The best Cyberpunk 2077 PC settings start with your resolution, GPU, CPU and frame-time target—not a universal preset. Choose the closest official hardware tier, set resolution and upscaling first, then lower the options that burden your limiting component. Ray-traced lighting, reflections, volumetrics and crowd simulation usually offer more performance leverage than texture quality, while frame generation should be added only after the base frame rate is stable.
This guide covers the current 2.x PC feature set, including Update 2.3 (July 16, 2025) and Patch 2.31 (September 11, 2025), and gives a repeatable way to find Cyberpunk 2077 settings without losing the image quality that makes Night City worth playing.
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Start with the official performance targets
CD PROJEKT RED publishes targets for specific resolutions, presets and frame rates. They are reference points, not guarantees: the studio says performance varies with your hardware and software configuration, individual graphics settings and output resolution. Your frame rate can also change substantially between an open highway, a crowded market and a combat scene.
| Target | Resolution and preset | CPU class | GPU class | Memory | Storage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum, raster | 1080p, Low, 30 FPS | Core i7-6700 or Ryzen 5 1600 | GeForce GTX 1060 6GB, Radeon RX 580 8GB or Arc A380 | 12GB RAM | 70GB SSD |
| Recommended, raster | 1080p, High, 60 FPS | Core i7-12700 or Ryzen 7 7800X3D | GeForce RTX 2060 Super, Radeon RX 5700 XT or Arc A770 | 16GB RAM | 70GB SSD |
| Ultra, raster | 2160p, Ultra, 60 FPS | Core i9-12900 or Ryzen 9 7900X | GeForce RTX 3080 or Radeon RX 7900 XTX | 20GB RAM | 70GB NVMe SSD |
| RT Low | 1080p, 30 FPS | Not stated in the official RT row | GeForce RTX 2060, Radeon RX 6800 XT or Arc A750 class | 16GB RAM | SSD |
| RT Ultra | 1080p, 60 FPS | Not stated in the official RT row | GeForce RTX 3080 Ti or Radeon RX 7900 XTX class | 20GB RAM | NVMe SSD |
| RT Overdrive | 2160p, 60 FPS | Not stated in the official RT row | GeForce RTX 4080 class | 24GB RAM | 70GB NVMe SSD |
The Overdrive target was measured with DLSS Frame Generation enabled. These rows describe the configurations CD PROJEKT RED used for its targets; they do not promise that every location, driver or patch will hold the listed frame rate. An SSD is now part of the published baseline, and the highest tier specifically calls for NVMe storage.
#1 Best Overall
- This product has been replaced by our latest generation. Please search for the SANDISK Optimus GX 7100 NVMe SSD
- HIGH-OCTANE GAMING. Experience speeds up to 7,250MB/s read and 6,900MB/s write (1-2TB models), with up to 35% faster performance than previous generation.
- PURPOSE-BUILT. Designed for serious on-the-go gamers, with a PCIe Gen4 interface and SANDISK’s next generation TLC 3D NAND.
- MORE TIME TO CLEAR THAT CHECKPOINT. Built with laptops and handheld gaming devices in mind, with up to 100% more power efficiency over the previous generation.
- DO MORE WITH DASHBOARD. Ensure your drive is optimized for prime performance with the downloadable WD_BLACK Dashboard (Windows only).
Build a baseline before changing individual options
Choose the closest Quick Preset
Open the Graphics menu and select the Quick Preset nearest your hardware and desired resolution. Use it as a starting point rather than a final answer. A 1080p player targeting a locked 60 FPS has a different baseline from a 1440p player pursuing 120 FPS, even with the same GPU.
Set the output resolution first
Choose the monitor or television resolution before judging other settings. Resolution determines the number of pixels every later technique must produce. If you change it after tuning, repeat your tests because an upscaler’s input image and GPU workload will change.
Measure a repeatable scene
Run the built-in benchmark after each meaningful change, then play in a representative dense area of Night City. Record average FPS, 1% lows when your overlay provides them, GPU utilization, VRAM usage and visible artifacts. The benchmark is useful for comparing changes, but a crowded street, driving sequence or combat encounter can expose CPU and streaming limits that a short benchmark run misses.
Use upscaling before sacrificing image detail
Upscaling is usually the least disruptive way to gain performance because the game renders internally at a lower resolution and reconstructs a higher-resolution image. Start there before cutting texture or geometry quality.
