Is 16 GB enough for gaming?
Posted by youngwunne@reddit | buildapc | View on Reddit | 88 comments
Hey guys, I'm trying to buy a prebuilt PC. It’s 1550€, RX 9070 XT, Ryzen 7 7800X3D, but the only problem is it's only 16 GB of RAM, which they are cheaping out on. They actually are putting in 2x8 gigabytes of RAM, and to put only 1x16, they want €50 for it. To be honest, I don't want to pay 50, so my question is, would 16 GB be enough for me for, let's say, gaming for two years or three? Maybe after that, I get 2x16. What is it enough for gaming right now, whereas I play 1440p and, let's say, Google Chrome with like three tabs, but the games are mostly AAA with optimised or mid settings? I will say I don't like to fully max it out, and maybe Discord calls with friends would it suffer at 16 or no? I'm sorry for these stupid questions. I'm new to PCs and I don't understand many things currently, so any help would be appreciated. Thank you.
That_Reflection8558@reddit
16 GB raim kaise banai jaati Hai
Redgfxr@reddit
Only if you're willing to keep all apps closed every time you game, maybe discord maximum.
trinjrr@reddit
I thing u should buy 32gigs. Is the minimum nowdays and if u can find an offer is better cause now 32 gb cost around 700€ and 16 not that much less
Ecstatic_Guess_2929@reddit
32GB of ram is a recommended start point especially if you want to future proof your build and it also stops latency lag if u have a higher ram for triple A titles
LostTheElectrons@reddit
It's very unlikely that you will have issues with 16GB of RAM, especially since you have the 9070XT with 16GB of VRAM. I wouldn't even be too worried about your PC using up all your RAM because programs will dynamically use more if you have space available.
Obviously if you have a ton of programs open at the same time it could be a problem, but a game+discord+chrome shouldn't have any issues.
youngwunne@reddit (OP)
Alright, thank you so much man!
jamesdroz69@reddit
On the high end if you’re using a bunch of like search engines and software you’ll still probably never top like 8 gb and then mid gaming you will rely on your gpu for the rest
JaidamG7@reddit
Go for 32gb, I have 16gb and its horrible for having a Game open/ chrome few tabs + discord + a movie or something playing
LjLgBjBg@reddit
Why have a movie and a game open at the same time?
JaidamG7@reddit
If im playing WoW and going around gathering herbs/mining/fishing why not watch a movie or TV show on 2nd screen or PiP? Of course playing FPS or pvp games of course not
KillEvilThings@reddit
Because you can?
bean_fritter@reddit
ADHD
grachi@reddit
its weird but lot of younger people seem to do this. I don't understand how you get any value out of either with attention shifting back and forth so much.
Luckyirishdevil@reddit
Play a less demanding game and you can enjoy both. I spent a few years grinding World of Tanks and Starcraft II while watching shows on a 2nd monitor.
I may have given myself ADHD along the way, but it was a good way to pass the time
coolboy856@reddit
Go for 16gb, I have 16gb and it's perfectly fine to have Windows 11, Chrome with 20 tabs, Discord in a call, one OSRS bot instance, and 2 video games all running at the same time
Blabla_9@reddit
I support this, bought a prebuilt with 9070XT and 16GB ram. Noticed some stutters having multiple things open. Upgraded ram to 64GB > no more issues.
Rich_Cap_3926@reddit
with a game, discord and spotify i go over 16gb very often highest ive seen is 24-26gb while playing marvel rivals
Rewynd96@reddit
One of my laptops has 32GB and the other has 16GB, neither one has any issues with ram unless I'm running chrome, discord, and a large game on the 16GB, and that's solved by closing chrome which sucks anyway
LostTheElectrons@reddit
If you have extra RAM available, programs (and Windows) will utilize as much as they can. It's only when you get near the limit when they start optimizing things to conserve RAM usage.
Because of this, it's hard to tell how much RAM you really 'need' for your PC. My PC using about 7.9 GB just sitting at the desktop, but if I only had 8GB of RAM installed I suspect the usage would be about 2GB.
There is a point where it gets too limiting, and of course more RAM is ideal, but in general 16GB is perfectly fine for most applications.
