How to Increase FPS on PC: 🖥️ Complete Guide to Check, Monitor & Boost Your FPS in 2026 ⚡

Understanding how to increase FPS on PC starts with knowing what FPS actually does to your gaming experience. FPS, or frames per second, measures how many individual images your computer renders and displays on screen every second. The higher that number, the smoother, more responsive, and more fluid your game looks and feels.

At 30 FPS a game is playable but noticeably choppy. At 60 FPS gameplay is fluid and well-balanced. Above 120 FPS performance reaches a competitive level where the smoothness becomes a genuine advantage in fast-paced games. 

The good news is that you do not need to buy new hardware to make meaningful gains. Frame rate issues are often caused less by outdated components and more by unoptimized settings, background processes, and operating system configurations. A significant amount of FPS is lost to inefficient game settings, unnecessary background apps, and outdated software. 

This guide covers everything: how to see your FPS right now, how to monitor it properly, how to increase FPS on a low-end PC, and what the most impactful changes you can make in 2026 are.

How to See FPS on PC: Every Method Available

Before changing anything, you need a number to compare against. The fastest way to check FPS on any PC game is the Steam overlay, just toggle it on in Settings and a frame counter appears in-game. For deeper stats like 1% lows and frame times, MSI Afterburner paired with RTSS is the gold standard and works with every game on every GPU brand. 

Method 1: Steam FPS Counter (Fastest Setup, Zero Performance Cost)

Open Steam, go to Settings, then In-Game, and set the In-Game FPS Counter to any corner. The counter appears as a small green number in every Steam game. It uses zero extra resources and also works with non-Steam games you add to your library manually. 

Steps to enable it:

1. Open Steam and click Steam in the top-left corner, then select Settings
2. Click the In-Game tab
3. Find In-Game FPS Counter and click the dropdown
4. Select any corner position (top-left works best because most game HUDs avoid that area)
5. Optionally enable High Contrast Color to make the counter more visible in bright scenes
6. Launch any game and the counter appears immediately

Steam’s FPS counter is best for Steam games. It has literally zero performance impact, requires one-time setup, and works with every Steam game. 

Method 2: Xbox Game Bar (Works on Every Launcher, No Download Needed)

Every Windows 10 and Windows 11 PC has Xbox Game Bar pre-installed. It works with games from every launcher, including Epic Games, Battle.net, EA App, Xbox, standalone games, and everything else. 

How to use it:

1. Launch your game
2. Press Windows + G to open Xbox Game Bar
3. Click the Performance widget, which shows FPS, CPU usage, GPU usage, and RAM
4. Click the Pin icon to keep the widget visible while you play without keeping Game Bar open

Xbox Game Bar uses Windows desktop composition to draw its overlay, which costs 5 to 8 FPS in most games. For a quick check it is fine. For permanent monitoring, use Steam or MSI Afterburner instead. 

Method 3: MSI Afterburner + RivaTuner (Best for Full Monitoring)

MSI Afterburner with RTSS is the only free tool that tracks 1% low, 0.1% low, and frame time graphs. Five minutes of setup, works with any GPU brand. 

Setup steps:

1. Download MSI Afterburner from the official MSI website at msi.com. RivaTuner Statistics Server is included in the installer.
2. Install both (accept the RTSS prompt during setup)
3. Open MSI Afterburner and click the Settings gear icon
4. Go to the Monitoring tab
5. Click Framerate in the list and check Show in On-Screen Display
6. Also enable GPU Temperature, GPU Usage, and CPU Usage the same way if you want full diagnostics
7. Click Apply and OK
8. Launch any game and the overlay appears in the top-left corner

Why 1% low matters: A game with 120 FPS average but a 1% low of 25 FPS has severe stuttering despite the high average. Average FPS is the mean frame rate over time. The 1% low is the frame rate during the worst 1% of moments. 

Method 4: NVIDIA GeForce Experience Overlay

If you have an NVIDIA GPU and GeForce Experience installed:

1. Press Alt + Z to open the GeForce overlay
2. Click the gear icon for Settings
3. Select HUD Layout and choose Basic or Advanced
4. Press Alt + R during gameplay to toggle the overlay on and off

GeForce Experience gives you a built-in overlay that shows FPS, GPU temperature, GPU usage, and more. It is more powerful than the Steam counter and more convenient than Afterburner for NVIDIA users specifically.

