- Memory costs are expected to nearly double in the first quarter of 2026, marking one of the most intense market increases ever recorded.
- Significant price jumps between 88% and 100% will affect desktop RAM (DDR4/DDR5) as well as mobile and laptop memory.
- Manufacturers are running out of stock quickly, forcing them to pay more to secure hardware even with existing supply contracts.
DRAM memory prices have entered another extraordinary surge, considered one of the most aggressive upcycles in recent history. According to the analysis by TrendForce, this is not just a routine market fluctuation but a phenomenon that will completely reshape the cost of memory for AI, PCs, and laptops in Q1 2026.
The analysis from TrendForce demonstrates that with the forecasts for this first quarter of 2026, the contractual prices of conventional DRAM have been rising upward from previous estimates of +55% to +60% to a range of +90% to +95% quarter-on-quarter compared to the fourth quarter of 2025, implying that the cost of memory has nearly doubled in just three months.
According to the analysis, PC DRAM (DDR4 and DDR5) prices might rise by more than 100% quarter-on-quarter in the first quarter of 2026, marking the largest jump in the memory market’s recent history. Just as China was starting to recover and Europe was getting its breath, the blow struck.
This pricing pressure not only affects the standard desktop modules but also the LPDDR4X and LPDDR5X memory for laptops and mobile devices, which is likely to face supply contract increases of 88% to 93%, demonstrating that laptops are similarly vulnerable to the upward trend in memory costs.
This significant increase in DRAM pricing comes at a time when even OEMs with key supply agreements have seen their inventories rapidly depleted and are experiencing rising costs.
The limited supply of basic memory modules has prompted manufacturers to change their purchasing strategy and anticipate higher prices, which directly impact the manufacturing costs of PCs and laptops. Just last week, we covered HP’s statements, which stated that memory now accounts for a third of the budget for any modern PC, a whopping 33%, which the typical user cannot afford.
The effects of these increases are obvious for device manufacturers, who would suffer reduced margins if they do not pass on some of the DRAM price increase to consumers. In short, DRAM memory prices are on track to nearly double or even exceed this by March 2026. This is, as we all know, due to high AI demand and limited availability for clients, which affects both AI application memory and memory used in PCs and laptops.
Thank you! Please share your positive feedback. 🔋
How could we improve this post? Please Help us. 😔
[Editor-in-Chief]
Sajjad Hussain is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Tech4Gamers.com. Apart from the Tech and Gaming scene, Sajjad is a Seasonal banker who has delivered multi-million dollar projects as an IT Project Manager and works as a freelancer to provide professional services to corporate giants and emerging startups in the IT space.
Majored in Computer Science
13+ years of Experience as a PC Hardware Reviewer.
8+ years of Experience as an IT Project Manager in the Corporate Sector.
Certified in Google IT Support Specialization.
Admin of PPG, the largest local Community of gamers with 130k+ members.
Sajjad is a passionate and knowledgeable individual with many skills and experience in the tech industry and the gaming community. He is committed to providing honest, in-depth product reviews and analysis and building and maintaining a strong gaming community.
Join Our Community
