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ROG NUC 16 Gaming Mini PCRTX 5080|32GB RAM|1TB SSD11.12 x 7.46 x 2.22 Inches7.05 PoundsCheck on Amazon
Wondering what hardware you actually need to run Bus Simulator 21 on PC? Bus Simulator 21 Next Stop arrived on September 7, 2021, and it is a simulation game at heart — you take the wheel of 30 officially licensed buses across two very different maps, driving alone or with friends, with extended management elements available if you want them. The good news is that it is an older, modestly built title: the official requirements ask for a GeForce GTX 760 or Radeon R9 280 at minimum and a GTX 1070 or Radeon RX Vega 56 at recommended, with 8 GB of RAM and 18 GB of storage in both cases. This guide breaks down what those numbers mean in practice, which GPU tier suits each resolution, and which builds actually make sense for this game.
How Demanding Is Bus Simulator 21?
Not very, and that is the single most useful thing to know. Bus Simulator 21 Next Stop is a 2021 simulation title, and its recommended graphics card is a GTX 1070 / RX Vega 56 — 2016 hardware — which tells you the rendering load is light by modern standards. The minimum tier (GTX 760 / R9 280, both 2 GB cards) belongs to a much older class of hardware, so almost any discrete GPU sold in the last several years can run the game at 1080p. The processor side is equally forgiving: the recommended CPU is an Intel Core i5-4440, a four-core chip from 2013, and the game asks for only 8 GB of RAM. Because it is a simulation, traffic, bus systems and the optional management layer do keep the processor occupied, but the published specs show it is nowhere near CPU-bound on current hardware. A 4K display is also within reach here without a flagship card, which is unusual for a modern release. The install is a small 18 GB, and both profiles call for Windows 10 64-bit, DirectX 12 and a broadband connection for the co-op side of the game.
ASUS ROG GM700 (2025) Gaming Desktop PC, AMD Ryzen™ 7 9800X3D Processor, AMD® Radeon™ RX 9070 XT Prime OC, 2TB M.2 NVMe™ PCIe® 4 SSD, 32GB DDR5 RAM, Windows 11 Home, GM700TZ-MS777
Chosen because it specifies AMD Ryzen™ 7 9800X3D Processor and AMD® Radeon™ RX 9070 XT Prime OC.
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ASUS ROG G700 (2026) Gaming Desktop PC, Intel® Core™ Ultra 7 265KF Processor, NVIDIA® GeForce RTX™ 5070, 1TB M.2 NVMe™ PCIe® 4 SSD, 16GB DDR5 RAM, Windows 11 Home, G700TF-DB774
Chosen because it specifies Intel® Core™ Ultra 7 265KF Processor and NVIDIA® GeForce RTX™ 5070.
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ASUS ROG G700 (2025) Gaming Desktop PC, Intel® Core™ Ultra 7 265F Processor, NVIDIA® GeForce RTX™ 5060Ti, 1TB M.2 NVMe™ PCIe® 4 SSD, 32GB DDR5 RAM, Windows 11 Home, G700TF-AS776Ti
Chosen because it specifies Intel® Core™ Ultra 7 265F Processor and NVIDIA® GeForce RTX™ 5060Ti.
View on AmazonROG NUC 16 Gaming Mini PC, AI Desktop | Ultra 9 290HX Plus, RTX 5080 GPU | 32GB DDR5-6400 RAM, 1TB SSD, Win 11, Black 3L Chassis, Triple-Fan QuietFlow Cooling, 3 Months of PC Game Pass, 3-Yr Warranty
Chosen because it specifies NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 Mobile GPU and 32GB DDR5 RAM.
View on AmazonBus Simulator 21 Official PC System Requirements
| Component | Minimum (official) | Recommended (official) |
|---|---|---|
| OS | Windows 10 64-Bit | Windows 10 64-Bit |
| Processor | Intel Core i3-2120 / AMD Phenom II X4 830 or equivalent | Intel Core i5-4440 / AMD FC-8140 or equivalent |
| Memory | 8 GB RAM | 8 GB RAM |
| Graphics | NVIDIA GeForce GTX 760 (2GB VRAM) / AMD Radeon R9 280 (2GB VRAM) or higher | NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 (8GB VRAM) / AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 (8GB VRAM) or higher |
| DirectX | Version 12 | Version 12 |
| Storage | 18 GB available space | 18 GB available space |
Source: the official Bus Simulator 21 Next Stop Steam store listing (app 976590), checked October 2026. Publishers can update these specs after patches.
Best GPU for Bus Simulator 21 by Resolution
1080p
1080p is comfortable territory. The official minimum — a GTX 760 or R9 280 with 2 GB of VRAM — is enough to get the game running, and the recommended GTX 1070 / RX Vega 56 tier is already more than 1080p needs at sensible settings. Anything modern sits well above the published specification: the AMD Radeon RX 7600, an RX 9060 XT or an RTX 5060 will run Bus Simulator 21 at high settings with a large margin to spare. Older cards such as a GTX 1660 Super or an 8 GB RX 580 also clear the bar comfortably at 1080p.
1440p
1440p does not require a big step up. A current mid-range card like an RTX 5060 Ti or RX 9060 XT is already ample, and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER is well beyond what this game needs — it will hold high settings at 1440p without working hard and leaves plenty of room for heavier titles in your library. Even the official recommended GTX 1070 / RX Vega 56 class was aimed at settings well above 1080p, so this resolution is not a stretch for older hardware either.
4K
4K is realistic here. The official recommended card is aimed at high settings rather than 4K, but a modern upper mid-range GPU such as an RTX 5070 or RX 9070 — or the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER — will run Bus Simulator 21 Next Stop at 4K comfortably. If you want extra headroom on a high-refresh 4K display, nudging the resolution scale down slightly is usually all it takes; this is not a game that punishes 4K players, and it does not need a top-tier card to look and feel smooth.
