Buying guide

8GB vs 16GB vs 32GB RAM

8GBOnly for light browsing, documents and very cheap laptops. Avoid for heavy multitasking if the RAM is not upgradeable.
16GBThe best default for most students, home-office users and MacBook buyers. It keeps the laptop useful for longer.
32GBWorth considering for gaming, development, video/photo work, virtual machines and heavy browser/app multitasking.

For Apple Silicon MacBooks, unified memory cannot be upgraded later. A discounted 16GB MacBook is usually more interesting than a slightly cheaper 8GB model.