How to Check Which Version of DirectX You Have on Your PC
If a game or application is asking for a specific version of DirectX — or you're troubleshooting a graphics issue — knowing exactly which version is installed on your system is the first step. The good news: Windows makes this easy to find without downloading anything extra.
What Is DirectX and Why Does the Version Matter?
DirectX is a collection of application programming interfaces (APIs) developed by Microsoft that allows software — particularly games and multimedia applications — to communicate directly with your hardware. It handles everything from 3D rendering and audio processing to input handling and video playback.
Different versions of DirectX introduced significant capabilities:
| DirectX Version | Key Features Introduced | Minimum Windows Version |
|---|---|---|
| DirectX 11 | Tessellation, compute shaders | Windows 7 and later |
| DirectX 12 | Low-level hardware access, improved CPU efficiency | Windows 10 and later |
| DirectX 12 Ultimate | Ray tracing, mesh shaders, variable rate shading | Windows 10 (version 1909+) |
When a game lists a minimum or recommended DirectX requirement, it's telling you what the software expects from your system's graphics pipeline. Running a version lower than required typically means the application won't launch — or will run with degraded visual quality and stability.
How to Check Your DirectX Version Using the DirectX Diagnostic Tool 🖥️
The fastest and most reliable method on any modern Windows PC is the built-in DirectX Diagnostic Tool (DxDiag).
Steps:
- Press Windows Key + R to open the Run dialog
- Type
dxdiagand press Enter - A dialog may ask whether to check if drivers are digitally signed — click Yes or No (either is fine for version checking)
- The DirectX Diagnostic Tool window will open
On the System tab, look near the bottom of the "System Information" section. You'll see a line labeled DirectX Version — this displays the version currently installed and active on your system.
What You'll See:
- DirectX 12 — common on Windows 10 and Windows 11 machines with compatible hardware
- DirectX 11 — typical on older hardware or systems that haven't been updated
- DirectX 9 or 10 — rare on modern systems, but possible on very old or low-spec machines
The Display tab in DxDiag gives you additional detail, including your graphics card's Driver Model — which is related to but distinct from the DirectX feature level your GPU actually supports.
The Difference Between DirectX Version and Feature Level
This is where a lot of confusion comes in, and it's worth understanding clearly.
DirectX version refers to what's installed on your operating system. Feature level refers to what your graphics card (GPU) actually supports at the hardware level.
For example, Windows 10 ships with DirectX 12 — so dxdiag will report DirectX 12. But if your GPU is older, it may only support a DirectX 12 feature level of 11_0 or 11_1, meaning it can't take full advantage of DirectX 12 capabilities like ray tracing or mesh shaders.
You can check your GPU's supported feature level in the Display tab of DxDiag under DDI Version and Feature Levels — though the display of this information varies slightly by driver version.
For more granular detail, tools like GPU-Z (a free third-party utility) will show the exact DirectX feature level your graphics card supports.
Other Ways to Check DirectX Information
Via Windows Settings (Limited)
Windows 11 and Windows 10 don't prominently display DirectX version in Settings > System > Display, but navigating to Settings > System > About and checking your Windows version can help you infer it:
- Windows 11 → DirectX 12 (with DirectX 12 Ultimate support possible, depending on GPU)
- Windows 10 → DirectX 12 (installed), actual GPU feature level varies
- Windows 7 / 8.1 → DirectX 11 maximum
Via PowerShell or Command Prompt
You can also run the following in PowerShell for basic system info, though DxDiag remains more informative for DirectX-specific details:
Get-WmiObject Win32_DirectXDiagID This approach is less commonly used and surfaces limited information compared to DxDiag.
Variables That Affect What DirectX Can Actually Do on Your System 🎮
Knowing your installed DirectX version is only part of the picture. What matters in practice depends on several factors:
- GPU model and age — Older graphics cards cap out at lower feature levels regardless of OS
- Driver version — Outdated GPU drivers can limit DirectX functionality even on capable hardware
- Windows version — DirectX 12 requires Windows 10 or later; no amount of hardware will enable it on Windows 7
- Game or application requirements — Some titles require specific feature levels, not just the headline version number
- Integrated vs. dedicated graphics — Integrated GPUs (like those in Intel or AMD APUs) often support a lower DirectX feature level than a discrete card in the same system
A system can report DirectX 12 installed while a specific game still refuses to run at full fidelity — because the bottleneck is the GPU's feature level, not the OS version.
What "DirectX 12 Ultimate" Actually Means
DirectX 12 Ultimate is not a separate installation — it's a certification tier introduced by Microsoft for GPUs that support the full set of DirectX 12 features: hardware ray tracing, DirectStorage, mesh shaders, and variable rate shading. If your GPU doesn't meet this bar, your system may still run DirectX 12 applications, just without those advanced features enabled.
DxDiag won't always explicitly tell you whether you have "Ultimate" support. That determination depends on cross-referencing your GPU model against known supported hardware — which is where the specifics of your own setup become the deciding factor.