Mixing RAM brands usually works but you might lose speed.

Yes, you can probably mix a single 8GB stick with another 8GB stick of a different brand or timing. The motherboard will try to make them play together by defaulting to the slowest common denominator—so your faster stick will slow down to match the slower one.

The main risk is instability. If the timing profiles (CAS latency, voltage) are too different, the system might boot but crash under load, or fail to boot at all. You can fix some mismatches by manually setting slower timings in BIOS, but that’s a hassle. Also, mixing single-rank and dual-rank sticks can cause weirdness.

For a basic desktop or office machine, it’s often fine. For gaming or anything stability-sensitive (e.g., video editing, servers), just buy a matched kit. It’s cheap insurance.

If you’re ordering new anyway, spend the extra few bucks to get identical sticks.