Method 5: AMD Adrenalin Overlay

For AMD GPU users:

1. Press Ctrl + Shift + O during gameplay to toggle the AMD metrics overlay
2. Or open AMD Adrenalin Software, go to Performance, then Metrics, enable the stats you want, then go to the Overlay tab and enable Show Metrics Overlay

AMD’s overlay shows FPS, GPU temp, VRAM usage, and clock speeds. It works with both DirectX and Vulkan games. 

FPS Counter Comparison

Method	Setup Time	Performance Impact	Best For
Steam FPS Counter	15 seconds	Zero	Steam games, quick reference
Xbox Game Bar	10 seconds	5 to 8 FPS	Non-Steam games, instant checks
MSI Afterburner + RTSS	5 minutes	Under 1% CPU	Full diagnostics, 1% lows, frame time
NVIDIA GeForce Overlay	30 seconds	Minimal	NVIDIA users wanting GPU + FPS data
AMD Adrenalin Overlay	30 seconds	Minimal	AMD users wanting GPU + FPS data
In-Game Counter	Varies by game	Zero	Competitive games where external overlays conflict with anti-cheat

How to Monitor FPS Properly: What the Numbers Mean

Knowing how to see your FPS is only useful if you understand what to look for. Most players watch the average FPS number and ignore the information that actually explains why their game feels choppy or smooth.

Average FPS vs. 1% Low

Average FPS tells you the typical performance over a period. The 1% low tells you what happens during the worst moments of a session. Those worst moments are what you feel as stutters and freezes.

A game running 120 FPS average with a 1% low of 40 FPS will stutter visibly and frequently. A game running 80 FPS average with a 1% low of 72 FPS will feel completely smooth. The 1% low is the more important metric for experienced gaming smoothness.

Frame-time spikes cause stutter that an FPS average completely hides. Sixty even frames per second feels smooth. The same 60 FPS with a few 80ms frames feels broken. The frame-time graph shows it. The FPS counter does not. 

FPS Targets by Gaming Context

Understanding what FPS you actually need prevents chasing numbers that make no practical difference:

• 30 FPS: Minimum for most story-driven single-player games. Feels sluggish for shooters.
• 60 FPS: The standard for comfortable gaming across all genres. Most casual players are satisfied here.
• 120 FPS: Noticeably smoother input response. Ideal for most competitive play on 144Hz monitors.
• 144 FPS: Matches a 144Hz monitor exactly, delivering the full benefit of the panel.
• 240+ FPS: Competitive standard for FPS games at high ranks. Requires a 240Hz or 360Hz monitor to see the benefit.

How to Increase FPS on PC: All Fixes in Priority Order

Apply these changes from top to bottom. Test after each one so you know exactly how much each fix contributed.

Fix 1: Update Your GPU Driver

Your FPS can be greatly harmed by old drivers. Outdated drivers may cause instability, crashes, or prevent your GPU from performing at its full potential. For NVIDIA GPUs, download or update drivers using GeForce Experience. For AMD GPUs, use AMD Radeon Software to check for and install the latest drivers.

Driver updates frequently include game-specific optimizations that can add 10 to 20 FPS on recently released titles without any other change.

Fix 2: Set Windows Power Plan to High Performance

Windows defaults to Balanced, which throttles your CPU and GPU to save power. Switching to High Performance or Ultimate Performance can add 5 to 20 FPS in CPU-bound games like strategy titles and open-world RPGs. On laptops, battery-saving modes can cut GPU clock speeds by 30 to 40%. 

How to change it:

1. Press Windows + R, type powercfg.cpl, and press Enter
2. Select High Performance from the power plan options
3. If you need more options, go to Advanced Settings and set to Adjust for best performance

Fix 3: Enable Windows Game Mode

Windows Game Mode helps optimize your PC for gaming by preventing background processes from interrupting your gameplay. Press the Windows logo key and I to open Settings, then click Gaming, then Game Mode, and toggle it to On. 

Fix 4: Close Background Applications

Open Task Manager before you start a game. Check the apps using the most resources. Focus on apps you know and do not need during gaming. Do not close random Windows processes if you do not know what they do. 

The biggest FPS-stealing background applications are:

• Chrome and browser tabs (especially with video content)
• Discord with hardware acceleration enabled (disable this in Discord’s settings)
• OneDrive, Google Drive, or Dropbox actively syncing files
• Windows Update running in the background
• Antivirus real-time scanning (schedule scans for non-gaming hours)
• RGB control software for peripherals

Fix 5: Optimize In-Game Graphics Settings

Settings such as shadows, anti-aliasing, ambient occlusion, motion blur, and post-processing are often expensive in performance terms. Turning them down or disabling them can quickly increase FPS.

