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SSD prices continue to climb, and itโs becoming harder for PC users to ignore. Over the past few months, memory prices have been rising across the board due to the ongoing AI-fueled demand. What started with DDR5 RAM quickly spread to other components, including SSDs and GPUs. As data centers and AI firms continue to absorb massive amounts of memory and storage, consumer pricing is being pushed higher with no real relief in sight. Forecasts predict we’ll be waiting until 2027.
If we look at recent SSD pricing data from South Korea, the situation looks pretty bad. Compared to October 2025, SSD prices in January 2026 have risen sharply. Entry-level 500GB M.2 SSDs have seen the biggest hit, with prices increasing by around 2.63x. Popular 1TB models are now about 2.18x more expensive, while even 2TB drives have nearly doubled in price with a 1.91x increase. These are not small fluctuations, as they represent a major shift in the market over the course of a few months.
SSD price trend in Korea and the US
The same trend is now visible in the US as well. On Amazon, SSD prices have surged in just the past few weeks. The Samsung 990 EVO Plus, which was selling for roughly $160 not long ago, is now listed at around $240. Budget options have also been hit hard. A Silicon Power 1TB SSD that previously sold for close to $60 has jumped to nearly $148. Many other popular SSDs have followed the same pattern, making even basic storage upgrades feel overpriced. Price comparisons based on data from Camelcamelcamel.
Latest tech deals.
- AMD Ryzenโข 9 9900X 12-Core - was $499 now $331
- Sony INZONE M10S 27-inch - was $899 now $748
- Thermaltake LCGS View i1470S-170 - was $2,399 now $2,099
- Apple 2026 MacBook Air - was $1,999 now $1,891
- Bose QuietComfort Headphones - was $359 now $169
- LG 77-inch OLED C6 - was $2,499 now $1,999
- MSI Prestige 16 Flip - was $2,149 now $1,870
- Hisense 85-inch U6 Pro Series - was $1,999 now $997
Prices correct as of November 5th, 2026.
Don’t expect things to improve soon. Major memory manufacturers are shifting their priorities toward AI and enterprise customers, where margins are higher, and demand is guaranteed. Companies like Micron have already pulled back from the consumer market to focus on supplying large-scale data centers. This has tightened the supply even further for consumer SSDs.
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