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How do I tell how much memory I have left? I am looking to upgrade and I am not sure how much memory I need. My current MacBook Pro has 16GB. I am running Catalina and I am not sure how to tell if I am using all of the memory or not or close to it.
MacBook Pro 15", macOS 10.15
Modern versions of macOS are designed to use all of the RAM you have installed. Don’t buy based on what you think you need, but what you can afford. Keep in mind that you should never buy a Mac with a mechanical hard drive. Only buy one with a true SSD - not a “fusion” drive.
Modern versions of macOS are designed to use all of the RAM you have installed. Don’t buy based on what you think you need, but what you can afford. Keep in mind that you should never buy a Mac with a mechanical hard drive. Only buy one with a true SSD - not a “fusion” drive.
Open Activity Monitor and check the memory pressure indicator.
If its red, you are using app all memory constantly. If its green, you are fine.
"Used Memory" should be close to the amount of physical memory usually regardless of pressure however.
See here: How to use Activity Monitor on your Mac - Apple Support
Note, that regardless of pressure status, actual RAM cannot be changed or upgraded on MacBook Pros since 2012.
Here is an example from the 21” iMac “Buy” page:
The first one is a mechanical hard drive. It even gives the RPM (rotations per minute). 5400 RPM was considered slow a decade ago. The Fusion drive is in the middle. That consists of the same hard drive as above but with a smaller SSD. You get performance that is better than a hard drive, but with reliability that is worse. The last option is the SSD. That’s always the one you want. Always.
Thank you so much. I apologize in advance, I’m a true noob and not very electronic savvy. How do i know if it’s a true mechanical hard drive?
how do I tell how much memory is left
