Is 4gb Of Ram Enough For Windows 10?

How much RAM does your Windows 10 PC really need?

RAM, or random access retentivity, is a vital hardware component used by your Windows ten PC to store temporary data that tin exist accessed quickly by software, speeding up processes and keeping you lot from banging your caput against the desk in frustration. Substantially, the more than RAM you lot have, the more than you can have going on at once.

The corporeality of RAM you need in your PC depends on what you lot programme on doing — gaming, for instance, takes a generous amount of RAM, and media editing can accept a lot of RAM. Permit'south discover out how much RAM you currently have, what type of RAM is compatible with your organisation, and how much RAM you should have for specific daily tasks.

Benefits of upgrading your RAM
How much RAM do you really need?
Choosing RAM speeds
Your PC's RAM configuration
Best RAM for your PC

Benefits of upgrading your RAM

Permit's become 1 thing straight: adding RAM to your estimator is not a procedure that volition magically make everything faster. It will, even so, assistance your PC in multitasking and performing heavy duties like gaming and multimedia editing. More RAM doesn't make the computer faster, but information technology will brand it harder for it to get bogged down.

If you have a PC with a beefy graphics card (GPU) and fast processor (CPU) only you can't effigy out why 17 browser tabs won't simultaneously load without grinding things to a halt, adding RAM will probably help.

If you have an old PC that you lot want to eke a few more years out of, adding RAM could brand the divergence between a couple years of frustration and a couple years of addicted memories.

How much RAM do y'all really need?

How much RAM you need in your PC depends heavily on what y'all use your PC for on a day-to-twenty-four hours ground and on how long you intend to keep the computer. If yous're thinking of investing in a completely new car in the nigh future, waiting things out might be the best bet.

If yous already accept a computer yous honey but want to shift gears into a unlike daily task that requires better operation, upgrading your RAM as part of the process is a not bad idea.

Productivity

If you lot use your Windows 10 figurer for word processing, checking emails, browsing the internet, and playing Solitaire, you should have no problem using 4GB of RAM. If yous are performing all of these activities at one time, however, you might feel a dip in performance.

A lot of upkeep PCs come with 4GB of RAM as a base of operations option, but if you plan on keeping your machine for several years, opting for 8GB of RAM is the safer bet, even if you lot simply use it for low-cal duties.

Gaming

I'm not talking near Solitaire — heavy PC gaming at acceptable performance levels requires a substantial amount of RAM. Popular esports titles similar DOTA 2, CS:Go, and League of Legends will allow yous to get abroad with 4GB, but other popular titles, similar Fallout 4, Witcher three, and DOOM, volition need at least 8GB to run properly.

If you're a gamer and want to ensure yous have enough RAM for some current titles and futurity titles, go with at least 16GB. If your upkeep allows, why not button information technology up to 32GB?

Related: Best electric current RAM deals

Virtual reality (VR)

VR is a relatively new medium, at least in its latest incarnation, and it requires a good chunk of RAM to run smoothly. I'm referencing HTC Vive, Oculus Rift, and Windows Mixed Reality (WMR) here, all of which should accept at least 8GB of RAM on the associated PC to run smoothly.

The Vive simply recommends 4GB, only, honestly, go with at to the lowest degree 8GB; you have to accept into account the games you'll exist playing, many of which require a decent corporeality of RAM to run smoothly.

Game streaming

If you'd like to join the thousands who stream video of themselves playing games or other activities, become with at least 8GB of RAM just consider opting for 16GB or even 32GB depending on the game's requirements. Your PC has to bargain with both running the game and streaming video to the internet at the same time.

Need a hand getting your stream prepare? Nosotros have a guide for that!

Encounter a beginner'due south guide to Mixer streaming

Video and photo editing

This actually depends on your workload. If you're editing a lot of HD video, go for 16GB or more than. If you're working with photos and a bit of video thrown in, 8GB should get you through.

Editing apps will work on lower amounts of RAM, merely you'll become and then frustrated with the poor performance you'll before long start yearning for an upgrade. Don't skimp here.

Choosing RAM speeds

Not only do you lot demand to think nigh how much RAM you lot have, you also need to think about the speed of the RAM in your PC. RAM's frequency affects the maximum bandwidth. If you want more data to be moved dorsum and forth at one time, you need to go with RAM with a higher frequency. Latency, on the other hand, is how fast your RAM realizes information technology needs to act when the CPU calls on it.

Cavalcade Access Strobes (CAS) latency has increased every bit the frequency of RAM has increased, but truthful latency has remained about the same due to a decrease in clock cycle times. That means you can get loftier-speed DDR4 RAM with about the same true latency as older DDR3 RAM that's simply about half the speed.

If you're doing any sort of high-functioning task on your PC, opting for a college frequency — measured in megahertz (MHz) — is the best program of action.

Your PC'southward RAM configuration

RAM configurations differ depending more often than not on your motherboard. Some motherboards accept four dual inline memory module (DIMM) slots for RAM, some have two, some take a lot more. Hither's how to see how much RAM you currently have, what type of RAM is uniform with your PC, and how many slots you lot're currently working with.

How to check your PC's electric current amount of RAM

This method will simply and quickly tell you how much RAM your PC currently has installed:

Right-click the Start push button.
Click System.
Verify the Installed retentivity (RAM) line. (In this case, you tin can see I take 8GB of RAM installed.)

How to check RAM configuration and compatible RAM using Crucial Organization Scanner

To take things even further, Crucial System Scanner is a keen app that volition browse your estimator and show you how much full RAM your motherboard and processor tin handle, how many slots are available for RAM, and some options for purchasing compatible RAM.

Navigate to www.crucial.com/united states/en/systemscanner.
Click the checkbox adjacent to Agree to the terms & conditions.
Click download the scanner.
Click Save. The download volition begin.
Click Run when the download is complete.

When the scan is complete you lot will see on the left side of the window a memory section with the number of slots for RAM and the maximum amount of RAM your PC's motherboard can handle. In this case, the motherboard has two slots and can handle upward to 32GB of RAM.

You will see on the right side of the window a list of uniform RAM available for purchase from Crucial. This is a clear indicator of what type of RAM your PC uses, and is a great tool for anyone not comfortable with ownership RAM on their ain. In this case, you can see that my PC is using DDR4 SODIMM RAM.

Crucial system scan results

RAM is available in two mutual types: DDR3 and DDR4. DDR4 is newer than DDR3 and uses a different pin configuration to fit into your motherboard. For this reason, DDR3 RAM can't go into a motherboard designed for DDR4, and vice versa. Too, "pocket-size outline dual inline memory module" (SODIMM) RAM won't fit in a standard RAM slot — it'southward just too pocket-size. If you're using a laptop or an all-in-one PC, chances are you've got SODIMM RAM inside, so keep that in mind when you're ownership RAM.

Related: How to install RAM in your desktop or laptop PC

Best RAM for your PC

Once you determined how much RAM y'all need for your specific PC duties and what blazon of RAM works with your processor and motherboard, you can outset shopping.

If yous aren't completely confident when buying RAM, worry not. We've put together an ultimate RAM buyer's guide that should answer any questions you might still have. Plus, bank check out our roundup of the best DDR4 RAM available now for some bully suggestions.

Ultimate RAM heir-apparent's guide for Windows 10 PC users
Best DDR4 RAM for your PC
How to pick the right PC upgrades for y'all

Updated June 27, 2018: We refreshed this article to ensure you're however getting current information nearly how much RAM yous really demand in a PC.

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