US PC shipments fell 7% in Q1 as memory costs spike; budget segment down 18.7%

US PC shipments (excluding tablets) declined 7.0% year-over-year in Q1 2026 to 15.8 million units, marking the steepest annual drop since Q3 2023, according to Omdia. The downturn reflects sharp supply constraints and cost pressures stemming from memory and storage price spikes, compounded by a demand hangover after the Windows 11 refresh cycle and strong tariff-driven stockpiling in Q1 2025 that inflated the prior-year comparison.

Sub-$500 PCs were hit hardest: shipments fell 18.7% year-over-year in the quarter. Omdia attributes the collapse to DRAM and NAND supply being diverted toward AI server applications, where margins are thicker than in consumer devices. Budget laptops face margin compression vendors cannot pass through to price-sensitive buyers. Omdia forecasts full-year US PC shipments will decline 14.4% in 2026, with component costs expected to keep entry-level prices elevated through 2027.

For architects evaluating infrastructure spend, this signals sustained DRAM and NAND allocation pressure flowing away from consumer markets. Foundational capacity is being locked in for AI inference and training clusters; consumer replenishment cycles will remain suppressed as long as memory spot prices stay elevated and supply allocations favor hyperscaler bidders.