Rank #2
- Ideal for high speed, low power storage
- Gen 4x4 NVMe PCle performance
- Up to 6,000MB/s read, 4,000MB/s write
- Includes Acronis cloning software
- 5-year limited warranty
Recommended starting modes
- 1080p: begin with the upscaler’s Quality mode where available. Inspect distant foliage, fine wires, signs and moving characters for shimmer or ghosting.
- 1440p: test Quality and Balanced. Quality preserves more detail; Balanced can be useful when ray tracing or high refresh rates push the GPU beyond its budget.
- 4K: Balanced or Performance may be necessary for demanding ray-traced modes, especially Overdrive. Check text, fences, hair and foliage while moving the camera rather than judging a still screenshot.
DLSS requires compatible GeForce RTX hardware. FSR and XeSS provide alternatives on supported hardware. CD PROJEKT RED’s FSR 3 support combines image upscaling with frame generation, while the game retains FSR 2.1 so you can choose a preferred quality/performance mode. Update your GPU driver before troubleshooting FSR features.
Update 2.3 added AMD FSR 4 for compatible AMD GPUs, FSR 3.1 Frame Generation and Intel XeSS 2.0. Availability depends on your GPU and the installed patch. Do not select a mode your hardware does not support merely because it appears in a guide written for another generation.
DLSS model choices in Update 2.21
Update 2.21 added DLSS 4 support, including Multi Frame Generation for GeForce RTX 50-series cards. It also lets you select CNN or Transformer models for DLSS Ray Reconstruction, DLSS Super Resolution and DLAA. CD PROJEKT RED describes the Transformer model as improving stability, lighting and detail in motion. Compare models in the same scene; a sharper still image is not automatically cleaner during camera movement.
Quick wins for a faster PC:
Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →Find whether the GPU or CPU is limiting you
Signs of a GPU limit
When GPU utilization stays near its ceiling and lowering resolution or upscaling mode produces a clear FPS increase, the graphics processor is the constraint. Reduce the most expensive lighting and atmospheric options first:
Rank #3
- PCIe 4.0 Performance: Delivers up to 7,100 MB/s read and 6,000 MB/s write speeds for quicker game load times, bootups, and smooth multitasking
- Spacious 1TB SSD: Provides space for AAA games, apps, and media with standard Gen4 NVMe performance for casual gamers and home users
- Broad Compatibility: Works seamlessly with laptops, desktops, and select gaming consoles including ROG Ally X, Lenovo Legion Go, and AYANEO Kun. Also backward compatible with PCIe Gen3 systems for flexible upgrades
- Better Productivity: Up to 2x faster than previous Gen3 generation. Improve performance for real world tasks like booting Windows, starting applications like Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator, and working in applications like Microsoft Excel and PowerPoint
- Trusted Micron Quality: Built with advanced G8 NAND and thermal control for reliable Gen4 performance trusted by gamers and home users
- Ray-traced reflections
- Ray-traced lighting quality
- Volumetric fog and cloud quality
- Screen-space reflections
Test one option at a time. Texture quality mainly consumes VRAM and often has a smaller direct effect on frame rate than lighting or volumetrics. Lower textures only when VRAM is full, streaming causes stutter, or you see texture pop-in. If VRAM usage approaches the card’s limit, a lower texture setting can prevent hitching even when average FPS barely changes.
Signs of a CPU limit
If GPU utilization falls while frame rate remains low, particularly in crowded districts or during heavy traffic, the CPU or game simulation may be limiting performance. Update 2.0 moved Crowd Density into the Graphics tab, making it easier to test. Lower Crowd Density and compare the same busy location. A change that improves 1% lows more than average FPS is still valuable because it reduces hitching.
Patch 2.13 moved HDD Mode, Hybrid CPU Utilization and SMT options into the Utilities section. Check those locations rather than searching the Graphics tab. These controls can affect how the game schedules work on different processor configurations, so change one, benchmark, then keep the setting only if your system improves.
What’s actually slowing this PC down?
Pick the symptom - the matching free tool is one click away.
Ray tracing, Ultra and Overdrive explained
Raster Ultra is not the same as RT Ultra
The standard Ultra preset uses rasterized rendering. RT Ultra adds ray-traced effects and has a substantially higher hardware target: CD PROJEKT RED lists a GeForce RTX 3080 Ti or Radeon RX 7900 XTX class GPU for 1080p at 60 FPS, with 20GB of RAM and NVMe storage. Treat this as a separate performance tier rather than a small quality step above High.
