Reason is slow 27'' Mac. It has 8GB in 2 modules of 2667MHz DDR4 each and has room for another 2 modules as shown on the enclosed Screenshot. Is it worth it? Or is this the same problem as encountered on the 21.4'' iMac of 2019
iMac 27″, macOS 15.5
You can upgrade the RAM yourself rather easily. I've done it myself on exactly the same model as yours (I aded 2 x 16GB modules for a total of 40GB.) There is a little trap on the back side that you can open and insert new modules.
This article should help you : Install memory in an iMac - Apple Support.
Before upgrading, you may want to double-check that the RAM is actually limiting your Mac: View memory usage in Activity Monitor on Mac - Apple Support.
You can upgrade the RAM yourself rather easily. I've done it myself on exactly the same model as yours (I aded 2 x 16GB modules for a total of 40GB.) There is a little trap on the back side that you can open and insert new modules.
This article should help you : Install memory in an iMac - Apple Support.
Before upgrading, you may want to double-check that the RAM is actually limiting your Mac: View memory usage in Activity Monitor on Mac - Apple Support.
Allan Jones wrote:
Before spending money, it's wise to figure out if RAM really is your issue. Most "slow iMac" reports here turn out to be due storage (hard drive) issues, not RAM starvation. If the is the case, no amount of additional RAM can fix a drive issue.
If you want a data-driven evaluation in this setting where we can neither see nor touch your computer, please post an EtreCheck report. We can quickly and within the limitations of these forums help you determine what issues are at play without our playing a protracted game of "20 Questions" with you that could go on for days.
EtreCheck Pro is available here:
https://etrecheck.com/index
The free version will do nicely for this purpose, although the app is worthy of our financial support.
We can see hard data about drive performance, software issues and interferences, and RAM usage. Etrecheck is the development of a long-serving and trusted ASC contributor. It is a reporting app, not a "fix-it” app, expressly for displaying information in these forums to help us help you remotely. It will not reveal any personal or secure information.
Please see this excellent user tip on how to post long text reports like EtreCheck's into a forum response:
How to use the Add Text Feature When Post… - Apple Community
Please post the entire report. What seems insignificant to a new Etrecheck user can hold answers for those of us who have reviewed thousands of those reports. Etrecheck scrubs any personal info if you follow the posting steps in the above "how to..." article.
Purchase a modest pair of 8GB or 16GB modules for the 2019 27" from OWC.
https://eshop.macsales.com/shop/memory/imac-2019-27-inch
The 2019 27" iMac has 4 user upgradable memory slots.
The 2019 21.5" iMac has 2 non user upgradable slots.
Before spending money, it's wise to figure out if RAM really is your issue. Most "slow iMac" reports here turn out to be due storage (hard drive) issues, not RAM starvation. If the is the case, no amount of additional RAM can fix a drive issue.
If you want a data-driven evaluation in this setting where we can neither see nor touch your computer, please post an EtreCheck report. We can quickly and within the limitations of these forums help you determine what issues are at play without our playing a protracted game of "20 Questions" with you that could go on for days.
EtreCheck Pro is available here:
The free version will do nicely for this purpose, although the app is worthy of our financial support.
We can see hard data about drive performance, software issues and interferences, and RAM usage. Etrecheck is the development of a long-serving and trusted ASC contributor. It is a reporting app, not a "fix-it” app, expressly for displaying information in these forums to help us help you remotely. It will not reveal any personal or secure information.
Please see this excellent user tip on how to post long text reports like EtreCheck's into a forum response:
How to use the Add Text Feature When Post… - Apple Community
Please post the entire report. What seems insignificant to a new Etrecheck user can hold answers for those of us who have reviewed thousands of those reports. Etrecheck scrubs any personal info if you follow the posting steps in the above "how to..." article.
That Mac can officially take up to 64 GB of RAM – and unofficially take up to 128 GB of RAM.
Macs can be picky about RAM, so I would suggest that you get RAM only from Other World Computing. (Crucial, the other "go to" vendor of RAM guaranteed to be compatible with Macs, seems to have exited that business.)
Other World Computing – OWC Memory Upgrades For 27" iMac with Retina 5K Display (2019 - 2020)
However, I would suggest that you use Activity Monitor to check whether a lack of RAM is your actual problem. Launch Activity Monitor, and leave it running with the Memory tab open while you do the sort of workloads that appear to be taxing the machine. Then look at the Memory Pressure graph and the numbers around it.
You may find that 8 GB of RAM is enough for your current workload, and that lack of RAM is not the main reason behind the slowdown.
Adding RAM can help for certain application speed but if your Mac is slow for all tasks then adding RAM will not help. You may have a slow mechanical or Fusion drive vs an SSD or other issues. Many users find using an external SSD will speed up the Mac. if it is a drive related speed issue. You can run the free app Etrecheck that will provide an analysis of your Mac and may identify some issues.
In terms of "is it worth it" – if RAM is the issue, my opinion is that it would be worth it.
An iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, 2019) has a very nice screen, has modern I/O ports, and can run the latest version of macOS (Sequoia). Even if Sequoia is the last version of macOS it ever gets, you'd be talking about two and a half years (give or take) before you were no longer able to run one of the "most recent three".
A 16 GB (8 GB x 2) upgrade kit costs $32, and would triple the amount of RAM in that machine from 8 GB to 24 GB, which would be more than enough for all but heavy workloads.
That said - the question still remains whether lack of RAM is the cause of the problem, or not.
How do I upgrade RAM on a iMac 27'' Retina 5K, 2019
