Is 8GB of RAM Enough for a Mac in 2024?

[Egk]

Here are some comparisons in Norway:

• MBA M2 base: 13 990 NOK (approx. 1336 USD) vs 1074 with highest sales tax (California)
  • Norway has a 25% sales tax > making the base price of 999 USD become 1249 USD
  • 87 dollars difference or 7% more (not that bad)
• upgrades in Norway are typically 3000 NOK vs 200 (or 215 with sales tax) USD
  • 3000 NOK = approx 286 dollars
  • 71 dollars difference or 33% more
• upgrades accumulate, so I end up paying 33%, 66%, 100% more in Norway compared to the US

8GB as a standard is fine and I don't mind it, the same with 256GB, my parents would never need anything else.

Upgrade pricing is insane and hurts so much more in Norway, even with Norwegian economy where food prices etc. has surged the last couple of years (almost doubled in some cases).

The only consolation is the longevity of the hardware itself. I still have a MBP M1 and I probably won't upgrade until M4 or M5, maybe not even then. I would consider upgrading more frequently if the upgrade prices were sane. Paying so much extra each time makes CPU and GPU upgrades almost trivial because half (or more) of the total cost comes from additional upgrades.

 

[longofest]

I disagree with all of this. Even for "consumers" I would recommend 16GB. Most websites hog tons of RAM, and many "consumers" love to open 50+ tabs all at the same time.

Apple still offering 8GB at the base model is insane.

 

[bzgnyc2]

I've evolved on this this. 8GB would be fine for everyday tasks if Apple got MacOSX down to Mojave-level RAM efficiency -- or ideally the mythical Snow Leopard.

Why do we need 16GB of RAM when a 1GHz G4 ran the same OS and the same applications in 512MB of RAM? Bloat. There are new applications with legitimate uses for more memory but we should fight the bloat on the rest.

In the meantime, I get 16GB minimum in anything non-upgradable (i.e. all current Macs). I recommend the same even for students.

 

[Ludatyk]

This argument keeps going on and on… Is 8GB enough? Yes. The issue is the cost attached to it… if Apple priced their Macs appropriately, there wouldn’t be much of a debate.

For instance… if Apple shaved off $500 and users could get a M3 MBP for 1099, then I highly doubt articles like this would continue. Because if users want Apple to start at 16GB RAM… then they would ultimately charge more. As it currently stands now… M3 MBP 16GB RAM will start at $1800.

And then the question would be why does it cost that much… when that should be the argument all along.

 

[macos9rules]

I was quietly optimistic 8GB would be sufficient when I persuaded work to buy me an 8GB M2 MBA, it would mainly be email, web browsing and some light productivity work.
Unfortunately with Outlook, Chrome (~5 tabs), Slack, Teams and maybe a small excel spreadsheet open, we're in trouble.
I would consider this light usage but I could no longer endorse an 8GB machine for even light work use.
I mean, just look at that swap 😰
View attachment 2357870

If you're in yellow, it's perfectly fine. Check the video below. It's the best explanation of memory pressure and RAM on Mac: https://macmost.com/memory-pressure-and-how-your-mac-uses-memory.html

 

[sracer]

Maybe if all you do is surf the web. 8GB of ram is absolutely not enough for mostly everyone else.

That is quite a bit of hyperbole. I have an M2 Mac Mini w/8GB RAM and 256GB storage and I'm able to do quite a bit that goes beyond just surfing the web.

I work from home so I daily have: a remote desktop client, Audacity processing audio, iMovie rendering videos, Pixelmator cleaning up images, and MS Word open with the document of the day... all running simultaneously things are working smoothly. That doesn't include having a web browser open, Joplin notes, and e-Sword software as well.

Those who have followed my exploits in the other operating systems sub-forum will confirm that this base model is even capable of running virtual machines.

I have a 1TB external SSD for my files and an other 1TB in the dock/base for Time Machine.

But quite a few Apple advocates engage in FOMO (fear of missing out) as in: fear of not having enough RAM or storage. That's great for Apple's bottom line, but does a disservice to people who don't need the extra RAM.

