Memory Prices in October 2026: RAM, SSD, HDD and Graphics Cards
Image: Wilbysuffolk / CC BY-SA 4.0 (Wikimedia Commons)
In short: The memory crisis continues. According to PC Games Hardware (PCGH), the DDR5 price index stands at 559 percent of its July 2025 level in October 2026. A 2 × 16 GB DDR5-6000 kit costs at least €447. SSDs (index 247 percent), hard drives (258 percent) and graphics cards (165 percent) are also much more expensive. Some analysts expect relief only in 2029 or later.
Why memory is so expensive
A few big manufacturers make DRAM and NAND chips. Since 2025, AI data centres have been buying huge volumes, so less supply reaches consumer PCs.
Current prices
| Product | From |
|---|---|
| 2 × 16 GB DDR5-6000 | €447 |
| Kingston Fury Beast 32 GB (Sept 2025: €114) | €579 |
| 4 TB PCIe 4.0 SSD | €449 (€112.25/TB) |
| 22 TB HDD | €699 (€31.77/TB) |
| GeForce RTX 5070 | €834 |
| GeForce RTX 5090 | €6,790 |
Prices according to PCGH, October 2026. DDR4 rose 19 percent month on month. A 1 TB hard drive (€126) now costs more than a SATA SSD (€113). Toshiba plans to double HDD output by March 2028.
ComputerBase's view
ComputerBase tracks twelve popular products per category against mid-September 2025. By mid-October 2026, RAM cost 419 percent more on average (370 percent a month earlier), while hard drives and SSDs were both up 146 percent. A Crucial Pro 32 GB DDR5 kit rose from €84 to €490, and a Kingston NV3 1 TB SSD from €50 to €144. ComputerBase also warns about small, unknown eBay sellers offering cheaper memory, because there is a risk of not receiving the right product.
Forecasts
These are forecasts, not facts. TrendForce expects DRAM to rise another 10 to 15 percent and NAND 15 to 20 percent in Q4 2026. Barclays sees relief in 2029 at the earliest, SK Hynix's CEO speaks of late 2030, while Acer's CEO is more optimistic. Microsoft is working to reduce Windows 11's memory needs.
Buying tips
Check seller ratings and delivery times, buy 4 TB SSDs for the best value per terabyte, keep and upgrade existing DDR4 systems, test used RAM with Memtest86+ and use large hard drives for backups. Laptops and phones may also become more expensive. See our €1,000 gaming PC guide and our Windows laptop comparison. More in the components section.
Key terms
DRAM is working memory that only holds data while powered. NAND is the flash memory inside SSDs. A price index of 559 percent means more than five times the starting price.
