I recently got back into Fortnite after a long time away from the game and thought I would go through all of the PC settings and share my findings on how to get the best Fortnite settings for PC after a fresh install of the client on a new PC or after a big update to the game in a new season. The same Fortnite build runs in Performance mode on very low-end PCs from around 2013 and with all path-traced graphics options enabled on high-end PCs with GeForce RTX graphics cards. Many of the Video Settings in Fortnite's PC settings offer very limited options. Below are three examples of Fortnite video settings for three different classes of hardware, plus some competitive settings from Epic Games, along with audio and a few sensitivity settings.

TL;DR

• To maximize FPS, you should go with Epic's Rendering Mode Performance: Lower Graphical Fidelity, fullscreen, VSync off, uncapped frame rate, View Distance Near, 3D Resolution 100%, Textures and Meshes Low, NVIDIA Reflex On + Boost.
• If the PC already struggles, first of all, disable Hardware Ray Tracing, Lumen (Global Illumination and Reflections at High or Epic), and Nanite. Epic states ray tracing significantly reduces frame rate.
• Mid-range 1440p starting point more or less: DirectX 12, Nanite off, Global Illumination on Ambient Occlusion, Reflections on Screen Space, Shadows Medium, View Distance Far, Textures High, TSR or DLSS on Quality, Reflex on.
• For audio, we keep 3D Headphones on, Visualize Sound Effects on, music low, sound effects high.
• On a new PC, you must configure video settings again completely. Locker, V-Bucks and progress remain on the Epic account.

When you install the game on a new or updated machine, it starts on Auto-Set Quality, which automatically sets the game’s video settings to play on your GPU, somewhere between Low and Epic quality. Fortnite video settings tend to get kinda messed up between chapter updates, so I included three tiers of PCs to set up below, using the 3 columns of GTX 960 class, RTX 3060 class @ 1440p, and RTX 3070 class and up.

Your Locker, V-Bucks, and progress are tied to your Epic account, and cross-progression carries them from PlayStation, Xbox or Switch to PC. The only thing a new PC resets for Fortnite players is the video settings, which are stored on the machine. Some PC players without Fortnite account history can start from an existing profile, one such route, before they touch a single slider.

Checked on Chapter 7 Season 4, September 2026; option names as shown in the PC Video settings.

Best Fortnite graphics settings

To select the best possible graphics settings, go to Settings from the game lobby. To do this, press the Esc button while in the lobby and click the gear icon in the upper-right corner. You will find the Rendering mode options in the Video tab, under the Display section. All the other graphics options are listed under the Graphics Quality section.

Note that in the game, options may have different names than in this article, as Epic renames them from time to time.

On DirectX 12 there are three important terms:

• Nanite: the detailed-geometry option (DirectX 12 only).
• Lumen: the realistic lighting and reflections option (needs Nanite on).
• Hardware Ray Tracing: the most expensive lighting option (needs Nanite plus Lumen, a restart, and a GeForce RTX 2060 or better).

The 3 options for detailed graphics are simply disabled in Performance mode. Consequently, GPU load changes a lot between the modes and this change is rather visible to the human eye as well.

Epic's Unreal Engine 5 notes (4 December 2022) cover the PC video changes in Fortnite: Nanite is DirectX 12 only and renames Shadows to Virtual Shadows. Meanwhile, Global Illumination and Reflections gain the Lumen High and Lumen Epic only when Nanite is on. Hardware Ray Tracing needs Nanite, a Lumen level, and a restart after the change.

And finally there is upscaling (TSR / DLSS). For now, we recommend sticking with the in-game Quality settings. If you have latency issues, our scaling-modes test will help you improve your game experience.

Preset 1: low-end PC (GTX 960 / GTX 1050 class, integrated graphics)

Turn off VSync when playing on low-end PCs in order to lower input lag and concentrate on the frame rate. Motion Blur stays off: the blur hides enemy movement and gives nothing back on a low-end PC. Reflex On + Boost is only supported by GeForce Graphics Cards.

