Raspberry Pi raised the 16GB Raspberry Pi 5 from $305 to $385 on November 2 and added $40 to 16GB Compute Module 5 variants, citing memory costs. The 16GB Raspberry Pi 500+, from $410 with a 256GB SSD and keyboard, keeps its price.
The 16GB Raspberry Pi 5 now costs $385, up $80 from $305, effective November 2. Raspberry Pi also added $40 to the 16GB versions of Compute Module 5. The 16GB Raspberry Pi 500+, which puts the same class of board inside a keyboard with a 256GB SSD, keeps its price, from $410. If you need 16GB, the keyboard computer is now the better deal for a desk setup.
What changed
Raspberry Pi CEO Eben Upton announced the change in a company blog post titled “Price rises for some 16GB Raspberry Pi products.” The company’s reasons, per the post:
- Memory costs have risen steeply over the past two years.
- There is no alternative supply for 16GB DRAM parts, and other component shortages add to the problem.
- It has avoided blanket rises across the range and is raising prices only on the products most exposed to memory costs.
Upton called the memory situation “difficult but ultimately temporary.” The post did not list new prices for each Compute Module 5 variant; it points to the Compute Module 5 product page.
Notebookcheck confirmed the $305 to $385 figures and reported that some retailers, Amazon among them, were still selling the board for less on the day of the change. This is not the first rise this fall: the 2GB Raspberry Pi 5 and 2GB Raspberry Pi 4 went up in early October, according to Notebookcheck.
The Pi 500+ is now the better-value 16GB desk machine
At $410, the Raspberry Pi 500+ includes 16GB of RAM, a 256GB Raspberry Pi SSD you can swap out, and a mechanical keyboard with low-profile Gateron switches. The bare 16GB Pi 5 at $385 ships without a case, cooling or SSD. The gap between the two is now $25, and the Pi 500+ side of it includes storage and a keyboard.
What to do:
- Buying a 16GB board for a desk, a home lab or a thin client: get the Pi 500+ unless you need the board’s form factor.
- Need the bare 16GB board for a build: check Amazon and authorized resellers first. Notebookcheck found some still selling it below $385 on November 2.
- Running something that fits in 8GB: the 8GB Raspberry Pi 5 was not part of this rise.
Memory makers expect the squeeze to continue. SK Hynix said last week that demand will outrun supply through 2030, and Counterpoint tied a drop in PC shipments to higher memory prices. If a 16GB part is on your list for any device, the price you see today is unlikely to fall soon.