How to check RAM performance on Windows PC

Testing RAM performance on your computer involves two aspects of system memory: Speed ​​and stability. Speed ​​tells you how quickly your RAM can access and transfer data between the CPU and other components. Stability determines how reliably the RAM can operate without errors, crashes, or freezes. This guide will explore how to test RAM performance on your Windows PC using both built-in tools and external methods.

Check RAM usage in Task Manager

It is very easy to check RAM usage in Windows using Task Manager. Open it from Taskbar or use Ctrl + Shift + Esc . Go to Performance > Memory , where you can find all the statistics related to your RAM performance. Check following:

1. RAM speed, about 2667 MHz
2. How much RAM is being used versus available.
3. Cached RAM usage in GB.

Run a memory diagnostic test

Windows provides a built-in tool called Windows Memory Diagnostic, located in the System32 folder. This tool can identify memory problems and evaluate RAM performance. Open it directly from Windows search or by typing the mdsched command in Cmd.

In both cases, the system will immediately prompt you to restart your computer. It offers two options: Restart now and Check for problems the next time I start my computer .

When your PC restarts, it will perform speed and memory tests in the background, which will take a few minutes.

After your PC restarts, open the Event Viewer app and go to Event Viewer (local) > Windows Logs > System . Right-click to open the Find menu and enter 'MemoryDiagnostics-Results'. The output will indicate any memory errors and whether your RAM is performing well or poorly.

Test RAM performance using Windows Game Bar

Windows Game Bar (formerly Xbox Game Bar) is a handy tool that goes beyond gaming. It can also monitor your RAM usage while browsing the web or working with demanding applications, like Adobe Premiere Pro. This is a great choice if you want to do an online RAM performance test without downloading any software or paying for a RAM assessment.

Open the Game Bar using Windows search or Win + G , no matter what you're doing on your PC. The Performance Widget shows RAM and VRAM usage as a percentage of total memory, along with CPU, GPU , and FPS data .

Use Performance Monitor

Windows has another great utility, Performance Monitor, that gives a very detailed assessment of your RAM performance. Open it from the search menu or by typing perfmon into the Run, Win + R command .

Under Performance > Memory , find % Committed Bytes in Use and Available MBytes .

For more accurate analysis, go deeper into Data Collector Sets > System > System Performance (on the right) and right-click to get started. It will save the report in C:Perflogs and you can open the report from the Windows folder through a browser like Chrome, Firefox or Edge.

System Performance Report dives into RAM usage and shows you the top processes as well as read/write values. If you dive deeper into the report, you can see the available applications and how much RAM is being consumed by each application.

Test RAM performance with the benchmark tool

In addition to the native methods in Windows, you can use various external tools to test RAM performance.

MemTest64 is one of the best RAM assessment tools for Windows users on 64-bit systems. It's easy to install and completely free. Click Begin Test . You should test your RAM performance at the highest value, so you should select the Tested value as Maximum , which will run indefinitely .

After running the test for a few minutes, click Stop Test . You can see the number of seconds elapsed in the left column. This tool performs multiple RAM performance tests by loading test samples. If there are any errors, they will also be displayed.

Note : If you are using a 32-bit machine, use MemTest86 instead.

Among premium RAM performance tools, the following should be used:

1. AIDA64 Extreme : It offers a series of RAM performance tests, including memory benchmarks (read, write, copy). tells you how good your computer's RAM is compared to other devices. (Price: 59.95 USD/3 permanent licenses)
2. PassMark Performance Test : This tool has been the industry standard in computer performance testing since the 90s. It also rates your RAM against the best RAM in the world with a final score. (Price: 27.20 USD/1 permanent license)

Warning : Using any external RAM assessment tool may cause your computer to heat up. Learn how to lower high CPU temperatures!

Isabella Humphrey

Update 04 April 2024