RAM and VRAM

RAM is your system''s short-term memory. It holds whatever the computer is actively working on — the game, the operating system, anything else running. It is fast and temporary; switch off and it empties.

VRAM is video memory, built into the graphics card. It holds textures, models and the frames being drawn. It is even faster, and dedicated to graphics work.

Why the distinction matters

They run out in different ways, and the symptoms differ.

Running out of RAM makes the whole system slow. The computer starts using the much slower drive as overflow, and everything stutters, not just the game.

Running out of VRAM produces specific symptoms: textures loading in visibly late or appearing blurry, sudden stutters when entering new areas, and frame rate collapsing at high texture settings while running fine at lower ones.

That last symptom is the useful diagnostic. If lowering texture quality fixes a stuttering game, you are short on VRAM, not on raw graphics power.

How much do you need?

There is no permanent answer, because requirements rise with each generation of games. The practical approach is to check the recommended specification of the games you actually play, rather than a general figure that dates within a year.

One thing worth knowing when comparing graphics cards: VRAM is frequently the specification that ages a card. A card with plenty of processing power but insufficient VRAM will struggle at high texture settings even though its benchmark numbers look strong — and unlike raw speed, you cannot compensate for it with settings elsewhere.

On consoles

Consoles use unified memory — a single pool shared between the CPU and GPU rather than two separate ones. This is more efficient, since data does not need copying between pools, and it is part of why a console performs better than a PC with comparable paper specifications.

It also means you cannot upgrade it. See our PC games page for the PC side.