The Seagate Exos 36TB page is about the ST36000NM001M Mozaic-family 36TB support record and its deployment implications. It is not just a larger 32TB Exos page. The important details are the Mozaic platform context, SMR/ZAC host-managed behavior, capacity density and qualification burden.
A 36TB hard drive changes rack math quickly: 24 drives produce 864TB raw and 60 drives produce 2.16PB raw before protection overhead. That density is valuable only when the storage stack is built to use the drive correctly.
The Seagate Exos 36TB ST36000NM001M is a Mozaic-family SATA enterprise drive documented as SMR/ZAC host-managed. It belongs in qualified data-center storage software that understands zoned-write behavior. It should not be treated as a plug-in replacement for a conventional CMR 32TB Exos or NAS drive.
Manufacturer-published values for the exact product family. Retail listings can collapse these details, so match the part number before ordering.
| Spec | Value |
|---|---|
| Model number | ST36000NM001M |
| Capacity | 36TB decimal marketed capacity |
| Recording technology | SMR / ZAC host-managed zoned device on Seagate Mozaic |
| Platform | 36TB Mozaic-family Exos support record; Seagate also describes Exos M samples up to 36TB on Mozaic 3+ |
| Interface | SATA 6Gb/s, single port |
| Sector format | FastFormat 512e default with 4Kn switchability; 4096-byte physical sectors |
| Spindle speed | 7200 RPM |
| Cache / buffer | 1024MB |
| Maximum sustained transfer rate | 270MB/s maximum sustained transfer rate, outer diameter |
| Workload rating | <750TB/year in the 36TB product manual workload note |
| Reliability rating | 2.5M hours; 0.35% annualized failure rate class |
| Warranty | 5-year limited warranty |
| Power | 6.9W idle average; 9.5W maximum random-read operating in published table |
| Acoustics | Enterprise helium class; check the exact deployment manual for site acoustic limits. |
| Operating temperature | 10C to 60C operating |
| Compatibility note | Requires host-managed SMR/zoned-write support; do not treat a SATA connector as normal NAS compatibility. |
No exact in-stock live row is currently matched for ST36000NM001M. Relevant live alternatives are shown so the page does not collapse into an empty catalogue.
Live prices · updated every 4-5 hours · last checked 7 hr ago · exact model not currently matched in live stock
| Model | Capacity | Recording | RPM | Workload TB/yr | Warranty | $/TB | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 24TB ST24000NM002HREFURB | 24TB | CMR | 7,200 | 550 | 5 yr | $29.17 | $700 | Buy |
| 24TB ST24000NM000H | 24TB | CMR | 7,200 | 550 | 5 yr | $58.37 | $1401 | Buy |
Workload rating is recorded per part number from Seagate's datasheet for that exact model, not blanketed across the line — two drives of the same capacity can differ because they are different generations. A dash means the figure is not stated for that listing. Recording technology comes from the manufacturer's published CMR/SMR list; a model absent from that list is shown as UNVERIFIED rather than guessed. Rows priced above 3× this line's in-stock median are flagged and excluded from the winner callout and from every median we compute.
This table is computed from live DatacenterDisk rows when an exact in-stock match exists. It is intentionally blank for unavailable models rather than filled with stale prices.
| Live model | Drive price | $/TB | 100TB raw target | 500TB raw target | 1PB raw target |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No exact in-stock row is available right now. Use the availability table for nearby live alternatives, then re-check the exact model before ordering. | |||||
Raw decimal capacity is shown before filesystem overhead, parity, erasure coding, spare policy and reserved free space.
| Drive count | Raw capacity | Approx. drives for 1PB raw | Planning note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8 drives | 288TB | 28 drives reach at least 1PB | Small arrays still face the same host-managed SMR rules. |
| 12 drives | 432TB | 28 drives reach at least 1PB | Useful for dense nodes when write behavior is controlled. |
| 24 drives | 864TB | 28 drives reach at least 1PB | A single shelf can approach 1PB raw. |
| 60 drives | 2160TB | 28 drives reach at least 1PB | Rack density becomes the main economic argument. |
Seagate's public pages use related but not identical names across Exos, Exos M and X/Mozaic support records. The exact model matters. ST36000NM001M appears in the X/Mozaic support path and 36TB Mozaic data sheet, while the Exos M support page also exposes separate 36TB model suffixes.
For procurement, this means the part number is not decorative. Do not collapse ST36000NM001M, ST36000NM003K and 32TB Exos models into one generic family unless the data sheet, host requirements and support entry match.
The 36TB product manual describes SMR zones with sequential-write-required zones and a ZAC-style host-managed model. That is the operational fact that separates this page from ordinary 32TB CMR Exos guidance.
A compatible environment can use the density well: object stores, retention systems, replication targets and sequential ingest platforms can shape writes around the media. A conventional NAS or hardware RAID controller usually cannot be assumed to do that.
At 36TB, 28 drives are enough to exceed 1PB raw decimal capacity. A 32TB drive needs 32 drives to do the same. That four-drive delta can matter when shelves, controller ports, power and rack units dominate total cost.
The correct economic model is not just drive price. It is cost per protected terabyte after qualification, power, cooling, spares, rebuild windows and software support are included. If the storage layer is not SMR-aware, the attractive density is not actionable.
The Seagate Exos 36TB ST36000NM001M is a frontier-density enterprise drive for buyers who can verify host-managed SMR support end to end. It is compelling for dense bulk storage, but risky as a substitute for conventional CMR.
Use the exact model page for part-number procurement details, and use the 36TB-vs-32TB comparison when deciding whether the density gain is worth the operational constraints.
This page covers ST36000NM001M, the 36TB Mozaic-family support record used in Seagate's public 36TB documentation.
The ST36000NM001M documentation used here identifies SMR/ZAC host-managed behavior, so it should not be treated as a conventional CMR drive.
Twenty-eight 36TB drives provide 1008TB raw decimal capacity before protection and overhead.
No. Price per TB is the first screen, not the whole decision. Match recording method, interface, bay count, firmware support, warranty position and rebuild risk before accepting the cheapest row.
Specification claims on this page were checked against the pages below on 1 September 2026. Where a widely-repeated figure did not survive that check, we report what the source says now and say so in the text rather than repeating the familiar number.