Adobe Photoshop — Not Enough RAM Error — What It Means & How to Fix It

What Does This Error Mean?

This error means Photoshop has run out of memory to process what you are asking it to do. Photoshop is one of the most memory-hungry applications on any computer. When it runs out of RAM, it either refuses to complete the action or crashes entirely. You can often fix this without buying more RAM — by adjusting how much memory Photoshop is allowed to use and closing other programs.

Affected Models

Adobe Photoshop CC 2020
Adobe Photoshop CC 2021
Adobe Photoshop CC 2022
Adobe Photoshop CC 2023
Adobe Photoshop CC 2024

Common Causes

Other programs are using up RAM, leaving too little for Photoshop to work with
Photoshop's memory allocation setting is set too low for the size of files you are working with
You are working on very large files (high-resolution images or files with many layers)
Photoshop's scratch disk — the hard drive space it uses as backup memory — is full or not set correctly
Too many History States are being kept, consuming large amounts of memory in the background

How to Fix It

Close all other programs before opening Photoshop. Web browsers, video players, and other Adobe apps all compete for RAM. Closing them frees up memory for Photoshop to use.

Even a browser with several tabs open can use 1–2 GB of RAM, which makes a real difference on a computer with 8 GB total.
Increase the amount of RAM Photoshop is allowed to use. Go to Edit > Preferences > Performance. Under Memory Usage, raise the 'Let Photoshop Use' percentage. A setting of 70–80% is a good starting point. Click OK, then restart Photoshop.

Do not set this to 100% — leave some RAM for Windows itself to use, or your whole system may slow down.
Set a fast scratch disk with enough free space. In Edit > Preferences > Scratch Disks, make sure your primary scratch disk is your fastest drive (ideally an SSD) and that it has at least 20 GB of free space. Photoshop uses this as overflow memory.

If your scratch disk is nearly full, Photoshop behaves as if it has run out of RAM even if your actual RAM usage is fine.
Reduce the number of History States Photoshop keeps. Go to Edit > Preferences > Performance and lower History States from the default (20) to 5–10. Each history state stores a full copy of your image in memory.

Fewer history states means less undo steps, but it frees up a significant amount of RAM on large files.
Purge Photoshop's memory cache. Go to Edit > Purge > All. This clears the history, clipboard, video cache, and undo data. After purging, the 'Not Enough RAM' error often goes away for the current session.

Purge All is permanent — you cannot undo actions that have been purged. Only do this if you are happy with your current state and do not need to undo past it.

When to Call a Professional

This is a settings and resources issue, not a sign of hardware failure. You can resolve it yourself by following the steps below. If Photoshop still crashes after adjusting all settings, your computer may genuinely not have enough RAM for the file sizes you work with. For professional creative work, 16 GB of RAM is the practical minimum and 32 GB is recommended.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much RAM does Photoshop actually need?

Adobe's official minimum is 8 GB, but in practice that is only enough for basic editing of standard photos. For high-resolution images, multiple layers, or large panoramas, 16 GB is the comfortable minimum. Professional retouchers and compositors typically use 32–64 GB. If you are regularly hitting RAM errors on 8 GB, upgrading to 16 GB will make a huge difference.

I increased the RAM allocation but Photoshop still says not enough RAM. What else can I try?

Check your scratch disk next — it is the most overlooked cause. Make sure your scratch disk drive has at least 20 GB free, and that it is set to your fastest SSD. Also try Purge > All (Edit menu) to clear cached data from the current session. If the problem persists, the file you are working on may simply be too large for your hardware.

Does closing Photoshop and reopening it help with the RAM error?

Yes, often. Photoshop accumulates memory usage over a long session as it stores history states, clipboard data, and caches. Restarting Photoshop clears all of that and gives you a clean start. For very long editing sessions, it is good practice to restart Photoshop every couple of hours to keep performance smooth.