How much RAM does your PC actually need?

Find out how much RAM you exactly need for your PC/laptop

In a world that is dictated by my RAM versus your RAM, the question of how much RAM is actually sufficient for your computing needs is always sidelined. Most of PC/laptop buyers actually don’t do the calculations and end up buying a PC/laptop which is under-RAM  or over-RAM. If you are just a casual Internet surfer and use your PC/laptop to process documents with software like Microsoft Word/Excel, buying an 8GB RAM PC/laptop is a waste of money. Ditto for a hardcore gamer who tries to save money by buying 2GB RAM for his gaming PC.

Sometimes arriving at the right decision about the amount of RAM is often a headache while choosing to buy your new PC or a laptop. Here we give a definitive guide to how much your PC or laptop actually needs.

Note # How much RAM your PC supports will depend on your motherboard. Use this system checker on Crucial.com to find out what RAM is compatible with your system

1GB

1GB of RAM is the minimum system requirement for the 32-bit version of Windows 10 and this much RAM is just enough for basic operations like web browsing if you don’t keep dozens of tabs open, email, word processing, and light image editing. You can indulge in basic gaming, while photo processing or ripping a CD will pretty much take over the entire system.

If you are one with above  needs, 1GB RAM may suffice your requirements. If not, read on….

2GB

2GB of RAM is the minimum system requirement for the 64-bit version of Windows 10. While you can run a 64-bit Windows 10 machine with 1GB RAM, you will notice system lag while doing routine work. With 2GB you should be able to do pretty much everything with your computer  like gaming, image, and video editing, running Microsoft Office, and having a dozen or so browser tabs open. 2GB is also enough to run a hardcore suite of apps like the Adobe Creative Cloud according to its developer.

So we can assume that 2GB RAM is a minimum requirement for Windows 10 PCs/laptops and continue with our article.

4GB

Buying 4GB RAM for your 32-bit Windows 10 PC/laptop is a waste of money as your machine will be able to access around 3.2GB because of memory addressing limitations. However, with a 64-bit operating system then you’ll have full access to the whole 4GB.

4GB RAM is absolutely necessary if you use your machine for 8 hours a day. Even on a 32-bit system that limits the RAM to a little over 3GB, the performance boost is well worth the cost. 4GB RAM will make your applications run faster and you can run more Apps simultaneously. If you are buying a Windows 10 64-bit version, make sure it has 4GB RAM, while 4GB is the minimum you’ll find in any modern Mac system.

8GB

Note: You will need a 64-bit operating system to make use of this amount of RAM.

8GB RAM is for serious PC users who give a shitload about performance. If you’re buying or building a machine dedicated to photo or HD video editing and rendering, 8GB RAM is the minimum you should buy. Adobe Creative Cloud applications need this much of RAM to run smoothly.

16GB

Note: You will need a 64-bit operating system to make use of this amount of RAM.

16GB RAM and above territory is reserved for geeks and nerds. 16GB RAM is useful if you run heavy applications simultaneously like image or 4K video processing, CAD, or 3D modelling. Try running Premiere Pro, Photoshop, and After Effects side-by-side on a system with 8GB of RAM and a 16GB RAM machine and feel the difference.

16GB RAM is also helpful if you make extensive use of virtualization tools such as Microsoft Hyper-V or VMware Workstation, especially if you run multiple virtual machines simultaneously.

16GB+

Note: You will need a 64-bit operating system to make use of this amount of RAM.

If you are a 16GB+ RAM user, you are a certified nerd. A PC with more than 16GB of RAM will be a do-anything system.

Remember that 64-bit Windows 10 Pro, Enterprise, and Education will support up to 2TB of RAM, while the 64-bit version of Windows 10 Home is limited to only 128GB.

I hope the above guide was helpful in making you the right decision about the amount of RAM you require for your forthcoming PC/laptop purchase. It would be pertinent to note that I started using a PC with 8MB of RAM and could do many things in those Dos days including running Lotus 123 etc.