Where to Buy Raspberry Pi in 2026: Official Retailers & Stock Trackers

Finding where to buy pi boards used to be straightforward — you’d visit any electronics retailer, pick your model, and check out. Those days ended during the 2021-2023 shortage, and while supply has improved dramatically, knowing where to buy raspberry pi boards at fair prices still requires some strategy.

As someone who has sourced hundreds of Raspberry Pi units for production projects over the years, I’ve learned which retailers consistently deliver and which stock trackers actually work. The landscape in 2026 looks different than it did even a year ago, with new pricing, improved availability, and some important changes to the retailer ecosystem worth understanding.

Current Raspberry Pi Availability in 2026

The good news: raspberry pi in stock situations have normalized substantially compared to the shortage years. Most models are readily available through official channels, though some configurations sell out faster than others.

However, 2026 brought new challenges. Memory costs driven by AI infrastructure demand pushed prices up across several models in late 2025. Raspberry Pi introduced a new 1GB Pi 5 at $45 to maintain an affordable entry point, but higher-capacity variants now cost more than their original launch prices.

Current Raspberry Pi Pricing (2026)

Understanding current pricing helps you spot fair deals and avoid scalpers. Here’s what you should expect to pay at official retailers:

Model	Configuration	Official Price (USD)	Notes
Raspberry Pi 5	1GB	$45	New entry-level option
Raspberry Pi 5	2GB	$55	Was $50 at launch
Raspberry Pi 5	4GB	$75	Was $60 at launch
Raspberry Pi 5	8GB	$95	Was $80 at launch
Raspberry Pi 5	16GB	$145	Was $120 at launch
Raspberry Pi 4	1GB	$35	Price unchanged
Raspberry Pi 4	2GB	$45	Price unchanged
Raspberry Pi 4	4GB	$60	Was $55
Raspberry Pi 4	8GB	$85	Was $75
Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W	512MB	$15	Often limited stock
Raspberry Pi Pico 2	–	$5	Excellent availability
Raspberry Pi 500	8GB	$100	Keyboard-integrated

These prices reflect the board only. Budget an additional $30-50 for essential accessories like power supply, case, and microSD card if you’re starting fresh.

Official Raspberry Pi Approved Resellers

Raspberry Pi maintains an Approved Reseller program spanning over 60 countries. These retailers sign agreements guaranteeing they’ll sell at official MSRP (before local taxes and shipping), provide proper customer support, and maintain genuine product authenticity.

Buying from approved resellers matters because it ensures you receive authentic boards with valid warranties, pay fair prices without scalper markups, and can return defective units without hassle.

North American Approved Resellers

For buyers in the United States and Canada, these are your best options to buy raspberry pi boards:

Retailer	Country	Shipping	Notes
CanaKit	USA/Canada	Fast, often free	Excellent kits, reliable stock
PiShop.us	USA	Standard rates	Widest accessory selection
Adafruit	USA	Multiple options	Verified account required
SparkFun	USA	Standard rates	Good for educational orders
Newark/element14	USA	Standard rates	Business-focused
Micro Center	USA	In-store pickup	Limited locations, great prices
Digi-Key	USA/Canada	Fast	Large inventory
Mouser	USA	Fast	Industrial quantities available

CanaKit deserves special mention for consistently maintaining stock when others sell out. Their bundled kits offer genuine value rather than the inflated “kit” pricing some vendors use to circumvent per-customer limits during shortages.

Micro Center operates differently from online retailers — they require in-store pickup at one of their approximately 25 US locations. The trade-off is often having raspberry pi in stock when online vendors don’t, and their pricing remains competitive. Check their website for store locations before planning a trip.

European Approved Resellers

European buyers have excellent options across the continent:

Retailer	Countries Served	Notes
The Pi Hut	UK, EU shipping	Massive accessory catalog
Pimoroni	UK, EU shipping	Original accessories, creative products
Farnell/element14	UK, EU	Industrial focus
RS Components	UK, EU	Business accounts
Kubii	France	French-language support
Reichelt	Germany	Wide electronics selection
BuyZero.de	Germany	Quick shipping
Botland	Poland	Eastern European distribution
OKDO	Multiple	Pi Foundation partnership

The Pi Hut has grown into arguably the largest Raspberry Pi accessory retailer globally. Their website makes it easy to check compatibility between boards and add-ons, which saves considerable research time when planning projects.

Asia-Pacific Approved Resellers

Retailer	Countries Served	Notes
Core Electronics	Australia	Fast AU shipping
Pi Australia	Australia	Local support
Cytron	Malaysia, SEA	Regional hub
Switch Science	Japan	Japanese-language support
KSY	Japan	Official distributor
Eleparts	South Korea	Korean market focus

Buying Directly from Raspberry Pi

For business customers purchasing certain products in volume, Raspberry Pi now offers direct sales. This option works best for commercial applications requiring quantity purchases, companies needing formal procurement documentation, and industrial integrators building Raspberry Pi into products.

