When you approach the world of PC gaming, there is, inevitably, the question of the components at your disposal. On the other hand, verifying what are the components inside a computer is essential to understand if the latter is able to “run” a particular game or not.
One of the most common doubts in this context is that relating to the GPU (acronym for Graphics Processing Unit, ie the processor included in video cards). In fact, over the years I have received many messages similar to this: “Salvatore, help me figure out how to see what video card I have on my computer! I would love to play a game but I don’t know if my PC’s video card can make it run well! ” . Then there are also people who have doubts about smartphones and tablets, given the spread of mobile gaming.
If you are also here and are reading this guide, it is probably because you have similar doubts. Did I guess? So don’t worry: this tutorial is here to show you what you need to know about the subject. There is no problem if you are not exactly an expert, since in reality it is a very simple operation, so much so that often it is not even required to install external programs. Below you can find all the relevant information. There is nothing left for me to do, except wish you good reading and have fun!
Index
- How can I see what video card I have
- Producer programs
- Device management
- System Information
- How to see what kind of video card I have: other solutions
- How to see what video card I have on Mac
- How to see what video card I have on Android
- How to see what video card I have on iPhone and iPad
How can I see what video card I have
If you want to see which video card you have in your PC , you can follow different paths: some involve the use of tools included “as standard”, others the download of third-party applications. In any case, do not worry, all the solutions that I am about to propose are within everyone’s reach and only take a few seconds to be used. In any case, in this first part of the tutorial I will focus on Windows , as it is clearly the “preferred” operating system for PC gamers.
Producer programs
The main solution to understand which video card you have available is the one relating to the official programs of the manufacturers , considered reliable and also able to provide you with various interesting quick options.
The GPUs found on gaming PCs are generally made by NVIDIA or AMD . The first offers users the NVIDIA GeForce Experience program , the second the AMD Radeon Software program : thanks to both, viewing the information relating to the video card at your disposal is a breeze.
Before indicating the procedure, however, I would like to make a clarification. If you have purchased a pre-assembled computer , you can probably find these programs already pre-installed , but if not, you will have to proceed “manually” with their installation. Nothing complex even in this case: you just need to download the software from the sites indicated above, start the executable obtained and follow the instructions on the screen. For a more detailed example, you can read my guide on how to install NVIDIA GeForce Experience .
About the latter, once you have started the program and if you have logged in , just press on the gear icon at the top right and move to the GENERAL tab (it should already be selected by default). That’s all: on the right you will find the PERSONAL EQUIPMENT box , which explains the hardware configuration of your PC, including the name of the video card . If you want to update the NVIDIA drivers , all you have to do is click on the word DRIVER , which peeks out at the top left, and press the DOWNLOAD button , possibly following the instructions that appear on the screen.
As for AMD Radeon Software , it is generally enough to simply start the program, move to the main screen and take a look at the bottom right: here you will find the name of the GPU . Among other things, through this page you can also quickly proceed to update the AMD drivers . I mean, I told you: it’s child’s play.
Device management
“Salvatore, can you tell me how to see which video card I have on my PC without installing programs?” : if you are also among those who have asked me this question, this is the part of the guide for you. The first solution that can allow you to do this without downloading third-party programs is the Windows Device Manager tool . To be clear, this is the Microsoft utility that allows you to view and then manage all the hardware components installed or connected to the computer.
To access this tool, click the Windows Start button (the flag icon located, for example, in the lower left corner of the screen on Windows 10 and earlier or in the center on Windows 11 ), search for “device manager ” In the menu that appears on the screen and select the most relevant result . Alternatively, you can press the right mouse button over the Start button and select the Device Manager option from the menu that opens.
At this point, all you have to do is expand the icon for the Video Cards and you will see the name of your video card appear immediately below it. In short, the procedure is very simple and in this case it does not even require you to install anything.
For the rest, you should know that, if no video card appears in the Device Manager, the reason is probably due to the failure to install the correct drivers for the video card. To remedy the problem, you can refer to my tutorial on updating video card drivers .
System Information
Another tool built into Windows that might come in handy in certain cases is System Information . In fact, the latter tool can also allow you to obtain information regarding the video card linked to your PC.
Just as with the aforementioned Device Manager , the steps to follow are not too difficult: just press the Start button at the bottom and take advantage of the search bar , typing “system information” and clicking on the most relevant result .
At this point, expand the Components option on the left (using the appropriate + icon) and select the Screen item . Perfect, now you will find on the screen the name of the video card , as well as various other information relating to, for example, the drivers .