CPU, RAM and Storage for Bus Simulator 21
The official CPU requirement is refreshingly low: an Intel Core i3-2120 or AMD Phenom II X4 830 at minimum, and a Core i5-4440 or AMD FC-8140 at recommended. Any modern six-core part clears that easily, so the AMD Ryzen 5 7600 is far more than this game needs, while the AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D or an Intel Core i5-14600K are only worth considering if you also play heavier simulations and AAA games. Memory is where this game is most often misdescribed: Bus Simulator 21 asks for 8 GB of RAM at both minimum and recommended. A 16 GB total is a sensible modern baseline for a Windows machine running a browser and other background apps, and a 32 GB DDR5 kit such as the Corsair Vengeance DDR5 32GB is pure headroom for this particular title rather than a requirement. Storage is a modest 18 GB of available space, and while a drive like the Samsung 990 Pro 2TB NVMe SSD will shorten load times, the official requirements do not insist on an SSD at all.
Recommended PC Builds for Bus Simulator 21
1080p budget build: AMD Radeon RX 7600 + AMD Ryzen 5 7600 + 16 GB DDR5 — comfortably above the official recommended spec, so it runs high settings at 1080p with a wide margin. A cheaper GTX 1660 Super / RX 580-class card paired with a modern quad-core and 8–16 GB of RAM would already meet or beat the published requirements for this game.
1440p sweet-spot build: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER + AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D + 32 GB DDR5 + 2TB NVMe SSD — far beyond what Bus Simulator 21 requires, which makes it a sensible all-round gaming PC that happens to run this title effortlessly at 1440p.
4K high-end build: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER + AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D + 32 GB DDR5 + fast NVMe SSD — handles the game at 4K without strain, with headroom left over for demanding titles.
Is It Worth Upgrading Your PC for Bus Simulator 21?
Probably not on this game’s account alone. If you already have anything from a GTX 1060-class card upward you are above the official recommended GPU, and if you have 8 GB of RAM you already meet the published memory requirement, so neither is a reason to spend money here. An upgrade makes sense mainly if you are still on integrated graphics or a card below the GTX 760 / R9 280 minimum, in which case even a modest modern GPU will transform the experience. If you do upgrade, the graphics card still delivers by far the biggest jump, so start there; a processor from the last several years will not hold this game back, because the recommended CPU is a 2013 quad-core. More than 8 GB of RAM and an SSD are quality-of-life improvements for your whole system rather than fixes for this title, which occupies only 18 GB. Target the weakest link in your build instead of replacing everything at once.
Can You Play Bus Simulator 21 on a Laptop or Handheld?
Yes, and it is a good fit for portable hardware. A gaming laptop with a mobile GPU around the GTX 1660 Ti or RTX 3050 class and up can run Bus Simulator 21 Next Stop at 1080p at sensible settings, since the desktop recommended card is only a GTX 1070 / RX Vega 56. Expect the usual laptop trade-offs — more heat and shorter battery life — and favour a machine with a dedicated GPU over integrated graphics. Handhelds such as the Steam Deck and ROG Ally can also handle it once you lower the resolution and settings; on the Steam Deck this is a Windows title running through a compatibility layer, so a little tuning is expected. Either way, the 18 GB install is easy to accommodate on a fast microSD card or SSD.
How to Boost FPS in Bus Simulator 21
If frame rates are lower than you would like, start with resolution: stepping down from 4K to 1440p, or 1440p to 1080p, is the single biggest gain, and if the game offers an upscaling or resolution-scale option, using it recovers most of the sharpness. Next, turn down the settings that cost the most for the least visible benefit — shadows, reflections and post-processing are the usual candidates in a title like this, and traffic density and draw distance are worth testing in a simulation where the scene is busy. Make sure your graphics drivers are current, close background applications, and keep the game on an SSD if you have one so loading and asset streaming stay smooth. A steady frame rate with a couple of settings turned down almost always feels better than maxed-out visuals that stutter.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can my PC run Bus Simulator 21?
The official minimum is an Intel Core i3-2120 or AMD Phenom II X4 830, 8 GB of RAM, an NVIDIA GeForce GTX 760 or AMD Radeon R9 280 with 2 GB of VRAM, DirectX 12, Windows 10 64-bit and 18 GB of free space. If you have that or better, you can run the game. The recommended profile steps up to a Core i5-4440 or AMD FC-8140 with a GTX 1070 or RX Vega 56 (8 GB).
Is Bus Simulator 21 demanding on PC?
No. It is a 2021 simulation game with a GTX 1070-class recommended GPU and only 8 GB of RAM in the official specs, so mid-range and older hardware handles it comfortably at 1080p and 1440p, and 4K is within reach of a modern upper mid-range card.
What GPU do I need for Bus Simulator 21 at 1440p 60fps?
Much less than you might expect. The official recommended card is a GTX 1070 / RX Vega 56, so a current mid-range option such as an RTX 5060 or RX 9060 XT is already plenty for 1440p in this game. A NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER-class graphics card gives you a very large margin and useful headroom for heavier titles too.
How much RAM does Bus Simulator 21 need?
The official requirement is 8 GB, at both minimum and recommended — that is what the game itself asks for. 16 GB is a comfortable modern baseline because Windows, a browser and other background apps share that memory, but 8 GB does meet the published spec, so a memory upgrade is optional rather than mandatory for this title.
Do I need an SSD for Bus Simulator 21?
Not strictly. The official requirements list 18 GB of available storage and do not specify a drive type, so a mechanical drive will work. An SSD such as the Samsung 990 Pro will shorten load times and keep streaming smooth, which is a nice quality-of-life gain, but it is not a requirement for this game.
