According to the latest Steam survey, covering data from September 2026, more than 40% of Steam users now have 32GB of RAM in their system, overtaking 16GB. The official stats reveal that almost 5% of users have upgraded to 32GB in the past month, as gamers look to keep their gaming rigs up to date. A couple of months ago, we saw something similar, with 16GB VRAM GPUs overtaking 8GB.

We imagine that, at this point, most PC gamers will know about the extortionate price of system memory lately, as demand for AI data centers continues to swallow up demand. Just last week, Micron was celebrating record memory and storage revenue, which comes after the company ditched its consumer Crucial brand to go all-in on AI server supply.

32GB RAM overtakes 16GB, with more than 40% of users on Steam

In the latest stats, 16GB system RAM usage has dropped by 3.38%, while 32GB usage has grown by 4.77%. Even the unusual 24GB config has seen a small rise, while 12GB, 8GB, and 4GB usage all continue to drop. This is all despite the growing cost of DDR5 and DDR5 memory; according to Pangoly, the average price of 32GB DDR5 is around $617 USD, or £437 GBP.

Unfortunately, Steam does not separate memory types, so there’s no immediate way of knowing the split between DDR5 and DDR4 systems, or indeed anything older. However, we have already seen DDR4-based hardware sales rise while DDR5 RAM prices remain inflated. That’s not to say that DDR4 systems aren’t more expensive than they used to be, but it’s less of a crater on your wallet.

About the Author

Jack Goodall

At PC Guide, Jack is mostly responsible for reporting on hardware deals. He also specializes in monitors, TVs, and headsets and can be found putting his findings together in a review or best-of guide.