In short, nothing complex. However, keep in mind that clearly these integrated solutions may not always be the best way to obtain information about the GPU, as sometimes the indications may not appear or be complete . In this context, in addition to updating the drivers, it is also recommended, if possible, to use the official programs of the manufacturers that I have illustrated above .
How to see what kind of video card I have: other solutions
Obviously the PC world is very vast: as you can well imagine, therefore, there are several other solutions to understand which video card is present inside your PC.
I would therefore like to provide you with brief indications on other tools and programs that may interest you. Details below.
- DxDiag: is the DirectX diagnostic tool . It allows you to get all the details of the case regarding the special Microsoft libraries that allow you to make the most of the hardware acceleration of the video card, but it can also be useful for your goal. You don’t even need to install it, as it is already included “standard” on Windows. So just look for it from the Start menu , then start it and move to the Screen tab .
- Speccy: it is a very light and easy to use program that allows you to quickly obtain information on all the components of the PC, including the video card. To use it, just go to the Graphics It also shows temperatures.
In short, the possibilities to understand which GPU you have are certainly not lacking. For the rest, if you plan to do some gaming, you may be interested in consulting my tutorials on how to optimize your PC for gaming , on how to test the video card and how to choose the video card (if you want to change it eventually).
How to see what video card I have on Mac
If you use a Mac , you can find out which graphics card is included in your computer in very very simple way, by going through the System Information utility present “standard” in macOS. How does it work? I’ll explain it to you right away.
First, click on the Apple logo located in the upper left corner of the screen and select the About this Mac item from the menu that appears on the screen. After that, select the Overview tab and press the System Report button .
The System Information utility will then appear on the screen with a list of all hardware and software features: to find out which video card of your Mac is , expand the Hardware item in the left sidebar, select the Graphics / Monitor option and you will find all the information you need.
More precisely, you can take a look at the name of the video card next to the wording Chipset Model , the amount of memory dedicated to it in the VRAM field and the name of its manufacturer next to the Supplier entry . In short, nothing complex.
How to see what video card I have on Android
You bought a smartphone or tablet Android and you’re curious to find out what the model of GPU integrated into the latter? In this case, you can install an app that can detect all the hardware features of the device in use.
Among the applications that allow you to discover the hardware characteristics of the device in use there is CPU-Z , which can be downloaded and used for free , but contains ads (not too invasive) that can be removed through in-app purchases from 1.82 euros.
To find out what is the integrated GPU in your device using CPU-Z, first download the app. Then open the Play Store by pressing on its icon on the home screen (the colored Play symbol), search for “cpu-z” inside and proceed to install the app by first tapping on its icon in the search results and then on the Install button . If you have a device without the Play Store, you can search for the app on an alternative store .
At the end of the download, start CPU-Z by selecting its icon from the Home screen or from the drawer of your device (the page with the list of all the apps installed on the latter), select the SOC tab located at the top left and click look at the entries GPU Vendor , GPU Renderer and GPU Load , which indicate, respectively, the manufacturer of the GPU, the model of the card and its current load (ie the percentage of “use” of the GPU by the system).
How to see what video card I have on iPhone and iPad
Would you like to know what GPU is included in your iPhone or iPad ? No problem, I’ll give you more information immediately.
In this case, given that there are relatively few models of Apple smartphones and tablets (as opposed to what happens in the Android world ), you might just think about taking a look at the specifics of the individual models. In particular, you may be interested in consulting the official Apple portal , as well as my tutorials on which iPhone to choose and which iPad to buy .
In any case, to make it easier for you, below I have prepared for you a list of the GPUs included in some of the most recent iPhone models (I simply relied on the official information released by Apple).
- iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max: 5-core GPU;
- iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 mini: 4-core GPU;
- iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini: 4-core GPU;
- iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro Max: 4-core GPU;
- iPhone SE (2020): 4-core GPU.
For the rest, if you want to understand the characteristics of the GPU of an iPhone or iPad, perhaps even older than the models mentioned, I would recommend an application called Lirum Device Info Lite , which can be used totally free of charge .
To install the latter, just open the App Store , search for “lirum device info lite” , tap on the application icon (a chip) and press the Get button , then verifying your identity using Face ID, Touch Apple ID ID or password.
Once the download and installation are finished, which will take place automatically, just open Lirum Device Info Lite , choose whether or not to allow notifications , press the ☰ icon located at the top left, tap the This Device option and expand the item Display .
By doing so, you will find all the relevant information relating to the video card , taking a look at the options GPU Model , GPU Cores and GPU Clock . In short, in this way you can be able to obtain information that goes even beyond those publicly disseminated by Apple.