KillEvilThings@reddit
Chrome? You fucking kidding? That shit will stop up modern office computers just being open with 8-12gb.
LostTheElectrons@reddit
Like I mentioned, programs will dynamically change how much ram they use based on what is available. You can also adjust settings within chrome to make it more aggressive at memory saving, at the cost of speed.
16GB is still plenty.
Curious-Progress669@reddit
This is good to know. Me pushing 18gb with windows edge open 😂 made me think. Id need 64 gb of ram soon. Unfortunately I won't be buying anymore ram until the day hopefully comes that we can buy 64gb for under $300 again anyway
Own_Carpet_8233@reddit
Nope, not enough, you need minimum 64gb DDR5
PrettyBaker2891@reddit
yes its fine for 99.9% of games
only some games like tarkov or flight sim will need more than that to run 100% smooth
Mara1984@reddit
And modded games
BlueTorx@reddit
Would 32gigs be a noticable difference? Yes. Is it acceptable especially with pricing right now? Also Yes. I had a 16gigs ddr4 gaming laptop from 2021 - 2024 and from personal experience i would say you are fine for now, but 32gigs is still a difference
Worried-Interview-78@reddit
16GB has been mostly fine for me. The only games I’ve run into RAM issues with have been Marvel Rivals (it wants around 16GB just for itself in my experience) and heavily modded Minecraft (also needs about 16GB-20GB dedicated). Since I wanted to play these specifically, I did have to upgrade to 32GB for the games to be even remotely playable.
Gish_ASide@reddit
Bro I have 64gb and I barely use 10…
KillEvilThings@reddit
16 is fine for discord + game and nothing else open.
bean_fritter@reddit
You will be fine with 16gb, but you should plan to upgrade to 32gb when you can. It really does help with fps spikes and overall system snappiness. In that case, the 1x16 stick might be worth it.
youngwunne@reddit (OP)
How much FPS are we talking, like a drastic difference? Or a couple of percent?
bean_fritter@reddit
It’s not about your average fps, it’s your 1% lows. You know when you’re playing and you feel the game “hitch” for a second? That’s your pc briefly hitting max ram usage. Having more ram makes everything feel smoother.
youngwunne@reddit (OP)
So when I play heavy games, I have to close all the tabs except for the game, I guess. Will it be a problem there?
bean_fritter@reddit
Depends on the game. Some games will gladly sip 16+gb if they can.
Sekaisen@reddit
I would claim that 32 GB is minimum nowadays (though also ironically more than enough).
You might get away with 16 if you treat your PC purely like a console, but most PC users don't do that.
Benphyre@reddit
16GB is enough for gaming, a few chrome tabs and discord.
Prash7738@reddit
I also built a 5070ti pc and because of the ram prices i have to compromise and bought only 16gb ddr5 ram single stick, but i think most recent AAA also don't need more than 16gb even in 2k resolution, but when ram prices will go down i will buy one more 16gb stick.
templardin@reddit
I am in the process of testing various games with an extra rig I have lying around. My impressions so far are that you can easily game with just 16 gigs of ram.
The most demanding games I've tried are Hogwarts Legacy, Warhammer 40k: Space Marine 2 and Cyberpunk 2077. I had zero issues with them, played each for about 30-60 minutes using various resolutions using the highest settings.
Other games I tested (since I am running benchmarks for my yt channel and tech blog) are Marvel Rivals, Fortnite, RDR2 and Witcher 3. I had zero issues in all of these games.
Once you get the PC, increase its default virtual memory so there's plenty once the RAM is full.
Btw my test rig is much weaker than your PC, i5 14400f, 16 gigs of ddr4 3200mt/s at cl16 with intel arc b580 so yours is going to eat through anything you throw at it :)
youngwunne@reddit (OP)
That's pretty cool man and yes I will also like to play those triple AAA games like red dead redemption 2 cyberpunk days gone the last of us, etc. And also send me the link to your YouTube channel. I want to support you
broken_soul696@reddit
To back up what the other commenter said here, I have 32gb and the only time I'm over 16gb used while gaming is when I'm doing a racing sim with a full endurance field of 60+ cars and it's raining. 16gb is definitely fine for the greatest majority of games
templardin@reddit
Thank you for that. I am just learning the ropes so please don't mind the quality of my video and audio :)
https://youtube.com/@techalphascom?si=_DHP6-BNjrybNRg9
I also have a couple of blog posts published over at techalphas.com, but it's all work in progress since I do have a full time job and two small kids 😅
leunames@reddit
Yes, if you're just playing games they're enough, but if you have other applications open I suppose not.
