What Minecraft needs now

Minecraft PC requirements rose in 2026: Minecraft: Java Edition now asks for a Vulkan 1.3 graphics chip with 2 GB of video memory, a Core i3-10100 or Ryzen 3 3100 and 8 GB of RAM (12 GB with integrated graphics), while Minecraft Dungeons II, which launches on 29 September 2026, needs a GeForce GTX 1050 at minimum and a GTX 1060 6 GB recommended. The ASUS Dual GeForce RTX 5060 OC, £374.99 on Amazon UK at the time of writing (September 2026), clears every one of those specs plus Bedrock ray tracing, and Tom's Hardware's June 2026 GPU hierarchy measured the RTX 5060 at 88.5 fps at 1080p Ultra.

The Java change is the bigger PC story. Mojang raised Java Edition's requirements on 21 July 2026, the first change since the game launched more than 17 years ago, as it replaces the OpenGL renderer with Vulkan. Minecraft Live on 26 September 2026 then confirmed Dungeons II as the first place players reach the Sift, Minecraft's first new dimension in over 14 years, before it comes to Java and Bedrock in 2027. Minecraft has sold over 400 million copies as of May 2026, according to Entertainment Weekly.

This guide sets out every official Minecraft spec, maps 17 common graphics chips against them, and prices the cheapest fix for three situations: an old desktop with a GTX 10-series card, a laptop with old Intel graphics, and no PC at all.

What are the new Minecraft Java system requirements?

Minecraft: Java Edition's minimum spec is a Vulkan 1.3 graphics chip with 2 GB of video memory, a four-core Core i3-10100 or Ryzen 3 3100, and 8 GB of RAM with a graphics card or 12 GB with integrated graphics, aimed at 1080p and 30 fps on the Fast preset. The recommended spec aims at 1080p and 60 fps on the Fancy preset with a GeForce RTX 2060, Radeon RX 5600 XT or Arc A580, 6 GB of video memory, 16 GB of RAM and Windows 11.

• The old spec:Hardware Busters notes the previous recommended spec was a Core i5-4690 with a GeForce 700-series card. Mojang says the old specs "were based on older hardware and older graphics technology".
• Java 25: Java Edition 26.1, released on 24 March 2026, requires Java 25, and the Java runtime included with the game is now the Microsoft build of OpenJDK 25.
• 4 GB by default: 26.1 raised the memory the game allocates to itself from 2 GB to 4 GB and moved compatible devices from the G1GC to the ZGC garbage collector, which Mojang says gives a more stable frame rate. On an 8 GB PC, that leaves 4 GB for Windows and everything else.
• Integrated graphics: an integrated chip borrows system memory as video memory, which explains why Mojang asks for 12 GB rather than 8 GB on those machines.
• Storage: 2 GB minimum and 4 GB recommended, per the minecraft.net store FAQ.

Will Minecraft still run on an old PC or laptop?

Yes, for now: Mojang says Java Edition "should still launch" on hardware below the new minimum, but performance and visual quality "are no longer guaranteed", and the game "may struggle or fail to launch" in future as it moves from OpenGL to Vulkan. Mojang names "older graphics cards, some older integrated graphics options, and older Intel-based Mac devices" as the hardware now below spec, and says it will warn players before any hardware is sunset.

• Old Intel integrated graphics:Mojang's floor is the graphics in the Core i5-6400, a 6th-generation chip, so Intel HD Graphics 4000 and HD 4600 fall below it. Hardware Busters names HD 4000 and "pre-2016 integrated graphics".
• Old graphics cards: NVIDIA cards older than the GeForce GTX 950, such as the GTX 750 Ti, and AMD cards older than the Radeon RX 460. Mojang warned in February 2026 that Vulkan may not be supported on GPUs 10 years old or more.
• Intel Macs: the Mac minimum is now Apple M1 on macOS 12, and the recommended Mac is an M2 Pro on macOS 14.
• Bedrock is unchanged: Bedrock Edition keeps its Intel HD Graphics 4000 minimum, per Hardware Busters and the minecraft.net store page.

