Video random-access memory

Many modern GPUs rely on VRAM. In contrast, a GPU that does not use VRAM, and relies instead on system RAM, is said to have a unified memory architecture, or shared graphics memory.

System RAM and VRAM have been segregated due to the bandwidth requirements of GPUs,^[2][3] and to achieve lower latency, since VRAM is physically closer to the GPU die.^[4]

Modern VRAM is typically found in a BGA package^[5] soldered onto a graphics card.^[6] The VRAM is cooled along with the GPU by the GPU heatsink.^[7]

• Dual-ported video RAM, used in the 1990s and at the time often called VRAM
• SGRAM
• GDDR SDRAM
• High Bandwidth Memory (HBM)^[8]

• Graphics processing unit
• Tiled rendering, a method to reduce VRAM bandwidth requirements^[9]

1. ^ Foley, James D.; van Dam, Andries; Feiner, Steven K.; Hughes, John F. (1997). Computer Graphics: Principles and Practice. Addison-Wesley. p. 859. ISBN 0-201-84840-6.
2. ^ "What is VRAM: The Memory Power Behind Real-time Ray-Tracing". Archived from the original on 2022-05-22. Retrieved 2022-05-16.
3. ^ "Relationship Between RAM and VRAM Bandwidth and Their Latency". 17 May 2021.
4. ^ "RAM vs. VRAM: What's the Difference?". makeuseof.com. 16 July 2021.
5. ^ "Encapsulated in CPUs, GPUs, RAM and Flash: Types and Uses". 23 March 2021.
6. ^ "Graphics Card Components & Connectors Explained". 29 March 2017.
7. ^ "Different Types of Graphics Card Cooling Solutions for GPU, VRAM & VRM". 17 January 2017.
8. ^ "HBM Graphics Cards - 7 GPUs with HBM Memory". Axiom Gaming. 16 August 2025.
9. ^ "GPU Framebuffer Memory: Understanding Tiling".