The Market
It’s a critical time of year for IT leaders, where the main priority is completing final preparations for the holiday closure period. But alongside those preparations, there’s a broader shift emerging that’s important to factor into 2026 planning: global RAM and memory component prices are rising sharply.
Over the past two months the price of RAM has grown exponentially. Major suppliers and distributors are signalling sustained pressure across DRAM and SSD components, driven by tight supply and increased demand primarily from AI, hyperscale and advanced workloads. With the AI hardware market valued at an estimated USD 115.41 Billion in 2025, the demand is directly affecting production capacity for other types of memory. This means budget requirements will increase for upcoming life cycle refreshes, as memory becomes a more costly line item in server and storage BOMs.
For organisations going into 2026, this surge translates into very real implications.
Average RAM price (AUD) over the last 18 months (DDR5-6000 2x 16GB) Data sourced from PC Part Picker
Key Impacts on 2026 Planning
Budget Pressure
Higher budget requirements as memory becomes a more costly part of server and storage BOMs.
Longer Lead Time
Increasingly longer lead time, potentially adding weeks to delivery of components.
Architecture Adjustments
Potential architecture adjustments where consolidation or hybrid models provide better value.
Planning Considerations
Given the pace of change, now is a prudent moment to revisit existing 2026 assumptions, especially where budget, timelines, or infrastructure design depend on memory intensive builds.
These constraints echo some of the supply-chain challenges experienced during the early stages of the pandemic, though with one key difference. There is currently no clear end in sight for the tightening of memory supply. Upstream technology vendors are increasingly signalling constraints and distributors are already adjusting pricing and availability forecasts.
"Feedback from vendors and distributors points to tighter supply and higher costs, with limited clarity on when conditions will improve. It reinforces the value of reviewing 2026 plans early..."
Navigating the Volatility
AVTech is actively tracking memory and component pricing across our ecosystem of suppliers and distributors.
For organisations planning a refresh in 2026, we can help you:
- Model the impact of rising memory costs on your upcoming projects
- Validate whether budget assumptions need adjusting based on real-time pricing data
- Provide insight on how long pricing can currently be held for different components
- Identify options that deliver better cost to performance during these supply conditions.
If you’re planning server or storage upgrades or simply want visibility on how price movements may affect your roadmap, our team can provide a clear, practical assessment.
Speak with us early to secure current pricing and avoid unexpected impacts to budget or timelines.
