ECC DDR4 vs non-ECC DDR4: ECC is cheaper but requires specific hardware

ECC DDR4 is usually $10-20 cheaper than non-ECC at the same speed because of a massive secondary market from decommissioned enterprise gear. The catch is your motherboard and CPU must support ECC—typically Ryzen Pro, Intel Xeon, or Threadripper—or it won’t work. So only buy ECC if your hardware is compatible; otherwise, you’ll waste money.