Do You Need a Good Graphics Card for Graphic Design?

Just about everyone knows about graphics cards. They are the part of the computer that allows the graphics to exist in the first place. However, not everyone really understands whether or not they actually are going to need a good graphics card or not for whatever they are doing.

You should definitely have a good graphics card if you plan to use your device for graphic designing. However, the program you use for graphic design will play a role as well.

Graphic design is heavily focused on the graphical side of things, so it makes sense to need a good graphics card in order to do it well. Keep reading to find out more about graphics cards in Graphic Design.

Should You Have a Good Graphics Card for Graphic Design?

A good graphics card is definitely essential for Graphic Design. The better the card, the more colors the computer is able to display. Therefore, having a good graphics card helps to show the maximum number of colors which will in turn ensure that the colors are as accurate as possible.

If you use a graphic design software that automatically suggests colors to be used together, then your graphics card will be less important. An example of graphic design software that does this is Placeit.net, which allows you to customize templates and suggests fonts, colors, and graphics to be used together. This takes the guess work out of the designing, and therefore allows you to rely less on a powerful graphics card.

What Does a Graphics Card Do?

A graphics card is also known as a Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) which is responsible for displaying images on the computer screen. Every computer must have a graphics card in order to function, but not everyone needs a professional quality one.

When used in tandem with a good monitor, a graphics card can make or break experiences with complex graphic design, gaming, video editing, and more. This monitor has to be quality as well, otherwise it won’t be able to show the same number of colors that the graphics card is trying to display. In short, a graphics card makes the colors, and the monitor displays them. Having both high quality will ensure that the colors are as accurate as possible.

Can You Still Do Graphic Design with a Poor Graphics Card?

It is still possible to do graphic design with a poorer graphics card. If it is something that doesn’t require a lot of colors, or not for a paying professional client, it is likely possible that a quality card isn’t as necessary.

Such instances in which a poorer graphics card can be used for graphic design include:

  • Monochrome work
  • Layout design
  • When using templates such as those on Placeit.net

If the graphics card isn’t quite up to par, the best solution is to compare the design on multiple different screens in order to ensure that it is decent enough for the project at hand. Ideally, switching between Windows and Apple products as well can really help ensure that the colors are what they should be.

By using templates on a site like Placeit, the best colors will be suggested so that, even if your graphics card can’t show them 100% accurately, they will be exported and saved accurately.

Best Graphics Cards for Graphic Design

The long and short of it is that the best graphics cards for graphic design will be of high quality and likely even professional grade. These are cards that will really help make designs shine. However, with so many different variations out there, it can be hard to decide which is actually a good card and which are just heavily marketed.

Some of the best tried and true graphics cards for graphic design include:

Getting a computer prebuilt with some of the higher-end cards will cost a pretty penny. Graphics cards are not cheap themselves either, but building a custom rig might end up saving quite a bit of money in the end. However, do be aware that it’s not only graphic designers that need good graphics cards, so that drives the purchase price, and resale price, up further.

Other Computer Requirements for Graphic Design

There is no set computer requirement for graphic design as a whole. There are so many different programs that each have their own system requirements which need to be catered to in order to run properly. However, there are some similarities between the programs which make for a general idea of what to aim for.

Such computer requirements may include:

  • Windows or MacOS
    • Very few can run on Linux
  • 64-Bit CPU
    • Intel Core i3
    • Intel Core i5
    • Intel Core i7
    • AMD 1.5 GHz
    • AMD Quad-Core Processor
  • 16GB RAM
    • Most programs need less
  • 15GB Disk Space
    • Most programs have a much smaller requirement
  • 1920×1080 Monitor Resolution
    • Most need less, but higher resolution is typically beneficial anyway

In short, getting the best possible machine for the budget is going to open up far more possibilities for different programs than something with weaker compatibility. After Effects for example typically will take up a lot of energy and space, whereas Placeit is entirely web-based so it takes up no space on your machine at all. Almost every program would benefit from some more RAM, a good graphics card, and a quality monitor, but be sure to consider the web-based graphic design options if you are on a budget and can’t upgrade your machine at the moment.

Conclusion

A graphics card is the part of the computer which translate CPU input in order to make images appear on the computer’s monitor. It is absolutely crucial in the graphic design world to have a quality card that can hold up to the requirements of the job. Not only that, but some of the most common programs will need a beefy setup in order to run smoothly throughout the entire process.

However, it isn’t only the graphics card that is required to make quality work. There’s personal skill on top of having a machine that is as good as possible. Graphics cards work in tandem with a good monitor that can actually display the quality images that it is trying to show. Web-based graphic design tools are becoming more popular because they don’t require upgraded computer parts to run smoothly, and they do the heavy lifting of the designing for you with templates and auto-suggested color combinations.