The cut touches a small share of Steam PCs: the Steam Hardware Survey for August 2026 puts the GeForce GTX 750 Ti at 0.18% and Intel HD Graphics 4600 at 0.17%. GamingOnLinux reports that players can keep running the version they are already on.

When does Vulkan replace OpenGL in Minecraft?

Vulkan became the default graphics API in the 26.4 Snapshot 1 on 22 September 2026, and Mojang has set no date for removing OpenGL.

Under Vulkan, Java Edition prefers a dedicated graphics card over integrated graphics, a change from OpenGL that Mojang flagged in the 26.2 notes. That matters on gaming laptops with both chips.

Can my graphics card run Minecraft in 2026?

Every GeForce GTX 950, Radeon RX 460 or newer card meets Java Edition's minimum, the RTX 2060 and RX 5600 XT mark the recommended tier, and Bedrock ray tracing needs a GeForce RTX 20-series or Radeon RX 6000-series card or newer. Compare Electronic mapped 17 common graphics chips from Steam's August 2026 survey against each official list.

Compare Electronic's Minecraft graphics check

• Every chip in the table clears Bedrock Edition's minimum, Intel HD Graphics 4000 or AMD Radeon R5, so Bedrock stays the fallback for old hardware.
• GTX 10-series and GTX 16-series cards make up 10.62% of Steam's August 2026 video card table (4.70% plus 5.92%). All of them meet Java's minimum, and none has the ray tracing hardware Bedrock's ray tracing mode needs.
• The RTX 3050 is marked borderline because Mojang names the RTX 2060 and the RTX 3050 is a lower-tier card, although its video memory clears the 6 GB line.
• Mojang's list names AMD's discrete cards (RX 460 or newer) but not AMD integrated graphics, so Ryzen chips with Radeon graphics, such as the Ryzen 5 5600G, are neither confirmed nor ruled out. The 12 GB RAM rule for integrated graphics applies either way.

What does Minecraft Dungeons II need on PC?

Minecraft Dungeons II needs a GeForce GTX 1050 or Radeon RX 560 with 2 GB of dedicated video memory, a Core i3-8100 or Ryzen 3 2200G and 8 GB of RAM, and recommends a GeForce GTX 1060 or Radeon RX 580 with 6 GB, a Core i5-8400 or Ryzen 5 2600 and 16 GB, according to its Steam page. Both tiers run on DirectX 11 and 64-bit Windows 10, and neither needs ray tracing.

• Launch: 29 September 2026 on Steam, the Xbox app on PC, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2, and day one on PC Game Pass and Game Pass Ultimate, per Xbox Wire.
• Price: £24.99 Standard and £44.99 Deluxe on Steam UK at the time of writing (September 2026). The Steam version needs a Microsoft account.
• Engine and co-op: Unreal Engine 5, per Xbox Wire, with up to four players online or on one screen.
• Storage: Steam lists no install size at the time of writing, so no figure is quoted here.
• Early performance:Steam Deck HQ measured about 80 to 90 fps at 1920 x 1080 on High on an ROG Xbox Ally X and called the game very well optimised. It could not run the game on Steam Deck because Microsoft's game services failed to install.
• Lighter on the CPU than Java:the Core i3-8100 is two Intel generations older than Java Edition's new Core i3-10100 floor.

Handhelds that run Dungeons II are ranked in best gaming handheld UK 2026.

Does Minecraft need a graphics card?

No: Java Edition's minimum accepts Intel integrated graphics from the Core i5-6400 generation onwards and Bedrock Edition runs on Intel HD Graphics 4000, but Minecraft Dungeons II and ray tracing both need a dedicated card. Mojang's minecraft.net store FAQ says Minecraft "is more CPU-intensive than GPU-intensive", so the processor is the first part to check on an old PC.

• Integrated graphics need more RAM:12 GB for Java's minimum, 4 GB more than a PC with a graphics card.
• AMD integrated graphics are unlisted: the Radeon Vega graphics in the Ryzen 5 3400G and Ryzen 5 5600G are neither named nor excluded by Mojang.
• Bedrock is the light edition:its minimum is an Intel Celeron J4105 or AMD FX-4100, Intel HD Graphics 4000 or AMD Radeon R5, and 4 GB of RAM. The minecraft.net store says Bedrock "does not require powerful computers or devices to run".
• One purchase covers both:minecraft.net sells Minecraft: Java & Bedrock Edition for PC, which includes both editions, so a laptop below Java's minimum can switch to Bedrock.

