System Requirements

Your computer must meet these REQUIREMENTS, or you may not be able to successfully participate in Second Life.




Internet Connection*: Cable or DSL Cable or DSL
Operating System: XP, or Vista XP or Vista
Computer Processor: 800 MHz Pentium III or Athlon, or better 1.5 GHz (XP), 2-GHz (Vista) 32-bit (x86) or better
Computer Memory: 512 MB or more 1 GB or more
Screen Resolution: 1024x768 pixels 1024x768 pixels or higher
Graphics Card for XP**:
  • NVIDIA GeForce 6600 or better
  • OR ATI Radeon 8500, 9250 or better
  • OR Intel 945 chipset
NVIDIA Graphics cards
6000 Series:
  • 6600, 6700, 6800
7000 Series:
  • 7600, 7800, 7900
8000 Series:
  • 8500, 8600, 8800
GeForce Go Series:
  • 7600, 7800, 7900
ATI Graphics Cards
  • X800, X900, X1600, X1700, X1800, X1900
  • x2600, x2900
  • x3650, x3850
Graphics Card for Vista (requires latest drivers)**:
  • NVIDIA GeForce 6600 or better
  • OR ATI Radeon 9500 or better
  • OR Intel 945 chipset
NVIDIA Graphics cards
7000 Series:
  • 7600, 7800, 7900
8000 Series:
  • 8500, 8600, 8800
GeForce Go Series:
  • 7600, 7800, 7900
ATI Graphics Cards
  • X1600, X1700, X1800, X1900
  • x2600, x2900
  • x3650, x3850


Internet Connection*: Cable or DSL Cable or DSL
Operating System: Mac OS X 10.4.11 or better Mac OS X 10.5.4 or better
Computer Processor: 1 GHz G4 or better 1.25 GHz G4 or better
Computer Memory: 512 MB or more 1 GB or more
Screen Resolution: 1024x768 pixels 1024x768 pixels or higher
Graphics Card**:
  • ATI Radeon 9200 and above
  • OR ATI Radeon X Series
  • OR NVIDIA GeForce 2, GeForce 4
  • ATI: X1600, X1900, X2400, X2600
  • OR NVIDIA: 6800, 7600, 7800, 8800


Internet Connection*: Cable or DSL Cable or DSL
Operating System: A reasonably modern 32-bit Linux environment is required. If you are running a 64-bit Linux distribution then you will need its 32-bit compatibility environment installed. A reasonably modern 32-bit Linux environment is required. If you are running a 64-bit Linux distribution then you will need its 32-bit compatibility environment installed.
Computer Processor: 800 MHz Pentium III or Athlon, or better 1.5 GHz or better
Computer Memory: 512MB or more 1 GB or more
Screen Resolution: 1024x768 pixels 1024x768 pixels or higher
Graphics Card:
  • NVIDIA GeForce 6600, or better
  • OR ATI Radeon 8500, 9250, or better
NVIDIA Graphics cards
6000 Series:
  • 6600, 6700, 6800
7000 Series:
  • 7600, 7800, 7900
8000 Series:
  • 8500, 8600, 8800
GeForce Go Series:
  • 7600, 7800, 7900


Important Notes

* Second Life is not compatible with dial-up internet, satellite internet, and some wireless internet services.

** Second Life may not run on graphics cards other than the ones listed above. The following cards are NOT compatible with Second Life:

  • NVIDIA cards that report as a RIVA TNT or TNT2
  • ATI cards that report as RAGE, RAGE PRO, or RADEON 320M, 340M, 345M, or similar model numbers
  • Intel chipsets less than a 945 including Intel Extreme
  • Cards with the following branding: 3DFX, RIVA, TNT, SiS, S3, S3TC, Savage, Twister, Rage, Kyro, MILENNIA, MATROX

The following cards have not been tested with Second Life, and compatibility is not certain:

  • NVIDIA cards that report as Quadro
  • ATI cards that report as RADEON IGP or RADEON XPRESS
  • ATI cards that report as FireGL
  • ATI cards that report as FireMV

Can't find what you're looking for?

Check out our wiki page for further info on system requirements, specifically graphics cards.