• Window Mode: Fullscreen
• Resolution: your monitor's native (1920x1080 if it stutters)
• VSync: Off
• Frame Rate Limit: Unlimited
• Rendering Mode: Performance - Lower Graphical Fidelity
• View Distance: Near
• 3D Resolution: 100% (drop in 10% steps if needed)
• Textures: Low
• Meshes: Low
• Effects: Low
• Post Processing: Low
• Motion Blur: Off
• Show FPS: On
• NVIDIA Reflex Low Latency: On + Boost (GeForce only)

Nanite, Lumen, and ray tracing are disabled in this mode. If the frame rate is still unstable, lower 3D Resolution in 10% steps and re-check on the same private island.

Preset 2: mid-range PC at 1440p (RTX 3060 / RX 6600 class)

At 1440p, a mid-range card cannot carry Nanite and Lumen together, that’s why this preset relies on Ambient Occlusion and Screen Space Reflections instead. Screen tearing can still occur, so cap the frame rate at your monitor’s refresh rate.

• Window Mode: Fullscreen
• Resolution: 2560x1440
• VSync: Off
• Frame Rate Limit: your monitor's refresh rate
• Rendering Mode: DirectX 12
• Anti-Aliasing & Super Resolution: TSR High, or DLSS Quality on GeForce RTX
• 3D Resolution: 100%
• Nanite Virtualized Geometry: Off
• Shadows: Medium
• Global Illumination: Ambient Occlusion
• Reflections: Screen Space
• View Distance: Far
• Textures: High
• Effects: Medium
• Post Processing: Low
• Motion Blur: Off
• Hardware Ray Tracing: Off
• Show FPS: On
• NVIDIA Reflex Low Latency: On

This keeps the cheaper image-quality options and drops the three heavy ones. Hardware Ray Tracing stays off here.

Preset 3: high-end PC (RTX 3070 / RX 6700 XT and better)

This config is aimed at high-quality images and screenshot capture rather than for ranked play. Epic itself says ray tracing significantly reduces frame rate, and DLSS recovers part of it. Both GI and Reflections are set to Lumen Epic for consistent results.

• Window Mode: Fullscreen
• Resolution: native
• VSync: Off
• Frame Rate Limit: refresh rate
• Rendering Mode: DirectX 12
• Nanite Virtualized Geometry: On
• Shadows (shown as Virtual Shadows with Nanite on): High or Epic
• Global Illumination: Lumen Epic
• Reflections: Lumen Epic
• Hardware Ray Tracing: On (restart the game)
• Anti-Aliasing & Super Resolution: DLSS Quality on GeForce, TSR Quality otherwise
• 3D Resolution: 100%
• View Distance: Epic
• Textures: Epic
• Effects: High
• Post Processing: High
• Motion Blur: Off
• NVIDIA Reflex Low Latency: On

Epic's ray tracing page states that Hardware Ray Tracing on PC requires a GeForce RTX 2060 or better with DirectX 12, is unavailable in Performance mode, significantly reduces frame rate, and that DLSS alongside ray tracing can compensate for much of the loss. If Hardware Ray Tracing is not turning on in your build, use Lumen only. Make sure this toggle is on before using this preset at maximum quality.

Best Fortnite settings for FPS

Below we list Epic's recommended competitive settings from Epic's competitive settings guide from April 2026. Even though it’s not mandatory, some players use 1920x1080 on higher-resolution monitors.

• Window Mode: Fullscreen
• Resolution: native (many competitive players use 1920x1080)
• VSync: Off
• Rendering Mode: Performance - Lower Graphical Fidelity
• Frame Rate Limit: Unlimited (cap at refresh rate if you see tearing)
• View Distance: Near
• 3D Resolution: 100% (drop in 10% steps if needed)
• Textures: Low
• Meshes: Low
• Show FPS: On
• NVIDIA Reflex Low Latency: On + Boost

This configuration works for two reasons: Performance mode is DirectX 12 with most rendering features switched off completely, so the CPU and GPU have far less to do per frame. View Distance Near keeps players visible while distant geometry is cut.

