Expert Consulted: Adrian Gardiner. With 30+ years in the IT industry, I still get frequent requests to repair, upgrade and build new Gaming PC’s. This experience has given me useful knowledge which I can share to answer questions like: ‘Is a 6 GB graphics card good?’
As an enthusiastic gamer myself, I’ve gone through a fair number of graphics card upgrades, replacing them as and when I needed to so that I could play whatever latest game was out at the time.
The only GPU I had with 6 GB of video ram (VRAM) was an NVIDIA GTX 1060 which for me at the time was an excellent graphics card (GPU). Although it was released in 2016, I purchased mine a couple of years later and it served me well for a few years until I upgraded again.
Whilst my old GTX 1060 would be getting on a bit now at 7 years old since it’s original release, there are plenty of other graphics cards that you can buy now that come with 6 GB of RAM and they are great for playing many of the top games available at high settings.
Taking that into account, is a 6 GB graphics card good?
In 2023, a 6GB graphics card can manage 1080p gaming, albeit with compromises in newer titles, and may struggle with 1440p. Future games will need 8GB+. An 8GB or 12GB GPU offers more room for max settings, higher resolutions, and future proofing. While 6GB is budget friendly and viable for 1080p, it’s limited compared to higher capacity options.
In this article, I’ll share my own experiences and expertise to help you decide if a 6 GB graphics card is still good enough or whether you should instead consider upgrading.
Related Article: NVIDIA RTX 3090 vs 4090
Is a 6 GB Graphics Card Good Enough in 2023?
In order to understand the implications of using a 6 GB graphics card in 2023 and to decide whether upgrading is a viable option, the following sections cover the most important and relevant areas we need to consider.
VRAM Basics – What is it and why does it matter?
When purchasing a graphics card, a very important consideration is VRAM – Video Memory and how much the card comes with.
It’s a storage space used for textures, 3D models, and various other data that the GPU uses to render those lovely game visuals.
A higher VRAM capacity also allows the GPU to better manage high resolution and intense gaming scenarios.
When is 6 GB Still Good Enough?
With all of the latest AAA games, a current 6 GB GPU will be able to give excellent 1080p gaming performance in 2023, especially if you’re using a card like the GTX 1660 Ti or RTX 2060.
Both cards have shown good FPS rates (i.e., 60 FPS with an occasional settings tweak depending on the game) at 1080p on a range of popular games such as Fortnite, Minecraft, PUBG, GTA V, League of Legends and Overwatch to name but a few.
Of course you can’t expect high FPS ratings on all current top level games at either 1440p or Ultra game settings with just 6 GB of VRAM.
When to Consider More VRAM
So, 6 GB may be ok right now, for many games, but certainly not at the highest settings with the highest FPS.
There are, right now, more and more instances where upgrading to a card with a minimum of 8 GB of VRAM is the way forward, such as the following:
- Gaming at 1440p or 4K – higher resolutions will need more memory and so I would recommend going for 8 or 12 GB for the smoothest 1440p or 4K experience
- Playing new AAA games on high / Ultra settings – if you want to play the latest and greatest games at the absolute maximum settings, 6 GB is just not going to cut it
- Future Proofing – you’ll need a new card with at least 8 GB of VRAM if you really want a degree of future proofing and to be able to keep playing new more demanding games as they come out
- Using HD graphics mods – applying in game modifications can significantly increase the amount of VRAM you need so you’ll definitely need more than 6 GB.
Cards with 6 GB of VRAM are starting to struggle with the latest titles at 1440p resolution, even when settings have been reduced to help. The textures and assets for todays games need a lot more memory at higher resolutions.
For the very best graphics card future proofing, I would recommend at least 8 GB but preferably 12 GB cards (if your budget will allow it) from either NVIDIA’s RTX 3000 series or AMDs RX 6000 series.
The extra VRAM will make all the difference and help your card last that much longer before you have to think again about upgrading.
Other Factors That Impact Performance
Aside from VRAM there are a number of other key areas that affect gaming performance such as:
| Key Area | Gaming Benefit |
| GPU Architecture | The latest GPU architectures like NVIDIA’s Ada Lovelace or AMD’s RDNA 3 improve efficiency and offer impressive hardware ray tracing performance |
| Clock Speeds | A more powerful GPU with faster clock speeds will help to give better FPS and a smoother visual experience |
| Central Processor Unit (CPU) | A suitably powerful CPU will ensure that it can keep up with the GPU and avoid it being the bottleneck |
| System RAM | Having enough system RAM (ideally 8 – 16 GB depending on the PC) will enable the GPU and your game to run as smoothly as possible |
| Game Optimisation | Making sure the game is optimised correctly will help you get the most out of your available VRAM |
| SSD Storage Drive | A fast SSD storage drive will enable the fastest possible loading time of your game and in game zones and assets |
Frequently Asked Questions
Q1 Is a 6 GB GTX 1660 Ti still good in 2023?
The GTX 1660 Ti is a 4 year old card now and so isn’t going to be the very best option available but it is still a very capable card, giving you smooth gaming performance on 1080p, albeit on medium to high game settings for newer games.
If you can get one for a reasonable price I would still consider it a good option.
Q2 Can you game at all at 1440pm with a 6 GB card?
The answer to this would be yes for many games but there will be some newer titles that demand more than 6 GB and so a 6 GB card would likely struggle with 1440p in such scenarios.
Q3 How future proof is a 6 GB graphics card for next generation games?
Not at all future proof unfortunately. If you want to future proof your set up for next generation games then you’ll need to start looking at GPUs with 8 GB VRAM minimum and preferably 12 GB.
Conclusion
A 6 GB graphics card still has it’s place in 2023 with it being able to play many current games at either 1080p or 1440p, maybe sometimes though with a tweak to game settings.
Whether it works for you will depend on your particular gaming requirements, what games you intend to play and what sort of quality and performance you’re looking for.
While they can still work, 6 GB cards are starting to show their age and so for future proofing I’d recommend looking at graphics cards with 8 GB and above.