Graphics memory, often called VRAM, is something many PC users have questions about. It’s an essential part of both dedicated graphics cards and integrated GPUs, though there are some key differences between the two.
Dedicated graphics cards usually come with a lot more VRAM because they have more space and power to work with. Integrated GPUs, which are built into the processor, have limited room and generally use much less memory. There are some exceptions — like Intel’s chips with Radeon RX Vega graphics that include 1GB of HBM2 memory — but most integrated GPUs only have around 128MB to 512MB of their own VRAM.
When an application needs more graphics memory than what’s available, integrated GPUs borrow some of the system’s regular RAM. However, this RAM is slower than the memory used in modern graphics cards. As a result, performance takes a hit because the data can’t move as quickly. Plus, since the GPU is sharing the system’s RAM, it reduces the amount left for other tasks. For example, if you have 8GB of RAM and the integrated GPU uses 2GB, you’re left with only 6GB for the rest of the system.
Dedicated graphics cards don’t have this problem. They come with their own VRAM. Even budget models these days usually have at least 4GB of GDDR6 memory, which allows them to handle higher bandwidth — even with a 64-bit bus. Mid-range cards often use a 128-bit or 192-bit bus for even better performance.
What is graphics memory and what does it do?
Graphics memory, or VRAM, is a special kind of memory designed to handle graphics-heavy tasks, like video games or 3D applications. It runs much faster than regular RAM and works with wider data buses — sometimes up to 512 bits. Most high-end cards, though, usually have buses between 256 and 384 bits.
To give you an idea, a typical dual-channel DDR4 setup has a 128-bit bus and runs at around 3,200 Mbps. But a graphics card like the GeForce RTX 4070 uses a 192-bit bus, and its GDDR6X memory can reach speeds of 21,000 Mbps. This makes a big difference in performance, especially when dealing with large textures and demanding visuals.
VRAM is also considered complementary memory because it works alongside the system’s RAM. It stores everything the GPU needs to do its job, including textures, shaders, and other visual data. The operating system also uses it — how much depends on things like your screen resolution and the graphical interface — and it helps when opening images, videos, and similar content.
To put it simply, VRAM for the GPU is like RAM for the CPU. Both are essential for smooth performance, so the size and speed of your graphics memory matter a lot.
How much graphics memory do I need? And what if I don’t have enough?
There’s no one-size-fits-all answer — it really depends on how you plan to use your computer. If your main tasks are watching high-resolution videos or doing basic office work, then an integrated GPU with 8GB of RAM is usually enough for a smooth experience on Windows 10. But if you want to play modern games, that setup just won’t cut it.
For gaming, it’s best to have a dedicated graphics card with GDDR6 memory. While the amount of VRAM doesn’t directly make a GPU more powerful, not having enough can seriously hold back performance. The GPU’s speed, the type of memory it uses, and the width of its data bus also play a big role in how well it performs — especially when running demanding games or applications.
Let’s take a practical example. The GeForce GT 1030 comes in two versions — one with 2GB of GDDR5 memory running at 6,000 Mbps, and another with 2GB of slower DDR4 memory running at 2,100 Mbps. On paper, the two may look almost the same. The only real differences are in memory speed and a slightly lower GPU speed in the DDR4 version.
At first, these differences might not seem like a big deal. But in reality, the GDDR5 version performs twice as well as the DDR4 version. This simple comparison shows just how much impact memory speed can have on performance.
The type of graphics memory and the width of the graphics card’s data bus together determine the available bandwidth — that is, how fast the GPU can exchange data with its memory. More bandwidth means better performance. This is especially important for tasks like gaming at high resolutions, using ray tracing, or running powerful GPUs.
A high-end GPU needs high bandwidth to reach its full performance potential. That’s why top-tier graphics cards come with faster memory and wider buses. For instance, the GeForce RTX 4090 has a bandwidth of 1,001 GB/s, while the RTX 4070 offers 504.2 GB/s.
Memory speed is important — but so is memory size. When you play a game, it uses a certain amount of VRAM based on your settings and resolution. Most games will try to adjust their memory use depending on how much VRAM your graphics card has.
