Is 4GB Graphics card enough for Gaming in 2024?

In 2024 if you’re looking for a gaming laptop around 50-70k ($600-$900), then you probably have noticed that GTX 1650 and RTX 3050 are the only GPUs that are available. Both of them come with 4GB GDDR6 VRAM. Now all the latest titles (Released less than 1 year ago) are quite heavy and require a powerful system. So a question arises among us “Is 4GB graphics card enough for gaming ?”. Well, the answer isn’t straightforward. 4GB VRAM is standing on that middle point, where you’ll find some games are running smoothly, but some may not. So let’s see if 4GB VRAM still has some power left to run the latest titles.

What is VRAM and is it really matters?

Before diving in to the article, let’s see what is VRAM. Video Random Access Memory of VRAM, is the RAM of the Graphics card. All the resource of the game file, which is responsible of producing fancy images, are managed by VRAM.

VRAM directly impacts your overall gaming experience. Higher VRAM allows for storing higher-resolution textures, which means sharper, more realistic in-game visuals. It also shows the complex models with greater detail, like characters or environment. Most importantly a larger amount of VRAM ensures a smooth flow of visual data, which leads to better frame rates and a lag-free experience.

Now graphics memory type, also matters. I’m talking about GDDR3 and GDDR6. Today, on most of the graphics card, you’ll find the GDDR6 memory. Just remember GDDR6 is far better than a GDDR3 graphics card.

Is 4GB Graphics card enough for Gaming?

If you’re only searching if 4GB VRAM is sufficient for gaming or not, then you’re probably searching the wrong question. See there are a lot of options in the market, with a 4GB graphics card. So which one you’re asking? okay, now some of the popular names are, GTX 1650, RX 5500M, RX 6500M, and RTX 3050, and they have a lot of differences.

If 1080p gaming is what you need, then all of them perform fine, sometimes you may have to compromise your graphics with GTX 1650, to reach 60fps, but otherwise it’s fine. Most of the latest AAA titles run very smoothly on RTX 3050, even with high to ultra settings.

But, if you are looking for a 1440p or 4K level gaming experience then, 4GB VRAM is not for you, my friend. You’ll get disappoint, with the performance. Also you’ve to forget about the Ray-tracing feature, 4GB VRAM is not capable of running ray-tracing with playable frame rate.

Latest Games and Their VRAM Requirements

Now for a better understanding, what game companies are recommending, to run a smooth gameplay. Below I’ve mentioned about all the AAA titles which are very popular among gamers. Take a look.

So as you can see, most of the games have a minimum system requirement of 3-4GB VRAM. But your overall gaming performance get decided by your overall PC specs. So 4GB Graphics card is a entry level GPU, you need for gaming. Some games like Cyberpunk 2077, AC Mirage, has mentioned a required VRAM of 6GB. It’s still playable with 4GB VRAM, if you have a gaming laptop / PC with latest CPU, 8GB RAM.

Also read, Best Graphics Card Under 20000.

RTX 3050 4GB Vs GTX 1650 4GB

Now only 4GB VRAM, is not that much issue. See, 4GB VRAM has a lot of options available. Among them RTX 3050 and GTX 1650 are the two popular options, you’ll find in most of the gaming laptops. So let’s compare them.

As you can see RTX 3050 wins by a very big margin. Although any upscaling method like DLSS is not used, in this test. For detailed info, check out, Testing Games, video on this test.

Roughly if we analyze the graph, you’ll see that, without DLSS RTX 3050 performs, 19% faster than GTX 1650. If we take DLSS, in the consideration, RTX 3050 will get a additional fps boost, Generally RTX 3050 performs 48% faster than GTX 1650.

Some of the latest titles like, AC: Valhalla struggles with RTX 3050 4GB VRAM, if you’re playing with high settings. It’s due to 4GB VRAM bottleneck with the title. Even GTX 1060 6GB outperforms it. So sometimes you may have to compromise with your graphics settings, even in 1080p resolution.

For info on this topic, check out, RTX 3050 vs GTX 1650 laptop.

Final Verdict

So yes, 4GB VRAM is still capable of gaming in 2024, but only in 1080p gaming. It’s not that 1440p is not possible, but you’ll have a terrible experience, with 10-15fps max. But again not all 4GB VRAM graphics cards, are recommended. If you can slightly extend your budget to around 10k ($100), then RTX 3050 will be the best option for you.

Again AMD FSR 3 feature is only supported on RTX series cards. It supports the frame generation support, which will significantly boost your, gaming performance. Remember NVIDIA’s Frame Generation technology only supported on RTX 40 – series cards.

Now if you are not satisfied with it, and looking for some extra power, then I’ll suggest, go with at least RTX 4050. RTX 4050 is just another 10k further. See this is an one time investment, so if you don’t want compromise with your performance, then go with RTX 4050 laptop.

I’d suggest, read the RTX 4050 vs RTX 3060 laptop comparison for more info.

Conclusion

So in this article, I’ve addressed whether the 4GB graphics card, still relevant for gaming or not. So short answer is yes, 4GB VRAM is still useful, if correct graphics card is chosen. Also keep in mind, that your PC / laptop’s gaming performance is determined by overall specs, like Processor, RAM, SSD etc. If you’ve found this article helpful, then you can share this article with your friends. if you’ve any query related to the post, make sure to ask me in the comment. Good bye, have a nice day. See you in the next one.

FAQ

1. Can I play the latest AAA games smoothly with a 4GB graphics card?
   • Likely yes, but with some compromises in graphics quality and resolution.
2. Will my 4GB graphics card become completely unusable soon?
   • While it’s still functional, newer games will slowly leave it behind in performance requirements.
3. Besides VRAM, what other factors can affect my gaming performance with a 4GB card?
   • CPU power, RAM capacity, game optimization, and the rest of your PC components play a big role.
4. How do I know if my games are exceeding the 4GB VRAM limit?
   • Look for signs like stuttering, noticeable texture pop-in, sudden frame drops, or performance monitoring tools that show VRAM usage.
5. If I decide to upgrade, what’s the minimum VRAM I should be looking for in 2024?
   • Try to aim for at least 6GB, preferably 8GB or more for enjoyable performance and some future-proofing.