Cyberpunk 2077 can still be demanding on entry-level gaming PCs, especially after the major 2.0 update and Phantom Liberty. However, you do not always need an expensive graphics card to get a smoother experience. With the right settings, you can reduce unnecessary GPU load, improve frame rates and make Night City feel considerably more responsive.
If your priority is reaching 90+ FPS rather than maximising visual quality, the key is finding the right balance between image quality and performance. This guide covers Cyberpunk 2077 best PC settings, practical Cyberpunk 2077 FPS boost techniques and Cyberpunk graphics optimisation tips for budget hardware.
Cyberpunk 2077 Best PC Settings for 90+ FPS
For an entry-level PC, start with a performance-focused preset and adjust individual options rather than simply selecting the lowest possible quality.
| Setting | Recommended Option |
| Resolution | 1080p |
| Texture Quality | Medium |
| Field of View | 80–90 |
| Film Grain | Off |
| Chromatic Aberration | Off |
| Depth of Field | Off |
| Lens Flare | Off |
| Motion Blur | Off |
| Contact Shadows | Off |
| Improved Facial Lighting Geometry | On |
| Anisotropy | 8x |
| Local Shadow Quality | Low |
| Cascaded Shadows Range | Low |
| Cascaded Shadows Resolution | Low |
| Distant Shadows Resolution | Low |
| Volumetric Fog Resolution | Low |
| Volumetric Cloud Quality | Low |
| Max Dynamic Decals | Medium |
| Screen Space Reflections | Low |
| Subsurface Scattering Quality | Medium |
| Ambient Occlusion | Low |
| Mirror Quality | Low |
| Level of Detail | Medium |
| Crowd Density | Low |
These settings are a starting point rather than a guarantee of 90 FPS. Actual performance depends heavily on your GPU, CPU, RAM, resolution and whether you are using upscaling.
Use 1080p for Higher FPS
If your PC is an average entry-level gaming one, playing the game at 1080p screen resolution makes the most sense.
When playing Cyberpunk 2077 on a 1440p or 4K monitor, your GPU has to process much more information than at lower resolutions. If your only goal is to have a high frame rate, lowering the resolution is one of the best methods besides going for a lower-end graphics card.
If your native 1080p screen doesn’t let you hit the game speed you really like, try a resolution upscaling technology from your GPU supplier
Don’t Use Ray Tracing
When you optimize your game for performance, the very first thing to disable is ray tracing.
The real-time lighting calculations and reflection effects of Cyberpunk 2077 in ray-tracing mode can severely affect FPS. Although the lighting effect with ray-tracing can look extremely stunning, it is far from your priority if you only care about getting 90+ FPS on low-end hardware.
You need to open the Graphics menu to switch off ray tracing.
In a match-based mode, higher frame rate and less CPU and GPU strain usually mean more advantage rather than having some nice new visuals.
Use DLSS, FSR or XeSS If Possible
In the modern gaming world, it’s very common that upscaling a low resolution to higher one can give a better-looking image. So a low-end PC can benefit a lot from it too.
According to the graphic card you are using, Cyberpunk 2077 may support several resolution upscaling techniques such as NVIDIA DLSS, AMD FSR, and Intel XeSS. These features basically tell the game to run internally at a lower resolution and then, at your chosen output resolution, a higher-quality picture will be produced through this “reconstruction”.
When your frame goal is higher than 90 fps, you can set the quality or balance mode first. When the graphics performance doesn’t reach the level needed, gradually turn to performance-optimizing settings.
We recommend getting used with the performance modes gradually, because while they give you the most frames, the final image usually suffers with the detail softness.
Best Settings for Cyberpunk 2077 FPS Boost
If you need a quick Cyberpunk 2077 FPS boost, focus on settings that have a meaningful effect on performance.
Lower Volumetric Fog
Volumetric fog can be expensive, particularly in areas with complex lighting. Setting it to Low can improve performance without completely changing the appearance of the game.
Reduce Shadow Quality
Shadows can consume a significant amount of GPU resources. Lowering shadow resolution and range is often a better compromise than reducing texture quality.
Lower Screen Space Reflections
Screen space reflections can look attractive on wet streets and reflective surfaces, but they can also affect performance. Low is a sensible setting for budget systems.
Reduce Crowd Density
Crowd density is particularly important if your system has a weaker CPU.
Night City contains busy streets filled with NPCs, vehicles and other objects. Reducing crowd density can ease CPU load and help improve performance in crowded areas.
This setting can be especially useful if your average FPS appears acceptable but your frame rate drops sharply while driving through dense parts of the city.
Cyberpunk Graphics Optimisation: What to Keep Higher
Not every setting needs to be pushed to Low.