Joezev98@reddit
How Much RAM Do Gamers Need, 2x8 16GB vs. 2x16 32GB vs. 2x32 64GB
Tl/DW: 8GB is surprisingly usable still in less demanding titles. 16GB is absolutely worth it. 32GB offers small gains in some games. IMO, 32GB was worth it when it was dirt cheap, but not anymore.
youngwunne@reddit (OP)
Yes, I have also seen this video. I might be all right for a couple of years, but then I will have to upgrade.
popop143@reddit
I doubt you'd have to upgrade. There are still very few games that saturate 16GB RAM. Unless you play the titles that gobble up RAM like Ark or Flight Simulator I think, where 64 or even 128 GB is recommended.
SmokeSnake@reddit
Not really. 32 gb is not even saturated when I am doing 4k transcoding AND playing.
What you miggt need to do, is to close unnecessary apps.
Like don't have 4 launchers running. :)
Jhoonis@reddit
Depends heavily on the game.
Some of the current AAA games are already asking 16gb of RAM to run the game alone, if you have 16gb total for the whole system, something is gonna go hungry.
For instance, I tried playing Dune Awakening with only 16gb of RAM and for a while it was fine, after one of the updates my game started chugging like crazy and the fps drops made it unplayable.
Raveofthe90s@reddit
You'll be severely neutered by running single channel though. Your performance will be drastically less than the published benchmarks.
youngwunne@reddit (OP)
Can you please elaborate on that? I don't really get it.
Raveofthe90s@reddit
You need two sticks of ram, no matter the size to get full memory bandwidth. Otherwise you get not half but like 70% of the memory bandwidth.
Freeloader_@reddit
thats no longer true with DDR5 right ?
VoidNinja62@reddit
Correct single channel DDR5 isn't bad.
Raveofthe90s@reddit
It isn't good either.
Raveofthe90s@reddit
It's still true. 2 sticks is still technically double the theoretical bandwidth.
youngwunne@reddit (OP)
Oh, all right, so would you suggest I get the 2x8GB of RAM instead of 1x16GB right now?
Raveofthe90s@reddit
If your going to rock it a long time. If only a few months no.
InnoVisionGames@reddit
If you're predominantly gaming you should be fine.
If you're compiling a lot of code or doing something like video editing then maybe it'd be questionable.
ComprehensiveCow5068@reddit
2x8 is way better than 1x16 but I can say that downgrading from 64gb to 16gb felt off when having multiple tabs open but it's not that bad if you don't use any creative software or rendering, its like someone going from a 240hz monitor to 144hz
thematty99@reddit
You should generally be more than fine with 16GB. The problem is that games coming out now are already approaching 16GB, and in a few years they'll exceed that... (hopefully prices will drop before that happens).
Zapador@reddit
It's alright. Some games might like a little more but most games actually run just fine with 16 GB as long as you keep things running in the background to a minimum.
Here's some actual numbers: https://www.techspot.com/review/2852-how-much-ram/
hyperactivedog@reddit
Slap in 1-2 16gb optane sticks off eBay (or one 32gb) and use it as page file. It cuts down many of the down sides of not enough ram
youngwunne@reddit (OP)
What are Optane sticks? Never heard of them. How do you even use them, and what are they for?
hyperactivedog@reddit
They're a failed experiment by Intel. The cheapest sticks are $5-30 on ebay and slot into nvme m.2 slots and they operate like a nand SSD. Their access time is 10-100x faster than nand though so in some ways they're ram like. Intel couldn't get their manufacturing costs low enough and basically lost tons of money on them before giving up. They're great for page file though.
https://www.reddit.com/r/photogrammetry/comments/gdifmf/optane_is_great_as_virtual_ram/
Ltt also did a video on this. Basically 4gb ram+optane = usable while only 4gb ram = unusable.
