Starfield PC low FPS – how to fix stuttering, frame rate, and lag

If you’re looking to fix Starfield’s low FPS and stuttering performance issues, you’ve come to the right place.

Starfield is Bethesda’s latest title, and despite having spent nearly 8 years under development, it’s still going to be facing performance issues here and there. One that we noticed in our playthrough of the game was slight stuttering in certain places. Busy environments such as cities for example. Not only that, but there’s also a slight stutter when opening the menu. Low FPS and stuttering are quite pesky issues and while they might not be game breaking, they’re going to be irritating and immersion breaking. Let’s figure out what can be done so you can explore space smoothly. Well, that’s if you’re not hijacked by space pirates.

How to fix Starfield low FPS and stuttering

• Update graphics drivers
• Calibrate graphics settings
• Verify integrity of game files
• Check Starfield system requirements
• Use Starfield Performance Optimisation mods

The first thing you’re going to want to do is make sure you’re on the latest graphics drivers. If you need a guide on how to update either AMD or Nvidia graphics drivers, we’ve already covered that. Nvidia, for example, have released their Starfield Game Ready drivers, so you’re certainly going to want to make sure you’re on those – at the very least.

You’re also going to need to calibrate yourself onto the best graphics settings. We’ve already gone over how to optimise your game for FPS and performance, so be sure to get your head stuck into that.

After that, you’re going to want to make sure you have verified the integrity of your game files. You can do this fairly easily by right clicking the game in either Steam or Xbox Games Launcher, and from there you can locate local file properties.

Finally, you’re going to want to make sure you eclipse the minimum PC specs for the game. If you don’t, it’s very well likely that your rig simply can’t handle Starfield.

Turn off Full Screen Optimizations

This is a slightly more technical fix than others, and will require you to directly modify Starfield’s game files.

You’re going to need to locate your installation directory, which you can find by right-clicking on the Starfield launcher, and clicking Open File Location.

• Open Starfield directory
• Right click on Starfield.exe
• Click Properties
• Click Compatibility
• Enable Disable fullscreen optimisations check-box

After you complete this, you’re going to be able to restart your PC with no issue. If you’re experiencing any other issues, including the Starfield crashing bug, check out our guides on what you can do there.

Starfield Performance Optimisation via Nexus Mods

We found that giving some performance optimisation mods a try greatly improved frame rate in-game. It was also insanely easy to install – as easy as dragging and dropping a file into your Starfield directory.

You can get the mod via Nexus Mods, and installation is fairly easy.

Once you have the files in the right place – you’re going to want to set your graphics preset to Ultra, which might sound slightly odd. However, the mod overwrites the preset and instead gives it an overhaul as a Performance Optimisation mode.

Why is Starfield lagging?

Starfield is a huge game with over 1000 planets to explore. With size, comes issues. When you’re exploring new areas, it’s pretty normal to bump into areas where lag and stuttering interrupt the immersive experience. In my playthrough of the game, I found that it was pretty normal to see consistent and playable frame rates through confined areas, though open areas with dense populations saw lag spikes.

There’s not really much to fight against here – you’re going to be able to reduce the crowd render density in the graphics settings, though for now there isn’t a whole lot to work with. One thing we do recommend is checking out the latest Starfield mods through which you’re going to be able to pick up the DLSS mod.