RAM Surcharges Explained

Date Modified: January 1, 2026

You might see a "RAM Surcharge Applies" notice on some of our plans. This article explains what that means, why we’re doing it, and how it affects your bill.

TL;DR

• Server-grade RAM prices have recently jumped to 3-5× what they were just a few months ago.

• Each new high-RAM server build now costs us around $1,000 to $2,000 more just in memory. As a small provider, we can’t simply eat that cost on every build.

• Instead of raising prices across all products, we’ve added a small RAM surcharge to plans that reserve dedicated RAM.

• The RAM surcharge is a recurring fee charged with your normal billing period (monthly, quarterly, annually, etc.).

• This surcharge only applies to new orders placed on or after January 1, 2026. Existing services keep their current pricing.

• When RAM pricing calms down to something sane again, our goal is to reduce or remove this surcharge.

Why we’re adding a RAM surcharge

Over the last few months, the cost of server-grade DDR5 RAM has gone up 4–5× compared to what we were paying before. That means:

• A server build that used to cost X now costs X + ~$2,000 just in RAM.

• We still want to use reliable, name-brand memory and keep enough headroom to avoid overselling or cramming too many customers onto one node.

• As a small provider, we don’t have the margins of the big guys and we can’t quietly absorb several thousand dollars of extra cost on every new server.

We have two options:

1. Silently raise base prices on everything, even low-RAM services, or

2. Be transparent and add a targeted RAM surcharge only where RAM usage actually matters.

We chose option #2.

The RAM surcharge helps us:

• Keep existing base prices as stable as possible

• Continue buying quality hardware instead of cutting corners

• Avoid overselling RAM and wrecking performance for everyone

We know surcharges aren’t fun. We don’t like them either. This is just the cleanest way to bridge the gap while RAM pricing is out of control.

How the RAM surcharge is billed

The RAM surcharge is recurring, not a one-time fee.

• It is billed once per billing period for each eligible new service:

  • Monthly services → surcharge is billed monthly

  • Quarterly services → surcharge is multiplied by 3 and billed with the quarterly invoice

  • Annual services → surcharge is multiplied by 12 and billed annually

• You’ll see it either:

  • Included in the final price shown at checkout, or

  • Listed as a separate line item such as “RAM Cost Surcharge” on your invoice (depending on the product/billing system).

If you upgrade or downgrade the RAM on a service that has a RAM surcharge, the surcharge will move to the appropriate tier starting from your next billing period.

Which services are affected?

Only services that reserve dedicated RAM are affected. Shared resources with tiny per-user RAM footprints (like basic web hosting) may not have a separate surcharge at all.

Below are example tiers. These are here so you can see how it’s calculated; the actual numbers on your plan may be rounded slightly for simplicity.

1. Cloud / VPS plans

These services reserve a fixed chunk of RAM for your VM.

RAM surcharge per service, per billing period:

• 2 GB VPS – $0.75

• 3-4 GB VPS – $1.50

• 6-8 GB VPS – $3.00

• 12-16 GB VPS – $4.50

• 24-32 GB VPS – $6.00

This works out to roughly $0.35-$0.40 per GB per month in extra cost that we’re sharing transparently instead of silently baking into base prices.

If your plan doesn’t line up exactly with these examples (e.g., 10 GB, 20 GB, etc.), the surcharge is set to the closest matching tier.

2. Game servers (Minecraft, BeamMP, etc.)

Game servers are also very RAM-sensitive, especially once you add mods, plugins, or a lot of players. To keep performance consistent without overselling RAM on our game nodes, we apply a similar structure:

Game server RAM surcharge per server, per billing period:

• 1-4 GB RAM - $0.75

• 5-8 GB RAM - $1.50

• 9-16 GB RAM - $3.00

• 17-32 GB RAM - $6.00

Again, the exact fee on your invoice might be rounded, but it’ll fall into one of these brackets.

3. Dedicated servers

Dedicated servers are where RAM pricing swings hurt the most, especially on high-capacity nodes (128 GB, 256 GB, 512 GB, and up). A single high-RAM build can easily add $2,000+ just in memory cost.

