Laptop RAM is probably soldered these days.
Yes. Assume it’s soldered unless you have proof otherwise. Most thin-and-light laptops (MacBooks, Dell XPS, ThinkPad X1, Surface, etc.) have RAM soldered to the motherboard — no upgrade possible. Gaming laptops and some business machines still use SO-DIMM slots, but they’re getting rarer.
Two ways to check:
Manufacturer specs — Look up your exact model on the support page. It’ll say “memory” and list configuration options. If it says “soldered,” that’s your answer. If it says “two slots” or “up to 32GB,” you probably have removable RAM.
CPU-Z (Windows) — Download it, go to the SPD tab. It shows each memory slot. If it says “Slot #1” but no details, or shows “None,” the RAM is soldered. If it shows timings and size for a slot, that slot is occupied — if there’s a second empty slot, you can upgrade.
If you’re buying used or planning an upgrade, do this before you purchase. Opening the laptop to check is fine too, but CPU-Z is faster.
Don’t buy a laptop hoping to upgrade RAM later unless you’ve confirmed it has slots. Future you will thank you.