Why Your Next Laptop Might Cost More: RAM Prices Are Climbing Fast
Memory that once cost under $70 for 16GB a decade ago now sells for more than $100 in many markets.
Published March 16 2026, 1:58 p.m. ET
Buying a new laptop, phone, or gaming system is seemingly more expensive than ever before. That's because RAM is expensive right now, as AI companies are soaking up huge amounts of memory supply. Chipmakers are also shifting more production toward high-bandwidth memory and server products. Meanwhile, laptop and phone brands are passing those higher costs on to customers.
Until supply catches up, that basic upgrade you used to toss into your cart without thinking is probably going to cost a bit more.
Why is RAM so expensive?
According to TrendForce conventional DRAM contract prices in the first quarter of 2026 were on track to jump 90 percent to 95 percent from the previous quarter. The firm also forecast PC DDR4 and DDR5 prices rising 105 percent to 110 percent, while mobile LPDDR4X and LPDDR5X prices could climb 88 percent to 93 percent.
The biggest driver is AI infrastructure. Data-center operators want more high-bandwidth memory (HBM) and more low-power server memory, and that demand is crowding out the stuff regular PC buyers use.
Micron also warned that the surge in HBM demand is straining production capacity. The company said the memory uses a 3-to-1 trade ratio with DDR5, meaning manufacturers must use far more wafer capacity to produce HBM for AI systems.
How has RAM prices changed over time?
A decade ago, memory was way cheaper. In August 2016, Tom’s Hardware reviewed a 32GB DDR4-2400 kit at $140 and said that price was less than twice the cost of a standard 16GB DDR4-2133 kit, which implies mainstream 16GB DDR4 was still under $70 at the time. Fast-forward to 2026, and Tom’s Hardware said 32GB DDR4 kits that commonly sold for $60 to $90 in October 2025 had climbed to roughly $150 to $180 by January 2026. Its March 2026 tracker also listed a 16GB DDR4 kit at $115.
New AI laptops and premium phones are feeling the increase the most. Rising memory prices have increased bill-of-materials costs enough to push retail notebook prices higher and hurt demand, including reported price hikes from Dell and Lenovo. Microsoft’s Copilot+ PC lineup now commonly starts at 16GB and stretches to 32GB or even 64GB on some models.
Apple’s new 13-inch MacBook Air with M5 starts at $1,099 and comes with 16GB of unified memory standard. Samsung’s Galaxy S26 Ultra ships with 12GB or 16GB of RAM, depending on the configuration, with U.S. pricing starting at $1,299.99 and going to $1,799.99 for the 1TB model. Not every extra dollar on those devices comes from RAM alone, but memory is definitely eating up a bigger chunk of the price tag now.
However, customers still have a few ways to save money. First, buy memory based on your real workload instead of automatically choosing the largest configuration available. Many users do not need more than 16GB or 32GB.
Second, budget PC builders can still save money by using older platforms. According to Tom’s Hardware, processors like the Intel Core i5-12400F still support DDR4, and the performance difference compared with DDR5 is relatively small for many tasks. Third, consider refurbished or last-generation machines that already include memory upgrades.