Note: I wrote a book here so you can skip to TLDR for a short answer.
Ram is a strange phenomenon. I have equipment dating to the late 70s so I am all too familiar with replacing ram. Megabytes aren’t all that old. I’m constantly replacing 4K packages in my poorly put together Apple I and my TI-99 is a joke (not funny). Pricing isn’t based on size except for today’s memory. So this is a bit more than how much ram a module has. And ram is for more than just the SIMM/DIMMs everyone sells on BoardSort.
First the exclusion to all rules in memory. EDO is we’ll documented here at boardsort. It’s not expensive because it’s intentionally price-fixed by the hobbyist and industrial communities. Price gouging (intentionally or by ignorance) will get you blacklisted from selling sizes like eBay and Amazon very quickly. I’ll expand on that elsewhere if anyone asks but suffice it it say that the users will find a way to get you kicked off the platform.
Today’s ram, which most people refer to as simply ram, is actually termed ram or memory modules. These are PCBs with ram and a rom (controller) with an edge connector. This design currently ranges from 64KB to 128GB. With these designs the value is on the extreme ends of the formats. Both high and low. A 512MB DDR4 module is going to cost triple digits today. 2GB is just a few dollars or so. In each generation the higher the available size increased the more the rest drop above the lowest one or two sizes. 16GB modules of DDR4 currently float in the $10-$25 range used. This is about half the price from 1st quarter last year. 128GB modules are now common enough to push everything else down a bit. 64GB modules are now regularly under $100 new. So how does this work for the past? About the same. The newest DDR3 modules reach 64GBs and can pass $100. Or smallest ones at 128MBs can also reach that range. But on average most modules float in the $5-$25 range. DDR2 ram generally tops at at 16GBs and can hit $40 new but generally all used modules are under $20. You’ll pay double or triple for new. DDR From 1998 tops out at 4GB and you can expect somewhere around $15-$25 for working modules. On the smaller end 32MB modules will pack a punch hitting $10 or so. If you have the rare LV 2.1 volt modules designed out of spec for a few high end laptops you’ll push into the $50 range.
Old Tin connector SIMMs also hover from $1-$20 used depending on many factors. But most fall between $1&$5 a module. (Silver is commonly mentioned but almost none have Silver contacts. Nickel is most common for cartridge and ROM modules; tin for memory).
But that’s not the end of ram. Prior to modules ram was packaged as individual units (previously called modules themselves). Here a 4MB DIP will fetch a nice $10 on average. 4KB and 2KB can go much higher. 4KB SIP and ZIP chips can cost three digits. Which is why most hobbyists will buy a Compatible DIP and use a common block mould to bend the pins precisely then solder short lead extensions to create a SIP or ZIP module. As an extension of that practice fraud is rampant in this category because so many modified DIPps are out there. A SIP or ZIP will never have pins crossing the outside shell and will never be in a plastic box. Legitimate SIPs and ZIPs have all the pins on one edge.
TLDR:
So there’s the far more detailed answer than you wanted
The extremes in size are the most expensive; that is the largest and smallest modules available. This also counts for mini and micro modules such as SO-DIMMs. These carry a bit of premium on their own as well do to the smaller size and higher quality needed for it.
For DIMMs with gold the average is in the $10-$50 range across all generations. Silver SIMMs are often under $10 and most often under $5 each. PLEASE always sell EDO.
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