hosted web dashboard for hard drive S.M.A.R.T. monitoring with historical trends and failure thresholds.

    FreeProprietaryLinuxWebSelf-hosted

    Scrutiny is a self-hosted web dashboard with historical SMART trends, suited to servers rather than a single Windows PC.

Also worth comparing

These listings name HDDScan as their own alternative, so the relationship runs both ways.

  • Crucial Storage Executive

    Crucial's utility for checking SSD health, updating drive firmware and tuning performance on Crucial SSDs.

    FreeProprietaryWindows

    HDDScan is a free Windows tool that shows SMART attributes and runs surface tests on drives of many brands, without Crucial firmware updates or performance tuning.

  • GNU ddrescue

    A command-line data recovery tool that copies raw blocks from failing disks while working around read errors.

    FreeOpen sourcemacOSLinuxCommand line

    HDDScan tests drives on Windows with surface scans and SMART reading, but does not image a failing drive the way GNU ddrescue does.

  • Hard Disk Sentinel

    Drive health, temperature and lifetime monitoring for HDDs and SSDs.

    FreemiumProprietaryWindowsLinux

    HDDScan is free Windows software that reads SMART attributes and temperature and adds surface tests, but it has no Linux version and no lifetime estimates.

  • HD Tune

    Benchmarks storage drives and scans them for errors and S.M.A.R.T. warnings.

    FreemiumProprietaryWindows

    HDDScan is free Windows software with SMART data and read, verify and erase surface tests, though it lacks a full-drive transfer-rate benchmark graph.

  • Kingston SSD Manager

    Kingston's utility for monitoring SSD health, updating firmware and securely erasing Kingston drives.

    FreeProprietaryWindows

    HDDScan is a free Windows tool that reads SMART data and runs surface tests on many drive brands, without official firmware updates or secure erase.

  • nwipe

    Erase block devices from a Linux terminal or text interface.

    FreeOpen sourceLinux

    HDDScan runs on Windows and includes an erase surface test mode, but it is closed-source freeware aimed mainly at drive testing rather than dedicated wiping.

  • Samsung Magician

    Samsung's management app for its consumer SSDs, covering firmware updates, health checks, benchmarks and secure erase.

    FreeProprietaryWindows

    HDDScan is free for Windows, reads SMART data and runs surface tests on many drives, but provides no Samsung firmware updates or benchmarks.

Similar software

Related functionality, not a direct replacement.