How To Check RAM Speed On Your Mac Or PC (And Why You Might Want To)

Not running compatibility checks across all components is one of the more common PC building mistakes one can make, which can lead to a frustrating experience with returns and further delays for the right parts to arrive. The RAM sticks that go into your desktop or laptop are most sensitive to this issue, given just how many types, sizes, and speeds they come in. 

Even if you figure out the difference between DDR4 and DDR5 memory and settle on how much RAM your Windows PC needs, you are left with one important metric that needs consideration — the speed of the RAM. Staying informed of how RAM speed can affect your computer's performance, and where you can find this information in your existing rig can be useful.

Though you can mix and match RAM sticks of different speeds, it's best to insert ones that share the same rate of transfer. Otherwise, your PC will run all memory modules at the speed of the slowest RAM stick. If you're looking to upgrade the RAM on your computer or need this information as a reference point before purchasing a new machine, here's how you can check what speed your PC or Mac's RAM runs at.

With a market share of nearly 65 percent in 2025 so far, Windows is the most popular desktop operating system. This is largely thanks to its availability and versatility, making it the default OS option for custom-built PCs. This is also why it's possible for you to find the most minute details of your PC's hardware on Windows. The quickest way to see how fast your RAM is on Windows is through the built-in Task Manager utility.

1. On your Windows PC, launch the Task Manager. You can search for it in the Start Menu, right-click your taskbar to access it, or simply hit the Ctrl + Shift + Esc shortcut combination on your keyboard.
2. Expand the sidebar by clicking on the hamburger menu icon, then navigate to the "Performance" tab.
3. Click on "Memory" and you should now be able to see detailed information about your RAM, including its speed.

You will also be able to monitor RAM usage from this screen, check out the form factor of the memory modules, and see which slots of your motherboard are being used for memory. The Performance section houses various other components of your PC, including the CPU, GPU, and disk drives. This makes it a handy tool for monitoring. Advanced users, especially those well-versed with building PCs, sometimes prefer booting into the BIOS on Windows to access hardware information. 

Unlike most Windows desktops and laptops, you cannot upgrade the RAM on your Mac post-purchase — unless you own one of the Mac Pros. Unfortunately, newer Macs based on the M-series of chips no longer show the RAM speed, since Apple has moved to unified memory that shares system memory with the CPU and GPU. Instead, Apple lists the memory bandwidth of its chips, which you can find on the "Tech Specs" section on the product page of a Mac computer.

If you own one of the older Intel Macs, it's worth navigating to System Preferences > General > About > System Report > Memory, to see if you can view the RAM speed. Nevertheless, you can view how your RAM is being used on macOS, which can still be useful information.

1. On your MacBook, or Mac computer, launch the "Activity Monitor" utility. You can search for the app through Spotlight (the magnifying glass icon in the upper right-hand corner), or access it by navigating to Applications > Utilities in Finder.
2. Switch to the "Memory" tab located at the top.
3. You can view information about RAM usage here, including the amount of total, used, and swap memory.

Despite all the good press that Macs get, it's no secret how Apple charges exorbitantly for RAM and storage upgrades. Fortunately, the new MacBook Air M4 now ships with a minimum memory configuration of 16GB, as opposed to just 8GB of RAM.

There are a lot of things that are directly affected, for better or for worse, by your RAM's speed. General productivity will see an improvement, with faster app loading times and fewer blank screens when switching between menus. Creative individuals will also benefit greatly with faster RAM, enabling a better video editing or coding experience. Perhaps the most lucrative reason to buy faster memory is improved gaming performance, especially in CPU-bound titles like "Counter-Strike 2."

While the Task Manager holds most of the crucial hardware information, enthusiasts usually prefer a dedicated app like CPU-Z for this purpose. The app unearths a lot more about your PC's components, including RAM details. One thing to keep note of is the different units you'll see when shopping for RAM — MT/s and MHz. While MHz (megahertz) is a more familiar metric that indicates the clock speed of your RAM, MT/s (megatransfers per second) is a measure of the actual data transfer rate. 

For DDR (Double Data Rate) RAM, the MT/s value is double the MHz count — so you're likely to find manufacturers label a 3200 MHz RAM stick as being 6400 MT/s. Both are valid metrics of measuring RAM speed, but it's a good thing to keep in mind regardless. You might also want to prioritize more RAM over faster speeds, especially if you're struggling with multitasking.