With that being said, if you have given up hope of getting RAM and doing a DIY build in 2026, there are still pre-built gaming PCs on sale that get you a lot of PC for your money. Perhaps more money than you might have paid last year, but in reality it's a simple math problem. RAM prices have risen by 400, 500, or even 600% in some cases in recent months, while PC builds as a whole have increased, but not by nearly as much. When you factor in the increased cost of SSDs and GPUs, pre-builts in 2026 tend to represent much better value than they generally would have a year ago.
If you are set on building a PC right now and buying RAM to put inside it, what’s the state of play? The going rate for 16GB of DDR5 RAM is $209, the lowest amount of money you can expect to pay for a 16GB kit. For 32GB, the going rate is $379. Per GB, 32GB remains better value, at around $12 rather than $13. 64GB of DDR5 from Corsair is $699, ironically the best price per GB, but ludicrously expensive.
We’ve been touting Newegg RAM bundles at Tom’s Hardware for months, and they remain a stalwart way to save at least something on RAM if you’re building a PC. Generally, you can expect to find a bundle that will get you the RAM for around $200 if you buy it alongside a motherboard and a CPU. Remember, the value in a RAM bundle is pairing RAM with other parts, the prices of which are not inflated in the current market. With CPU, motherboard, and cooling prices holding steady or falling, buying components together gives you a clear picture of the actual value proposition. The RAM in this Newegg bundle , for instance, costs $236, thanks to the price of the 9800X3D and the X870E.
Sadly, if you’re in the market for RAM, even at these exorbitant prices, we’re still firmly in the bite-the-bullet phase. Manufacturers like SK hynix are working to add capacity to their roster, and the advent of China’s CXMT could provide some relief. But industry figures warn that 2027 could actually be even worse for memory shortages than 2026. By extension, that presumably means pricing will also get worse. In truth, the best solution right now is probably not to buy RAM, but if you’re in desperate need, you’re going to have to pay high prices in some way, shape, or form. Waiting it out is always an option if you can do so, but Adata’s chairman recently said you might be waiting a decade or more . The latter prognostication sounds a little extreme, but one year into the RAMapocalypse, more than a few indications point to things getting worse rather than better .
Stephen is Tom's Hardware's News Editor with almost a decade of industry experience covering technology, having worked at TechRadar, iMore, and even Apple over the years. He has covered the world of consumer tech from nearly every angle, including supply chain rumors, patents, and litigation, and more. When he's not at work, he loves reading about history and playing video games. ","collapsible":{"enabled":true,"maxHeight":250,"readMoreText":"Read more","readLessText":"Read less"}}), "https://slice.vanilla.futurecdn.net/13-4-25/js/authorBio.js"); } else { console.error('%c FTE ','background: #9306F9; color: #ffffff','no lazy slice hydration function available'); } Stephen Warwick Social Links Navigation News Editor Stephen is Tom's Hardware's News Editor with almost a decade of industry experience covering technology, having worked at TechRadar, iMore, and even Apple over the years. He has covered the world of consumer tech from nearly every angle, including supply chain rumors, patents, and litigation, and more. When he's not at work, he loves reading about history and playing video games.
bigdragon The RAM situation deterred me from upgrading this year. I'll wait to upgrade until the prices come down. I usually upgrade on a schedule, but there's very little impetus to upgrade given how the whole pace of technological advancement has stopped in favor of catering to the AI industry. Let's also not forget how ridiculous storage prices have become. I'm running out of space on my NAS, but the 8TB drives I purchased a couple years ago have tripled in price while larger capacities are even worse in terms of pricing. Could I afford to expand the storage? yeah. Do I want to at these prices? No. Reply
wussupi83 To Tom's credit, y'all were on the money last summer (maybe spring) writing about the looming RAM-pocalypse. In fact, you were maybe too early. I was watching prices and they didn't do anything for a bit after you reported so I took a wait and see approach. I still remember saying "no way I'm paying $140 for 32GB DDR5" after the first wave of increases. Reply
usertests wussupi83 said: To Tom's credit, y'all were on the money last summer (maybe spring) writing about the looming RAM-pocalypse. In fact, you were maybe too early. I was watching prices and they didn't do anything for a bit after you reported so I took a wait and see approach. I still remember saying "no way I'm paying $140 for 32GB DDR5" after the first wave of increases. I don't think they were writing about a RAM-pocalypse as early as spring 2025. Articles were mostly focused on tariffs or the end of DDR4 production: May 27: Top Chinese memory maker expected to abandon DDR4 manufacturing at the behest of BeijingMay 30: DRAM prices have jumped by 20% for the second month in a row — surging demand is likely due to stockpilingJune 26: Insane DDR4 price spikes mean last-gen RAM loses its value luster versus DDR5 — prices have nearly tripled in just two monthsJuly 8: DRAM prices are about to skyrocket — DDR4 and GDDR6 among formats that could increase in price by up to 45% The tariff warnings were helpful. I picked up some systems and components ahead of the expected deadline (which kept getting moved), and saved a lot of money. Then there were some early AI-related signs: August 11: SK hynix projects HBM market to be worth tens of billions of dollars by 2030 — says AI memory industry will expand 30% annually over five yearsSeptember 17: NAND and DRAM prices surge by up to 20% — contract price increases driven by AI demands and tight supply Sam Altman made his moves on October 1, and the writing was on the wall: October 1: OpenAI's Stargate project to consume up to 40% of global DRAM output — inks deal with Samsung and SK hynix to the tune of up to 900,000 wafers per monthOctober 2: Phison CEO claims NAND shortage could last a staggering 10 years — says memory 'supercycle' imminent and 'severe' 2026 shortages are at handOctober 3: AI data centers are swallowing the world's memory and storage supply, setting the stage for a pricing apocalypse that could last a decadeOctober 15: Adata chairman says AI datacenters are gobbling up hard drives, SSDs, and DRAM alike — insatiable upstream demand could soon lead to consumer shortagesOctober 28: Server DRAM prices surge up to 50% as AI-induced memory shortage hits hyperscaler supply — U.S. and Chinese customers only getting 70% order fulfillmentOctober 31: Mini PC maker Minisforum to hike prices on all models with SSDs and DRAM, cites 'significant increase in our overall costs' — barebones models not affected, suggesting change caused by memory chip shortages November is when it really started hitting consumers, although I think there were still some decent Black Friday deals. At least by today's standards. Reply
DS426 I paid the "DDR5 early adopter fee" for Zen 4 desktop (mind you, I did wait for B650). Funny as the pain and soreness has completely gone away! Nice seeing a memory year-in-review article like this. Reply
Eximo Going to hold out for DDR6, or if they decide to come up with something else, that. I haven't 'expanded' memory since like 2010, just buy the amount I think I will need. 16GB, then 32GB. I wouldn't be adverse to something like a CPU/SoC with HBM. Maybe with DIMMs as yet another memory layer. Reply
Key considerations
- Investor positioning can change fast
- Volatility remains possible near catalysts
- Macro rates and liquidity can dominate flows
Reference reading
- https://www.tomshardware.com/pc-components/ram/SPONSORED_LINK_URL
- https://www.tomshardware.com/pc-components/ram/one-year-into-the-ai-induced-ram-apocalypse-how-much-does-memory-actually-cost-and-is-there-hope-for-a-more-affordable-future#main
- https://www.tomshardware.com/subscription
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Informational only. No financial advice. Do your own research.