Micron Technology has officially confirmed plans to phase out DDR4 and LPDDR4 production, following similar announcements by South Korea's Samsung and SK Hynix. The move is expected to exacerbate the global shortage of DDR4 memory, with supply reductions set to continue over the next two to three quarters.

Sumit Sadana, Executive Vice President and Chief Business Officer of Micron, revealed in a recent interview that official end-of-life (EOL) notifications for DDR4 and LPDDR4 have already been sent to customers in the PC, smartphone, and data center sectors. Going forward, Micron will strategically limit DDR4 and LPDDR4 shipments to select long-term partners in three key application areas, while ramping up its DDR5 and LPDDR5 offerings, which are now entering a more favorable pricing stage.

The DDR4 market is already experiencing severe shortages. Spot prices for Micron's DDR4 chips surged as much as 50% in June, with 16Gb DDR4 now trading at around $6—surpassing DDR5 prices of approximately $5.80. Samsung's 8Gb DDR4 spot price has also jumped to $4.80, far above the recent average of $3.30.

Micron emphasized that although DDR4 now accounts for a small portion of its revenue, it recognizes the challenges the shift creates for certain customers and is working to ease the transition. Nevertheless, increasing demand for High-Bandwidth Memory (HBM) in AI applications is straining DRAM wafer capacity, limiting the supply of legacy products and pushing prices even higher starting in Q2 2025.

Samsung and SK Hynix had previously informed customers that DDR4 production would stop, with final orders for 8GB and 16GB modules set for June 2025 and deliveries to be completed by December. Meanwhile, Taiwanese suppliers like Nanya and Winbond continue producing DDR4, but insiders note that their output cannot offset the reductions from the top three players.

According to market tracker CFM, DDR4 prices for server modules are expected to rise 10–15% in Q3 2025. DDR5 prices are also projected to grow modestly before fluctuating in Q4 as yields improve and production ramps up. Some popular DDR4 server modules—such as 32GB and 64GB RDIMMs—have already seen price hikes of over 30%, with top quotes reaching $195 and above.

In China's Huaqiangbei electronics market, vendors report widespread DDR4 shortages and skyrocketing prices, while DDR5 and SSD pricing remains relatively stable. Multiple retailers confirmed that many DDR4 SKUs are now out of stock, particularly 16GB 3600MHz modules, which are nearly impossible to source at the moment.

Industry analysts attribute the surge in prices to both supply-side reductions and speculative stockpiling by distributors. Despite being a mature product, DDR4 continues to see strong demand in industrial, consumer, and automotive segments, where stability, compatibility, and lower memory performance needs make it an optimal solution.

With the three leading DRAM manufacturers pivoting toward higher-margin DDR5 and HBM products, Micron is encouraging customers to transition to newer-generation memory. Sadana noted that DDR5 and LPDDR5 will soon face their own supply constraints, making it even more critical for mainstream users in mobile, PC, and data center markets to upgrade early and secure future allocations.