IMO, the "problem" isn't that the base model comes with 8GB RAM... it is the $200 upcharge to go from 8 to 16. (and other $200 upcharges that quickly add up)

For the last 4-5 years, the best tech bargains have been Apple's base offerings. The $450 I paid for my M2 Mac Mini was money well-spent. To spend $850 for a 16GB/512GB model... not so much.

As for how to respond to Apple's pricing structure? Don't play the game. If the base model is insufficient, then go with a non-Apple competitor. What incentive does Apple have to do anything differently if people complain about the base model but then fork over those $200 increments for increased RAM and storage?

Apple doesn't care about consumer complaints as long as at the end of the day, the consumer gives them more money.

 

[Closingracer]

People really need to stop justifying 8GB of Memory in a laptop that starts at $999 in 2024. Will it work? yes but that shouldn't give Apple a pass to let it keep doing it. 16GB should be the min but the very least Apple can do is give us 12GB.

 

[ajfahey]

8 GB is enough for many users just browsing, watching video and playing music and doing some school work. Other users may choose to increase the memory and the disk size.

You just defined the market for iPads.

 

[brijazz]

Pretty surprised how little actual useful content is in this article. No technical discussion, just another article about how 8GB “feels wrong”

Exactly.

My understanding is that Apple's architecture makes a smaller amount of RAM more useful than it might be on another system - like how a better car is going to make more of its horsepower than a crappy one, I'd assume.

But I'd love to see something more comprehensive than "8GB is good for light use, 16GB is better for heavy use".

 

[heeven]

This article is incorrect. The Macbook Pro did not debut with 8GB RAM. Apple gave the MBP 8GB base with the mid-2014 refresh - I remember, because that’s when I bought my laptop.

 

[ajfahey]

8 GB is fine if all you do is browse the web, check email and work on documents and spreadsheets. But if that’s all you’re gonna do Macs are waaaaay too expensive and you’d be better off buying a cheap Windows mini PC or a Chromebook for 1/2 the price

Or an iPad.

 

[Closingracer]

That is quite a bit of hyperbole. I have an M2 Mac Mini w/8GB RAM and 256GB storage and I'm able to do quite a bit that goes beyond just surfing the web.

I work from home so I daily have: a remote desktop client, Audacity processing audio, iMovie rendering videos, Pixelmator cleaning up images, and MS Word open with the document of the day... all running simultaneously things are working smoothly. That doesn't include having a web browser open, Joplin notes, and e-Sword software as well.

Those who have followed my exploits in the other operating systems sub-forum will confirm that this base model is even capable of running virtual machines.

I have a 1TB external SSD for my files and an other 1TB in the dock/base for Time Machine.

But quite a few Apple advocates engage in FOMO (fear of missing out) as in: fear of not having enough RAM or storage. That's great for Apple's bottom line, but does a disservice to people who don't need the extra RAM.

IMO, the "problem" isn't that the base model comes with 8GB RAM... it is the $200 upcharge to go from 8 to 16. (and other $200 upcharges that quickly add up)

For the last 4-5 years, the best tech bargains have been Apple's base offerings. The $450 I paid for my M2 Mac Mini was money well-spent. To spend $850 for a 16GB/512GB model... not so much.

As for how to respond to Apple's pricing structure? Don't play the game. If the base model is insufficient, then go with a non-Apple competitor. What incentive does Apple have to do anything differently if people complain about the base model but then fork over those $200 increments for increased RAM and storage?

Apple doesn't care about consumer complaints as long as at the end of the day, the consumer gives them more money.

I would do that. I had tried using ASUS zenbook 14 and while was a great machine with that OLED screen 16GB of RAM, intel i7 13th gen processor the battery life and screen brightness wasn't enough. The battery would be lucky to get 7-8 hours and the screen topped off at 500 nits for HDR while SDR was around 400.

Also plenty of people just rather deal with MacOS than windows. I personally use both but I needed a laptop that lasts a while and great screen.

 

[JamieLannister]

This is a non story issue. Those that don’t understand computer memory will never question this especially from an Apple product because they don’t care. If you need more buy a model with more. It’s not like Apple only has an 8GB model for sale. You’re just complaining about the costs. Which is literally the difference of eating out and tipping a few times a week. All the complaints stem from lack of funds. You ball with Apple you have to have the cash. Otherwise stick to your garbage PC.

