According to the September 2026 Steam Hardware Survey, 32GB has become the most common RAM configuration among surveyed gaming PCs, at 42.22%. That is a 4.77% increase from the previous month, while 16GB dropped 3.38% to 37.82%. The shift comes despite an ongoing memory chip shortage.
Smaller but notable gains appeared in less standard capacities: 24GB rose to 2.56% and 48GB to 1.46%. The trend aligns with growing memory demands in games; Minecraft, for example, raised its recommended memory to 16GB this year. Microsoft had earlier called 16GB a practical starting point and 32GB a future-proof choice for gaming, though it later removed that guidance.
The survey also shows AMD continuing to gain ground on Intel. AMD's overall Steam share reached 48.37%, its highest this year, versus Intel's 51.63%. Among Linux users, AMD is far ahead at 66.18%. The survey is not scientific, but with Steam peaking above 38 million concurrent players, it offers a useful snapshot of the gaming PC market.