Budget laptops with 8 GB of RAM and integrated graphics sit below Java's 12 GB line. Buyers choosing from best student laptop UK 2026 or best laptop under £500 UK 2026 should treat 16 GB as the Minecraft number.

What do Vibrant Visuals and ray tracing need?

Ray tracing in Minecraft: Bedrock Edition on Windows needs a DirectX Raytracing (DXR) graphics card, which Microsoft describes as a GeForce RTX 20 series or newer or a Radeon RX 6000 series or newer, plus an Intel Core i5 or equivalent and at least 8 GB of RAM. Mojang has published no separate PC specification for Vibrant Visuals.

• Vibrant Visualsis Bedrock's built-in graphics mode, with directional lighting, volumetric fog, physically based rendering and reflections, switched on under Graphics Mode in Video settings (Microsoft Learn). The community-run Minecraft Wiki dates its launch to version 1.21.90 in June 2025.
• Community figure only: the Minecraft Wiki lists a DirectX 12 graphics chip at feature level 12_1 for Vibrant Visuals on Windows. No official minecraft.net specification confirms it.
• Ray tracing still works:minecraft.net says there are "no changes planned to ray tracing for Windows", and Microsoft Learn says ray tracing has "largely been superseded by Vibrant Visuals".
• Java has neither yet: Mojang is building Vibrant Visuals for Java on the Vulkan renderer and says it will come to all Java Edition devices, with no date set. Java players who want better lighting today use community shader packs, which put far more load on the graphics card than the standard renderer.

Which graphics card is best for Minecraft?

The ASUS Dual GeForce RTX 5060 OCis the best graphics card for Minecraft at £374.99 on Amazon UK at the time of writing (September 2026): it clears Java Edition's recommended spec, Minecraft Dungeons II's recommended spec and Bedrock ray tracing, with 8 GB of GDDR7. The ASUS Dual GeForce RTX 5050 OCat £329.99 is the cheapest card at Java's recommended tier, and the Sapphire Pulse Radeon RX 9060 XT 8GB at £389.99 is the Radeon pick.

Compare Electronic uses Tom's Hardware's June 2026 GPU hierarchy, an 11-game raster average and 8-game ray tracing average at native 1080p Ultra, as a general performance yardstick rather than a Minecraft result. Mojang itself calls the new Java requirements "relatively low" next to modern AAA games, so the figures show headroom for shader packs, ray tracing and everything else the PC plays.

Compare Electronic's price per frame

The RTX 5060 costs £45.00 more than the RTX 5050 and is 27.7% faster in raster and 31.1% faster in ray tracing at 1080p, which makes it the cheaper card per frame. The RX 9060 XT 8GB is 5.3% faster than the RTX 5060 in raster for £15.00 more, but 19.3% slower in ray tracing, and Mojang's Java 26.3 notes list low Vulkan performance on AMD and Intel Arc graphics as a known issue. The full ranking, including 16 GB cards, is in best graphics card UK 2026.

ASUS Dual GeForce RTX 5060 OC - best graphics card for Minecraft

The ASUS Dual GeForce RTX 5060 OC costs £374.99 on Amazon UK at the time of writing (September 2026). NVIDIA's GeForce RTX 5060 has 3,840 CUDA cores, 8 GB of GDDR7 on a 128-bit bus at 448 GB/s and a 145 W graphics power, and NVIDIA lists a 550 W power supply. Tom's Hardware measured the RTX 5060 at 88.5 fps at 1080p Ultra and 59.8 fps at 1440p Ultra.

The RTX 5060 suits Java players who run shader packs, Bedrock players who want ray tracing, and buyers who also play heavier 2026 games. Its 8 GB of video memory clears Mojang's 6 GB recommendation comfortably but is the limit in the most demanding new AAA releases.

