diff --git a/nixos/tests/xfce.nix b/nixos/tests/xfce.nix
index 6e003d51460..6cb4fae2021 100644
--- a/nixos/tests/xfce.nix
+++ b/nixos/tests/xfce.nix
@@ -19,6 +19,8 @@ import ./make-test.nix ({ pkgs, ...} : {
       environment.systemPackages = [ pkgs.xorg.xmessage ];
 
       hardware.pulseaudio.enable = true; # needed for the factl test, /dev/snd/* exists without them but udev doesn't care then
+
+      virtualisation.memorySize = 1024;
     };
 
   testScript =