- DDR5 RAM prices have hit new highs in the US
- Even the cheapest 32GB kits can’t be had for less than $360
- This is 20% more than two months ago, as system RAM continues to become more expensive despite previous signs that the crisis was easing.
RAM pricing is still very painful with DDR5 modules, and the situation at US retailers is so bad that you now can’t get a basic (entry level) 32GB kit for less than $350.
Tom’s Hardware highlighted prices on Amazon in the US and noted that some common low-end 32GB kits, consisting of two 16GB DDR5 memory, now cost $360. Just a couple of months ago, those same kits were priced between $290 and $325, showing that prices are continuing their seemingly inexorable rise.
In fact, looking at Newegg and Amazon now, I can’t see anything under $360 except a deal on a 32GB Kingbank kit for $350 on Newegg; Please note that this is a Chinese brand and there are caveats about this (although Newegg sells the product directly, I prefer to buy it from one of the trusted RAM manufacturers we generally recommend given the savings are only ten dollars here).
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What this shows is that despite some signs of a pullback in RAM price increases (seen in some regions last month), the overall direction remains bullish, although not as pronounced as the hikes we saw in late 2025.
As one Redditor observes in reaction to this find: “RAM prices right now are really crazy. I bought a new RAM kit at the beginning of September, and if I bought the same kit now, it would cost more than my graphics card. I have an RTX 4090, so that’s absolutely absurd.”
Analysis: Blame the bots: a double whammy for AI misery
We’re seeing about a 20% increase in prices in recent months for DDR5, so, and as Tom points out, the situation is getting worse because resellers are now bringing in bots.
Price gougers are snapping up RAM kits that come in at more affordable prices (and that’s a very relative term now) using such AI-powered bots. Of course, it is the demand for RAM in terms of the explosion of AI (that and the problems related to memory chip manufacturers reducing production levels in the past, when there was an oversupply) that has caused the current RAM crisis.
There’s been more bad news from Framework (via VideoCardz), as the laptop and desktop maker had to increase the price of its DDR5 modules to $13 to $18 per Gigabyte (GB). To put it in perspective, at the end of last year, the price was $10 per GB, with an increase from $12 to $16 last month.
The storm around RAM prices shows no signs of calming down any time soon, and the outlook remains bleak. (Of course, you can still get sporadic deals on high-end RAM, although the savings made are only relative to the huge price increases, and the outlay is still painful.)
Alternatives to buying new RAM are to search for used memory on auction sites, although there is no guarantee of its quality, or get a bundle (such as a motherboard with RAM included, or perhaps a three-in-one CPU plus RAM and motherboard bundle). Those kinds of deals are probably the best route if you’re looking to build a PC, but they obviously won’t be of much use to anyone who simply wants to upgrade their current system’s memory.
The best laptops for all budgets
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