Can you upgrade the RAM on the 2018 Mac Mini?

Changing out the RAM in the Mac Mini used to be a really simple process. It used to be a matter of unscrewing the bottom and swapping the RAM sticks, a process that took a matter of minutes. However, after the late 2012 Mac Mini, Apple changed the internals, so you couldn't do it yourself anymore.

The 2018 Mac Mini arrived as a long-awaited follow up to Apple's tiny desktop computer and it came bearing good news: You could once again take out the RAM and upgrade it yourself.

Despite the move back to DIY, if you want more RAM you're shouldn't be stuck paying what Apple wants to charge you for it. That's never been close to as cheap as it is to make the same upgrade yourself.

When buying a new Mac Mini, increasing the RAM to 16GB costs $200, 32GB costs $600, and 64GB an eye-watering $1,400. You could upgrade to 32GB yourself and save about $400 in the process.

While the RAM is a standard sized SO-DIMM module and replaceable by anyone who buys a 2018 Mac Mini, it's far from as simple to accomplish, at least compared to what it used to be back in 2012.

The RAM isn't easily accessible and requires a little know-how and a lot of patience to get at. The rewards will be worthwhile, but you'll basically be disassembling your Mac Mini in order to do a RAM upgrade. Luckily, this guide from iFixit+Replacement/115309) will walk you through every step of the process.

The happier news is you can install up to 64GB of RAM in the 2018 Mac Mini, though as you only have two slots available, the only way to achieve this is with a pair of 32GB sticks. Those aren't exactly easy to find.

For just over $200, however, you can get a Crucial 32GB SO-DIMM DDR4 RAM kit that will make a terrific upgrade to any 2018 Mac Mini. If you don't need this much, simply grab a 16GB kit made up of a pair of 8GB RAM sticks.

It's always best to use matching pairs when installing RAM for best performance.