Rank #4
- HUGE SPEED BOOST: Get random read/write speeds that are 40%/55% faster than 980 PRO; Experience up to 1400K/1550K IOPS, while sequential read/write speeds up to 7,450/6,900 MB/s reach near the max performance of PCIe 4.0*
- BREAKTHROUGH POWER EFFICIENCY: Use less power and get more performance; Enjoy up to 50% improved performance per watt over 980 PRO, plus optimal power efficiency with max PCIe 4.0 performance**
- SMART THERMAL CONTROL: Samsung's own nickel-coated controller delivers effective thermal control; With its slim size, 990 PRO is a perfect fit for desktops and laptops that meet the PCI-SIG D8 standard***
- THE CHAMPION MAKER: Up to 65% improvement in random performance enables faster loads for an ultimate gaming experience on PS5 and DirectStorage PC games****
- SAMSUNG MAGICIAN SOFTWARE: Get the most out of your SSD with Samsung Magician's advanced yet intuitive optimization tools; Monitor drive health, protect valuable data, and receive important updates for your 990 PRO
Overdrive is path tracing
Ray Tracing: Overdrive is above Ray Tracing: Ultra and uses path-traced rendering. CD PROJEKT RED documents it as a mode enabled from Settings → Graphics, either through a Quick Preset or by selecting Path Tracing (Technology Preview) in the Ray Tracing section. The official target is 2160p at 60 FPS on a GeForce RTX 4080-class card with 24GB of RAM and NVMe storage, measured with DLSS Frame Generation enabled.
Because Overdrive traces more of the scene’s lighting, reflections and indirect illumination, it is not a sensible first choice for recovering performance. Establish a stable base frame rate with your chosen upscaler, then try Overdrive at 1440p or 4K only if your GPU has substantial headroom. If motion becomes uneven, return to RT Ultra or disable path tracing before cutting every other setting.
Frame generation: when it helps and when it hurts
Frame generation creates additional displayed frames between traditionally rendered frames. It can make camera motion look smoother, but it does not replace the input response of the base rendered frames. Enable it only after the game already holds a reasonably stable frame rate at your chosen image-quality settings.
Recommended Free Tools
- Disable frame generation and find a stable base using the benchmark and a busy gameplay area.
- Confirm that input latency feels acceptable at that base rate; a high displayed number cannot fix slow controls.
- Enable the frame-generation option supplied by your upscaler and repeat the same test.
- Watch for ghosting around vehicles, particles, wires and fast camera pans. If artifacts or latency are distracting, turn it off even if the counter reports more FPS.
Feature availability is version- and hardware-dependent. Update 2.3 introduced FSR 3.1 Frame Generation and XeSS 2.0, while DLSS 4 Multi Frame Generation is for GeForce RTX 50-series cards. Do not compare a frame-generated result directly with a native-rendered result without noting the mode and base frame rate.
Best Value
- SPEED UP PROJECTS. Launch creator applications fast with uncompromising PCIe 4.0 read speeds up to 7,100MB/s,[2] (1TB and 2TB[1] models) and write speeds up to 6,700MB/s[2] (1TB[1]-4TB[1] models).
- CREATE AND STORE MORE. Make more room for your 4K videos and high-resolution images with capacities from 500GB[1] up to 4TB[1] on M.2 2280 built with our trusted 8th generation SANDISK BiCS QLC 3D CBA NAND.
- IT GOES WHERE YOU GO. With an all-new power efficient design, your drive delivers high performance with low power, giving you more time to be productive while on the go.
- UNCOMPROMISED RELIABILITY. With up to 1,200 TBW[3] (4TB[1] model) endurance rating, your drive is designed for creators.
- KEEP YOUR DRIVE UPDATED. Monitor your SSD’s performance and check for updates with the downloadable SANDISK Dashboard application.[5]
A practical settings path for more FPS
- Update the game and GPU driver. Patch 2.31 (September 11, 2025) added a vignette toggle under Settings → Graphics → Basic and fixed PC ray-traced-reflection and path-tracing issues. Use the current 2.x build available for your platform.
- Pick your target. Decide whether you want 30, 60, 90 or a higher refresh-rate target. A consistent frame time is usually preferable to an unstable peak.