Priority order for settings to reduce in competitive games:

1. Shadow Quality: The single setting with the largest performance impact in most modern games. Set to Low or Very Low for 15 to 25% FPS gains.
2. Ambient Occlusion: Disable entirely. No competitive benefit and substantial GPU cost.
3. Anti-Aliasing: Set to FXAA or disable entirely. MSAA is extremely demanding.
4. Motion Blur: Disable. No gameplay benefit and it makes tracking enemies harder.
5. Depth of Field: Disable. Cosmetic-only effect with measurable GPU cost.
6. Ray Tracing: Disable unless you have an RTX 4070 or above and your target FPS is 60.

Fix 6: Enable Hardware-Accelerated GPU Scheduling (HAGS)

Available on Windows 11 and Windows 10 (2004+) with NVIDIA Turing or AMD RDNA GPUs. HAGS reduces CPU overhead in the rendering pipeline. Results vary by game, but most users see 2 to 8 FPS improvements with no downside. 

How to enable it:

1. Open Windows Settings
2. Go to System, then Display, then Graphics
3. Click Change default graphics settings
4. Toggle Hardware-accelerated GPU scheduling to On
5. Restart your PC

Fix 7: Use DLSS, FSR, or XeSS Upscaling

This is the highest-ROI in-game change available in 2026. NVIDIA DLSS 3.5+ on RTX 2000 series and above: Quality mode gives near-native visuals at 40 to 70% more FPS. Frame Generation on RTX 4000 series and above can double your framerate. AMD FSR 3.1 works on any GPU including Intel and older NVIDIA. Quality mode adds 30 to 50% FPS with minimal visual cost.

To enable in supported games:

1. Open the game’s Graphics or Display settings
2. Find DLSS, FSR, or XeSS option
3. Select Quality mode for the best balance of FPS and visual clarity
4. Performance mode if you need maximum frames and are willing to accept some visual softness

Fix 8: Lower Your Resolution

Dropping from 1440p to 1080p often doubles FPS. Stretched resolutions like 4:3 further boost FPS by reducing pixel load while enlarging enemy models visually. 

If your target FPS is not achievable at your current resolution, this is the most impactful single change available. Most competitive players run 1080p even with monitors capable of 1440p, because the FPS headroom is more valuable than the visual clarity upgrade.

Fix 9: Enable XMP or EXPO in BIOS for RAM Speed

RAM speeds matter. Enable XMP in BIOS for DDR4/5 at rated clocks.

Most DDR4 and DDR5 kits ship running at the base JEDEC speed regardless of the rated speed printed on the label. Enabling XMP (Intel) or EXPO (AMD) in BIOS unlocks the RAM’s full rated speed, which improves performance in CPU-bottlenecked games like strategy titles, MMOs, and simulation games.

How to check if XMP is enabled:

1. Open Task Manager (Ctrl + Shift + Esc)
2. Click Performance, then Memory
3. Look at the Speed reading. If it shows 2133 MHz on DDR4 labeled as 3200 MHz or higher, XMP is not enabled
4. Restart your PC and enter BIOS (usually Del or F2 during startup)
5. Find XMP or EXPO in the Memory or Overclocking section and enable it
6. Save and exit

How to Increase FPS on PC for Low-End Systems

Upgrading from 8GB to 16GB of RAM can significantly improve performance in open-world and modern AAA games by reducing stutters and improving texture loading. 

For players on genuinely low-end hardware, the priority order differs from mid-range systems:

1. Lower all graphics settings to their minimum and test whether the game is CPU-bound or GPU-bound at the lowest settings. If FPS improves significantly, the GPU was the bottleneck. If it stays the same, the CPU is the limiting factor.
2. Lower resolution to 720p if the game still drops below 30 FPS at minimum settings. This is the most drastic but most effective GPU relief available without hardware.
3. Install games on an SSD if available. NVMe SSDs eliminate the texture streaming stutters that HDDs cause in modern open-world games. The average FPS does not change, but the stutter pattern improves significantly.
4. Close every possible background application before launching. On systems with 8GB or less RAM, background apps directly compete with the game for memory and cause FPS drops.
5. Use FSR Performance mode in any supported game. FSR works on all GPUs including older NVIDIA, AMD, and Intel integrated graphics, and Performance mode can deliver 2x FPS compared to native rendering.
6. Disable full-screen visual effects in Windows: Right-click This PC, select Properties, click Advanced system settings, click Settings under Performance, and select Adjust for best performance. This removes Windows animations and visual effects that consume GPU resources.

