DDR4 vs DDR5: which should you actually buy in 2026?

The shortage has narrowed the price gap. Here is when DDR4 still makes sense — and when paying up for DDR5 pays off.

The short answer

DDR5 has closed most of its price premium over DDR4 during the shortage, but $/GB still favors DDR4 on older platforms. If your board only takes DDR4, buy with confidence — the format isn't going anywhere. If you're building fresh on a DDR5 board, the calculus is closer than it looks.

Where each format wins

DDR4 remains the value pick for 16GB and 32GB kits on last-gen platforms — CL16 kits at DDR4-3200/3600 are mature, cheap, and plenty fast for most workloads. DDR5 wins once you're past DDR5-6000 with tight CAS latency: bandwidth-hungry work (compiling, video encoding, some games) actually uses the extra transfer rate. Compare on $/GB first, then filter by speed.

The shortage complicates it

Because both generations are moving in this market, DDR4 kits have occasionally spiked harder than DDR5 simply because factories shifted production toward DDR5 first. Don't assume DDR4 is automatically the safe, stable choice right now — check the 30-day trend column before you decide either way.