This article is on how to increase dedicated video RAM laptop or desktop. If you want to increase video memory then it’s most likely that you know how important video RAM is especially on an integrated graphics card.
Here are five methods on how to increase VRAM laptop or desktop. Four of the methods allow you to increase dedicated video RAM without BIOS.
P.S. When allocating the memory use this table for guidance on the methods 1 and 4.
RAM | Recommended Video Memory |
2 GB | 256 MB |
4 GB | 512 MB |
8GB or more | 1024 MB or more |
How To Increase Dedicated Video RAM Laptop or Desktop?
Method 1 – Do It Through Regedit
Regedit is very helpful in this sort of things. You can actually use Regedit to solve a lot of problems or tweak your Windows.
An example is using Regedit to solve CPU throttling.
Through Regedit, you can increase the amount of video RAM your Intel HD graphics has.
The only downside is that if it is not done right your computer’s operating system may cease to function.
This is quite simple though. Make sure you follow the steps.
- Hit the Windows key + R to open RUN.
- Type regedit into the RUN.
- The Registry Editor will open. Look for Software under HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE and click it.
- Next, look for Intel
- Right-click the Intel folder. Go to New then click on Key.
- A new folder will be created. Rename the folder GMM.
- Now in the right-plane of the GMM folder. Right-click the white space, select New and choose DWORD (32-bit) Value.
- Rename the DWORD you created to DedicatedSegmentSize.
- Right-click on DedicatedSegmentSize and choose Modify.
- Set the Base to Decimal and the Value Data to any amount you want. It shouldn’t be more than 512 MB.
- Click OK and restart your laptop.
P.S. This method only works for Intel HD graphics and AMD’s APUs.
Method 2 – Increase Your RAM
If it is an integrated graphics card increasing the amount of RAM your laptop has will surely increase the amount of VRAM.
An integrated graphics card is dependent on the amount of RAM your laptop has.
Increasing the RAM you will also increase the amount of VRAM the integrated graphics card has access to.
A very simple way to increase your VRAM.
Method 3 – Do it through PC Settings
- Hit the Windows key and type in computer.
- Right-click This PC and click on Properties
- Look for Advanced System Settings and click on it.
- Under the Advanced tab. Click Settings under Performance.
- Click the Advanced tab. Click Change under Virtual Memory.
- Deselect the checkbox and select the radio button Custom Size. Set the Initial size (MB) to 10000 MB and the Maximum size (MB) to 20000 MB. Apply and restart your laptop.
Method 4 – Do It Through The BIOS.
This method won’t work with all laptops due to the different manufacturers.
Make sure to check before you try this method.
An example of such a laptop it won’t work on is the Acer Aspire E5. You just can’t change the video RAM through this method.
- Restart your laptop
- As your computer is starting up hit either F10 or Del depending on your laptop. If you don’t know how the enter your BIOS. Please check with your manufacturer.
- Once you are in. Look for Advanced or Chipset configuration. The positions vary due to laptops having different motherboards
- Once you are there change the video memory according to the table provided above.
- Save and exit.
Method 5 – Get A Laptop or Desktop With A Dedicated Graphics Card That Has Lots Of RAM
This is the best method and quite an expensive method.
Getting a laptop with a dedicated graphics card will solve most of your gaming or graphics-related problems.
Dedicated graphics cards are like CPUs but are meant for one thing – the processing of graphics.
They have their own video RAM with some having large amounts. An example is the NVIDIA RTX 2060 graphics card which has 6GB of video memory.
So, it comes as no surprise that they perform a much more wonderful job compared to integrated graphics cards.
How Much Dedicated VRAM Do You Need?
The amount of VRAM you want in a laptop should fit your needs. Knowing this, the amount of VRAM you need or want in a laptop becomes easy to figure out.
The larger amount of VRAM a graphics card has the more complex graphics data it can hold and render. Plus, powerful graphics cards have large amounts of VRAM.
This is not to say that if you have two graphics that are the same but different video RAM size.
The one with more VRAM will outperform the other one.
It is just that one will have more space to store data.
In gaming for example, if you have a laptop with a lot of VRAM, you will be able to connect it to a lot of monitors or a very high-resolution monitor without significant impact on its performance.
But, connect, let’s say a laptop with 2 GB VRAM to multiple monitors or a very high-resolution monitor.
You will start to notice performance issues because the complex graphics data is too large for it to contain and render so everything slows down until it becomes manageable.
Every dedicated graphics card comes with a fixed amount of VRAM from the manufacturer.
A GTX 1060 comes with either 3 GB or 6 GB amount of VRAM, an RTX 3090 has 24 GB of VRAM and an RTX 2080 Ti has 11 GB of VRAM.
Notice a trend? The more powerful the graphics card the more VRAM it has.
So if you are going to get a new laptop and you are concerned about the amount of VRAM it has always asked these questions.
What Will You Use The VRAM For?
This puts you in the mindset of why need that amount of VRAM.
Are you a serious gamer who is going to connect your laptop to multiple monitors or a high-resolution monitor?
Does your work involve large amounts of graphics processing or complex data to be rendered? You get the point.
How Much Are You Willing To Spend?
The more powerful the graphics card a laptop has the more VRAM it will have and the more expensive it is.
The amount of cash you are willing to spend can help you get the best graphics card or the least powerful graphics card on a laptop on the market.
How Do I Get More VRAM (Video Memory)
Is It Possible To Increase VRAM?
Yes, follow the steps outlined and will be able to increase VRAM. By far, the best method is getting a new graphics card or laptop that has a lot of VRAM.
How Do I Increase VRAM NVIDIA?
Just follow the steps outlined above (Method 1 and 3) and you will be able to increase VRAM on NVIDIA graphics cards.
How Do I Increase AMD VRAM?
Just follow the steps outlined above (Method 1 and 3) and you will be able to increase VRAM on dedicated and integrated AMD graphics cards.
The Takeaway
You understand how to increase VRAM and how much VRAM you need.
If gaming performance hasn’t increased or related tasks haven’t improved then it is time to get a new laptop with a better graphics card.
