You’d think that a big-box store with membership requirements to even enter the building would have fewer problems with shoplifting than, say, Walmart or Target. But according to one Reddit post, at least one Costco store has had to remove the RAM from its display PCs, presumably to prevent shoplifters from exercising their sticky fingers.
Reddit user “accent2012” noted the conspicuous absence of RAM from a row of desktops, otherwise powered up to show off their various RGB light shows. Another in the same post claimed that an employee reported on a RAM shoplifter who had been caught on camera. With a 2x16GB kit of RAM currently going for $350 or so on Amazon, it’s easy to see why someone might swipe it when the coast is clear. One of the PCs was also missing a GPU.
As other Reddit commenters point out, it might be that Costco is removing the easily-swiped parts that need no tools to access, or it might be that someone already stole the RAM and Costco simply didn’t bother to replace it. The photo appears to show desktops connected to no monitors or input devices, so the retail display is still mostly functional for its intended purpose.
According to Tom’s Hardware, many retail stores—including some Costco stores—are placing RAM behind the counter, as is still sometimes the case with graphics cards. (Most of these components are already in locked cases, even if they’re nominally on the shelves.)
The AI-driven RAM crunch is causing prices for memory and other components to skyrocket. DDR5 modules sold to consumers—for the purpose of PC building, repair, or upgrades—has tripled and sometimes even quadrupled in price since mid-2025. Prices are rising so fast that some retailers have been seen taking price tags off the modules, in a “market price” setup more akin to seafood sales than electronics parts. Most finished electronics prices are expected to rise in response, though not as dramatically, and relief seems unlikely anytime in 2026.
Incidentally, if you’re looking for a high-powered gaming desktop, a pre-built sold at a big-box retailer might not be a bad choice right now. Due to economies of scale and B2B distribution, those pre-built desktops are now considerably cheaper than a PC you can build yourself, inverting decades of status quo. Take this Skytech gaming desktop on Amazon: with its RTX 5070 Ti graphics card and 32GB of RAM, it’s $500 cheaper than the same set of parts in the cheapest combination I could put together on PCPartPicker. I wouldn’t call $2,000 for this PC a “deal,” but it’s better than you can do on your own right now.
Author: Michael Crider
Source: PCWorld
Reviewed By: Editorial Team
