How to increase FPS in games on a Windows PC
Last updated 30 October 2026.
To increase FPS, first find out whether your graphics card or your processor is holding the frame rate back, then fix that part. This guide on how to increase FPS starts with the changes that add the most frames: in-game settings, upscaling and frame generation, then updates, background apps, heat and laptops.
The order, quickest first:
- Find what limits your FPS.
- Lower the in-game settings that cost the most FPS.
- Turn on DLSS, FSR or XeSS upscaling.
- Use frame generation if your graphics card and game support it.
- Update the game and your graphics driver.
- Close background apps and extra overlays.
- Keep your PC cool.
For the Windows settings, such as Game Mode and the power mode, follow our guide on how to optimize your PC for gaming.
Find what limits your FPS first
Measuring FPS first tells you which fixes will help. A game's frame rate is limited either by the graphics card (GPU bound) or by the processor (CPU bound), and each has different fixes.
Press Windows + G to open Game Bar and open the Performance widget, which shows CPU, GPU, RAM and FPS. On NVIDIA, turn on In-Game Overlay in the NVIDIA App under Settings > Features, then press Alt + R. On AMD, press Ctrl + Shift + O for the Adrenalin metrics overlay.
Turn off V-Sync and any frame rate limit, then play a familiar spot for a minute and watch GPU usage.
- GPU usage near its maximum means the graphics card is the limit. Lower settings and upscaling help most.
- GPU usage well below its maximum with low FPS means the processor is the limit. Close background apps, lower view distance and look at faster memory.
To confirm, drop the resolution one step. A big FPS gain means GPU bound; almost none means CPU bound.
Lower the in-game settings that cost the most FPS
Graphics settings are the most common cause of low FPS, so lowering a few of them is how to get more FPS for free when the graphics card is the limit. Set the game to fullscreen at your monitor's native resolution, then lower these one at a time and check FPS after each. Start with shadows, reflections and lighting.
| Setting | What to try | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Shadows | Medium or low | One of the heaviest settings, and lower levels are hard to spot in a fast game. |
| Reflections | Lower quality | Reflections can make the graphics card draw the scene a second time. |
| Volumetric lighting and fog | Low or off | Shafts of light and drifting fog have a large cost. |
| Ray tracing | Off, or its lowest level | A demanding way to draw shadows, light and reflections on the graphics card. |
| Ambient occlusion | Lower, or off | A fine detail where surfaces meet. Lower it before you lower textures. |
| Anti-aliasing | A lighter method, such as FXAA instead of MSAA | Lighter methods smooth edges with less work. |
| Render scale or resolution scale | Below 100% | Draws fewer pixels and stretches the image to fit. It looks softer. |
| View distance, crowds and physics | Lower these when the game is CPU bound | The processor works out objects, physics and characters, and view distance sets how far out it has to. |
Our game pages list the settings for Counter-Strike 2, Fortnite, Call of Duty: Warzone and Valorant once those guides are live.
Turn on upscaling: DLSS, FSR or XeSS
Upscaling is how to boost FPS in games that offer it without lowering every setting. It renders at a lower resolution and rebuilds a full-resolution image, so the graphics card does less work per frame. NVIDIA DLSS runs on GeForce RTX cards; AMD FSR and Intel XeSS run on a wide range of cards. Start with Quality mode and move to Balanced or Performance only if you need more frames, since lower modes look softer. Upscaling helps most when the game is GPU bound.
Use frame generation when the game already runs smoothly
Frame generation increases FPS by inserting generated frames between the ones your graphics card renders. NVIDIA DLSS Frame Generation needs a GeForce RTX 40 Series card or newer. AMD FSR Frame Generation and Intel XeSS Frame Generation work in supported games, and AMD Fluid Motion Frames adds it from the driver on supported Radeon cards.
The generated frames are made on the graphics card after each frame is drawn, so frame generation can add frames even when the processor is the limit. Generated frames smooth motion, while the game still responds at the rendered frame rate, so frame generation suits single-player games that already run smoothly.
Update the game and your graphics driver
Game patches and graphics driver updates can raise FPS in recent games, because they carry performance fixes. Leave updates on in the game's launcher, and update the graphics driver through the NVIDIA App, AMD Software: Adrenalin Edition or Intel Driver & Support Assistant. If one game runs worse than it used to, use the launcher's repair or verify option for that game.
