1GB Raspberry Pi 5 now available at $45, and memory-driven price rises
At Raspberry Pi, our mission is to put high-performance, low-cost, general-purpose computers in the hands of people all over the world. For me, the crucial element of that sentence is low-cost. Over the years we’ve worked hard to hold down the prices of our single-board computers – at $35, a 1GB Raspberry Pi 4 costs the same as a 256MB Raspberry Pi 1 from 2012 – and to introduce new products at ever lower price points, from the $10 Raspberry Pi Zero to the $4 Raspberry Pi Pico.
But today, to offset the recent unprecedented rise in the cost of LPDDR4 memory, we are announcing price increases to some Raspberry Pi 4 and 5 products. These largely mirror the increases that we announced in October for our Compute Module products, and will help us to secure memory supplies as we navigate an increasingly constrained market in 2026.
In happier news, we are also announcing the immediate availability of a new 1GB version of Raspberry Pi 5. This brings our flagship platform, with its quad-core 2.4GHz Arm Cortex-A76 processor, dual-band Wi-Fi and PCI Express port, to a new low price point of $45.
What’s changing?
With effect from today, we’re making the following changes to the prices of Raspberry Pi 4 and Raspberry Pi 5 single-board computers:
| Product | Density | Old price | New price |
| Raspberry Pi 4 | 4GB | $55 | $60 |
| Raspberry Pi 4 | 8GB | $75 | $85 |
| Raspberry Pi 5 | 1GB | – | $45 |
| Raspberry Pi 5 | 2GB | $50 | $55 |
| Raspberry Pi 5 | 4GB | $60 | $70 |
| Raspberry Pi 5 | 8GB | $80 | $95 |
| Raspberry Pi 5 | 16GB | $120 | $145 |
We’re also increasing the price of 16GB variants of Compute Module 5, which remained unchanged in October, by $20. The prices of lower-density Raspberry Pi 4 variants, of Raspberry Pi 3+ and earlier models, and of Raspberry Pi Zero products remain unchanged.
Nothing ever lasts forever
The current pressure on memory prices, driven by competition from the AI infrastructure roll-out, is painful but ultimately temporary. We remain committed to driving down the cost of computing and look forward to unwinding these price increases once it abates.
55 comments
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mrlinux2u
A nice addition to the Pi 5 range and hopefully the so called ‘AI’ bubble will explode and everything (especially memory prices) will go back to normal (well until the next big thing comes around).
Raspberry Pi Staff Ashley Whittaker
Thank you!
Anders
Keeping Pi4 1GB at $35 remains an absolutely sterling effort after all these years. Well done!
Raspberry Pi Staff Ashley Whittaker
Thanks, Anders <3
Suman Shetty Harapanahalli
Wish the RAM was dev configurable so that we could use reuse old RAM on new PI.
Per Jensen
So you would destroy your old Pi, desolder old incompatible type of memory technology, clean, re-ball and solder onto a new board? That doesn’t make sense for anyone to do, if we forget the fact that a brand new SOC will not work with older memory technologies.
Boe
Is the new 1GB model also using the BCM2712 D0 stepping, similar to the 2GB model?
Raspberry Pi Staff Eben Upton — post author
Yes it is. This gives us slightly better performance when using single-rank 1GB LPDDR4X parts.
Andy
How does the 1GB do as a desktop machine? I’m building a cyberdeck and it might be a good fit for my needs if it’s in anyway more usable than a 3b+ 😜
Raspberry Pi Staff Ashley Whittaker
ooh ooh what KIND of cyberdeck?..
JJ
1 GB of RAM on a Raspberry Pi 5 will bottleneck you hard. Even LXDE will choke.
Olydnad_SWE
Yep, the minimum RAM with desktop is 4GB. I usually keep an eye on RAM usage. And if you are going to run a browser, it uses a lot of RAM. Even 4GB is too little sometimes where you have a lot going on.
Jeff Geerling
You definitely want 4GB, or ideally 8/16, for desktop use. Just launching a browser and opening a few pages on the modern web will blow past 1-2 GB pretty quick, on top of the base OS.
Run a few other tools and you’ll be happy to not have to use swap memory!
Matt H
Use for clusters then?
SheddyIan
I wonder if there’s a project / video in seeing how much Raspberry Pi OS can be tweaked to run a desktop in as little RAM as possible?
Anders
If you are prepared to step away from linux, then RiscOS runs very snappily and fast on the original Pi B with 256MB RAM.
Anthony King
Hey don’t forget ZRAM and the like (I used ‘More RAM’ from Pi-Apps which has a ZRAM configuration). It made my Pi3B 1GB usable with Pi OS (Buster era). Without it, I’d get bad freezing with only a few browser tabs open.
Ali-B
Congrats for finally releasing a 1GB pi5 part!
