Chime in: Do you need 4GB or 8GB of RAM (or more) in your PC?

Acer Aspire 5
Acer Aspire 5

RAM is an important factor when buying a new PC, but not everyone needs lots of it. The standard for what is acceptable for RAM has been on the rise for years, with 2GB RAM being more than fine in mid-2005. In 2018, things are very different.

Some argue that these days, even 4GB of RAM isn't enough for general computing. Those people say a minimum of 8GB RAM should be the standard in all PCs if you want to do any kind of computing at a reasonable pace. Do you agree?

Hello guys, Im about to buy a surface pro and im just very unsure how much RAM I will actually need. Im an engineering student and I need to be able to run software like: Visual Studio, Matlab and AutoCAD on a daily basis. Im just curious if 4GB of RAM are actually sufficient for these applications to be running smooth? When I checked out the system requirements of Matlab it says they...

xXCockHunterXx

I don't. Most people should be able to get by with 4GB of RAM. My significant other uses Office, browses the web, and uses Spotify all at once on her PC, and 4GB of RAM handles all that just fine.

Most people don't do too much on their PCs, so 4GB of RAM is usually enough. Of course, if you're planning to do several different things at once, more RAM is good. But for casual users, 4GB is good. Of course, depending on the PC, you can upgrade your RAM later too, so it doesn't hurt to start with a smaller amount.

What do you think? Let us know in our forums!

From the forums - RAM question: 4GB vs 8GB?

Zac Bowden
Senior Editor

Zac Bowden is a Senior Editor at Windows Central. Bringing you exclusive coverage into the world of Windows on PCs, tablets, phones, and more. Also an avid collector of rare Microsoft prototype devices! Keep in touch on Twitter and Threads