World of Warcraft: Forever launches on November 4, 2026, at 3:00 p.m. PST: a new, permanent version of WoW next to the modern game and Classic, with new zones, the Skyborne race and a journey to level 60. It also comes with a new renderer, and that changes the requirements: some older graphics cards are now blocked, and an SSD is required. Here are the official specs for PC and Mac, what they mean, and a tool that checks your PC in seconds.
Quick answer: the minimum is a 4-core 3.0 GHz CPU (Intel Haswell or AMD Ryzen Zen), 8 GB of RAM, a DirectX 12 graphics card with 4 GB (GeForce GTX 10 series, AMD RDNA 1 or Intel Iris Xe) and Windows 10 64-bit (version 1903 or newer). The recommended specs ask for an 8-core Intel Core Ultra (Series 2) or Ryzen (Zen 5), 16 GB of RAM and an RTX 40 series, RDNA 3 or Arc B-Series card with 8 GB. Every setup needs 128 GB free on an SSD.
Pick your hardware and we compare it with the official World of Warcraft: Forever requirements.
Official World of Warcraft: Forever PC requirements
| Minimum | Recommended | |
|---|---|---|
| OS | Windows 10 64-bit (version 1903 or newer) | Windows 11 64-bit |
| CPU | Intel Core (Haswell) / AMD Ryzen (Zen) or newer, 4 cores at 3.0 GHz | Intel Core Ultra (Series 2) / AMD Ryzen (Zen 5), 8 performance cores, 5.2 GHz boost |
| RAM | 8 GB | 16 GB |
| GPU | NVIDIA GeForce GTX 10 series / AMD RDNA 1 / Intel Iris Xe (DirectX 12, 4 GB VRAM) | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 40 series / AMD RDNA 3 / Intel Arc B-Series (8 GB VRAM) |
| Storage | 128 GB SSD (hard drives not supported) | 128 GB SSD |
Source: official World of Warcraft: Forever website. Results are estimates based on relative hardware performance.
WoW Forever PC system requirements (Windows)
| Minimum | Recommended | |
|---|---|---|
| OS | Windows 10 64-bit, version 1903 (May 2019 Update) or newer | Windows 11 |
| CPU | 4 cores at 3.0 GHz: Intel Core (Haswell) or AMD Ryzen (Zen) or newer | 8 performance cores, 5.2 GHz boost: Intel Core Ultra (Series 2) or AMD Ryzen (Zen 5) |
| GPU | DirectX 12, 4 GB VRAM: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 10 series, AMD RDNA 1 or Intel Iris Xe (Lunar Lake) | DirectX 12, 8 GB VRAM: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 40 series, AMD RDNA 3 or Intel Arc B-Series |
| RAM | 8 GB | 16 GB |
| Storage | 128 GB free on an SSD | 128 GB free on an SSD |
| Other | Broadband internet, 1280 x 720 display | Multi-button mouse with scroll wheel |
In practice:
- Minimum graphics card: a GTX 1050 Ti, GTX 1060, RX 5500 XT or RX 5600 XT gets you in on low settings.
- Recommended graphics card: an RTX 4060, RTX 4060 Ti or RX 7600 for high settings at 1080p.
- Processor: WoW has always leaned on the CPU, and Forever is no different. In capital cities, world events and raids, a faster processor matters more than a faster graphics card.
Not sure what is inside your PC? Our guide How to Check Your PC Specs shows you in a minute.
Mac system requirements
WoW Forever also runs natively on macOS:
| Minimum | Recommended | |
|---|---|---|
| OS | macOS 12 | macOS 15 |
| Processor | Apple M2 or Intel Core 9th gen (Coffee Lake) | Apple M4 |
| Graphics | Metal GPU with 4 GB, or Apple M2 with 8 GB | Apple M4 with 16 GB |
| RAM | 8 GB | 16 GB |
| Storage | 128 GB free on an SSD | 128 GB free on an SSD |
On Apple silicon, the 8 GB and 16 GB figures refer to the Mac's unified memory. Note that the minimum chip is the M2, not the M1.
Is your graphics card blocked?
This is the change that catches people out. Blizzard's new renderer needs a GPU feature introduced around 2012 (RGBA16F UAV support in compute shaders). Cards older than that cannot start the game at all, even on the lowest settings.
| Status | Examples |
|---|---|
| Blocked: too old | NVIDIA GTX 760, 770, 780 and GTX 8xxM laptops, AMD Radeon HD 6950 and older |
| Allowed, but below the minimum | GTX 750 / 750 Ti, GTX 9xx series, Radeon HD 7850, Intel HD Graphics 530 |
| Meets the minimum | GTX 10 series and newer, AMD RDNA 1 (RX 5000) and newer, Intel Iris Xe (Lunar Lake), Intel Arc |
The supported architectures start at NVIDIA Maxwell (2014), AMD GCN 1 (2012) and Intel Skylake (2015). If your card is on the blocked list, the cheapest fix is a used or budget graphics card. Our RTX 50 vs RX 9000 guide covers current options.
