Compare MSFS 2020 and 2024 VRAM usage, see why 2024 needs more headroom, and learn which GPU capacities and settings prevent stutters.
Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 generally uses more VRAM than MSFS 2020 at comparable resolution and visual quality, especially at detailed airports, in virtual reality and with high-resolution add-ons. The gap is not fixed: texture quality, render scaling, aircraft, scenery and the GPU's available memory all change the reported figure.
Why does MSFS 2024 use more VRAM?
The newer simulator usually holds a larger and more detailed set of render assets in video memory. Richer terrain, ground detail, materials, aircraft and scenery can increase the working set, while higher output resolutions require larger render targets.
Preset names are not a reliable comparison because High or Ultra does not necessarily represent identical visual work in both simulators. MSFS 2024 can also keep more assets cached when a GPU has spare capacity, so a 16 GB card may report greater usage than an 8 GB card without either one being overloaded.
| Workload | MSFS 2020 | MSFS 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| 1080p or 1440p with moderate settings | Usually lower usage and more margin on limited-VRAM cards | Usually higher, although 8 GB remains workable with sensible settings |
| Detailed airport and complex airliner | Can produce large local spikes | More likely to exhaust an 8 GB budget when high-resolution add-ons are combined |
| 4K or high render scaling | Render targets and detailed textures raise demand sharply | The same pressure applies, with less spare capacity for richer scenery |
| Virtual reality | High demand from headset resolution and per-eye rendering | Often needs additional headroom because the heavier scene shares the same memory budget |
Does MSFS 2024's smaller installation reduce VRAM use?
No. MSFS 2024's streaming architecture reduces how much world data must remain installed locally, but an asset still occupies system memory and VRAM when it is being rendered. Storage size, rolling-cache size, system RAM and VRAM are separate resources.
How much VRAM is practical for each simulator?
An 8 GB graphics card is a workable baseline for both simulators, but 12 GB or more gives MSFS 2024 noticeably safer headroom for detailed scenery, high resolutions and complex aircraft.
- 4–6 GB: MSFS 2020 is generally more forgiving at 1080p. MSFS 2024 can run, but modest textures, LOD and add-on choices become important.
- 8 GB: A good practical level for MSFS 2020 and usable for MSFS 2024 at 1080p or 1440p. Large airports and high-resolution aircraft can still cause overcommitment.
- 10–12 GB: A safer target for MSFS 2024 at 1440p, with room for many detailed add-ons. It also covers most non-VR MSFS 2020 workloads comfortably.
- 16 GB or more: Most useful for 4K, high-resolution VR and combinations of texture-heavy aircraft and scenery. Spare VRAM may be used as a cache rather than remaining empty.
These are practical starting points rather than pass-or-fail limits. Our VRAM guidance by resolution and simulator workload provides a fuller breakdown.
On Xbox Series consoles and PlayStation 5, memory is managed as a fixed unified pool rather than user-configurable PC VRAM. PC monitoring figures therefore cannot be compared directly with console memory use.
How can I compare VRAM usage accurately?
A valid MSFS 2020 versus MSFS 2024 comparison requires the same output resolution, route, aircraft class, weather, traffic and add-on workload.
- Match the output: Use the same monitor resolution and internal render scale. In VR, match the headset's runtime resolution rather than the small desktop mirror window.
- Match the workload: Load the same airport area, comparable aircraft and equivalent weather and traffic. Disable unmatched scenery packages.
- Avoid preset-only comparisons: Match
Texture Resolution,Terrain Level of Detail,Objects Level of Detailand render scaling individually where possible. - Restart each simulator: Begin each test cleanly, let the flight finish loading, then pan around the cockpit and exterior before recording the result.
- Read the right figures: In Windows Task Manager, watch dedicated GPU memory, shared GPU memory and frame-time behaviour. Shared GPU memory is system RAM accessed by the GPU, not extra VRAM.
A common mistake is comparing an allocated-memory figure from one tool with active dedicated-memory use from another. Engines also fill spare memory with cached assets, so a high number alone does not prove a bottleneck.
Which settings reduce VRAM usage most?
Texture Resolution is normally the first setting to lower when VRAM is genuinely exhausted, followed by output resolution or render scaling and then scenery residency controls.
- Texture Resolution: Directly affects the size of many textures loaded by the simulator, aircraft and airport packages.
- Render Scaling and output resolution: Reduce the size of render targets. Upscaling can help here, but it does not shrink every loaded texture.
- Terrain and Objects LOD: Lower values reduce distant scene complexity, although these controls also affect CPU performance and visual detail.
- Off-screen terrain pre-caching: Lowering it can save memory, at the cost of visible pop-in when turning the camera.
- Detailed add-ons: A single texture-heavy airport or aircraft can be the tipping point. Repeat the same flight with that package disabled before reducing every global setting.
Deleting the rolling cache is not a dependable VRAM fix; that cache primarily concerns downloaded world data. For a targeted sequence of changes, use our MSFS 2024 VRAM-reduction checklist. VR users should also match headset resolution and per-eye rendering settings using our VR tuning guidance for both simulators.
What does a VRAM bottleneck look like?
A genuine VRAM bottleneck usually combines a full dedicated-memory pool with rising shared-memory use and severe frame-time spikes.
- Stuttering appears when turning towards a terminal or changing between cockpit and exterior views.
- Performance collapses after loading a complex airport or aircraft but recovers when it is removed.
- Shared GPU memory rises as assets spill across the slower system-memory connection.
- Textures become late or blurry, although streaming, network and cache problems can produce similar symptoms.
- Lowering compute-heavy settings changes little, while reducing texture resolution immediately improves consistency.
Near-full VRAM without stuttering is often normal caching. The strongest test is to repeat the same scenario after lowering texture resolution by one step or temporarily disabling the detailed airport; if shared-memory use and frame-time spikes fall together, VRAM pressure was probably the cause.
Should VRAM decide between MSFS 2020 and MSFS 2024?
VRAM should influence the choice, but it should not decide it alone. With a 4–6 GB GPU, MSFS 2020 is the safer option if texture compromises are unacceptable; an 8 GB card can run either simulator with tuning, while 10–12 GB or more makes MSFS 2024's heavier asset workload much easier to accommodate.
Higher VRAM use does not automatically mean lower frame rates. VRAM becomes decisive when the working set exceeds the dedicated pool; before that point, CPU limits, GPU processing power, system RAM, aircraft systems and scenery complexity may matter more.