CPU-Z's install-base stats, posted November 6, show PC memory capacity falling year over year for the first time: 64GB systems down 18% and 32GB down 2.5%, while 16GB rose 12.9% and 24GB rose 19.7%. The data counts PCs running CPU-Z and does not count sales.
If you are buying a laptop this season, choose its memory at checkout and plan to keep it. Most thin laptops and every current Mac solder the RAM to the board, and the people who build PCs themselves are already trimming capacity because memory got expensive. The developer of CPU-Z, the free Windows tool that reports what hardware a PC has, posted new stats on X on November 6: for the first time, average RAM capacity on PCs running the tool went down year over year.
What changed
The post gives the year-over-year moves. Systems with 64GB fell 18%, and systems with 32GB fell 2.5%. Tom’s Hardware, which reported the numbers, says lower capacities grew at the same time:
| Memory | Share of CPU-Z systems | Change vs a year ago |
|---|---|---|
| 32GB | 37.2% | Down 2.5% |
| 16GB | 33% | Up 12.9% |
| 8GB | 11% | Up 5.5% |
| 64GB | 7.3% | Down 18% |
| 24GB | 2.3% | Up 19.7% |
Shares and the 16GB, 8GB and 24GB changes are from Tom’s Hardware’s reading of the data.
Tom’s Hardware ties the shift to the steep rise in memory prices. That fits what memory makers and analysts have said for weeks. SK Hynix expects demand to outrun supply through 2030, and Counterpoint blamed memory costs when it counted a 21% drop in PC shipments last quarter.
What this data is and isn’t
CPU-Z counts the PCs where people install and run it. That skews toward Windows enthusiasts, builders and gamers. Tom’s Hardware is explicit that these are not sales figures. Read the table as a sign of what hands-on PC owners are choosing. It does not describe the whole market.
What to do
- Laptop or Mac with soldered memory: buy the capacity you need for the next four years now. You can’t add RAM later, so a smaller configuration saves money once and then limits you for the life of the machine.
- 16GB covers browser-heavy work, video calls and office apps. Step up to 32GB if you run local AI models, virtual machines or many containers at once.
- Desktop builders: 24GB is now a real middle option. Its share grew faster than any other size in the CPU-Z data, up 19.7%. It suits people who outgrow 16GB but can’t justify 32GB at today’s prices.
- Don’t wait for prices to fall before a needed upgrade. SK Hynix’s own outlook points to tight supply through 2030.
Buyers are trading memory for price, and laptops lock that choice in
A desktop owner who buys 16GB today can add another module when prices ease. A laptop buyer who does the same is stuck with it. That point is our inference from the data; CPU-Z and Tom’s Hardware did not make it. It is why the memory decision matters more on a laptop than on any other part of a new computer. If you are weighing a new Mac, Apple’s memory is part of the chip package and can’t be upgraded, so the same rule applies there. Apple already cited memory costs when it raised the MacBook Neo’s education price to $649.