Individual hobbyists should stick with approved resellers for better shipping rates on single units and easier returns if needed.

Stock Tracker Tools: Finding Raspberry Pi In Stock

When specific models sell out at your preferred retailer, stock trackers become invaluable. These tools monitor inventory across multiple vendors and alert you when products become available.

rpilocator

The gold standard for finding raspberry pi in stock is rpilocator.com, created by André Costa during the 2021 shortage. The site monitors dozens of approved resellers worldwide and updates continuously throughout the day.

Key features:

• Covers retailers across North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific
• Filters by Pi model, RAM configuration, and country
• RSS feed for automated monitoring
• Historical stock data showing availability patterns
• Twitter/X alerts via @rpilocator

The interface lets you filter by specific models — essential when you need a particular configuration. I’ve found Pi Zero 2 W units through rpilocator that I would have missed otherwise.

Pro tip: The RSS feed (rpilocator.com/feed/) enables custom alerting. Technical users can build scripts that parse this feed and trigger notifications through their preferred channels.

NowInStock

NowInStock.net tracks Raspberry Pi alongside other frequently scarce products like gaming consoles and graphics cards. Their tracker auto-updates every minute and supports browser-based alerts.

The site maintains expanded stock history, letting you see patterns in when retailers typically receive shipments. This information helps predict when refreshing becomes worthwhile.

Raspistock

Raspistock.com focuses specifically on Raspberry Pi products. The interface is simpler than rpilocator but covers major retailers effectively. Email alerts notify you the moment restocks occur.

Telegram and Discord Alerts

Community-driven alerting has evolved beyond Twitter. Several Telegram channels provide instant notifications when stock appears:

• @raspberry_alert — Mirrors rpilocator data to Telegram
• Various Discord servers maintain stock-alert channels

These work particularly well for popular models that sell out within minutes of restocking.

Avoiding Scalpers and Counterfeit Boards

The shortage years spawned a secondary market of scalpers and, unfortunately, counterfeit products. Even with improved availability, these problems persist to varying degrees.

Identifying Scalper Pricing

Compare any price you see against the official pricing table above. Markups of 10-15% might reflect legitimate shipping costs or currency conversion, but anything beyond 50% over MSRP is likely scalping.

Amazon and eBay remain problematic marketplaces. Third-party sellers frequently list at inflated prices, and the platforms’ product pages mix authorized sellers with scalpers. If you buy raspberry pi from these platforms, verify the seller is an authorized retailer rather than an arbitrary third party.

Counterfeit Warning Signs

Counterfeit Raspberry Pi boards exist, though they’re less common than during peak shortage. Red flags include prices significantly below MSRP (too good to be true applies), unusual packaging or missing documentation, sellers with limited feedback history, and shipping directly from countries without official Raspberry Pi distribution.

The safest approach remains purchasing from approved resellers only. The modest potential savings from marketplace deals rarely justify the risk of receiving non-functional or counterfeit hardware.

Buying Kits vs. Individual Components

Retailers offer Raspberry Pi in two ways: bare boards and bundled kits. Each approach has merits depending on your situation.

When to Buy a Kit

Kits make sense for beginners needing all accessories, when kit pricing offers genuine savings over individual items, fast project starts without sourcing separate components, and gift purchases where recipients shouldn’t need additional items.

Quality kits from CanaKit, The Pi Hut, and Pimoroni bundle compatible accessories tested together. Budget approximately $80-150 for a complete Pi 5 starter kit depending on included accessories.

When to Buy Just the Board

Experienced users often prefer bare boards because they already own compatible power supplies and cards, they want specific accessories not included in standard kits, bulk purchasing for multiple projects or classroom use, and industrial applications requiring specific configurations.

During shortages, kits sometimes remained available when bare boards sold out — retailers used bundles to prevent hoarding and ensure buyers actually intended to use the products.

Special Considerations for Different Buyers

Educational Institutions

Schools and educational programs should contact retailers directly about educational discounts. Many approved resellers offer volume pricing for classroom quantities. The Raspberry Pi Foundation also runs educational programs with special pricing in some regions.

Consider the Raspberry Pi 400 or Pi 500 for classroom use — the keyboard-integrated design simplifies setup and reduces the number of loose components students can lose or damage.

Industrial and Commercial Users

For production integration, the Compute Module series offers the Pi 4/5 capabilities in a standardized form factor designed for custom carrier boards. The CM4 and CM5 include options for onboard eMMC storage and wireless connectivity.

