About an hour — if the tech is good.

A skilled technician can do a soldered RAM upgrade in 30 to 90 minutes, depending on the machine and how paintable the solder joints are. Call it an hour on average.

The catch is that “skilled” matters a lot. Removing old RAM chips without lifting pads or overheating the board takes steady hands and the right equipment (hot air station, flux, fine-tipped iron). Cheap labor or DIY attempts often end with a dead motherboard.

Also worth noting: this is not a cheap upgrade. Labor alone runs $100-200, plus the cost of the RAM chips. For most laptops, you’d be better off selling the machine and buying one with more RAM pre-soldered. But if you have a rare or expensive device where speed matters, a competent tech can do it in about an hour.

Don’t try this at home unless you’re already comfortable reworking BGA components.