The RAM Crisis Seems to Be Expanding to Motherboards Now
So far, 2026 is no stranger to price increases. Since the calendar flipped over to the new year, RAM, graphics cards, SSDs and processors have all seen price jumps at the hands of AI, and now a leak suggests motherboards are next on the list.
Take this with a grain of salt, but according to a post on Board Channels, a Chinese tech forum known for industry leaks, and spotted by VideoCardz, prices for PCBs (printed circuit boards) will be going up by as much as 50% in Q3 2026. On top of the raw materials used in motherboards also going up, it seems like prices will see a major increase in the near future. The post also references the fact that the DIY market continues to weaken, which exacerbates the need for companies like MSI, Asus and Gigabyte to raise prices to make up for less volume.
It's not clear when these price increases will actually be reflected on store shelves. We are technically in Q3 right now, and the prices haven't gone up yet. In fact, just looking at the Asus ROG Strix X870E Gaming motherboard on Amazon, it seems like its price has actually gone down over the last year. However, it is just a post on Board Channels, so you should take it with a grain of salt regardless.
It's not surprising that the DIY market is shrinking, though. Due to the ongoing RAM crisis, pretty much every component that goes into a gaming PC has sharply increased in price, and now the prospect of building your own computer is a costly one.
If motherboards also go up in cost, the total price to build a PC is going to go up even more, as another step in PC gaming even more of a luxury hobby. After all, RAM has only continued to get more expensive since the RAM crisis kicked off in earnest at the beginning of 2026. That crisis hasn't shown any signs of slowing down, either. Valve engineers have come out and said that prices are only getting worse, and even the Xbox Series X just got a price jump up to $799 for the 1TB model with a disk drive.
Jackie Thomas is the Hardware and Buying Guides Editor at IGN and the PC components queen. You can follow her @Jackiecobra