Commercial users should establish relationships with distributors like Farnell, Newark, Digi-Key, or Mouser. These channels handle volume orders, provide formal quotations and invoicing, and maintain consistent stock allocation for business customers.

International Buyers

Customers outside regions with approved resellers face additional challenges. Import duties, extended shipping times, and currency conversion all add cost. Some tips:

• Check the official Raspberry Pi reseller page for your country first
• Regional resellers often offer better total cost than international shipping
• Factor in import duties before ordering from another country
• AliExpress sellers claiming “official” status are rarely authorized

Useful Resources for Raspberry Pi Buyers

Resource	Description	Link
Official Products Page	Current models and official pricing	raspberrypi.com/products
Approved Reseller List	Find retailers in your country	raspberrypi.com/resellers
rpilocator	Real-time stock tracking	rpilocator.com
NowInStock Tracker	Alternative stock monitoring	nowinstock.net/computers/developmentboards/raspberrypi
Raspistock	Restock alerts	raspistock.com
Official Forums	Community help and buying advice	forums.raspberrypi.com
GitHub PiJuice Discussions	Active community discussions	github.com/PiSupply/PiJuice

Price Tracking Tools

Beyond stock availability, tracking price changes helps optimize purchasing timing:

• CamelCamelCamel tracks Amazon pricing history (useful for spotting scalper inflation)
• Keepa provides similar Amazon price tracking with alerts
• PCPartPicker now includes some Raspberry Pi products in its database

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is the best place to buy Raspberry Pi in 2026?

The best retailer depends on your location. In the United States, CanaKit and PiShop.us offer the most reliable stock and shipping. UK buyers should check The Pi Hut first. Always start with the official reseller list for your country at raspberrypi.com/resellers to find authorized retailers offering genuine products at fair prices.

Why is Raspberry Pi out of stock at some retailers?

While the severe shortages of 2021-2023 have largely resolved, specific models still experience temporary stockouts. The Pi Zero 2 W remains constrained due to its specialized manufacturing process. Additionally, new product launches like the Pi 5 16GB or special configurations may sell out quickly at launch before production scales up.

Is it safe to buy Raspberry Pi from Amazon or eBay?

These platforms mix authorized resellers with third-party sellers who may be scalping or selling counterfeit products. If you buy raspberry pi from Amazon, verify the seller is an “Authorized Raspberry Pi Reseller” and compare prices against official MSRP. eBay carries even higher risk — I generally avoid it for new Raspberry Pi purchases and recommend sticking with approved resellers.

How long does Raspberry Pi stay in stock after a restock?

This varies dramatically by model and retailer. Common configurations like the Pi 5 4GB often stay in stock for days or weeks. Limited models like the Pi Zero 2 W might sell out within hours of restocking. Stock trackers like rpilocator help you act quickly when sought-after models become available.

Should I wait for prices to drop or buy now?

The late 2025 price increases resulted from memory cost pressures that Raspberry Pi CEO Eben Upton described as “painful but ultimately temporary.” However, no timeline exists for price reductions. If you need a Pi now, buy now — waiting for uncertain future discounts rarely makes sense when these boards enable projects worth far more than the hardware cost.

Tips for Getting Stock Alerts to Work

Stock trackers only help if you act on alerts quickly. Here’s how to maximize your chances when hunting for specific models:

Set Up Multiple Alert Channels

Don’t rely on a single notification method. Configure rpilocator RSS feeds, Telegram alerts, and email notifications simultaneously. Redundancy matters when popular models sell out in minutes.

Pre-Register Accounts

Before stock appears, create accounts at your target retailers with payment methods already saved. The extra seconds required to enter payment details during checkout have cost many buyers their boards.

Know Your Shipping Options

Some retailers offer expedited processing for in-stock items. Understanding shipping tiers in advance lets you make faster checkout decisions without researching options while the clock ticks.

Final Thoughts on Buying Raspberry Pi in 2026

The Raspberry Pi buying experience has matured considerably since the shortage years. Approved resellers maintain decent stock of most models, stock trackers work reliably, and the fear of missing out has diminished for most configurations.

My standard advice: bookmark the approved reseller for your region, set up rpilocator alerts for any specific models you’re watching, and buy raspberry pi from official channels only. The modest convenience of marketplace purchases isn’t worth the risk of scalper prices or counterfeit boards.

If raspberry pi in stock at your preferred retailer, don’t overthink it — stock situations can change. The projects these boards enable are worth far more than the few hours you might spend hunting for slightly better availability elsewhere.

For those still struggling to find specific models, patience and persistence with stock trackers will eventually pay off. The Raspberry Pi community has weathered worse supply situations and emerged with better tools and processes for finding available inventory. Use those resources, support authorized retailers, and you’ll have your Pi soon enough.