RAM is usually one of the last components to fail. Your graphics card, hard drive, or motherboard are more likely to develop faults first. However, no matter how high-end your RAM, it's not immune to failing. If you're even experiencing weird behavior on your PC, such as unexplained slowdowns, crashes, or BSODs, faulty RAM is a possible suspect.

Personally, if I have eliminated other factors such as faulty storage, corrupted Windows, or a dying GPU, I use MemTest to test my RAM for errors. It's one of the most popular and reliable programs to uncover faults with your memory sticks, and is more comprehensive than, say, the built-in Windows Memory Diagnostic.

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6 diagnostic tools you need on your Windows 11 PC

If you are constantly dealing with performance issues on your PC, then you should always have these 6 tools on hand

Using MemTest to test my RAM

Confirming my suspicions

HCI MemTest or MemTest, as it is commonly known, is one of the preferred tools to uncover faults in RAM. It is a deeper tool compared to some other options, and can take around an hour for a single pass. To confirm if your RAM is working well, you should ideally run at least two successful passes of MemTest. The best way to do this is to test the free memory on your system using multiple instances of MemTest (equal to the number of processor threads you have). Here's how you do it:

  1. Download the free version of HCI MemTest, extract it, and launch the executable.
  2. Click OK in the dialog box that appears. In the box below Enter megabytes of RAM to test, you need to enter the amount of memory (in MB) to be tested per instance. To calculate this number, divide the amount of free memory you currently have (in Task Manager) by the number of threads on your CPU. In my case, around 16GB of free memory divided by 12 CPU threads amounts to around 1,365MB per instance. Enter the amount in your case and press Start Testing.
  3. Now repeat the process by opening more instances of MemTest, based on the number of CPU threads you have. Let all the tests run till completion.
  4. If you don't find any errors after two passes, it is safe to conclude that your RAM is free of errors.
  5. If MemTest reports errors on your RAM, you can try reseating the modules and reverting to the default frequency and timings.
  6. If the errors persist, figure out which DIMMs are faulty by installing a single DIMM at a time, and running the tests again.
  7. Once you've identified the faulty DIMM/DIMMs, the only solution is to buy a replacement stick or kit, depending on how many of your DIMMs are faulty.
Silicon Power Zenith DDR5-6000 32GB (2x16GB) CL30

The Silicon Power Zenith DDR5 32GB kit offers the best balance between frequency and latency, thanks to its 6000MT/s speed and CL30 latency. It's highly affordable, and the white colorway gives some flair to your DDR5 build.

Crucial Pro DDR4-3200 32GB (2x16GB)

Crucial's Pro range is affordable and reliable, a perfect fit for budget DDR4 builds where performance is valued over style.

Can you prevent RAM from developing faults?

Although it's almost impossible to avoid faulty RAM completely, you can at least use some best practices to avoid accelerating damage to your RAM. For instance, ensuring proper airflow in your PC can eliminate overheating concerns for your RAM modules. You can also use XMP/EXPO settings instead of manually overclocking your RAM if the performance is almost similar in both cases. You can also use a UPS or surge protector to prevent damage from unexpected power surges.