But why did it take so long! (And only be prompted by stupid RAM prices)
The biggest negative anyone has had towards the pi5 line is the base level cost was so much higher than the previous entry level parts. While it was obvious to most of us that it was due to the higher RAM variants, this 1GB part has taken way too long IMHO. A lot of reputational damage has taken place…
(“Why get a pi, when a mini pc works out almost as cheap” is the biggest argument going around ATM despite it not really being true or a fair apples to apples comparison)
Charles
That was only the case for the usual randomers on the Internet. In the real world, there was absolutely no “reputational damage” done and the excellent sales numbers show this.
The comparison with Mini PCs is one of the most nonsensical arguments I have ever seen, and is a reflection of the continued downfall of Internet “communities”.
Ali-B
Non-sensical it may be (I have no argument here) yet it persists. It’s like there’s a bot-army that trots it out whenever anyone mentions using a pi for something as if were still in some post-COVID scarcity scalper-driven-price era. It’s crazy.
Shirley Dulcey
The comparison with mini PCs isn’t entirely silly. There are some applications, like building a NAS, where either a Pi or a mini PC might make sense, and where the mini PC (once they came down to affordable prices) is probably a better choice. Most mini PCs have at least one full speed NVMe port (gen 4×4), rather than the slow one that is optional equipment on an RPi 5 (gen 3×3). The mini PC has SATA ports for even more storage, and perhaps a 2.5 Gbps Ethernet port rather than the 1 Gbps port on the Pi. Oh yes, and user-expandable RAM.
On the other hand, there are many applications where a mini PC isn’t a contender, notably anything that uses the GPIO header. The comparison is indeed silly for those use cases.
Shirley Dulcey
Until RAM prices spiked, there wasn’t a lot of reason to introduce a 1GB RPi 5. The price delta would have been $5 at most. With RAM prices skyrocketing, the difference in cost between 1GB and 2GB has increased.
massimofunghi
its nice to see raspberry keeping prices low, but to me a zero 3 with 1gb ram would make more sense. will we see a new zero soon? ng
RPi Fan
Some how a complete set of Mini PC with intel N150 processor + 16GB DDR5 RAM managed to retain the price around the same as Raspberry Pi 5 8GB RAM (Board Only). Does DDR5 priced hugely different than the DDR4?
stan423321
– DDR4 is different from DDR5 and both are completely different from all the LPDDRs (and GDDRs).
– The remaining devices using regular DDR4 are actually in a way worse situation than either LPDDR4 or DDR5, because apparently some company started to make some DDR4 cheaply making existing competitors stop the presses, but then it also didn’t make that much of it.
– The remaining DDR5 devices with sane prices are based on previously purchased memory modules. The standalone DDR5 market for PC construction has been in a mad inflation for the past quarter.
RPi Fan
It’s LPDDR5. My bad for not saying it in a more complete way. What I meant was Intel N150 Mini PC with 16GB LPDDR5.
James Hughes
Don’t worry, those N100 prices will be going up a lot once stocks levels drop. They are not immune – the whole DRAM market is going mad.
RPi Fan
Btw, is the price of LPDDR4 and LPDDR5 differ that much?
barleyguy
This might have been true when you posted your comment, but it’s not true a month later. N150 mini PCs have gone up in price significantly. What used to be $150 is now closer to $250. So their increases were a lot more than $5.
RPi Fan
I mean 16GB RAM Raspberry Pi 5, not 8GB (Board Only).
Yyzguy
What’s a good use case for Pi 5 with 1GB RAM? It seems mismatched to me, but I’m just a small time hobbyist.
DarthMac1977
You could use it for a pi-hole.
massimofunghi
tehres a zero 2 for that, only half the prize
DarthMac1977
And the half size of memory and a much slower cpu…..
massimofunghi
pihole even runs great on a zero. no need to waste money on a zero2 oder rpi5 just to run pi-hole
gustafla
I know it’s a niche, but my use case is to run my GPU art pieces on the cheapest Pi 5 variants (I have two of the 2GB model). Often paired with a GPIO header attached display such as the HyperPixel. The Pi 5 has the best GPU out of the Pi lineup and more or less the best driver stability out of all SBC options excluding more expensive x86 options. The RAM need is relatively miniscule for stuff like graphics demos.
rclark
Since 99% of my RPIs (including the RPI-5s) run headless and no web browsing … 1GB is plenty of RAM for most hobby projects. I think this ‘GBs’ of RAM has just spoiled us. And to think we used for work with 4K, 64K, etc… :rolleyes:
Also The RPI-5 with the USB being able to handle more power and run separately from each other is just icing on the cake. I’ve found the RPI-5 to be very stable in my use cases.
Sven
Fingers crossed to see also Pi Zero 3 soon with 1 Gb RAM and Wi-Fi 5/6 😄
mrlinux2u
It’s not just some of the the Pi’s that have gone in price up due to the silly ‘AI’ bubble it appears that the Raspberry Pi SSD’s are going up (have gone up) in price.
I just checked https://thepihut.com/products/raspberry-pi-ssd?variant=53621047624065 to see if they had some 256GB versions in stock only to find that the prices have more than doubled (£57.60 today’s price which is more than the 512GB version would have cost the other week) since I last ordered one (£27.70 on 24/10/2025).
