MacBook – Compatible RAM and SSD drive for macbook pro 2012 MD101

RAM still is a lot faster than any SSD which you use in your Mac. RAM has a shorter access times and much higher transfer rates:

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The SATA interface by which the hard disk is connected limits the throughput to a theoretical maximum of 6Gbit/s (600MB/s) for SATA3.

You can determine how much the page outs are written to the disk by taking a look at the Activity Monitor. I try to keep the ratio at a maximum of 10/1 (page in/page out). The more page outs you have, the more like a RAM upgrade will benefit you.

I upgraded a similar era Macbook a while ago. In all likelihood you are unlikely to be able to buy an SSD that will not max out the BUS speed available to it on a machine that old.

That particular Macbook has a SATA I (1.5Gbps) interface for it's existing hard drive. SATA III (6Gbps) SSD drives have been the standard for many years now, although you may be able to get a bargain bucket SATA II device (3Gbps). Basically, I would get the cheapest SSD you can for the capacity you require that is at least SATA II (you don't need it for the speed, but a SATA I one will be based on older technology that may have a shorter lifespan than a newer drive). It is almost certain to be faster than your machine can handle, so there is no point getting a particularly recent or fast one.