Advice: How much memory for a Mac Mini M1?

[Christian]

8 GB are not bad. 16 GB are better.

Useful topics:

M1 8GB or 16GB?

I know there’s been a rush of feedback on the question of RAM in the new M1 Macs, but I am looking for some feedback after a few weeks of regular use. The clear answer in most cases is “get as much RAM as you can afford,” but this is a completely new architecture and it sounds like many are finding 8GB to be the new 16GB. Does anyone have any feedback after using both an 8GB M1 and a 16GB M1? Is it worth the cost and the wait time (currently about a month out for a 16GB M1 Mac Mini).

In that topic particularly:

M1 8GB or 16GB?

Caveat: I have not used the 8GB M1, but I have a 16GB version. Here are my thoughts. No, 8GB is not the new 16GB. 16GB is still 16GB, and 8GB is still 8GB. 8GB now might be better than 8GB then, but it’s not 16GB. When I log in and check Activity Monitor, it shows that I have 9GB used before I have done anything except launch my login apps (which aren’t excessive). I rebooted less than a day ago and I have almost 6 GB of swap used. The good news is that the M1 doesn’t feel like it has been s…

There are also opinions that mention that 8 GB are good enough:

More on 8Gb vs 16GB M1

This set of articles makes an intriguing case for high performance with “only” 8Gb RAM in an M1 Mac. While it is compelling, I wonder why Apple limits the number of supported external displays. And I wonder if more RAM will be needed particularly for those with 3 or more monitors. That said, it is impressive performance data.

Long story short: the new M1 SoC seem to be that fast that a shortage of memory is not as problematic as it has been before. But then again:

M1 8GB or 16GB?

Caveat: I have not used the 8GB M1, but I have a 16GB version. Here are my thoughts. No, 8GB is not the new 16GB. 16GB is still 16GB, and 8GB is still 8GB. 8GB now might be better than 8GB then, but it’s not 16GB. When I log in and check Activity Monitor, it shows that I have 9GB used before I have done anything except launch my login apps (which aren’t excessive). I rebooted less than a day ago and I have almost 6 GB of swap used. The good news is that the M1 doesn’t feel like it has been s…