Texture quality is a good example. If your graphics card has enough VRAM, keeping textures at Medium can provide a noticeable visual improvement without the same performance cost associated with some lighting and shadow settings.
Similarly, anisotropic filtering can often remain relatively high because it helps improve the appearance of surfaces viewed at an angle.
The goal of good Cyberpunk graphics optimisation is not to make everything look like a low-quality game. Instead, lower the settings that have the greatest performance impact while preserving those that provide good visual value.
Best Cyberpunk 2077 Display Settings
The way you set up your monitor can have a big impact on your overall experience.
A very high FPS setup would involve these settings:
- Resolution: 1920 × 1080
- Display Mode: Either the fullscreen option or whichever exclusive mode your monitor is capable of
- V-Sync: Disable it in order to get the low latency
- Maximum FPS: Leave it uncapped at first so you can check how much your GPU gives to the game
- HDR: It should be disabled if there is no HDR available on your monitor
- If Dynamic Resolution setting will not be a problem, enable it
Ensure that both Windows and your GPU driver settings are set correctly to utilise your monitor’s high refresh rate.
How to Get More FPS Without Lowering Graphics
In additiongraphics settings are not the only way to improve performance.
Update Your GPU Driver
Use the latest stable graphics driver recommended for your GPU. Driver updates can include game-specific optimisations and fixes.
Use Windows Game Mode
Game Mode in Windows has priority on your gaming computer so it gets the maximum performance. Make sure it is turned on if additional improvement in performance is the aim.
Install the Game on an SSD
Compared to the old school hard disk drive, the faster SSD will make faster load times and reduce the problem of the game not knowing how far along a certain track of the map the player has reached.
It certainly won’t double your FPS overnight, but an SSD should be present as one of the components of a good Cyberpunk 2077 setup.
CPU and RAM Matter Too
If you think that Cyberpunk’s performance is dependent entirely on the graphics card, then you are likely to be disappointed. The game can be very heavy on theCPU aswell, especially when there aremany NPCs around orthere isa jam on theroadandyou are trying to navigate. Forthat, you have to look at the processor.
RAM is also important. An entry-level gaming PC should ideally have enough system memory for both Windows and the game without excessive background usage.
If you experience stuttering rather than consistently low FPS, monitor CPU, GPU, RAM and VRAM usage to identify the actual bottleneck.
Should You Use Low Preset or Custom Settings?
A custom configuration is usually better than simply selecting the Low preset.
The Low preset may reduce settings that have relatively little impact on your frame rate while leaving other performance-heavy options higher than necessary.
A custom setup lets you target the specific features that matter most for your hardware.
For example, you could keep textures at Medium while reducing volumetric effects, reflections and shadows. This can produce a much better-looking game than running every option at Low while still delivering substantially better performance.
How to Test Your Cyberpunk 2077 Settings
Do not judge performance from the game’s menu alone.
After changing your settings, spend several minutes playing in a demanding area of Night City. Drive through busy streets, enter crowded locations and participate in combat.
Monitor:
- Average FPS
- 1% low FPS
- GPU utilisation
- CPU utilisation
- VRAM usage
- System RAM usage
- GPU temperature
Average FPS tells you how fast the game usually runs, but 1% lows can reveal stuttering and sudden drops that make gameplay feel less responsive.
If you average 90 FPS but frequently fall into the 40s or 50s, your experience may feel worse than a stable 75–80 FPS configuration.
Can an Entry-Level PC Really Get 90+ FPS?
It depends on what you mean by entry-level.
Cyberpunk 2077 is a demanding modern game, so there is no universal setting that guarantees 90+ FPS across all budget PCs. A relatively modern entry-level system with a suitable GPU, adequate RAM and upscaling may approach or exceed that target at 1080p with performance-focused settings.
Older integrated graphics or very low-end dedicated GPUs may need a lower resolution and a more modest FPS target.
That is why the best approach is to start at 1080p, disable ray tracing, reduce shadows and volumetric effects, enable appropriate upscaling and then adjust settings according to your actual hardware.
Conclusion
Getting a smooth Cyberpunk 2077 experience on an entry-level PC is about making smart compromises rather than turning every option to minimum.
For a 90+ FPS target, start with 1080p, disable ray tracing, use an appropriate upscaling mode and reduce shadows, reflections, fog and crowd density. Keep textures at Medium where your VRAM allows it so Night City does not lose unnecessary visual detail.
The most effective Cyberpunk 2077 FPS boost comes from identifying your system’s bottleneck and adjusting the settings that actually affect it. With sensible Cyberpunk graphics optimisation, you can build a configuration that looks good while prioritising smooth, responsive gameplay.
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