PC Memory Crunch Reshapes 2026 Market: What Buyers Should Know About Storage Constraints

The PC industry faces unprecedented challenges as memory constraints emerge as a critical market driver. Following a strong finish in 2025, when fourth-quarter shipments climbed 9.6% year-over-year to 76.4 million units according to IDC data, the outlook for PC memory availability and pricing has shifted dramatically. As artificial intelligence (AI) continues to consume vast quantities of memory resources, consumers and manufacturers alike face mounting pressure regarding how to get more memory on PCs while managing escalating costs.

How Memory Demand from AI Is Remaking PC Manufacturing

The explosive expansion of AI systems has fundamentally altered memory production priorities. Memory manufacturers are dramatically reshaping their capacity allocation, redirecting DRAM and NAND components away from consumer laptops and desktops toward high-profit AI servers and data centers. This strategic pivot reflects the sheer magnitude of memory consumption required by AI workloads—far exceeding traditional computing demands.

The ripple effects are already visible. With memory accounting for a substantial portion of total PC build costs, manufacturers face shrinking margins. Lenovo, HP, Dell, ASUS, and Acer have all signaled incoming price increases as 2026 progresses, reflecting industry-wide supply pressures. For consumers asking how to get more memory on PC without paying premium prices, the timing couldn’t be worse.

IDC’s December 18, 2025 analysis warned that this capacity reallocation signals a fundamental shift in the computing ecosystem. As AI infrastructure commands priority access to memory supplies, getting more memory on PC becomes increasingly expensive and competitive.

Q4 2025 Performance: Strong Close Before the Storm

Despite approaching headwinds, the PC market delivered impressive results in Q4 2025. The 9.6% year-over-year shipment increase marked the ninth consecutive quarter of growth, driven largely by holiday demand and pre-emptive stockpiling ahead of anticipated price increases.

Market leadership remained concentrated among established players. Lenovo strengthened its dominance with 19.3 million shipments and a 25.3% market share, up from 24.2% in the prior-year quarter. HP Inc. followed with 15.4 million units and 20.1% market share, gaining ground from 19.7%. Dell Technologies posted the strongest growth at 18.2%, reaching 11.7 million units and expanding market share from 14.2% to 15.3%.

However, Apple’s performance disappointed, with shipments growing only 0.2% to 7.1 million units. The company’s market share contracted from 10.2% to 9.3%, suggesting that even premium positioning cannot insulate from broader market dynamics. ASUS demonstrated resilience with 10.9% growth to capture 7.1% market share, while smaller manufacturers categorized as “Others” saw collective growth of 1.5%, indicating market consolidation toward larger, well-capitalized players.

Memory Constraints and the Path Forward: IDC’s 2026 Outlook

The industry enters 2026 with material uncertainty. IDC projects overall PC shipments will decline year-over-year, with a moderate scenario forecasting a 4.9% contraction and a pessimistic scenario projecting an 8.9% decline. The primary culprit: insufficient memory supply for consumer PCs.

This environment creates a bifurcated market. Large manufacturers with superior supply chain access and negotiating power—Lenovo, HP, Dell, Apple, and ASUS—possess significant competitive advantages. Their scale enables more reliable access to constrained memory supplies, allowing them to maintain product availability while smaller competitors struggle to source components.

Paradoxically, reduced shipment volumes may coexist with increased market value. By shifting toward mid-range and premium systems, vendors can protect profit margins despite unit declines. Consumers seeking to get more memory on PC may find that purchasing mid-tier systems—which increasingly include higher standard memory configurations—offers better long-term value than base models that may require costly upgrades.

What Rising Memory Costs Mean for PC Buyers

For consumers navigating this landscape, the implications are significant. Memory supply tightness directly impacts PC affordability and upgrade options. As memory prices climb, manufacturers face difficult choices about absorbing costs versus passing them to buyers. Several major brands have already indicated that meaningful price hikes are likely throughout 2026.

This supply-constrained environment reshapes how buyers should approach PC purchases. Rather than purchasing entry-level systems expecting affordable future upgrades, consumers should consider purchasing systems with more memory installed upfront. The cost differential between adding memory during initial purchase versus retrofitting later could widen substantially as shortage conditions persist.

Conclusion

The PC market’s strong 2025 close provides modest relief, but memory constraints loom as the defining challenge for 2026. Buyers seeking to get more memory on PC should act strategically, recognizing that availability and pricing will likely deteriorate as the year progresses. Large, established PC manufacturers possess structural advantages in navigating these constraints, while consumers benefit from purchasing decisions that frontload memory upgrades rather than postponing them. The intersection of AI demand, constrained supply, and shifting consumer preferences will ultimately determine both the volume and value trajectory of the PC market throughout 2026.