RAM Shortages and High Laptop Prices Not Expected to End This Year (or Next)

You can blame AI for many things, from the massive environmental impact AI data centers it consumes land, water and energy AI slop that somehow makes advertising and social media even worse. AI absorbs meaning from our livesand again it eats sudoku. You can also blame AI for the rising cost of computers.

The AI ​​boom has led to a shortage of PC memory, as AI companies ramp up RAM and storage to power thousands of servers in a growing number of data centers. This growing demand has led to a significant increase in the price of RAM as memory-chip makers shift their production toward high-bandwidth memory that is more profitable for AI data centers and away from consumer-grade DRAM.

According to Counterpoint Research, DRAM prices are up 80 to 90% in the first six weeks of 2026. Micron, in fact, will stop shipping its Core DRAM brand entirely at the end of this month to “improve supply and support for our large, strategic customers in rapidly growing segments.” Those big, strategic customers are AI companies.

As the supply of DRAM dwindles, prices rise for everything with DRAM inside it — namely, laptops and desktops. And it could be years — many — until prices start to drop. At Cisco’s conference earlier this month, Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan said, “There is no relief until 2028.”

According to reports, Dell will raise the prices of its computers by 15% to 20%, while Lenovo has said that its prices will increase this year. You can expect other PC vendors to follow suit. If you want to get ahead of the rising costs that are expected to arrive sooner rather than later, here are two suggestions.

1. Don’t forget if you are now buying a computer

With no relief expected until 2028, it makes no sense to wait. If you have money set aside for your next laptop and can buy it now, I would make that purchase before the price goes up.

Major laptop makers and retailers are always around for discounts, so you can usually find a good laptop if you keep price tabs for a few weeks and buy the dip. Prices tend to go up, but that doesn’t mean you can’t get a price drop over time laptop sales.

2. Buy as much pre-installed RAM as you can afford

Most laptops have RAM sold that you can upgrade after purchase, so this is a good general rule of thumb anytime you’re shopping for a laptop. But it’s even better advice (if I do say so myself) at this exact moment, when prices are fixed. If you can pack 32GB or 64GB of RAM into that laptop you’re looking at, I say go for it.

For gaming laptops with user-replaceable RAM not soldered onto the motherboard, it may be a good idea to fill those DIMM slots when preparing the model for purchase. Because if you plan to buy a gaming laptop with a small amount of RAM now, leaving a DIMM slot or two free to add more RAM later, you’ll probably find yourself paying more for it than you would now.

Five laptop recommendations

To help you find a laptop before prices skyrocket, here are five laptops that I recommend without hesitation. Each has won an Editors’ Choice award, and each offers 32GB of RAM or gives you the option to expand the base 16GB allotment to 32GB or 64GB.

I HP OmniBook 5 14 again Asus Zenbook A14 thin and light mainstream laptops with stylish, all-metal designs and beautiful OLED displays. Each gives a Qualcomm Snapdragon X series processor and exceptional battery life. The ZenBook A14 I reviewed came with 32GB of RAM, while the OmniBook 5 14 only had 16GB of RAM. But HP lets you configure the OmniBook 5 14 with 32GB of RAM while keeping the cost under $1,000.

For gamers, i Lenovo Legion 5i Gen 10 it offers a high-resolution OLED that extends its appeal beyond just gaming. Its price remains a constant $1,569 at Newegg. There’s no telling how long the price will stay, but that’s a big plus for a well-rounded, mid-range gaming laptop with RTX 5060 graphics. Lenovo also makes the best two-in-ones CNET reviewed last year in the neighborhood Lenovo Yoga 9i 2-in-1 Aura Edition.

Rounding out my recommendations is my favorite MacBook, the 15-inch Air, which offers the perfect balance of screen size and system weight, and the powerful and efficient M4 processor from Apple. I reviewed it with 16GB of RAM, however, you can expand it to 24GB or 32GB before purchase.

For more, see the best laptops of 2026, The best laptops for Windows, MacBooks are greatagain best budget gaming laptops, best-in-one again best laptops for battery life.