loading
loading
Memory shortages drive Raspberry Pi prices up by up to 23% — escalating LPDDR4, LPDDR5 costs trigger the third price hike of the year After raising prices on some Raspberry Pi models in April, the company is back with a second round of price hikes. Citing the ongoing rise in memory prices, this time, the 2GB versions of the Raspberry Pi 4 and Raspberry Pi 5 are the stars of the show, with price increases of up to 23%. The Raspberry Pi 5 2GB and Raspberry Pi 4 2GB initially dodged the bullet when price hikes hit the other models in April. However, given the ongoing price adjustments, it was inevitable that these models would also see a price increase. The ongoing shortage of LPDDR4 and LPDDR5 memory is not improving, as global demand has remained steady and supply remains too low. The cost of producing Raspberry Pi continues to climb, and price hikes are unavoidable. The Raspberry Pi 5 2GB launched two years ago at an attractive price of $50. The device gradually increased in price and eventually stabilized at $65 for an extended period. Despite efforts to keep costs low, Raspberry Pi CEO Eben Upton recently confirmed that maintaining the previous pricing for lower-capacity models is no longer feasible. The Raspberry Pi 5 2GB will now sell at $77.50, a 19% increase over the previous price. Over its lifetime, the Raspberry Pi 5 2GB has increased by 55% from its original launch MSRP. Raspberry Pi 4 and Raspberry Pi 5 Pricing The Raspberry Pi 4 2GB is now set to follow in the footsteps of its successor. When the Raspberry Pi 4 2GB was first introduced, it launched at a competitive price of $45, which was later reduced to $35 as memory prices fell. Before the most recent round of price hikes, the single-board computer had reached $55. Following the latest price adjustments, the cost of the Raspberry Pi 4 2GB jumps to $67.50, a 23% increase. In retrospect, users are paying 50% more than the original launch price or a staggering 93% more than the lowest adjusted price, depending on the reference point. Logically, the highest-memory-capacity models suffered the most across 2026. Models such as the Raspberry Pi 5 16GB, Raspberry Pi 5 8GB, and Raspberry Pi 4 8GB have posted staggering price hikes up to 83%, 63%, and 53%, respectively, compared to their original MSRPs. Raspberry Pi has frozen pricing for the 1GB models at MSRP, but it remains to be seen how much longer the company can sustain this. If memory is the most expensive component on the Raspberry Pi, one intriguing solution might be for the company to offer a barebones version of the single-board computer. A DIY variant could appeal to hardware enthusiasts with the skills to solder their own memory to the board. Offering an official barebones SKU could alleviate some pricing pressures. However, Raspberry Pi’s most recent firmware updates have effectively ruled out this path by locking devices to their official factory capacities. Follow Tom's Hardware on Google News, or add us as a preferred source, to get our latest news, analysis, & reviews in your feeds. Get Tom's Hardware's best news and in-depth reviews, straight to your inbox. Zhiye Liu is a news editor, memory reviewer, and SSD tester at Tom’s Hardware. Although he loves everything that’s hardware, he has a soft spot for CPUs, GPUs, and RAM.
document fetched 2026-10-03 02:54 · canonical https://tomshardware.com/raspberry-pi/component-shortages-drive-raspberry-pi-prices-up-by-up-to-23-percent-escalating-lpddr4-lpddr5-costs-trigger-the-third-price-hike-of-the-year