# Upgrading a slow computer

## #1: RAM up to 8GB

4GB (or less!) just doesn't cut it these days. See if you can't buy an 8GB stick if your computer is upgradeable, or pay a shop a nominal fee to do so for you.

Desktop DDR4 (288-pin): [G.SKILL Ripjaws 8GB DDR4 3600](https://www.newegg.com/g-skill-8gb-288-pin-ddr4-sdram/p/N82E16820232735)
Laptop DDR4 SO-DIMM (260-pin): [G.SKILL Ripjaws 8GB DDR4 3200](https://www.newegg.com/g-skill-8gb-260-pin-ddr4-so-dimm/p/N82E16820374026)

## #2: SSD, if you don't have one

Before anything else, if your harddrive has RPMs, you deserve better. An SSD drive is the #1 biggest upgrade you can make, and it's easy, too.

### External USB SSD: [Samsung T5](https://www.newegg.com/samsung-t5-500gb/p/N82E16820147643) ($90 for 500GB, $130 for 1TB)

If you can't easily open up your computer to install a new internal drive, or just don't feel confident doing so, just go buy this: Today it's about $95. The 1TB version is only $130 if you're anxious about space, but at this level you're probably better off spending that $35 elsewhere.

USB drives do work your CPU harder than internal drives, but the speed-ups you'll get over a non-SSD are overwhelmingly worth it.

### Internal SATA SSD: [Samsung 860 EVO 500GB](https://www.newegg.com/samsung-860-evo-series-500gb/p/N82E16820147674) ($60 for 500GB, $130 for 1TB)

Alternate: [WD Blue 500GB SATA](https://www.newegg.com/western-digital-blue-1tb/p/N82E16820250088?Item=9SIAN0MBAR0808) ($60 for 500GB, $100 for 1TB)

These are usually cheaper than external drives, and they are less taxing for your CPU, too.

### Internal M2 SSD: [Western Digital WD Blue SN550 NVMe M.2 2280](https://www.newegg.com/western-digital-blue-sn550-nvme-1tb/p/N82E16820250135) ($60 for 500GB, $110 for 1TB)

It's unlikely that your computer is really slow *and* it supports M2 sticks, *and* it doesn't already have an SSD, but here's my budget suggestion.

Generally speaking, games don't see much benefit from M2 (NVME) SSDs vs their on-paper-slower SATA brethren, even at load time. Sure, they can read data faster, but your CPU can't usually process data that much faster than SATA can supply it. Photo and video editing is the main workload that benefits from NVME drives.

## #3: RAM up to 16GB

It's not that much more expensive to get 16GB instead of 8GB, usually a matter of just adding another 8GB stick.

With 16GB you will never run low on memory, and RAM will practically never be your problem. Open as many tabs in Chrome or Firefox as you want. My Firefox is currently using north of 4GB for my hundreds of tabs, but with 16GB it just doesn't matter. If a game uses 3-4GB too, 8GB will hitch and crawl. With 16GB, you won't have to worry about it for years.

What should you buy? Either a second stick from my 8GB recommendations, or, if your laptop has only one replaceable slot, the 16GB stick version.

Don't worry too much about dual-channel. It's a nice to have, but merely having *enough* RAM is far more important. You will generally not be able to feel the difference between dual-channel and single-channel. If you don't know what dual-channel is, *really* don't worry about it.

## #4: GPU, if Cryptocurrency mining hasn't sent prices to the moon

If you play only basic games, or don't game at all, you can totally get away with no GPU at all! (WoW will run ok on any CPU-integrated GPU)

If you have a laptop, ignore this step.

If you're into graphically-intense gaming, I have bad news.

*Unfortunately*, GPUs are impossibly expensive right now, both due to constrained supply (manufacturing shortages) and extreme demand (for Cryptocurrency mining).
As such, **I literally cannot recommend buying a GPU at this time**.

The go-to budget cards are the Radeon RX 580 (current lowest price: $400, MSRP: $230) and the GeForce GTX 1650 SUPER (current lowest price: $550, MSRP: $160). These are outrageous, but that's where we're at.

## #5: CPU

If you have a laptop, this means buying a new laptop. (or diving into the world of desktops)

You will almost certainly need to buy a new motherboard too, so keep $80-100 set aside for a decent motherboard.

If you just game, four cores is fine today, but questionable in a year or two. If you're future-proofing, something 6-core or higher is nice.

If you compile code, transcode video, stream, or do other CPU-intensive things, buy more cores. Your life is just better with more cores. (Ok but don't buy a Threadripper unless you really have money to burn)

## #6: GPU, even if Cryptocurrency mining has sent GPU prices to the moon

Sometimes, you just need to buy a better one. If you play graphically intensive games, most of your budget should go to your GPU.

I'm not even going to bother listing what I would normally recommend based on performance-per-MSRP, since MSRP is completely hypothetical at this point.

## Also: Consider replacing the whole computer

Pre-built desktops and laptops can be shockingly affordable, and they Just Work. Price it out, and make sure it's not actually cheaper just to replace your computer entirely.