The RAM crisis in a nutshell: Amazon reveals 'flash deal' for DDR5 RAM that's over twice the price it was four months ago

• Amazon has a deal on a 32GB DDR5 RAM kit
• It's $55 off (with a 14% discount)
• However, that reduced price is actually 2.5x more expensive than this RAM was only four months ago, making it clear how bad things have become

If you wanted an at-a-glance look at just how bad the RAM pricing crisis has got, a new offer at a major retailer underlines this rather effectively.

Over at Amazon in the US, you can see there's a flash deal (a price cut for a limited time) on a Corsair Vengeance DDR5 RAM kit which comprises of two 16GB memory modules (running at 6000MHz).

That 32GB dollop of memory – which will see you good to go for any everyday or gaming PC, it should be noted – now costs $345 in said deal, which is a substantial $55 discount (14% off) on the quoted list price of $400.

While that may sound like a half-decent deal on the face of it, the truth behind that asking price is that back in September 2025, this RAM was less than half the cost it is today – when it's reduced. In fact, this current deal on a solid DDR5 RAM kit is 2.5x the price it was only four months ago.

How's that for a bargain? Well, obviously through that lens, it isn't a bargain, but compared to the rest of the RAM landscape, it's about as good as it gets, sadly.

Even a DDR4 (last-gen) 32GB RAM kit will set you back $240 (at least) on Amazon currently (sticking to known brands, as I'd advise you should, rather than shaky sounding memory products). As we've seen recently, that older memory standard also getting much pricier is a more recent unfortunate trend.

Analysis: a note of caution for potential buyers

How did we get here? The price of system memory has shot up thanks mainly to a combination of two factors. Firstly, the exploding popularity of AI in all its various forms has led to a huge demand for RAM to fuel this (in data centers where AI workloads are handled). That's not just system RAM, but also video RAM (graphics cards are heavily involved in that processing, too).

What's made this worse is that memory manufacturers cut back on chip production in the past, as there was a glut of supply – meaning this spike in demand has been a lot harder to handle. RAM, and also storage, particularly with higher-end SSDs (these drives all use memory chips, too), have therefore seen huge price rises, as an unprecedented level of demand has been met with lean supply levels.

The other problem here is that correcting those chip stock levels is not an easy process, as memory makers can't magic extra production (huge factories, or fabs as they're known) into existence overnight. Bringing extra manufacturing capacity online is a long-term task, and the thinking is that while there are new fabs being made, they won't be in action and making a meaningful impact on the supply situation until 2028.

What this unfortunately means is that this year, and likely 2027 too, are going to be very difficult times for RAM supply, and consumers will certainly be getting the shortest end of the memory stick (PC makers and other bulk buyers, obviously including those data centers, are the priority). There are a lot of predictions that RAM price hikes are going to get worse before they get better or stabilize.

So, am I suggesting you buy this Amazon deal, then? I can't make that call for you, and in all honesty, it still feels bad to be forced to drop that much money on 32GB of RAM for your PC. On the other hand, as noted, this offer is as good as it gets (from what I can see at the time of writing for a decent DDR5 kit), and in a year's time, $345 might look like a bargain in the US (and the same might be true of the equivalent deals in your region right now).

However, that said, if you don't have a desperate need for RAM in the near future, and aren't planning a PC build for some time, I'd be tempted to hold out until prices start to normalize – which could happen sooner than the experts think, perhaps. As long as your computer will do for some time, being patient is likely still the best approach, and I won't be rushing to buy memory myself.

Storage, on the other hand, is likely to be a different matter. You can still get relatively palatable prices on lower-end SSDs, and if you think you might need one of those in the near future, I really would think seriously about buying now.

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