RAM price pressure: 64GB PCs drop 18% as buyers pick smaller memory

High-capacity memory is losing ground

Soaring RAM prices are beginning to reshape the way people buy computers. According to TechRadar, the latest CPU-Z hardware survey shows that systems equipped with 64GB of memory dropped by 18% over the past year, while 32GB machines slipped by 2.5%.

The figures suggest buyers are becoming reluctant to pay premium prices for large memory kits. Instead, many appear to be downsizing their choices as the cost of DRAM, the memory chips inside a PC, continues to climb.

Smaller capacities are on the rise

At the other end of the scale, more modest configurations are gaining popularity. The share of 16GB systems rose by 12.9% annually, and even 8GB machines grew by 5.5%, although that capacity is widely seen as too small for modern games and demanding software.

The fastest growth came from 24GB systems, which expanded by 19.7% over the year. TechRadar notes this points to some buyers choosing a middle option rather than paying for pricier 32GB kits. Even so, 24GB remains rare, making up only 2.3% of surveyed machines.

Despite the dip, 32GB is still the most common configuration in the survey at 37.2%, followed by 16GB at 33% and 8GB at roughly 11%. Systems with 64GB account for 7.3%.

Why memory has become so expensive

TechRadar reports that AI infrastructure is absorbing large quantities of DRAM, which leaves less supply for ordinary PC makers and pushes prices higher. As memory costs climb, affordability is playing a bigger role in purchase decisions.

The pattern seen in the survey suggests consumers would rather accept a smaller capacity than spend heavily on extra RAM, and that shift is now visible across nearly every segment of the market.

DDR4 refuses to disappear

Older DDR4 memory, the previous generation of PC RAM, still powers 54.5% of the computers surveyed, against 32.9% for the newer DDR5 standard. Its long presence in desktops and laptops keeps it widely supported on existing hardware.

Moving to DDR5 typically demands a compatible motherboard and processor, which adds cost for anyone considering an upgrade. That does not mean manufacturers are turning back to DDR4, TechRadar notes; it mostly reflects the huge base of older machines still in use.

What the survey can and cannot tell us

There is an important caveat. CPU-Z counts machines running its application, not actual monthly PC sales, so its data describes that programme's active users rather than the whole market. It cannot show precisely how memory is being bought across the industry as a whole.

Even with that limitation, the combined picture is clear: high-capacity systems are shrinking in share while smaller ones grow, and that points to price sensitivity shaping the choices of people buying their next PC.