Let’s take DOOM 2016 as an example. It’s not the newest game out there, but when played at 1080p on maximum settings, it uses around 3GB of VRAM on graphics cards that have up to 4GB of memory. Interestingly, if your graphics card has 6GB or more, the game might use up to 4.5GB. But that extra usage doesn’t mean the game needs more — it’s just filling up the available space ahead of time.
This is called preemptive occupancy. It happens when a game sees that you have more VRAM than necessary, so it loads extra data in advance to try and boost performance. It’s similar to how RAM works. That’s why it’s important to understand the difference between memory occupancy and memory usage:
- Preemptive memory usage: This is optional data the game loads just in case, to help performance.
- Memory usage: This is the actual amount needed to run the game smoothly.
Now, if you bump the resolution up to 1440p in DOOM 2016, the memory usage goes up. On cards with 4GB or less, usage averages around 3.5GB. On cards with more VRAM, it can reach 4.8GB — again because of preemptive loading.
Now let’s talk about a more demanding title: DOOM Eternal. It uses a newer engine (id Tech 7) and is much heavier on graphics. At 1080p, if you set the graphics to Ultra Nightmare (the highest setting), it can use up to 6.7GB of VRAM. To run the game at that level, you need a graphics card with at least 8GB of memory. If your card doesn’t have enough, the game will force you to lower the settings so it can run properly.
Over time, the amount of graphics memory needed for games has gone up a lot. These days, it’s not unusual to see some games using 8GB of VRAM or even more—just at 1080p resolution. While this is still only true for certain games, and sometimes it’s the result of poor optimization, it’s something gamers should be aware of.
Take The Last of Us Part I for PC, for example. When it first launched, it required a huge amount of VRAM but gave players surprisingly low-quality textures in return. It was poorly optimized and, honestly, felt more like a game still in early testing than a finished product.
If your graphics card doesn’t have enough VRAM to handle a game’s demands, the best thing you can do is lower some of the settings — especially texture quality, shadow details, and filtering. These are the features that typically use the most memory. If you don’t adjust them, you might run into problems like:
- Drops in performance and stuttering
- Textures loading slowly or looking blurry
- Sudden pop-in of objects or textures as you move through the game
- Graphics looking low-quality even when set to high settings
Some games still let you choose high settings even if they go beyond your available VRAM, but others won’t. For instance, as mentioned earlier, DOOM Eternal won’t let you enable its top-quality settings unless your graphics card meets the VRAM requirements.
Resident Evil 4 Remake is a good example of the opposite approach to what we saw in DOOM Eternal. It lets you set graphics options that go beyond your GPU’s available VRAM. It’s also known for showing high graphics memory usage, but in reality, those numbers are often inflated and don’t reflect the actual memory being used.
Now let’s look at a more recent and technically advanced game — DOOM: The Dark Ages. This title shows how important good optimization really is when it comes to resource use. Despite using heavy features like ray tracing, which normally eats up a lot of VRAM, the game runs smoothly thanks to smart design and efficient performance.
id Software packed in all the major upscaling technologies — NVIDIA DLSS, AMD FSR, and Intel XeSS — as well as multi-frame generation. Upscaling helps reduce VRAM usage, while multi-frame generation increases it slightly by storing data needed to build extra frames.
One of the best things about DOOM: The Dark Ages is how well it scales. You can tweak the texture settings to control how much graphics memory the game uses. For example, if you’re playing at 1440p on max settings with 4096-sized textures, DLAA, and multi-frame generation, the game uses about 10.59 GB of VRAM. But if you switch to DLSS in quality mode, it drops to around 9.9 GB.
And if you lower the texture pool size to 1,536 using the same settings, VRAM usage falls further to about 7.34 GB. That means you could still enjoy high-quality visuals at 1440p on an 8GB graphics card — just by tweaking a few settings.
All of this highlights an important truth: games that demand 8GB or more of VRAM at just 1080p resolution are usually poorly optimized. Thankfully, these games are rare and shouldn’t be taken as the standard. Instead, they show what can go wrong when a game isn’t built efficiently.