To keep dedicated pricing honest and sustainable, new dedicated server orders placed on or after January 1, 2026, may include a RAM surcharge based on the total RAM in the server.

This surcharge is:

• Recurring – charged each billing period (monthly, quarterly, annual, etc.)

• Only applied to new orders – existing dedicated servers keep their current pricing

• Shown clearly on the quote or invoice as something like "RAM Surcharge"

RAM surcharge per dedicated server, per billing period:

• 32-64 GB RAM - $20 /month

• 96-128 GB RAM - $30 /month

• 192-256 GB RAM - $45 /month

• 384-512 GB RAM - $60 /month

• Above 512 GB – quoted case-by-case, depending on the total configuration

These amounts help us recover the extra $2k+ per high-RAM server build over the expected life of the hardware, without quietly jacking up prices on every smaller or low-RAM plan.

For fully custom configurations, the RAM surcharge will either:

• Appear as a separate line item on your quote/invoice, or

• Be baked into the custom monthly price we give you (we’ll let you know which).

4. High-RAM / specialty services

For very high-RAM services that don’t fit standard plans (for example, custom application clusters, storage nodes, or special projects well above 512 GB), we will:

• Price the surcharge case-by-case based on the total RAM reserved, or

• Bake it directly into the custom quote instead of listing it separately.

If you’re unsure whether a particular service includes a RAM surcharge, just open a ticket and we’ll confirm.

Why not just raise prices and be done with it?

Good question. A few reasons:

• Fairness: Customers on low-RAM or legacy plans would be paying for RAM they’re not really using.

• Transparency: Listing a RAM surcharge keeps the reason front and center instead of hiding it in a quiet global price hike.

• Flexibility: When RAM prices eventually cool off, we can reduce or remove the surcharge without redesigning our entire pricing structure.

Think of it as a temporary cost-of-materials adjustment, the same way some manufacturers add a "materials surcharge" when steel or fuel prices spike.

How long will this last?

We review RAM pricing on a regular basis. Put simply:

• As long as server RAM is 3–5× higher than normal, we need this surcharge to avoid tanking thousands of dollars per build.

• When pricing returns to something closer to what we were paying before, our goal is to reduce or remove the surcharge.

• If/when that happens, you’ll receive an email stating that RAM Surcharges no longer apply and to enter a ticket for staff to remove it. At that time, the "RAM Surcharge Applies" badge will be removed from affected plans.

We’ll update this KB when we make any major changes.

FAQ

Does this apply to existing services or only new orders?

This RAM surcharge applies only to new orders placed on or after January 1, 2025 and will be implemented in stages.

• If you already have a service with us, it will stay on its current pricing and will not have the RAM surcharge added.

• If you later place a new order (for example, an additional VPS, game server, or dedicated server), that new service may include the RAM surcharge if it falls into one of the RAM tiers listed above.

• If you cancel an existing service and re-order it under a new plan, the new order will follow the current pricing and surcharge rules.

What if I reduce the RAM on my service?

If you have a service that includes a RAM surcharge and you downgrade to a lower-RAM tier:

• The surcharge will drop to the lower tier

• The new amount will be prorated or reflected from your next billing period onward

If you’re on a legacy service that doesn’t include a RAM surcharge at all, simply downgrading RAM does not add one. The surcharge only applies to new orders created under this policy.

Can the surcharge amount change?

It can, but we don’t plan to change it often.

• If RAM gets even more expensive, we may have to adjust these numbers.

• If RAM gets cheaper again (which is what we’re hoping for), we’ll lower or remove the surcharge.

Any changes will be reflected here and on your invoice before renewal.

Who can I talk to if I still have questions?

Open a ticket with our billing or sales team and mention "RAM Surcharge" in the subject. We’ll happily walk through your specific service(s), what’s being charged, and whether there are ways to tweak your plan (for example, lowering RAM or switching tiers) to keep costs down.