Close background apps and extra overlays
Background apps take processor time and memory from the game, which matters most when it is CPU bound. Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc for Task Manager, check the CPU and Memory columns on the Processes tab, and close browsers, video calls and downloads before you play.
Keep one overlay for FPS and turn off the rest. To make sure Windows is not recording in the background, go to Settings > Gaming > Captures and check that Record what happened is off.
Keep your PC cool
A hot processor or graphics card slows itself down, so FPS that falls after a few minutes of play usually points to heat. Task Manager shows the graphics card's temperature under Performance > GPU. For the processor, use the Adrenalin metrics overlay if you have an AMD graphics card. Otherwise use your motherboard maker's app or a free tool such as HWiNFO. Clean dust from fans and filters and keep the case's air paths clear.
How to increase FPS on a laptop
To increase FPS on a laptop, plug it in first, because many laptops limit the processor and graphics card on battery. Then:
- Set the power mode to Best performance and make each game use the dedicated graphics card. The PC gaming guide shows both. Do them while plugged in.
- Pick the maker's performance mode in its app.
- If that app offers a dedicated-graphics mode, often called a MUX switch, turn it on and restart.
- Keep the vents clear. On a thin laptop, cooling matters more than overclocking, so if FPS falls after a few minutes, check temperatures first.
PC tweaks for gaming
The PC tweaks for gaming that help FPS are Windows settings: Game Mode, the Best performance power mode, the graphics card each game uses, hardware-accelerated GPU scheduling, startup apps and your monitor's refresh rate. Our PC gaming guide has the clicks for each, on Windows 11 and Windows 10.
One Windows 11 setting is not in that guide. Go to Settings > System > Display > Graphics and, under Default settings, turn on Optimizations for windowed games, then restart the game. It lowers latency for DirectX 10 and 11 games in windowed and borderless windowed mode.
Faster memory and overclocking add FPS after the free steps, especially in CPU-bound games. Turn on your RAM's XMP or EXPO profile first: follow the guide for XMP on Intel and most boards or for EXPO on AMD. For overclocking and how to test it, see Advanced in the same guide.
Tweaks to skip, and what to do instead
Some popular tweaks leave FPS where it was. Let Windows manage memory: RAM cleaner apps empty memory the game then loads again. Keep Windows Security running; it protects the PC. Leave game priority in Task Manager at its default, since Realtime can starve your mouse, keyboard and audio. Skip registry tweaks. They are hard to check, and the Windows settings above cover the ones worth changing.
Where Hypertune fits
Every step above is free. Hypertune is a Windows app for the slower work: CPU Overclocking, GPU Overclocking, Windows Debloating, Network Optimizations, Memory Optimizations, and Game Hub.
Hypertune is an Intel partner and an AMD partner, and supports NVIDIA graphics cards. On Intel processors, CPU Overclocking is built on Intel's Extreme Tuning Utility.
Game Hub changes in-game settings through each game's config files, and that is all it changes. Read how Hypertune keeps your PC safe.
Hypertune creates a Windows restore point. To undo a change, open the Restore tab, select the most recent restore point, and select Restore.
Users see up to 60% higher FPS.
See how Hypertune works. Is Hypertune right for you?
Questions
How do I improve FPS without upgrading hardware?
Every step on this page uses the parts you already own. If the graphics card is the limit, start with the in-game settings and upscaling. If the processor is the limit, start with background apps and view distance. If FPS is still short after every step, the part the bottleneck test pointed to is the one to upgrade.
How much FPS do I need?
Aim for a frame rate at or above your monitor's refresh rate: a 144 Hz monitor shows up to 144 frames a second, a 60 Hz monitor up to 60.
Check before publish (not part of the article)
- Title and meta: Bobby agrees to "Find the Bottleneck" (drops "Fixes and Tweaks"). URL /guides/how-to-increase-fps.
- Head and build: Part 3 only, one H1, noindex off at publish, Article schema with author and dates.
- Byline left out until Austin confirms author line and bio.
- NVIDIA App toggle name; bottleneck test with V-Sync off; frame-generation minimum FPS from a technician.
- Game page links held until live. Trust page and gaming guide URLs confirmed on publish day.
- Screenshots: Game Bar, Task Manager GPU temperature, Restore tab (no personal data).
- Travis: "Where Hypertune fits" heading; FPS target answer vs gaming guide.
- Settled 29 Oct: partner line, no automatic stress-test sentence, Intel CPU Overclocking line, 60% sentence without a tag, Game Hub sentence without "unsafe".