By now, we’ve learned which settings to adjust to lower VRAM usage and what problems can happen if we don’t. But the big question remains: how much graphics memory do you actually need? The answer depends mostly on the resolution you play at and the visual quality settings you prefer. Here’s a quick guide to help you out:
- Below 1080p: 4GB of GDDR5 is usually enough. Most older or less demanding games will run smoothly — even at 1080p — with this amount.
- 1080p (Full HD): At this resolution, it’s best to have at least 6GB of GDDR5. But for a better experience without compromising quality, 8GB of GDDR6 is ideal.
- 1440p (QHD): You can still get by with 8GB of GDDR6, but for smoother performance in modern games, especially at higher settings, 12GB is recommended.
- 2160p (4K): In most situations, 12GB of GDDR6 should be enough. However, if you plan to turn on ray tracing or run games at ultra settings, 16GB of VRAM is the ideal choice.
In short, more VRAM doesn’t always mean better performance — but having the right amount for your needs can make a big difference in your gaming experience.
When it comes to graphics settings, the biggest factors that affect how much VRAM your system uses are screen resolution, texture quality, and the size of the texture memory allocation.
A common mistake people make is lowering the resolution below the screen’s native setting to save memory. But this usually makes the image look blurry and less sharp. Instead of reducing resolution, it’s better to use upscaling technologies, like DLSS or FSR, which help lower memory usage without sacrificing image quality.
If you’re running into performance issues because of limited VRAM, a simple fix can go a long way. For example, changing texture quality from ultra to high and cutting the texture memory reserve in half can free up 2GB or more of graphics memory. That small tweak might be just what you need to get smoother performance — with barely any noticeable drop in visuals.
As we’ve seen, some advanced graphics features like ray tracing, path tracing, and frame generation can significantly increase the amount of VRAM a game uses. For example, Resident Evil 4 Remake uses around 9.3 GB of VRAM at 1080p on max settings — but when ray tracing is turned on, it jumps to 10.3 GB. That’s an extra 1 GB just for adding realistic lighting effects.
Frame generation also increases VRAM usage because it needs to store extra data in a buffer to generate smoother frames. On the other hand, upscaling technologies (like DLSS or FSR) do the opposite—they help reduce VRAM usage by rendering fewer pixels and then scaling the image up.
This difference can really matter. By freeing up graphics memory, upscaling can sometimes let you run games at higher settings that would normally be too heavy for your system. The higher the resolution you’re playing at, the more memory upscaling can save — making it a great option for gamers trying to get the most out of their hardware.
Other factors that can affect VRAM usage
Besides resolution and graphics settings, here are a few more things that can influence how much VRAM you need:
- Multi-Monitor Setups: If you use more than one monitor, your system may require more VRAM, especially if each screen runs at high resolution. For example, gaming on two 1080p screens is not the same as using one; the total VRAM demand increases.
- Modded Games: Some older games, when heavily modded (like with high-resolution texture packs), can end up needing as much VRAM as modern AAA titles. Skyrim, GTA V, or Minecraft with ultra mods can easily consume 6–8 GB of VRAM or more.
- Professional Applications: VRAM isn’t just about gaming. If you work with 3D modeling, video editing, CAD software, or machine learning, having more VRAM (8 GB and above) is often necessary for handling complex projects smoothly.
How to check your VRAM usage
Many users aren’t aware they can monitor their VRAM usage in real time. Here’s how:
- In Windows: Open Task Manager → Performance tab → GPU section. It shows dedicated GPU memory usage.
- In Games: Most modern games display VRAM usage in their graphics settings menu.
- Third-party tools: Apps like MSI Afterburner or GPU-Z give detailed insights into VRAM usage during gameplay or work.
While more VRAM gives you more room to breathe, balance is key. There’s no need to buy a graphics card with 24 GB of VRAM if you’re only gaming at 1080p. On the flip side, if you’re future-proofing or plan to play high-end titles at 1440p or 4K with ray tracing, going for 12–16 GB is a smarter long-term investment.