 

[Eric_WVGG]

Another unpopular opinion here.

I'm working as a pro on a M1 Mac with 8GB of RAM. It does way more than surfing the web and office work, it works with tons of tabs while playing video streams, while using Photoshop, Affinity suite, Figma with hundred of complex frames open, Final Cut Pro rendering 4k streams and much more. And it does so without a hiccup, steadily, daily, since 2022, no spinning wheels at all, no lags, nothing. And I'm the person that likes to be quick and to have a responsive machine. Seriously!

Same. I hopped on an M1 Air with 8gb because my 2016 Touchbar was failing and couldn't wait for the M1 Pro. It was fine for basic web dev and even light XCode.

That said, I have a friend who is replacing her 11" Air this month, and I'm urging her to go with 16gb — simply because she kept her last laptop for about eight years, and expects this laptop to have a similar life.

So I'm of two minds about the whole thing. Yes, 8gb is enough for most people. No, Apple should not be selling laptops with 8gb. RAM is not expensive, this is miserly behavior.

 

[attohs]

"Any headline that ends in a question mark can be answered by the word no."

Betteridge's law of headlines - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[uller6]

8gb "works", but I mean jesus, the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max have 8gb ram. Shouldn't the laptops have at least 12gb?

I think many people do more demanding things on their phones than on their computers.

 

[EugW]

If you're in yellow, it's perfectly fine.

 

[Closingracer]

This is a non story issue. Those that don’t understand computer memory will never question this especially from an Apple product because they don’t care. If you need more buy a model with more. It’s not like Apple only has an 8GB model for sale. You’re just complaining about the costs. Which is literally the difference of eating out and tipping a few times a week. All the complaints stem from lack of funds. You ball with Apple you have to have the cash. Otherwise stick to your garbage PC.

LOL... Stop looking down on people FR. No laptop should come with 8GB of RAM period in 2024. Apple knows people will spend that $200.

 

[TechRunner]

As others have said, know your needs and purchase accordingly. When I bought my M1 Mini 8/256 in November 2020 I knew it would take care of my very basic needs, and it has done so very well.

However, I'm considering buying a full frame mirrorless camera and getting back into photography, so I'm looking at purchasing a minimum of 16GB for my next Mac because of the overhead required by most photo editing software programs.

 

[uller6]

I bought my 2015 Macbook Pro for about $1800 back in 2016 with 16GB of RAM. Now in 2024, 6 years later, I can buy a 2024 Macbook Pro for $1800 with 8GB of RAM.

I'm amazed Apple have gotten away with it for this long.

I bought a 4 GHz pentium 4 in 2006 and yet Apple sells a 4 GHz M3 chip in 2024! Why are these frequencies the same?!

 

[Closingracer]

View attachment 2357880

Yeah if you're using 71GB of Swap that's an issue idc about the memory pressure lol.

 

[Closingracer]

As others have said, know your needs and purchase accordingly. When I bought my M1 Mini 8/256 in November 2020 I knew it would take care of my very basic needs, and it has done so very well.

However, I'm considering buying a full frame mirrorless camera and getting back into photography, so I'm looking at purchasing a minimum of 16GB for my next Mac because of the overhead required by most photo editing software programs.

That's the problem. You shouldn't focus on what you need now but what you might want to use it for in the next few years. I am not spending $1000+ on a laptop for only using it for 2-3 yrs. its the principle of the fact Apple should give us 12GB min of storage in 2024

 

[Remy149]

Apple stopped being consumer friendly it seems.

Apple computers are cheaper now then any point in the company history I wish there was a $1,0000 Mac when I was in college.

 

[Lakersfan74]

Not enough for what you pay especially the base Pro model. I don’t care if there is an option to upgrade I won’t pay any more than $1300 for 16/512 MacBook Pro. So I’m going without.

 

[JamieLannister]

Many of you sit around all day looking at your memory pressure. Seriously just use the machine and if it starts to get sluggish then either buy a better spec model or get a PC and upgrade yourself. The complaints about ram isn’t going to stop Apple from selling to others.