Triangles vs Polygons vs Vertices
What the numbers in a polycount mean
Also known as: Triangle count · Polygon count vs triangle count · Vertex count · Tris vs quads · Why vertex count is higher
Definition
Polygons, triangles and vertices are three different ways to count a mesh. Artists often count polygons, usually quads, while the GPU draws only triangles, and each quad becomes two. Engines report triangle counts, and the real cost also depends on vertices. A vertex is duplicated wherever there is a UV seam, a hard edge or a material split, so a mesh usually has more vertices in the engine than in the modeling tool.
In production
Quote budgets in triangles, since that is what the engine counts, and check the count in the engine after import. Reduce vertices by keeping UV seams and hard edges to what is needed, and by joining materials where it makes sense. Triangle count matters less than draw calls, overdraw and texture memory on many projects, and modern tools such as Nanite change the traditional budgets for static meshes.
