Most gaming PCs are running well below their actual potential straight out of the box. Windows ships with generic settings optimized for broad compatibility, not maximum gaming performance. Driver defaults are conservative. Power plans are set for efficiency. The result is a machine that is technically capable of more but artificially held back by software settings you never changed.
This guide covers every meaningful optimization for getting maximum FPS from your gaming PC in 2026 — Windows settings, GPU driver options, in-game configurations, and the BIOS tweaks that are actually worth making.
Enable XMP or EXPO in BIOS
This is the most overlooked optimization on new builds. By default, your RAM runs at its base JEDEC speed — typically DDR5-4800MHz — regardless of what speed it is rated for. A DDR5-6000 kit running at 4800MHz is losing meaningful performance, particularly on AMD platforms where the CPU-to-memory controller speed directly affects gaming.
Fix it: enter BIOS at startup (usually Delete or F2 key), find XMP (Intel) or EXPO (AMD), and enable it. Select your kit’s rated profile. Save and restart. This single change can improve gaming fps by 5 to 15 percent on AMD Ryzen systems and 3 to 8 percent on Intel, at zero cost.
Set your power plan to High Performance
Windows defaults to Balanced power mode, which aggressively throttles CPU clock speeds when load drops — including the brief drops between frames in games. This creates micro-stutters and inconsistent frame pacing that is especially noticeable in competitive titles.
Open Control Panel > Power Options and switch to High Performance or Ultimate Performance (the latter can be enabled via PowerShell: powercfg -duplicatescheme e9a42b02-d5df-448d-aa00-03f14749eb61). On a laptop, this will drain battery faster — only use it when plugged in.
Update and configure GPU drivers properly
Always download GPU drivers directly from NVIDIA or AMD, not from Windows Update or third-party sites. Windows Update often lags several versions behind and can install the DCH driver without the full control panel suite.
After installing drivers, open NVIDIA Control Panel or Radeon Software and configure these settings for maximum performance:
- NVIDIA: Power Management Mode = Prefer Maximum Performance, Low Latency Mode = Ultra (if not using Reflex), Texture Filtering Quality = Performance
- AMD: Graphics profile = Gaming, Radeon Anti-Lag 2 = On, Texture Filtering Quality = Performance
- Both: Turn off V-Sync in driver settings (control it in-game instead)
Enable Resizable BAR (ReBAR)
Resizable BAR allows the CPU to access the full GPU VRAM in one transfer rather than in small 256MB chunks, reducing latency and improving performance in certain titles. On NVIDIA it is called NV Link/ReBAR, on AMD it is Smart Access Memory (SAM).
Check your BIOS for Above 4G Decoding and Resizable BAR options and enable both. Most modern motherboards on AM5 and Intel 700/800 series platforms support it. The performance gain varies from 2 to 15 percent depending on the game and hardware combination — it is free performance worth enabling.
Clean up Windows startup and background processes
Background applications consume RAM and CPU cycles that could be going to your game. Open Task Manager (Ctrl+Shift+Esc), go to Startup Apps, and disable everything non-essential — browser updates, cloud sync services, manufacturer software, Discord at startup (launch it manually instead).
Also disable the Xbox Game Bar if you do not use it: Settings > Gaming > Xbox Game Bar > Off. It runs a background process and occasionally interferes with exclusive fullscreen modes.
In-game settings that matter most for FPS
Not all graphics settings have equal impact on performance. These are the highest-cost settings that hurt FPS the most — reduce these first before touching others:
- Ray tracing — the single most expensive setting in any game that supports it. Disabling it can recover 30 to 50 percent fps in ray-traced titles, especially at 1440p
- Shadow quality — high shadow settings are GPU-intensive with limited visual benefit at competitive settings. Drop to Medium
- Ambient occlusion — SSAO and HBAO+ are expensive. GTAO or HDAO on medium is a good compromise
- Render distance / draw distance — in open world games, this is often the biggest FPS drain. Reduce to High instead of Ultra
- Anti-aliasing — use DLSS (NVIDIA) or FSR (AMD) instead of MSAA or SSAA. These AI-based methods deliver better image quality at lower cost
Use DLSS 4 or FSR 4 for free performance
DLSS 4 (NVIDIA RTX 30 series and above) and FSR 4 (AMD RX 9000 series) are the most impactful performance tools available in 2026. These upscaling technologies render the game at a lower internal resolution and reconstruct a higher-quality image using AI or spatial algorithms.
DLSS 4 in Quality mode at 1440p renders at approximately 960p internally and upscales to 1440p with near-native image quality. The performance gain is typically 40 to 70 percent fps versus native. Multi-Frame Generation in DLSS 4 can multiply frame output even further on RTX 50 series. In 2026, if your GPU supports DLSS or FSR and the game supports it, there is almost no reason not to use it.
Storage and SSD optimization
Make sure your OS and games are on an NVMe SSD, not a SATA SSD or HDD. Enable DirectStorage in Windows 11 for games that support it. Verify your NVMe drive is running on PCIe 4.0 or 5.0 (not 3.0) by checking Device Manager > Disk Drives > Properties.
Keep at least 15 to 20 percent of your SSD free. Drives near capacity show performance degradation. If your main drive is above 80 percent full, consider an additional SSD for game storage rather than deleting files reactively.
If you have not already built your system around these fundamentals, our guide to building a gaming PC in 2026 covers component selection from scratch with performance optimization in mind from the start.
FAQ
How can I get more FPS on my gaming PC?
The most impactful changes are: enabling XMP/EXPO in BIOS for proper RAM speeds, setting power plan to High Performance, enabling ReBAR, using DLSS or FSR in-game, and reducing the highest-cost graphics settings (ray tracing, shadow quality). Combined, these can improve fps by 30 to 60 percent on an unoptimized system.
Does cleaning a PC improve gaming performance?
Yes, indirectly. Dust accumulation on CPU and GPU heatsinks reduces cooling efficiency, causing thermal throttling that reduces clock speeds. Cleaning your PC cooling components every 6 to 12 months can recover 5 to 15 percent performance on a system that has been throttling due to heat.
Is DLSS better than native resolution?
DLSS 4 Quality mode at 1440p is visually very close to native 1440p rendering and significantly better than older upscaling methods. For most games and players, the image quality trade-off versus native is minimal, while the performance gain is 40 to 70 percent. DLSS 4’s multi-frame generation on RTX 50 series raises fps even further.