Additional Tips to Increase FPS

Beyond the main fixes, these additional adjustments contribute measurable gains on most systems:

• Keep your PC physically clean: Clean dust from fans yearly to sustain clocks. When components overheat, they throttle their speeds to protect themselves, causing sudden FPS drops mid-session. 
• Disable Xbox DVR if you do not record: Xbox Game Bar’s recording feature runs background hooks that add latency even when you are not actively recording. Disable it in Windows Settings, Gaming, Xbox Game Bar.
• Disable Discord hardware acceleration: Discord uses GPU resources for its interface by default. In Discord Settings, go to Appearance, scroll down, and disable Hardware Acceleration. This returns GPU resources to the game.
• Install games on your fastest drive: Games installed on HDDs load textures slower than SSDs, causing visible pop-in and micro-stutters in open-world titles even when average FPS is acceptable.

Pro Tips: How to Increase FPS on PC More Effectively

• Test one change at a time and write down the result: Changing multiple settings simultaneously makes it impossible to know which change produced which FPS gain. Systematic testing takes longer but tells you exactly which settings matter most on your specific hardware.
• Track your 1% low FPS, not just your average: Average FPS can look fine while the game feels unplayable. If you are chasing smooth gameplay rather than a higher number, the 1% low is the metric that actually predicts how the game will feel during intense scenes.
• Enable DLSS or FSR before touching individual graphics settings: Upscaling technology frequently delivers more FPS than reducing every individual setting one by one, and it maintains a more visually coherent result than running everything at minimum with no upscaling.
• Check your actual bottleneck before changing settings: Use MSI Afterburner to check whether your CPU or GPU is running at 99% usage during a session. If the GPU is maxed and the CPU is at 40%, the GPU is the bottleneck and visual settings changes will help. If the CPU is maxed and the GPU is at 50%, visual settings changes will have limited effect and the priority is closing background CPU processes.

Common Mistakes When Trying to Increase FPS on PC

1. Changing many settings at once without testing between changes: This produces unknown results. Players often enable DLSS, close background apps, and lower resolution simultaneously, then cannot tell which change helped. Fix: Change one setting, record the result, then change the next.
2. Monitoring average FPS and ignoring frame time spikes: A session can average 90 FPS with frequent 200ms frame time spikes that feel like disconnections or freezes. Fix: Use MSI Afterburner’s frame time graph rather than watching the FPS counter alone.
3. Assuming more RAM automatically means more FPS: RAM helps when the system runs out of it. If a game uses 10GB and you have 16GB installed, adding more RAM delivers zero improvement. Fix: Check your RAM usage in Task Manager during gaming. If it sits below 80% of your total, RAM is not the bottleneck.
4. Running FPS-heavy background apps like OBS or a browser stream while gaming: Streaming your own gameplay using OBS uses significant CPU and GPU resources. Fix: If you stream, dedicate time to testing OBS settings to minimize its resource footprint, and close any non-streaming browser tabs before going live.

Reduce In-Game Lag Alongside FPS with ExitLag

FPS and connection quality are separate performance dimensions, but they both affect how your game feels. High FPS with high ping means your inputs reach the server late even though they render smoothly on your screen. Low FPS with a stable connection means smooth server response but choppy local rendering.

ExitLag is a connection optimizer used by over 30 million players across 4,000+ game titles. It analyzes multiple network routes in real time and selects the fastest, most stable path between your device and the game server, addressing the network side of gaming performance independently from your FPS improvements.

Features that complement your FPS optimization:

• Real-Time Optimization: Continuously selects the lowest-latency route to game servers, reducing the server-side delay that exists independently of your frame rate.
• Multipath Technology: Routes game data through multiple simultaneous network paths so connection instability never interrupts a session while you are gaming at high FPS.
• Traffic Shaper: Prioritizes game traffic over background applications so network activity from other apps cannot spike your ping during a session, a complement to closing background CPU and RAM hogs.
• PC Boost: Clears background RAM usage and reduces competing processes, directly supporting the same goal as closing background apps for FPS improvement.

Download ExitLag and try it free.

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