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DDR4 versus DDR5: Is it time to upgrade your RAM?

Don't toss your DDR4 RAM just yet.

A close up of desktop computer RAM components Credit: Getty Images

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Your computer’s random access memory modules (RAM) are critical to the PC’s performance. If your RAM is too slow or you don’t have enough of it, you won’t be able to run the programs you need. For the past ten years, most PCs have run DDR4 RAM, but that is quickly changing as DDR5 replaces it as the new standard.

DDR5 RAM has faster transfer speeds and greater potential capacity than DDR4 memory, and it’s much cheaper than it used to be in 2021. Meanwhile, DDR4 is being phased out—the next generation of Intel’s Core processors (due sometime in 2025) won’t support DDR4, and AMD ditched DDR4 support when it released its Ryzen 7000-series processors in late 2022.

While Intel’s 14th and 13th generation Core processors support both DDR4 and DDR5, compatible motherboards only support one type of memory. That said, DDR4 is still a very fast memory module specification, and it could be worth sticking with DDR4 if you want to save the extra money.

Clock speed and data rate in DDR5 vs DDR4 RAM

A picture of the Razer Blade 14.
Credit: Reviewed / Jackson Ruckar

Some recently released high-end gaming laptops already have DDR5 RAM installed.

A computer’s ability to operate is constrained by its clock speed—how many times the RAM modules can access its memory per second. The standard default clock speed for DDR4 is 2133MHz, whereas the default rate for DDR5 is 4800MHz. To run RAM faster than these speeds, you may have to enable the XMP profile in your PC’s BIOS if it’s not already enabled.

DDR5 also has faster data transfer rates. When properly configured, a PC can run DDR4 memory at up to 3200 MT/s without overclocking. DDR5 can run at 8,000 MT/s with overclocking on high-end motherboards, but by default Intel’s 14th generation of Core processors support up to 5,600 MT/s and AMD’s Ryzen 8000-series processors only support up to 5,200 MT/s.

Our pick: DDR5

Memory Capacity in DDR4 vs. DDR5 RAM

A shot of a desktop's motherboard.
Credit: Reviewed / Adrien Ramirez

Your processor, storage drive and graphics card will have a more notable impact on your PC's performance than your RAM speed.

DDR5 can top out at a whopping 512GB per module. Sadly, most processors and motherboards can’t support that. High-end motherboards like the Gigabyte Aorus Z790 Extreme X support up to 192GB of total memory and 48GB individual memory modules.

DDR4 has much smaller limits. It maxes out at 128GB of memory split across two-to-four DIMM modules.

Our pick: DDR5

Latency in DDR4 vs. DDR5 RAM

A person uses a touchscreen on a laptop.
Credit: Reviewed / Jackson Ruckar

DDR4 still offers the better value when you compare DDR5's marginal performance gains to its notable price hike over DDR4 memory.

RAM acts like temporary storage for your computer’s CPU so it can quickly access tasks it performs on a regular basis. (It’s similar to you keeping a dozen Google Chrome tabs open at once because you want the information close by.) The lower the latency, the faster the CPU can access the instructions it temporarily stored in the RAM to perform the tasks.

DDR4 used to have lower latency than DDR5, and while that’s still true in a technical sense, in a practical sense there isn’t a difference anymore (unless 2 nanoseconds matter to you).

Total latency is determined by both a DIMM module’s speed and its CAS (Column Address Signal) latency. For CAS latency ratings, lower numbers are better.

A DDR4-3200 CL20 module, for instance, has a CAS latency rating of 20. Most DDR5 modules have a latency rating between CL30 and CL36. Combined with DDR5’s massive megatransfer speed advantage, it virtually eliminated the total latency problem of early CL40 modules.

Our pick: Tie

Performance in DDR4 vs. DDR5 RAM

An overhead view of the Steam Deck handheld PC.
Credit: Reviewed / Jackson Ruckar

Modern gaming consoles will sport DDR5 RAM for a while.

While DDR5 is faster than DDR4 in the most intense applications, the real-life difference for more mundane tasks like web browsing or 2D gaming is minimal—DDR4 is already very fast.

For heavy scene rendering or video file encoding, DDR5 is notably faster. When we tested DDR4 and DDR5 side-by-side in our test rigs, rendering a lengthy test scene in Blender was one to two minutes faster on the DDR5-equipped system. The same video file encoded in Handbrake was also about a minute faster on the DDR5-equipped system.

However, you will see more gains across PC performance by upgrading the quantity of RAM available—64GB of DDR4 RAM will give a better experience than 16GB of DDR5 RAM. Upgrading your processor, graphics card, or storage drive from a hard drive to a solid-state drive will also give more significant gains.

Our pick: DDR5

Compatibility with DDR4 vs. DDR5 RAM

An overhead of a laptop motherboard.
Credit: Reviewed / Adrien Ramirez

The Framework laptop mainboard has RAM slots so you can upgrade your memory later on.

As DDR5 takes over as the new standard, expect DDR4 support to slim down in 2024. AMD does not support DDR4 on its AM5 chips, and Intel has supported DDR5 for three processor generations now. However, Intel’s 12th, 13th, and 14th generations do support DDR4 so long as the motherboard supports DDR4 (DDR4 motherboards do not support DDR5 and vice versa).

Meanwhile, most laptops and pre-built PCs now ship with DDR5 by default. If you’re concerned with future upgradeability of your system, you should prioritize DDR5. DDR4 is still widely available, but it’s quickly becoming a thing of the past.

Our pick: DDR5

Price of DDR4 vs. DDR5 RAM

A shot of the HP Victus 16 gaming laptop.
Credit: Reviewed / Jackson Ruckar

Laptops and desktops—even those with current-gen processors—ship with either DDR4 or DDR5 RAM.

DDR4 RAM has been around for over a decade and costs about half as much as a DDR5 kit of similar capacity. The Corsair Vengeance memory modules, for instance, cost $46 for 16GB of DDR4 memory and $69 for 16GB of DDR5 memory.

DDR5-compatible motherboards are usually more expensive than DDR4-only ones, but not by much. The DDR4 Asus ROG Strix B760-A motherboard, for example, is about $20 more than a comparable [DDR4 counterpart]https://www.amazon.com/ASUS-TUF-D4-Motherboard-Thunderbolt/dp/B0BG7DY6MT/?tag=rvwfeature-20).

Our pick: DDR4

Is upgrading to DDR5 worth it?

A shot of bejeweled RAM.
Credit: G.Skill

While DDR5 has greater data transfer rates, the best DDR4 modules still have lower latency.

DDR5 is undeniably an improvement over DDR4 for memory bandwidth and capacity. While it used to have more latency and less support than DDR4, that’s changed in two years. Now, DDR5 is simply faster than DDR4, and DDR4 support is being phased out from the latest motherboards and processors. If money isn’t an issue, you should spring for DDR5 memory (remember, you will also need to upgrade your motherboard and processor).

However, DDR4 isn’t obsolete yet. There’s no doubt that there’s more used DDR4-compatible gear available than DDR5-compatible gear, and DDR4’s performance is still great for most tasks. If you’re running into memory bottlenecks on your current machine, try swapping out your DDR4 memory for 32GB or 64GB of memory instead of 8GB or 16GB. Increasing your memory’s bandwidth is going to make a bigger difference than switching to DDR5, and it’s hundreds of dollars cheaper.

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