Ray Tracing in Games: When Is It Worth the Performance Cost?

Ray tracing is one of the most talked about graphics settings, and also one of the most expensive. This guide explains what it does, why it costs so much, what helps you pay that cost, and how to decide for yourself whether it is worth turning on. We will not invent frame rate numbers, because none of our sources give them and the effect depends on the game and the card.

What ray tracing does

Most games draw a scene with a method called rasterization, which projects 3D objects onto the flat screen and then colors them. Microsoft's DirectX team explains ray tracing in its announcement of DirectX Raytracing: the pixel color is worked out by tracing the path of the light that would have created it. Because of that, shadows and reflections come from the method itself, and not from separate tricks added on top. Microsoft names shadows, reflections and global illumination, which is the way light bounces around a scene, as the effects it can improve.

Microsoft also said that ray tracing was not meant to replace rasterization right away. Developers can draw most of the scene the usual way and use ray tracing where the usual way falls short, such as in shadows or reflections. That blog post is from 2018, so use it for the idea, not for current hardware advice.

Why it costs performance and memory

Tracing light is heavy work for the graphics card. NZXT says ray tracing requires a significant amount of VRAM to work properly, and it lists resolution, texture quality and ray tracing as the settings that use the most memory. If you are short of memory, ray tracing can cause stutter and late-loading textures. Our guide on how much VRAM you need explains the symptoms.

What helps you pay the cost

• Upscaling. Corsair describes DLSS as a way to get better image quality and higher FPS depending on your GPU. Our guide to DLSS, FSR and XeSS covers the options on different brands.
• Ray Reconstruction. Corsair says it was introduced with DLSS 3.5 and uses AI instead of the game engine's own denoising to rebuild ray traced lighting, with less blurred or smudged textures. It is an NVIDIA feature, so check what your card supports.
• Lower other settings. Turning down expensive settings frees up some room. Our guide on graphics settings that cost the most can help you choose.

How to decide

There is no single answer, so test it in your own game:

1. Pick a scene you can repeat, ideally one with water, glass or strong shadows, where the effect is easiest to see.
2. Compare ray tracing off and on, with the same resolution and upscaling setting.
3. Look at how smooth the game feels, not only the average FPS. Our guide on frame time and 1 percent lows shows how.
4. Ask yourself if you can see the difference while you play, and not only in a still screenshot.
5. If you have to give up a smooth frame rate or turn textures down a lot, it is usually not worth it.

Quick checklist

• Ray tracing improves shadows, reflections and lighting, but it costs performance and memory.
• Check your VRAM before you turn it on.
• Use upscaling to get some of the frame rate back.
• Test it in a repeatable scene and watch frame times.
• Keep it off if it makes the game feel worse.