PC gamers are running away from 8GB graphics cards

There’s been plenty of discussion about VRAM capacity on modern graphics cards, as GPUs like the RTX 5060 Ti put a spotlight on the disconnect between the demands of modern PC games and the hardware on offer. Despite lacking capacity in most entry-level and midrange offerings, PC gamers have clearly gotten the memo about 8GB graphics cards. There’s been a sharp decline in 8GB graphics cards in the Steam hardware survey, while higher-capacity GPUs have seen an uptick in adoption.

8GB graphics cards are falling out of favor

They’ve had issues for years

According to April’s hardware survey, 34.25% of PC gamers were using an 8GB graphics card. That still represents the majority of PC gamers, and by a significant margin. However, compared to March’s numbers, 8GB GPUs dropped by 1.27%. That’s a large decline by the standards of the Steam hardware survey. For context, the second-largest change in VRAM capacity was a +0.81% jump for 16GB graphics cards. All other capacities don’t even represent half of a point.

The second most-popular VRAM capacity is 12GB, which clocks in at 18.58% of PC gamers surveyed. That’s largely due to cards like the RTX 3060 (4.57%), RTX 4070 (2.35%), and RTX 4070 Super (1.9%), which are among the most popular GPUs in the latest survey. They’re distributed among a sea of 8GB graphics cards, however, from the RTX 4060 to the RTX 2060.

Although the consensus on 8GB graphics cards is that they’re fine at 1080p, the data disagrees with that sentiment. The results show that 1080p remains the most popular resolution among PC gamers by a long shot, representing 55.27% of participants. The second most-popular resolution is 1440p at 19.9% of participants. It’s shocking to see how large the gap is between PC gamers who use a 1080p monitor and those that use an 8GB graphics card. The RTX 3060 is likely pulling some 1080p gamers away from the 8GB bucket, as are lower-capacity GPUs like the GTX 1650 (3.39%).

It’s no secret that 8GB graphics cards are struggling with the demands of modern games. Titles like Indiana Jones and the Great Circle have put a spotlight on where 8GB graphics cards can struggle, even at 1080p, and upcoming games like Doom: The Dark Ages call for higher VRAM capacity if you want to push beyond the minimum system requirements. It’s still possible to get by with an 8GB frame buffer, but you’ll usually need to sacrifice texture quality or deal with texture streaming issues in the latest, most demanding games.

Unfortunately, the situation with 8GB graphics cards isn’t changing this generation. Budget GPUs like the Arc B580 have dealt with the problem, but Nvidia’s upcoming RTX 5060 is stuck with 8GB of VRAM, as is AMD’s rumored RX 9060 XT.