Why an SSD is required
Blizzard lists 128 GB free on an SSD for every setup, and hard drives are not supported. WoW streams the world as you travel, so a hard drive causes long loading screens and textures that pop in late, especially in cities. Leave extra space: the size grows with patches.
Best settings for WoW Forever on a low-end PC
If your PC is close to the minimum:
- Update your graphics driver from the NVIDIA app or AMD Software before launch day.
- Start with a low Graphics Quality preset, then raise options one at a time.
- Lower View Distance, Ground Clutter and Shadow Quality first. These cost the most in big zones and cities.
- Turn off Ray-Traced Shadows if your card supports them but struggles.
- Use the SD character models if you need more FPS: Forever lets you switch between HD and SD models.
- Cap your frame rate at your monitor's refresh rate, or at 60 on weaker PCs, for steadier performance.
More fixes that work in every game are in How to Increase FPS on PC. If your FPS drops in cities while your graphics card is not fully used, your processor is the limit: see CPU Bottleneck Explained.
Is your PC too weak? Upgrade the right part
- Graphics card below the GTX 10 series: this is the one part you must upgrade, since older cards are blocked or too slow.
- Hard drive only: add an SSD. A 1 TB NVMe SSD is cheap and fixes loading and stutter in every game.
- 8 GB of RAM: going to 16 GB helps a lot in cities and raids.
- Old 4-core CPU: WoW rewards fast processors. See Best Gaming CPUs in 2026.
Building a new PC? Our Best Gaming PC Build Under $1000 easily beats the recommended specs.
What is World of Warcraft: Forever?
Blizzard calls it a third permanent way to play WoW, next to the modern game and Classic, and "not a mode, a season, or a new version of Classic." It is set after Warcraft III and before Molten Core, on the original continents, with a level cap of 60 that will not go up.
- New race: the Skyborne, playable for Horde and Alliance, with the new Zephras Isle starting zone (levels 1 to 12).
- New zones: Mount Hyjal, Shen'dralas and The Riverglades, plus over 1,000 new quests.
- Nine dungeons and two raids at launch: Barrow Deeps (10 players) and Hyjal Summit (20 players). New raids unlock on December 9.
- No flying mounts and no level scaling, plus camping, gamepad support and an optional Hardcore mode later.
Price: WoW Forever is included with any World of Warcraft subscription or Game Time. The Skyborne packs on the Battle.net Shop add the Skyborne race early access, cosmetics and, for the Epic Pack, 30 days of Game Time.
Want to play on a new laptop? World of Warcraft is on NVIDIA's launch list for its new all-in-one laptop chip: see NVIDIA RTX Spark: Can the All-in-One Chip Run Games?.
More PC guides on FpsGen
- Can I Run WoW Forever?: results for popular graphics cards
- How to Check Your PC Specs
- The most popular GPUs on Steam and their FPS
- Can My PC Run It?: check any game in seconds
FAQ
What are the minimum requirements for WoW Forever?
A 4-core 3.0 GHz CPU (Intel Haswell or AMD Ryzen Zen), 8 GB of RAM, a DirectX 12 graphics card with 4 GB (GeForce GTX 10 series, AMD RDNA 1 or Intel Iris Xe), Windows 10 64-bit version 1903 or newer, and 128 GB free on an SSD.
Can WoW Forever run on a GTX 1050 Ti?
Yes. The GTX 1050 Ti is a GTX 10 series card with 4 GB, so it meets the minimum. Expect low settings.
Can WoW Forever run on a GTX 970 or GTX 750 Ti?
They pass Blizzard's architecture check, so the game may start, but they are below the official minimum. Expect the lowest settings and drops in busy areas.
Does WoW Forever need an SSD?
Yes. Blizzard lists 128 GB free on an SSD, and hard drives are not supported.
Is WoW Forever free?
No. It is included with a World of Warcraft subscription or Game Time.
When does WoW Forever release?
November 4, 2026, at 3:00 p.m. PST.
Release date and features from Blizzard's BlizzCon 2026 round-up. System requirements from the Battle.net Shop listing, as reported by WindowsForum and Timesaver, including Blizzard's GPU architecture notice. Requirements can change before launch. FpsGen is not affiliated with Blizzard Entertainment.
Gaming writer at FpsGen. Guides and reviews are built on official sources, patch notes and real player data.
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