Is 8GB of VRAM Enough for a Gaming Laptop in 2026? What Tests Show
Short answer: Yes, for most games at 1080p, and for many at 1440p if you lower settings. Notebookcheck tested an 8GB RTX 5070 laptop and found it can “still enjoy all modern games”, but Battlefield 6 at 1440p slowed from 53 to 26 fps within three benchmark runs, and Indiana Jones and the Great Circle can crash at 1080p High. So 8GB is fine for a 1080p laptop today and a real limit at 1440p with maxed settings. If you keep laptops for years or want maximum settings, look for the newer 12GB RTX 5070 or an RTX 5070 Ti.
How we put this together: the test results are from Notebookcheck, TechRadar and PC Gamer, all linked below, and the model counts come from our own laptop GPU power database. It is not based on hands-on testing by iTech Level, apart from the one laptop example labeled below. See how we choose products.
Which laptop GPUs have 8GB?
Most of them. In our laptop GPU power database, every RTX 5050 and RTX 5060 configuration has 8GB. The RTX 5070 launched with 8GB too, and Nvidia added a 12GB version in April 2026, so check which one a listing has: 22 of the 63 RTX 5070 configurations we track are 8GB only, 40 can come with either, and one is 12GB only.
| Laptop GPU | VRAM | Configurations in our database |
|---|---|---|
| RTX 5050 | 8GB | 44 |
| RTX 5060 | 8GB | 64 |
| RTX 5070 | 8GB or 12GB | 63 |
| RTX 5070 Ti | 12GB | 28 |
| RTX 5080 | 16GB | 24 |
| RTX 5090 | 24GB | 16 |
8GB is also still common among PC gamers: Steam‘s October 2026 hardware survey puts it at 26.92% of systems, level with 16GB at 26.35%.
What the tests show, game by game
Notebookcheck played each game on an RTX 5070 laptop with 8GB and a 115 W power limit, watching for stutters and slowdowns over longer sessions rather than just average frame rates:
| Game | 1080p | 1440p |
|---|---|---|
| Assassin’s Creed Shadows | Smooth at very high, about 95% VRAM load | VRAM warning and isolated stutters, still playable |
| Battlefield 6 | No problems at Overkill, in the campaign or multiplayer | Slows down: 53, then 30, then 26 fps across three runs. Small multiplayer battles were fine, large ones were not |
| Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 | No limit found | Smooth with ray tracing, DLSS and frame generation |
| Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty | No limit found | Enough, even with Overdrive ray tracing |
| F1 2025 | No limit found | Runs very well at High |
| Indiana Jones and the Great Circle | Medium is fine (just under 7GB). High can crash (about 8.3GB) | Medium only (about 7.3GB) |
Notebookcheck’s overall conclusion is that laptop GPUs are, apart from a few exceptions, held back more by their speed than by their VRAM. Dropping to 1080p usually solves it, and DLSS upscaling helps a little too.
TechRadar reached a similar view on an MSI Katana 15 HX with the same GPU. Cyberpunk 2077 averaged 90 fps at 1440p ultra with DLSS Balanced, and 54 fps with ray tracing on ultra. But frame generation pushed Black Myth: Wukong to 7.1GB, and Monster Hunter Wilds stuttered constantly in its busy hub areas, with VRAM nearly full.
8GB costs you smoothness first
Average frame rates can hide the problem. PC Gamer compared 8GB and 16GB versions of the same desktop GPU, the RTX 5060 Ti. Desktop cards aren’t laptop cards, but the memory behaviour is the point here: the 1% lows, which show how bad the worst moments are, fall further than the averages.
| Game (1080p, upscaling on) | RTX 5060 Ti 8GB, average / 1% low | RTX 5060 Ti 16GB, average / 1% low |
|---|---|---|
| Cyberpunk 2077 (Ultra RT) | 78 / 42 fps | 84 / 56 fps |
| The Last of Us Part 1 (Ultra) | 89 / 48 fps | 113 / 92 fps |
PC Gamer’s verdict was still that 8GB is good enough, as long as you’re willing to drop settings slightly. That matches the laptop tests.
8GB and your system RAM
When a game runs out of VRAM, the overflow goes into system memory. TechSpot found this makes system RAM more important on 8GB cards: on a desktop 8GB RX 9060 XT in Spider-Man 2, going from 16GB to 32GB of RAM improved 1% lows by more than 60%. If you buy an 8GB laptop, check that its RAM can be upgraded.
You can’t add video memory later, because it comes with the GPU, and upgrading a gaming laptop’s GPU is rarely possible. So choose the amount you need up front.
How much system RAM to pair with it: is 16GB of RAM enough for a gaming laptop?
Check the Lenovo LOQ 15 (RTX 5060) on Amazon →
When 8GB is enough, and when to buy more
- 8GB is fine if you play at 1080p, mostly play esports or older games, or will lower settings in the newest big releases.
- Get 12GB or more if your laptop has a 1440p screen and you want high settings, you plan to use frame generation in demanding games, or you want it to last. See our best RTX 5070 laptops for the 12GB version and our best RTX 5070 Ti and RTX 5080 laptops.
- Check the wattage too. Two laptops with the same GPU can have very different power limits, which often matters more than VRAM. Our RTX 5060 vs RTX 4070 laptop comparison shows why.
On our own laptop. Our HP OMEN 16 has an 8GB RTX 4070 Laptop GPU. NVIDIA Control Panel (Help, then System Information) lists 8188 MB of GDDR6 and a Maximum Graphics Power of 140 W. You can check your own laptop’s memory and power limit in the same window. We didn’t measure how much VRAM games use on it.
Our verdict
8GB of VRAM is still enough for a gaming laptop in 2026 if you stay at 1080p or turn settings down at 1440p, and it’s what most RTX 5050, 5060 and 5070 laptops come with. It’s a limit rather than a dealbreaker, but it is already a limit in some games, and it won’t get better with time. If your budget stretches to a 12GB RTX 5070 or RTX 5070 Ti, that’s the better long-term buy. If it doesn’t, our best RTX 5060 laptops will play modern games well.
Frequently asked questions
Is 8GB VRAM enough for gaming in 2026?
For most games at 1080p, yes. Notebookcheck’s tests on an 8GB RTX 5070 laptop found modern games playable, with limits at 1440p in games like Battlefield 6 and at 1080p High in Indiana Jones and the Great Circle.
Is 8GB VRAM enough for 1440p?
Sometimes, with lower settings. Cyberpunk 2077 and Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 ran well in Notebookcheck’s tests, but Battlefield 6 dropped from 53 to 26 fps over three benchmark runs at 1440p.
Does the RTX 5060 laptop have enough VRAM?
For 1080p, generally yes. It has 8GB, like the original RTX 5070. Notebookcheck says you can play modern games on it if you avoid the highest settings at 1440p.
Which gaming laptop GPU has more than 8GB?
The RTX 5070 comes with 8GB or, since April 2026, 12GB. The RTX 5070 Ti has 12GB, the RTX 5080 has 16GB and the RTX 5090 has 24GB.
Can you upgrade VRAM on a laptop?
No. VRAM is part of the graphics hardware and can’t be replaced, so choose carefully when you buy. System RAM can often be upgraded, and it helps when a game overflows its VRAM.
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