SSDs can fail, but in a different way than traditional HDDs. While the latter often fail because of mechanical issues, SSDs may fail due to the methods used to write information. ... Each P/E cycle gradually degrades the memory of an SSD's cells until they eventually become worn down.

How common is SSD failure?

The SSDs had an annualized failure rate of only 0.58% - or roughly 1 in every 200 drives. The traditional hard disk drives, with their moving parts and fragile glass platters, had a failure rate of 10.56% - or just over 1 in 10 - which is an order of magnitude worse.

What happens when an SSD fails?

Whenever your SSD fails completely, you will see that your system will not boot up. This will happen only if you have to use the SSD to install your OS. However, if it is used just for raw data storage, the system can work fine but you won't be able to store anything on that drive.