Find your PC's graphics card: Task Manager, msinfo, PowerShell, DxDiag

All computers have graphics hardware. It handles the desktop, video decoding and demanding PC games. Most modern PCs carry GPUs from Intel, NVIDIA or AMD, and remembering which model sits inside is often hard.

The CPU and RAM matter too, but for PC games the GPU is usually the most critical component, according to How-To Geek. Without a powerful enough GPU you can't play newer titles, or you play them at lower graphical settings. Some machines use low-power onboard or integrated graphics; others have dedicated cards, sometimes called video cards.

On Windows 11 and Windows 10, open Task Manager by right-clicking the taskbar and choosing it, or with Ctrl+Shift+Esc. Select the Performance tab; if the tabs aren't visible, click More Details. Then pick GPU 0 in the sidebar.

The manufacturer and model name appear in the top-right corner. The same window shows the amount of dedicated memory on the card. Windows 11 also displays GPU usage there, including usage by application. If the system has more than one GPU, you'll see GPU 1 and so on, each standing for a different physical GPU.

The System Information window shows almost anything you'd want to know about your PC's hardware. Click Start, search for msinfo or system information, then open System Information.

Go to Components > Display. The name of your GPU sits at the very top of that view.

You can also check the GPU from PowerShell on Windows 11 or Windows 10. Click Start, search for PowerShell or Terminal, then pick PowerShell from the list or click Open. Running it as administrator isn't required, though the source notes it does no harm.

Type or paste Get-CimInstance Win32_VideoController into the terminal. You'll get a lot of information about the graphics card; the GPU name is at the very top. With two GPUs, such as an integrated one plus a discrete card, you scroll a little to see both.

The DirectX Diagnostic Tool also reports your GPU. DxDiag was especially useful in older Windows versions, Windows 7 or earlier, but it's present in both Windows 11 and Windows 10.

Press Windows+R, type dxdiag into the Run dialog and press Enter. Click the Display tab and look at the Name field in the Device section. That field holds the graphics card name.