It looks like I’ll be putting a hold on getting any more until the prices go back to normal (please ‘AI’ bubble explode into the ether ASAP :D).
Time to check my supply of used Pi goodies to see if one my old NVMe SSD’s has still got some (useful) life left in it.
Anders
Indeed, £67.20 I paid for 1TB version a couple of weeks ago, I’m glad I got it when I did. I was looking for more but I’ll hold off for now.
mrlinux2u
After a bit of searching earlier it appears that https://www.rapidonline.com has a few 256GB/512GB ones available at the normal price (ordered a 512GB one for a bit over £40.00 with free delivery) – grab one when you can.
Anders
Thank you, I panic-bought some 512GBs from Rapid. Their stock says there are 6 left now.
mrlinux2u
Glad I could help – they’ve still got a few 256GB versions left (14 as of 6:20AM this morning) and quite a lot of the 512GB kit versions (over 40 currently in stock).
mrlinux2u
Adding to my original post – what I’ve not come across (so far) is any official announcement that the SSD’s (and kits) will be/have gone up in price (depending on where you get them from) as well as the announced price increase on the Pi 4/Pi 5’s , it’s only by chance that I came across the price increases and I imagine that when Rapid Online run out of their current stock that they’re prices will go up as well.
YKN
A Pi Zero 3 would be good, but what about a Pi 5 A?
Penn
Ooh, I like the sound of a Pi 5 model A
Penn
Nice, I’m mildly disappointed at rising prices, but I’d be glad to pay the extra money to support y’all. It’s kinda crazy that now there are five versions of the Raspberry Pi 5
Neil Stewart
While I understand price increases you have just moved past the point of making the technology affordable.
I forgave your focus on commercial customers during Covid but this has me believing that the Raspberry Pi Foundation no different than Amazon. Get me onboard, then take as much money as you can.
Sorry to say
Goodbye Raspberry Pi
Neil
rclark
From my point of view, the RPI SBC technology is ‘very’ affordable. From the Pico W, Pico 2 W, Zero 2 W, to the RPI credit card sized board with all the available options…. There is a board there for everyone. So scratching my head on this one. Why people think a board has to be almost ‘free’ to be affordable is beyond my comprehension :) .
So, why don’t you try to spin up a company, and build your own and see how much the engineering/pcb/component/labor/manufacturing/inflation/market conditions/etc. costs come up to and how many you have to sell to become profitable. I bet it would be enlightening experience! Thank goodness, I don’t have to … I just order one up from the pishop and done :) . Thank you… Glad to pay to play for a western made product.
bsimmo
You can just say you don’t like them any more, and it’s not the RPi Foundation that make and sell these, you’re not even in the RPi Foundation page.
—-
The SBC part is pretty much the same cost, if not a bit cheaper.
In 2014 B+ (now called Pi1 B+) did cost ~£35 give or take a £1 for 1GB,
….. in 2025 equivalent prices that is £49 today. Go check the calculators.
That Pi5 1GB is £43, so how is it less affordable? (see price on PiHut)*
uSD are cheaper than I was paying.
PSU are pretty much the same iiirc, at least compared to the Pi3 era.
HDMI cable has the same small cost.
A keyboard and mouse are near enough the same cost.
I don’t have to buy a Wi-Fi USB adaptor saving me some pennies.
So flounce if you want but don’t say it’s not as affordable.
*You don’t need a cooler, but even with that added it’s still about the same cost as the B+
hotnuma
Raspberry Pi is way too expensive for what it is (a gadget), this is particularly true outside of the UK, even on approved resellers.
As a reminder, to run a desktop on a Raspberry Pi, 4 GB of memory is *required*, 1 GB is *not* enough.
James Hughes
It’s not a gadget – 70% or more sales go to industrial customers who use them in thousands of different ways. None of which count as gadgets. If you need cheap (and yes, it’s still cheap despite the completely out of Pi control memory prices) compute power in any industrial or commercial situation, they are hugely cost-effective.
Teddy
1gb is enough for desktop even for pi4
If you use chrome with many tabs is not enough
Shirley Dulcey
Oops — make that gen3x1!
a ham radio d00d
It’s amazing how many people here only equate the RPi’s and clones as PC alternatives needing GPUs and window managers. As others have pointed out, there are a LOT of headless uses for both home automation, robotics, etc; and for automation and industrial, just run without a window manager like in the old days.
One thing to consider is that forcing 64 bits on apps that don’t need them is so wasteful of memory as is using scripting languages for everything. Remember back in the 90’s 1GB was workstation or server levels of memory and only in the 2010’s did 1GB be taken seriously in smart phones (and 1GB was still in tablets until before the pandemic).
Bottom line, this Gen-Xer is unimpressed with your ignorant arguments; this is more than “get off my lawn” crap, but doing more with less including using the right OS (if any at all) when the app calls for it, as Linux–even if custom-compiled as I used to do–is just MASSIVE (though at least not as bat as M$). As an extreme example, Arduino, Pico, and other such boards don’t have a GPU and are not meant for that, but some people bit-bang video out anyway, the old fashioned way! Just think about it.