Does your laptop take DDR4 SO-DIMM?
Check two things before you compare prices: the memory type and the slots. Your laptop's spec sheet or service manual lists both, along with the maximum capacity it supports. If the memory is soldered to the board, no module here will help, however cheap it is. Not sure which generation you have? Our laptop RAM overview puts DDR4 and DDR5 modules side by side.
SO-DIMM is the short module used in laptops and small form factor PCs. It does not fit a desktop slot, so a kit from our desktop DDR4 prices page is no substitute, even at a lower price per GB. Median this week: $7.54 per GB here, $8.44 for desktop DDR4. DDR5 is out too: Kingston notes that its key notch sits in a different place. Newer laptops with DDR5 slots belong on our DDR5 laptop RAM page.
Search for the exact model number on the label of your laptop, not the series name. Two versions of one laptop can differ in slot count, memory type or soldered memory, and the spec sheet of your exact model settles it.
Which size and speed should you buy?
Newegg's 2026 tiers are a fair guide: 16GB for browsing, office and school work, 32GB for photo editing, light video and the odd virtual machine. Kingston lists its FURY Impact DDR4 laptop line from 8GB to 64GB at 3200 MT/s, but 64GB only makes sense if your laptop's spec sheet allows it.
Speed is simple with DDR4. The official JEDEC speeds top out at 3200 MT/s, and the speed to match is the one on your laptop's spec sheet. Pay for that speed, not for a higher number on the label. If the spec sheet lists 2666 MT/s, slower modules work as well: they start at $37.99 this week. The gap between the cheapest offer at each shop is 99%, so compare before you click.
Will DDR4 laptop RAM get cheaper?
Nobody can promise that. Samsung, SK hynix and Micron all announced in 2025 that they would end DDR4 production and move capacity to DDR5, LPDDR5 and HBM. TrendForce reported that in July 2025, 8GB PC DDR4 modules became more expensive than 8GB DDR5 modules. TrendForce also says Taiwanese makers such as Nanya and Winbond are filling part of the DDR4 gap, but not all of it.
Shop prices followed. PCPartPicker data reported by TechPowerUp shows US DDR4 kits up 120% to 177% year over year by August 2026. Micron has also left the Crucial consumer business, so Crucial modules are no longer made for consumers. If an older laptop needs more memory now, buy the size it needs today. Change in the median price per GB over the last 12 weeks: not measured yet.