Almost a year ago, I found that N100 Mini PCs were cheaper than a decked-out Raspberry Pi 5. So comparing systems with:

16GB of RAM
512GB NVMe SSD
Including case, cooler, and power adapter

Back in March last year, a GMKtec Mini PC was $159, and a similar-spec Pi 5 was $208.
Today? The same GMKtec Mini PC is $246.99, and the same Pi 5 is $246.95:



Today, because of the wonderful RAM shortages1, the Mini PC is the same price as a fully kitted-out Raspberry Pi 5.

Jeff Geerling is a software developer, author, and open-source contributor known for his expertise in infrastructure automation and Drupal development. Readers can learn about DevOps practices, Ansible automation, and web development with Drupal. With blog posts, tutorials, and open-source projects, Jeff Geerling shares  insights and best practices for building and managing web infrastructure.

Jeff Geerling

Raspberry Pi 5 and N100 Mini PCs have both increased in price due to RAM shortages, now costing around $247 for comparable configurations (16GB RAM, 512GB NVMe). A year ago, the Mini PC was $159 and the Pi 5 was $208. The author suggests 2026 will focus on repurposing used hardware and finding value in lower-spec options like the 1GB Pi 5 model under $50 or Pi Zero 2W at $15, as memory prices are unlikely to drop soon due to AI demand.

Raspberry Pi is cheaper than a Mini PC again (that's not good)

Love the quality of your posts - always!! Only one thing I need to mention we have just entered 2026 - I guess the image subline is suppossed to be that! Happy new year Jeff! 😚 ☺️ 😝

And just the fact that you can connect MANY things to a Pi 5 (e.g. a motion sensor, or a temperature sensor and so on) is great.

you think my friend that buy a rasp is a good idea yet today? some months ago i bought a mini pc (like acemagic) at 150€ with 16gm ram and 500gb nvme.