I expect that 16gb ram + 16/32gb optane will get you most of the way to "solid" for the short to mid term.
It's around $10 for a 16gb stick shipped so even if it's not a great fit for you it's not a big loss.
Destructo-Bear@reddit
This is very cool and super interesting
Dancing-Wind@reddit
for most games 16gb will be plenty. for some you will have to shutdown bg apps. are there games or game modes that require more ram? But those are usually clearly labeled as such
current consoles have 16gb hybrid memory so under 16gb is the target for devs. and of course since it seems at least next 2 years ram will be unobtanium (baring ai bubble burst) game devs will optimize the games to use less ram
berthela@reddit
I like 32GB RAM and 16GB VRAM
wokecycles@reddit
Short answer yes
Long answer anyone that says otherwise is an idiot unless you're running 3500 mods in Skyrim and have a million chrome tabs open you'll be just fine
9okm@reddit
If you're careful about not having a lot of crap running in the background, it's generally OK.
Keep in mind 3 tabs of chrome can take like 2gb.
youngwunne@reddit (OP)
I mean, not really. Opened apps would be mostly one game, 1-2 tabs open, and Discord, but with no camera.
9okm@reddit
I'm not sure what you're responding to.
youngwunne@reddit (OP)
I should have worded it better. I meant that I won't have a lot of crap running in the background. I will close most of the tabs, but keep some open.
9okm@reddit
Ah fair enough! Yeah I mean it's not a big deal. Just something to keep in mind.
youngwunne@reddit (OP)
I'm really getting mixed opinions on this, so I'm not even sure anymore, lol.
9okm@reddit
You're getting mixed opinions because it's not an easy yes/no. It depends. Some people have had issues because of the types of games they play, at certain resolutions and quality settings, and with varying types of background apps running. Others haven't.
youngwunne@reddit (OP)
I guess I have to try myself. I have no other choice left. Like the other guy said, try it. If it's not enough, return it.
Yaanissh@reddit
On windows No! On Linux Yes!
youngwunne@reddit (OP)
I will never download Linux. It’s like a labyrinth too complicated, especially since I'm new to PCs. Headache.
PrettyBaker2891@reddit
im on 16gb and never had issues on windows lol
Powerful-Ad2869@reddit
Getting anything above 16GB is perfectly fine
That being said, i play WoW (The War Within), opened Chrome and Discord on my 2nd monitor with 0 problems on a 16GB ddr4 RAM
16GB is still more than enough for 90% of games
and it will still be all you need for many years to come especially if you play games like LoL,Dota2,WoW,Counter Strike, Pubg ,Fortnite ,Valorant and other competitve titles.
youngwunne@reddit (OP)
No, I mostly play story games really, so triple AAA games like Red Dead Redemption 2, Days Gone, God of War, Cyberpunk, The Last of Us, etc.
GamerDadofAntiquity@reddit
Most games you’ll be fine. If you’re using Windows 11 it’ll get tight on some newer titles and you may have to go through and close background processes though. Some people were saying Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 started having issues after they updated to Windows 11 so I went and checked my usage. I have 32GB (since well before the RAMpocalypse) and with the game running I was seeing between 49 and 56% usage with nothing else but the Steam Client and all the various Windows processes running… Never bothered to check usage with Windows 10 though so I can’t compare them. Also worth noting that I have 12GB of VRAM so none of my RAM usage should have come from GPU overflow.
I would just say to beware of any games that say they have a minimum RAM spec of 16GB and you’ll probably be alright.
CanPacific@reddit
meh
burnabagel@reddit
16gb is good only if you are gaming. If you have other stuff 32gb is recommended
Blue-150@reddit
For now its fine, just don't open too many things
bassbeater@reddit
My older rig runs pretty much any game I load on 16gb ram. I think the prediction of escalating system ram requirements are overblown even though on my new one I doubled.
PeejPrime@reddit
16Gb is absolutely fine.
If it's of any great concern a couple years down the line you can always purchase 32gb in two stick format.
But you'll find the vast majority of folk run 16Gb and some even just 8Gb of ram
AwayReplacement7063@reddit
If you just game, yes. 16GB is fine. It’ll be fine for a while.
Front_Society1353@reddit
Yes