PC optimization for gaming

PC optimization for gaming starts with your graphics driver, Windows Game Mode, the best performance power mode, and stopping apps you don't need. Then set each game's graphics for your hardware. These eight steps take about 30 minutes and cost nothing. This is how to optimize your PC for gaming without buying new parts.

  1. Update your graphics driver
  2. Turn on Windows Game Mode
  3. Set the power mode to Best performance
  4. Make games use your graphics card
  5. Turn on hardware-accelerated GPU scheduling
  6. Stop startup and background apps
  7. Check your monitor's refresh rate
  8. Set each game's graphics settings

Faster memory and overclocking are optional and covered under "Advanced".

At a glance

Before you start

You need a Windows 10 or 11 PC and an administrator account. Most steps are in Settings and take a minute each. Close your games first, and restart once at the end.

Create a restore point first so you can undo everything in one go. Search the Start menu for Create a restore point and open it. On the System Protection tab, select Create, name it "Before gaming tweaks" and select Create again. If Create is grayed out, system protection is off: select Configure, choose Turn on system protection, then Apply. To go back later, use System Restore.

Screenshot: System Properties, System Protection tab, with the Create button highlighted.

1. Update your graphics driver

New drivers fix performance problems in recent games, so this is the change most likely to help.

How to tell it worked: the driver version in the app matches the latest on the maker's site.

Screenshot: NVIDIA App Drivers page showing the installed and latest Game Ready driver versions.

2. Turn on Windows Game Mode

Go to Settings > Gaming > Game Mode and make sure it is on. It is on by default, so this step is usually a check.

Screenshot: Settings > Gaming > Game Mode with the switch on.

3. Set the power mode to Best performance

On Windows 11, go to Settings > System > Power & battery, and under Power mode choose Best performance (for Plugged in, if your PC shows both options). On Windows 10, select the battery icon on the taskbar and drag the slider to Best performance; this slider isn't available on every Windows 10 PC. If you can't change the power mode, a custom power plan may be selected: open Control Panel > System and Security > Power Options and select Balanced, then try again. On a laptop, plug in first: many laptops limit performance on battery.

This uses more power and can make fans louder. Switch back when you are not gaming if that matters to you.

Screenshot: Settings > System > Power & battery with Power mode set to Best performance.

4. Make games use your graphics card

If your PC has both a built-in and a separate graphics card, Windows can pick the weaker one. Go to Settings > System > Display > Graphics. Under Custom options for apps, select your game (or add its .exe file), select Options, choose High performance under Graphics preference, then select Save and restart the game. On Windows 10 the page is called Graphics settings.

Screenshot: the Graphics preference dialog for a game, with High performance selected.

5. Turn on hardware-accelerated GPU scheduling

Go to Settings > System > Display > Graphics, then select Change default graphics settings (on some Windows 11 versions this link is called Advanced graphics settings). On Windows 10, go to Settings > System > Display > Graphics settings. Turn on Hardware-accelerated GPU scheduling, then restart. If you can't find the switch, your graphics card or driver doesn't support it. If a game stutters afterwards, turn it off again.

Screenshot: the Hardware-accelerated GPU scheduling switch turned on in Graphics settings.

6. Stop startup and background apps

Apps that start with Windows keep using memory and processor time while you play.

Keep your antivirus and your graphics driver app running.

Screenshot: Task Manager, Startup apps, with the startup impact column visible and one app set to Disabled.

7. Check your monitor's refresh rate

A high-refresh-rate monitor isn't always set to its highest rate. On Windows 11, go to Settings > System > Display > Advanced display and pick the highest value next to Choose a refresh rate. On Windows 10, go to Settings > System > Display > Advanced display settings and pick it under Refresh rate. If you turned on Dynamic refresh rate on the same page and a game seems capped, turn it off: it can limit the refresh rate of games not designed for variable refresh rate. Plug the monitor into the graphics card, not the motherboard, and use DisplayPort or the cable that came with it.

Screenshot: Advanced display page with the Choose a refresh rate dropdown open.

8. Set each game's graphics settings

In each game, set the display mode to fullscreen, the resolution to your monitor's native one, and lower the settings that cost the most frames first: shadows, volumetric effects and anti-aliasing. Turn on NVIDIA DLSS, AMD FSR or Intel XeSS if the game offers them. Our game pages list the best settings for each game. CS2 and Fortnite are not live yet, so this line stays unlinked until they are.

Screenshot needed: a game graphics menu with fullscreen, the monitor's native resolution, and DLSS, FSR or XeSS on screen.

Advanced (optional)

Faster memory (XMP or EXPO). Most RAM runs slower than its rated speed until you turn on its profile in the BIOS. Follow our guides for Intel and most boards (XMP) or AMD (EXPO). The page that will list every BIOS setting is not live yet. If the PC fails to start afterwards, clear the CMOS as the board's manual describes.

Overclocking. Raising your processor or graphics card above its stock speed can add frames but adds heat and, if pushed too far, crashes. Change one thing at a time and test in a demanding game.

Let Hypertune do it

Turning on XMP or EXPO stays a manual step in the BIOS. Hypertune does not write those profiles. It can apply CPU Overclocking and GPU Overclocking.

Hypertune exists to make PC optimization accessible to everyone. Hypertune reads your CPU, GPU, memory and storage once, then applies only the features you turn on: CPU Overclocking, GPU Overclocking, Windows Debloating, Network Optimizations, Memory Optimizations and Game Hub. CPU Overclocking works on Intel and AMD processors. Austin to confirm: which of steps 2 to 7 Windows Debloating covers It stress-tests an overclock on your hardware and skips it if your cooling cannot hold it. It creates a Windows restore point. To undo a change, open the Restore tab, select the most recent restore point, and select Restore.

Hypertune works at the system and hardware level. It does not modify game code or inject files into game folders. The safety page is not live yet.

Up to 60% higher FPS; results vary by hardware and game. Austin to confirm See how it works or see pricing.

Questions

How do I increase FPS on my PC?

Work through the free steps above in order: update the graphics driver, check Game Mode and the power mode, make sure games use your graphics card, and lower the heaviest in-game settings. If your PC was already set up well, these make little difference, and the bigger gains come from faster memory settings and overclocking.

What does Game Mode do, and should it be on?

While you play, it stops Windows Update from installing drivers and sending restart notifications, and it can help keep your frame rate steadier. It is on by default. Leave it on for most games; if one game stutters with it on, test that game with it off.

What is hardware-accelerated GPU scheduling, and should I turn it on?

It hands most of the job of scheduling graphics work to a dedicated processor on your graphics card instead of Windows on your CPU. It is off by default and only appears if your card and driver support it. Try it: keep it if games run the same or smoother, and turn it off if one stutters.

What is XMP, and should I turn it on?

XMP (Intel) and EXPO (AMD) are profiles stored on your RAM that run it at the speed it is rated for instead of a slower default. They are usually safe to turn on, because the memory maker rated and tested the kit at those speeds. Rarely, a board and kit don't run stably at them; if so, the PC resets to safe settings or you turn the profile off again.

Does more RAM increase FPS?

Only if your games are running out of memory. Open Task Manager while a game is running and check Performance > Memory: if it is close to full, more RAM helps; if not, turning on XMP or EXPO is the free thing to try first.

Does DLSS increase FPS?

Yes, in games that support it. DLSS, and AMD FSR and Intel XeSS, render the game at a lower resolution and upscale the image, so your graphics card does less work for each frame. The image can look slightly softer, and quality modes keep more detail than performance modes.