How To See What Graphics Card You Have?
Have you ever come across a situation where a certain game or software has a hardware requirement, and you’re not sure if you have a supportive GPU? You wish you knew how to check what graphics card you have because no one seems to answer the question correctly.
Well, I have been in such situations quite a few times, and after bearing with a few losses because of all the disassembling and reassembling, I decided to write down the whole process on a sticky note and paste it on my computer screen.
To my surprise, sticky notes didn’t live up to their promise of “sticking” along. A few days passed, and I lost that sticky note.
At that time, I realized that I needed to jot down the whole instructions somewhere on my phone, so I wouldn’t face all the trouble every time I needed to check my GPU (I’m the worst when it comes to memorizing things).
So, read through the blog to learn the whole process.
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How To See What Graphics Card You Have?
There are multiple ways of checking what graphics card you have installed on your PC or laptop. I’ll start by mentioning some of the lesser-known ones and then move toward the ones that you might already know.
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#1- System Information
It is one of the easiest and quickest ways to check your graphics card. I learned it from a tech geek friend of mine, and I’m ready to pass this knowledge on to you people.
System Information is a pre-installed application on your Windows that lets you know everything about your PC. From RAMs to GPUs, you can learn everything from Systems Information. (This is my go-to application, for obvious reasons.)
In the Start menu, type “system information.” Once it opens up, click on the + sign next to components. And finally, click display on the expended list. Voila! You’ll see your graphics card’s name, type, and device ID.
#2- Windows Task Manager
Another method of finding out what graphics card you have is via the Windows Task Manager. This gives a very descriptive answer to our question. It not only tells you which graphics card is installed in our system but also how well our GPU is performing overall.
Let me tell you how you can access your task manager.
Simply press CTRL+SHIFT+ESC, Task Manager from the list that appears in front of you, and then click on the Performance tab and select GPU from the list.
This will tell me which graphics card I have on my PC and also about my GPU utilization and my GPU’s temperature.
#3- Through The Device Manager
I find this method a bit lengthy. Type “device manager.” in your start menu search bar, and press enter to open the control panel’s device manager. Here you’ll see an option for “Display adapters.” Click on the drop-down menu next to it. And you’ll find your GPU listed there.
In my opinion, this is not a very reliable method to check what graphics card you have in your system. This is because device managers grab this information based on the drivers that are installed in the system.
If the drivers installed are not for the graphics card that you have in your PC or laptop, this method will show incorrect information.
#4- Through Settings
This is a much simpler and more accurate method of determining which GPU is installed in your system.
- Search for “settings” in your start menu and open it.
- There you’ll see “systems.” Click on it and open it. Here you will find “display.”
- Select this and then click on “advanced display settings.”
- There you will find display information, below which details about which graphic card is installed in the system can be found.
#5- Control Panel
This one is a relatively easier method.
All you have to do is type “Control Panel” in your start menu search bar. When the control panel option appears, click on it. Then select hardware and sound from the options that appear in front of you.
And if you have NVIDIA display drivers installed, you can access the NVIDIA control panel to inspect and configure the system.
#6- By Using The DirectX Diagnostic Tool
This tool is one of my favorites. This not only provides me with the name and model of the GPU but also identifies if it has any issues with it. And it is the easiest to use!
All you have to do is type “dxdiag” in search bar and press enter to run this command. Here you will see the “display” option.
Click on this, and you will find all the details of your GPU. If the GPU has any issues, they will be indicated in a small box at the bottom of the page.
#7- Check Your Graphics Card By Opening Your PC
This is one of the hardest ways to check which graphics card you have on your PC.
The first step would be to remove the casing of your PC or laptop. The next step would be to locate your GPU. which is usually near to your CPU on your motherboard.
If it’s an integrated GPU, you won’t be able to detach it. But if it’s a dedicated GPU, you can simply take it out of its slot. You will find the name of the maker and model written on the GPU.
Final Verdict:
So these are the seven methods that I know and use for checking which graphics card I have in my system. These tools come in really handy, especially when I’m thinking of downloading any work-related software or any new game that I want to play.
This saves me time and effort. Because now, I can first check if my system is compatible with GPU requirements for any certain application. If not, then I can upgrade my system according to my needs.
I hope you find these tips and tricks helpful in your daily life and save yourself from extra labor just to see what GPU you have installed in your setup.
Frequently Asked Questions
#1 – How to check the graphics card in Windows 11?
There are four ways which you can use in order to check which graphics card you have in your system if you’re using Windows 11.
You can easily use either of the four options. Device Manager, Task Manager, DirectX Diagnostic Tool, or the Windows Settings app. How to use these methods is explained in the article above.
#2 – How to check the graphics card in Windows 10?
If you are a Windows 10 user, you can use many different methods to see which graphics card is in your PC.
You can access these details from six different sources. You can either use the settings app to get this information.
Or you can use the device manager or the task manager feature. Other Besides this, you can also access this information via the system information tool, DirectX diagnostics tool, or the control panel.
#3 – How to check the graphics card in Windows 7?
If you have Windows 7, you can use either of the following methods to determine which GPU is installed in your system.
You can use the Device Manager, Task Manager, DirectX Diagnostic Tool, or the Windows Settings app. You can also use the control panel.
#4 – How to check the dedicated graphics card on a laptop?
You can simply use any of the following methods. Use the Device Manager, Task Manager, DirectX Diagnostic Tool, or the Windows Settings app. Or you can use the control panel as well.
To see if your laptop has a dedicated GPU or an integrated GPU, open the device manager in the control panel. If it shows only one GPU, then it is an integrated GPU, and if it shows two, then one is integrated, and the other is dedicated.
