Elite Dangerous System Requirements
Elite Dangerous is undemanding by current standards by 2026 standards. It wants 8GB of memory and 2GB of VRAM for a comfortable experience. Set aside 25GB of free space.
Check my PC against this gameFull system requirements
| Component | Minimum | Recommended |
|---|---|---|
| Operating system | Windows 8 | Windows 8 |
| DirectX | DirectX 11 | DirectX 11 |
| Processor | Quad Core CPU (4 x 2Ghz) | Intel Core i7-3770K Quad Core CPU or better / AMD FX 4350 Quad Core CPU or better≈ Intel Core i7-3770K |
| Graphics card | Nvidia GTX 470/AMD R7 240≈ Intel UHD Graphics 630 | Nvidia GTX 770 / AMD Radeon R9 280X≈ NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770 |
| Video memory | 2 GB | 2 GB |
| System memory | 6 GB | 8 GB |
| Storage | 25 GB | 25 GB |
Estimated performance by graphics card
High preset, upscaling off, paired with a AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D-class processor.
| Graphics card | Tier | 1080p | 1440p | 4K | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 | S | 249 | 249 | 187 | Recommended spec |
| NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 | S | 249 | 249 | 167 | Recommended spec |
| AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX | A | 249 | 249 | 159 | Recommended spec |
| NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER | A | 249 | 249 | 157 | Recommended spec |
| NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 | A | 249 | 249 | 152 | Recommended spec |
| NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti | A | 249 | 248 | 144 | Recommended spec |
| AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT | A | 249 | 244 | 142 | Recommended spec |
| AMD Radeon RX 7900 XT | A | 249 | 240 | 139 | Recommended spec |
| NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER | A | 249 | 236 | 137 | Recommended spec |
| NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 Ti | A | 249 | 231 | 134 | Recommended spec |
Modelled estimates rather than captured runs — see our methodology.
Frequently asked questions
What are the minimum requirements for Elite Dangerous?
At least 6GB of system memory, a graphics card with 2GB of VRAM (roughly a Intel UHD Graphics 630 or better), 25GB of free storage, Windows 8 and DirectX 11.
What are the recommended specs?
For a comfortable experience: 8GB of memory and a card with 2GB of VRAM — around a NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770, paired with a Intel Core i7-3770K or equivalent.
Is Elite Dangerous demanding on PC?
It is undemanding by current standards by 2026 standards, with a recommended GPU score of 10/100. It is primarily CPU-bound.
