Check RAM Speed on Windows 11/10 with Easy Ways

This tutorial on the Orcacore website intends to teach you How To Check RAM Speed on Windows 11 or Windows 10. Let’s take a brief look at what is RAM and how it works. Then, start to check the RAM speed on your Windows system. Let’s dive into Check RAM Speed on Windows 11/10.

Introduction To Windows RAM Speed

Your computer’s system memory consists of physical memory, called random access memory (RAM), and virtual memory. System memory is not permanent storage like a hard disk drive that saves its contents when you turn off your system.

When you start a program, your processor sends a command to retrieve the program from the hard disk. Once the files have been retrieved, the system requires a workspace to manipulate the data and to allow you to interact with it. This digital blueprint plan is your RAM. Your system places your programs in RAM or digital space temporarily while you use them so that the processor can access this information more quickly and easily.

Generally, the more RAM your system has, the larger the digital space you have to work with and the faster your programs run. If your Windows 10 or Windows 11 is running slow due to a lack of RAM, you may want to increase virtual memory as it is more economical. However, adding RAM is a better solution because your processor can read data from RAM faster than from a hard drive.

RAM has two main attributes that affect your system’s performance: memory capacity and memory speed.

Memory Speed: The time a CPU request takes to reach RAM and then write or read data. In general, the faster the RAM, the faster the processing speed.

With faster RAMs, you increase the rate at which memory transfers information to other components. In other words, your Fast processor now has a fast method of communicating with other components, making your computer much more efficient.

RAM speed is measured in megahertz (MHz), millions of cycles per second in order to be compared to the processor clock speed. Understanding how to Check RAM Speed on Windows 11/10 is vital for optimizing your computer.

To display Windows RAM Speed, you must log in to your Windows Client and follow the steps below.

In this guide, you will learn to look over RAM speed in three different ways:

1. Display Windows RAM Speed with Command Prompt

One of the easiest ways to show the RAM speed on your Windows 11 or Windows 10 is to use the command prompt. To do this, open your Start menu search bar, type in “cmd,” and select the best match.

Then, from your command prompt shell run the following command:

wmic memorychip get speed

You will get something similar to this output:

Display Windows RAM Speed with Command Prompt

From the above example output, you can see that the PC has three RAM sticks each running at different MHz speeds.

Also, you can get full information about your RAM such as the Manufacturer’s name, Model Name, Speed, Voltage, and more by running the wmic memorychip command without any option. From your command prompt shell, run the command below:

wmic memorychip

2. Display RAM Speed by Using Windows Task Manager

Task Manager shows you what programs are running on your Windows computer and offers some limited control over those running tasks. To get information about your performance PC, open the Start menu search bar, type in ‘task manager,’ and select the best match.

Then, in the Task Manager app, click on the Performance tab and then select Memory.

You’ll see a lot of important information in the Memory there. Among that information, will be the Speed of your Windows 11 or Windows 10 RAM.

3. Display Windows RAM Speed with a third-party App

As you see above, you can easily use both ways we discussed to check your Windows 10 or Windows 11 RAM speed. But you can also use a third-party app like UserBenchmark to measure your PC’s RAM.

UserBenchmark runs a wide variety of benchmark tests that measure the general and specific performance of your PC in several areas.

To do this, visit the UserBenchmark Official Page and download the .exe file from there. Then, launch the app and the scan will begin automatically.

When the scan is completed, the results will be launched in your default browser.

Alternative Methods to Check RAM Speed on Windows 11/10

While the Command Prompt, Task Manager, and third-party apps offer convenient ways to Check RAM Speed on Windows 11/10, other methods can also provide this information. Let’s explore two alternative approaches.

1. Using PowerShell

PowerShell is a powerful command-line interface and scripting language built into Windows. It offers more flexibility and control compared to the standard Command Prompt. We can use PowerShell to retrieve RAM speed information using the Get-WmiObject cmdlet.

Here’s how:

Open PowerShell: Search for "PowerShell" in the Start menu and select the best match.
Execute the following command:

Get-WmiObject Win32_PhysicalMemory | Select-Object Speed

This command retrieves all physical memory modules (RAM sticks) and then selects only the "Speed" property, which represents the RAM speed in MHz.

The output will look similar to this:

Speed
-----
2133
2133

This indicates that the system has two RAM modules, each running at 2133 MHz.

Advantages of using PowerShell:

More powerful and flexible: PowerShell offers more advanced scripting capabilities for automating tasks and filtering data.
Direct access to WMI: It provides direct access to Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI), a comprehensive management infrastructure.
Consistent output: PowerShell’s object-oriented nature allows for consistent and structured output, making it easier to process the results programmatically.

2. Checking the BIOS/UEFI Settings

The BIOS (Basic Input/Output System) or UEFI (Unified Extensible Firmware Interface) is the firmware that initializes your computer’s hardware during startup. It often displays information about the installed RAM, including its speed.

To access the BIOS/UEFI settings:

Restart your computer.
During the startup process, look for a message indicating which key to press to enter the BIOS/UEFI setup. Common keys include Delete, F2, F12, and Esc. The specific key varies depending on the motherboard manufacturer.
Press the indicated key repeatedly until the BIOS/UEFI setup screen appears.
Navigate through the menus to find the section that displays system information or memory details. The exact location varies depending on the BIOS/UEFI version.
Look for information about the RAM speed, often labeled as "Memory Speed," "DRAM Frequency," or similar.

Advantages of checking BIOS/UEFI:

Provides definitive hardware information: The BIOS/UEFI settings directly reflect the hardware configuration detected by the motherboard.
Independent of the operating system: This method works even if the operating system is not functioning correctly.
Can reveal configured speed: It can show the actual configured speed of the RAM, which might be different from the rated speed if XMP or other overclocking profiles are not enabled.

Limitations of checking BIOS/UEFI:

Requires restarting the computer: This method requires interrupting the normal boot process.
Inconsistent interface: The BIOS/UEFI interface varies significantly between different motherboard manufacturers, making it difficult to provide specific instructions that apply to all systems.
Read-only information: You can only view the RAM speed in the BIOS/UEFI settings; you cannot modify it directly (except for enabling XMP profiles).

Conclusion

If you’re unsure about your system RAM or other system information, you can use the steps above to help you find out more. Hope you enjoy this guide on How To Check RAM Speed on Windows 11 or Windows 10. We have covered multiple methods on how to Check RAM Speed on Windows 11/10.