ASUS Dual GeForce RTX 5050 OC - cheapest card at Java's recommended tier

The ASUS Dual GeForce RTX 5050 OC costs £329.99 on Amazon UK at the time of writing (September 2026). The GeForce RTX 5050 has 2,560 CUDA cores, 8 GB of GDDR6 at 320 GB/s and a 130 W graphics power, and NVIDIA lists the same 550 W power supply as the RTX 5060. Tom's Hardware measured the RTX 5050 at 69.3 fps at 1080p Ultra and 31.2 fps with ray tracing.

The RTX 5050 suits a GTX 10-series owner who wants Java's recommended tier, Dungeons II's recommended tier and Bedrock ray tracing for the least money. The extra £45.00 for the RTX 5060 buys more performance per pound, so the RTX 5050 only makes sense on a hard budget.

Sapphire Pulse Radeon RX 9060 XT 8GB - best Radeon for Minecraft

The Sapphire Pulse Radeon RX 9060 XT 8GB costs £389.99 on Amazon UK at the time of writing (September 2026). AMD's Radeon RX 9060 XT 8GB has 32 compute units, 8 GB of GDDR6 at 320 GB/s and a 150 W board power, with a 450 W minimum power supply. Tom's Hardware measured the RX 9060 XT 8GB at 93.2 fps at 1080p Ultra, the fastest of the three, and 33.0 fps with ray tracing.

The RX 9060 XT suits Bedrock and Dungeons II players who also play raster-heavy PC games, and its 450 W power figure makes it the easiest of the three to fit into an older prebuilt. Java players should weigh Mojang's listed AMD Vulkan issue until a fix lands.

What does it cost to get a PC ready for Minecraft?

Reaching Minecraft's recommended graphics tier costs £329.99 for an old desktop with a GTX 10-series card, £929.99 for a laptop owner whose Intel graphics fall below the new minimum, and £797.99 for a buyer starting from nothing, at Amazon UK prices in September 2026.

Compare Electronic's Minecraft upgrade-cost table

• The processor matters on old desktops.A PC built around a GTX 10-series card in 2016 or 2017 typically has a 6th or 7th-generation Core i5, older than the Core i3-10100 that Mojang names as Java's minimum. The how to upgrade an old gaming PC 2026 guide covers CPU and platform upgrades.
• Power: NVIDIA lists a 550 W power supply for the RTX 5050 and RTX 5060; AMD lists 450 W for the RX 9060 XT 8GB. The CyberPowerPC Regiment's 450 W unit meets AMD's figure with no headroom, which is why the table pairs it with the Radeon.
• Build-up costs more: the Regiment plus RX 9060 XT 8GB costs £848.99 (£459 plus £389.99), £51.00 more than the Computek RTX 5060 tower, which already has a graphics card, 16 GB of RAM and Windows 11.
• Laptop graphics cannot be upgraded:a laptop below Java's minimum stays a Bedrock machine or gets replaced. The Lenovo LOQ 15AHP10 costs £132.00 more than the Computek tower and adds a 15.6-inch 144 Hz screen and a battery.

What is the cheapest PC that runs Minecraft well?

The Computek Gaming PC Tower with a Ryzen 5 5500 and RTX 5060, £797.99 on Amazon UK at the time of writing (September 2026), is the cheapest PC Compare Electronic recommends that clears Java Edition's recommended graphics and memory lines, Minecraft Dungeons II's recommended spec and Bedrock ray tracing. Cheaper towers are ranked in best cheap gaming PC UK 2026 and best gaming PC under £600 UK.

Computek Ryzen 5 5500 RTX 5060 tower - best whole PC for Minecraft

The Computek tower pairs a 6-core, 12-thread Ryzen 5 5500 with an RTX 5060 8 GB, 16 GB of DDR4, a 256 GB SSD plus 1 TB of storage, Wi-Fi and Windows 11. The Ryzen 5 5500 sits one model below the Ryzen 5 5600 that Mojang recommends, so the processor is the one line where the Computek stops short of the full recommended spec.

GTR Gaming PC Bundle (Ryzen 5 3400G) - cheapest complete desk for Bedrock

The GTR Gaming PC Bundle costs £579.99 on Amazon UK at the time of writing (September 2026) and includes a 24-inch 120 Hz monitor, keyboard, mouse and headset with a 4-core Ryzen 5 3400G, 16 GB of RAM and a 1 TB SSD. Its Radeon Vega 11 integrated graphics are not named in Mojang's Java list, fall below Dungeons II's dedicated-card minimum and cannot run Bedrock ray tracing, and the Ryzen 5 3400G is an older design than the Ryzen 3 3100 in Java's minimum.

