MacBooks Are the Latest Victim of the Memory Shortage. Here's Why Laptop Prices Keep Rising

<p>Gone shopping for a new <a href="https://www.pcmag.com/picks/the-best-laptops" target="_self">laptop</a> recently? It's not your imagination; prices are <em>up</em>. Memory and storage prices have exploded since the second half of 2025, and we're nearly a year into this mess. Everything with memory in it or on it, from <a href="https://www.pcmag.com/news/framework-hikes-price-of-ddr5-ram-in-modular-laptops-by-50" target="_self">complete PCs</a> to components such as graphics cards, has spiked in cost, inflating PC prices. (Apple is the latest company to announce <a href="https://www.pcmag.com/news/apple-raises-prices-across-its-lineup-including-macbook-neo-ipads" target="_self">significant price increases</a> to its lineup of laptops, desktops, and iPads.)<strong> </strong></p><p>Strap in, because top-level memory makers like <a href="https://www.pcmag.com/news/a-leading-supplier-warns-memory-shortage-to-last-until-2030" target="_self">SK Hynix</a> see this crisis lasting through 2030. That's a long time to weather these skyrocketing prices. (Hey, it's even inspired some particularly resourceful engineers to <a href="https://www.pcmag.com/news/youtuber-tackles-the-ram-crisis-by-making-it-himself-in-a-home-clean-room" target="_self">make their own RAM</a>.) No device that relies on memory modules to function is safe.</p><p>As one of PCMag's lead hardware writers, I've been tracking the issue and digging into how we got here. I've been testing PCs and keeping up with their pricing for more than 15 years now, and I'm confident in predicting that the next year or more will be tough for buying a new laptop. The same models that you know are still available and receiving the usual revisions, but almost all of them are pricier than last year. Here's why.</p><div class="mb-0 rounded-md bg-gray-100 p-3 md:p-5" id="related-video">