How to increase FPS in Fortnite outside the settings menu

First, close out any other programs that could be using up your CPU or GPU power. Then update your graphics drivers. Finally, run Fortnite and your operating system from an SSD to cut down on load times and remove stuttering. You should also play the game on a monitor with a high refresh rate, such as 120Hz, 144Hz, etc. That way, you can actually see how many frames you’re rendering. By default, the game shows frame rate when Show FPS is enabled in Settings.

Best Fortnite audio settings

Footsteps are primarily a sound effect and you should crank that slider up. Keep music very low; if you’re rotating quickly, you won't hear yourself move if it's too loud. For 3D audio, ensure 3D Headphones is set to On (binaural audio), preferably using the built-in option rather than third-party software.

For Sound Visualization, ensure Visualize Sound Effects is set to On (this creates a ring on screen that indicates the sound’s origin). Ensure Music Volume is set to low or off, Sound Effects Volume is set to high, and Dialogue and Cinematics is set to low. Although you can use good headphones and still get benefit from this option, the ring created by Visualize Sound Effects is very useful for locating loud sounds.

Mouse sensitivity

For mouse sensitivity, competitive Fortnite players follow the Epic Games guide and adjust X and Y sensitivity in the 5-10% region. This is largely dependent on the DPI of your mouse and it is recommended to adjust one value at a time while keeping DPI constant and re-testing on the aim map.

Fortnite system requirements

PCGamesN lists these PC requirements (updated August 25, 2026):

Storage values vary by source and installed modes, so check the launcher. The “Minimum” tier corresponds more or less to Preset 1, while Recommended corresponds to Preset 2 with TSR. Epic quality is where Preset 3 becomes realistic.

How to Check Whether a Fortnite Settings Change Helped

You can't attribute changes in your Fortnite settings performance to a single slider. Turn Show FPS on and load the same private island twice. Change one setting at a time and read the counter in the same map location. Keep in mind that you can’t change Nanite and Global Illumination mid-match, and Hardware Ray Tracing requires a restart, so test these from the lobby. For an older-engine baseline, see our earlier Fortnite benchmark.

FAQs about the Best Fortnite Settings for PC

What are the best Fortnite settings?

For FPS, use the Performance rendering mode, fullscreen, VSync off, uncapped, View Distance Near, 3D Resolution 100%, Textures and Meshes Low, Reflex On + Boost. For mid-range 1440p, Preset 2 is more suitable than the full competitive strip.

Is DX12 better than performance mode?

Performance mode is DirectX 12 with most rendering features switched off, so it provides more FPS. Plain DirectX 12 is required for Nanite, Lumen and ray tracing. Which is "better" cannot be said in absolute terms: it depends on frame rate versus image quality.

How to optimize your PC for Fortnite?

Close heavy apps, update the GPU driver, install the game on an SSD, use a fast monitor. Use Preset 1 or 2 for your in-game settings and raise options only if FPS remains more or less acceptable.

What settings make Fortnite less laggy?

For frame lag, use fullscreen, VSync off, Reflex On + Boost and Performance mode. Network lag isn't controlled by video settings and is a separate problem.

How do I get to settings in Fortnite on PC?

Press Esc in the lobby, click the gear icon, open the Video tab. Display contains rendering mode. Graphics Quality contains the remaining options.

Do I need an RTX card for good graphics in Fortnite?

No. Nanite and Lumen work on any DirectX 12 card that is fast enough. Only Hardware Ray Tracing needs a GeForce RTX 2060 or better per Epic. On many non-RTX systems Preset 2 still looks acceptable to the naked eye.

Do my settings move with my Epic account to a new PC?

Locker, V-Bucks and progress do, through Epic account cross-progression. Video settings stay on the PC and must be set up again.