Microsoft says Windows 11 now runs better on PCs with 8GB of RAM

Skyrocketing RAM prices make new PCs out of reach for many buyers. Microsoft offers some relief: Windows should now be significantly more responsive on systems with just 8GB of memory.

Microsoft says Windows is now making better use of limited memory.

Windows PCs with 8GB of RAM are now 20% more responsive. The Redmond giant bases the claim on telemetry measurements of response times for Search, Start, right-click, Settings, Snipping Tool, and File Explorer.

“Multitasking is up to 40% faster in our lab test,” Microsoft said in a blog post.

Multitasking improvement was measured by calculating completion times using automated UI validation on an HP OmniBook 3 laptop powered by a Snapdragon X Plus.

The test included opening 20 tabs in Microsoft Edge, followed by a 4K video, large Word, PowerPoint, and Excel files, Outlook, and File Explorer one after another, keeping everything open.

Different pairs of Windows 11 builds were compared across the tests.

The responsiveness improvements are included in Windows 11 version 26H2, build 6300.9550, released on September 29, 2026. Multitasking improvements were seen in version 25H2 (build 26200.9445), released on September 8, 2026. These were already replaced by newer versions.

“For many people, 8 GB is a great fit for the things they do every day,” reads the post by Pavan Davuluri, Microsoft’s Executive Vice President for Windows + Devices.

Microsoft even claims that the same PC with 8GB of RAM now performs about as well as it did in 2021 with 16 GB across web browsing, AI-powered web tasks such as background blur and face detection, and 4K video export.

This claim echoes Apple’s earlier comparisons that its 8GB MacBooks performed similarly to 16GB Windows systems.

How did Microsoft do it?

Microsoft explains that it tuned its memory compression to keep up to 2 GB more active data in memory rather than moving it to a slower storage device. Memory optimizations were delivered in July.

“An app or tab you left open is less likely to reload when you return,” explained Davuluri.

Another improvement is throttling down less important background processes, such as search indexing, while the user is active.

The improvement is most noticeable after a restart following an update – a browser will load faster, even while Windows finishes setup.

Windows keeps Edge in the background so it opens 33% faster. Meanwhile, on 8GB PCs, Microsoft Teams can turn on Efficiency Mode by default.

360 MB of RAM usage was reduced across Word, PowerPoint, Excel, and Outlook.

A further 200 MB of RAM was saved by loading Widgets only when the user opens them. Microsoft Edge inactive tabs go to sleep much faster – after 15 minutes of inactivity, down from 2 hours.

Improvements added up to a “reduced committed-memory growth by up to 900 MB.”

The performance improvements will vary on different PC configurations. The tech giant acknowledges that demanding workflows require more memory.

Future optimizations promised

Microsoft says it’s committed to further memory optimizations.

“We’re making it even smarter and more efficient to get the most out of your system performance,” the blog post reads.

One future change is to share common parts across apps and features, such as a single engine for several apps.

Search and Widgets will share one web engine, and so will OneDrive and Photos for memory savings across all four apps,

Microsoft said.

Microsoft is reworking apps and other features built on its UI framework (WinUI 3) to open faster and use less memory, including File Explorer, Notepad, Paint, and the new Windows search.

AI and data center demand pushed memory prices to unprecedented levels. According to PCPartPicker data, RAM prices jumped fivefold since the beginning of last year.

32 GB RAM kits (DDR-6000, 2x16GB), which used to cost around $100 at the beginning of last year, now start at around $500, though prices can be much higher depending on the model.