The 16 GB of RAM clears Java's 12 GB integrated-graphics line, and the 650 W power supply clears NVIDIA's 550 W figure, so adding an ASUS Dual GeForce RTX 5060 OC later brings the total to £954.98. The GTR bundle suits a Bedrock household that wants a complete desk now.

The CyberPowerPC Regiment with a Ryzen 5 5600G costs £459 on Amazon UK at the time of writing (September 2026), with a 6-core, 12-thread processor newer than Mojang's Ryzen 3 3100 minimum, Radeon Vega 7 integrated graphics, a 500 GB NVMe SSD, a 450 W power supply and Windows 11. Buyers should confirm it carries at least 12 GB of RAM, Mojang's minimum with integrated graphics.

Lenovo LOQ 15AHP10 (RTX 5050) - the laptop route

The Lenovo LOQ 15AHP10 costs £929.99 on Amazon UK at the time of writing (September 2026), with a 6-core Ryzen 5 220, a 100 W RTX 5050 with 8 GB, 16 GB of DDR5 in two slots, a 512 GB SSD and a 15.6-inch 1080p 144 Hz IPS screen, at 2.4 kg. It clears Java's recommended graphics and memory lines, runs Dungeons II and Bedrock ray tracing, and Java's Vulkan renderer prefers its RTX 5050 over the integrated graphics.

Who should skip an upgrade, and what should UK buyers check?

Owners of a GeForce RTX 2060, RTX 3060, Radeon RX 6600 or faster card should skip a Minecraft upgrade: each meets every Minecraft spec in this guide, ray tracing included.

• RTX 3060 owners:the RTX 5060 is 43.9% faster in Tom's Hardware's 1080p Ultra average (88.5 against 61.5 fps), a gain for other games rather than for Minecraft.
• Bedrock-only players:Bedrock's requirements are unchanged, with Intel HD Graphics 4000 as the minimum.
• Console players: Minecraft arrives on Nintendo Switch 2 on 27 October 2026, announced at Minecraft Live, and Dungeons II launches on Switch 2 too. The best Switch 2 games UK 2026 guide covers the rest of the line-up.
• Heavier games: buyers upgrading for 2026 shooters need more than Minecraft asks; see WARDOGS PC requirements.

UK buying notes

• Windows:Windows 10 support ended on 14 October 2025, Microsoft's consumer Extended Security Updates run to 12 October 2027, and Java Edition's recommended OS is now Windows 11. Windows 10 still ran on 22.90% of Steam PCs in August 2026.
• Drivers:NVIDIA's Game Ready driver support for GTX 900 and GTX 10-series cards ended in late 2025, with quarterly security updates until October 2028, per Tom's Hardware. The GTX 950 at Mojang's floor no longer gets game-specific drivers.
• Prices:TechSpot's UK price surveys put the cheapest RTX 5060 at £250 in November 2025 and £330 in August 2026. The memory shortage behind the rise is covered in RAM shortage 2026: why tech is more expensive.
• Power supply:check the PSU against NVIDIA's 550 W or AMD's 450 W figure before ordering a card.
• Consumer rights: the Consumer Rights Act 2015 gives 30 days to reject a faulty graphics card or PC for a full refund.

Verdict: what Minecraft needs in 2026

Minecraft's PC requirements now split three ways. Java Edition needs a Vulkan 1.3 GPU from the GTX 950 or RX 460 onwards and 8 GB of RAM (12 GB with integrated graphics), Minecraft Dungeons II needs a dedicated GTX 1050 or RX 560 from 29 September 2026, and Bedrock still runs on Intel HD Graphics 4000. The ASUS Dual GeForce RTX 5060 OC at £374.99 is the upgrade that clears all of it with ray tracing, the ASUS Dual GeForce RTX 5050 OCat £329.99 is the cheapest route to Java's recommended tier, and the Computek RTX 5060 tower at £797.99 is the whole-PC answer.