- Apply the closest Quick Preset. Start at Low, High, Ultra or an RT tier that matches your hardware and resolution.
- Set resolution and upscaling. Try Quality at 1080p, Quality or Balanced at 1440p, and Balanced or Performance at 4K when necessary. Inspect motion for reconstruction artifacts.
- Identify the limiter. Use GPU utilization, VRAM usage and CPU behavior in the benchmark and a dense city scene.
- Trim expensive GPU options. Lower ray-traced reflections, ray-traced lighting, volumetric fog/clouds and screen-space reflections before textures.
- Trim CPU-heavy simulation. Test Crowd Density, then review the Utilities entries for HDD Mode, Hybrid CPU Utilization and SMT after Patch 2.13.
- Add frame generation last. Keep it only when the base frame rate and latency are already satisfactory.
- Re-test and keep a change log. Record the setting, average FPS, 1% lows, utilization and visible image changes so you can reverse a regression.
Quality checks that prevent a misleading “fast” setting
- Inspect motion, not just menus. Walk, drive and rotate the camera past foliage, neon signs, fences and crowds.
- Check VRAM separately from average FPS. A texture setting can appear harmless until a new district triggers streaming stutter.
- Compare the same weather and time of day. Lighting and traffic variation can overwhelm a small setting change.
- Use frame-time consistency as the verdict. A lower average with steadier 1% lows may feel better than a higher average with frequent hitching.
- Keep a fallback profile. Save a raster High or Ultra profile before experimenting with RT or Overdrive so recovery takes seconds.
Common problems and fixes
FSR options do not work correctly
Confirm that your GPU driver is current, restart the game after changing the upscaler and verify that the selected FSR generation is supported by your card and patch. If FSR 3.1 Frame Generation produces distracting artifacts, use FSR upscaling without frame generation or return to FSR 2.1.
Ray-traced reflections look broken
Update 2.31 fixed PC ray-traced-reflection and path-tracing issues. Install that patch or a later build before judging the feature. If a problem remains, disable the affected ray-traced option, test the raster equivalent and compare the result in the same scene.
The image is sharp but unstable in motion
Switch from Performance to Balanced or Quality, test the Transformer and CNN DLSS models where available, and inspect fine geometry while moving. If the artifact comes from frame generation rather than upscaling, disable frame generation first so you can isolate the cause.
Performance collapses in crowds
Lower Crowd Density and test the Utilities controls relocated by Patch 2.13. If GPU utilization is low during the slowdown, reducing ray-tracing quality alone is unlikely to solve it; concentrate on CPU and simulation behavior.
What the best settings look like by goal
| Goal | Starting point | First compromises |
|---|---|---|
| 1080p, stable 60 FPS | High preset, upscaler Quality if needed, raster lighting | Ray-traced reflections, volumetrics, Crowd Density |
| 1440p, high refresh | High or Ultra, Quality then Balanced upscaling | RT lighting and reflections, then volumetrics |
| 4K, image quality first | Ultra, Balanced upscaling, native textures if VRAM allows | RT effects or path tracing before textures |
| Overdrive showcase | Path Tracing (Technology Preview), DLSS or another supported upscaler, frame generation only after a stable base | Resolution, path tracing or RT tier if latency and frame time are poor |
These are starting profiles, not universal FPS promises. The correct final combination is the one that holds your target frame time in both the benchmark and the busiest areas you actually play.
Current 2.x changes worth knowing
Update 2.3 (July 16, 2025) expanded the PC graphics feature set with AMD FSR 4 for compatible AMD GPUs, FSR 3.1 Frame Generation, Intel XeSS 2.0 and more detailed DLSS preset guidance. Patch 2.31 (September 11, 2025) added the vignette toggle at Settings → Graphics → Basic and addressed PC ray-traced-reflection and path-tracing problems. Update 2.21 added DLSS 4, including RTX 50-series Multi Frame Generation and selectable CNN or Transformer reconstruction models. Menu locations and available options therefore depend on your installed patch and hardware.
The most reliable answer to “how to improve Cyberpunk 2077 performance” is an evidence-based loop: start from the official tier, set resolution and upscaling, identify whether the GPU or CPU is limiting, reduce the expensive options for that limiter, and validate every change in repeatable gameplay. That process delivers Cyberpunk 2077 settings without losing visual quality better than copying a single preset.
Do these 3 things before closing this tab:
1Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute2Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors3Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesQuick Recap
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
