Arc Raiders runs remarkably well for a Unreal Engine 5 game - but “runs well” and “runs optimally” are different things. The wrong settings add input lag, blur your vision in firefights, and cost you FPS you need for smooth tracking.
This guide covers every category: display, graphics, upscaling, keybinds, audio, and Windows-level fixes. Before you touch a single graphics slider, read the driver section. One bad NVIDIA update can cut your frame rate in half - and no in-game setting fixes it.
If you’re new to the game and still learning the basics, the Arc Raiders beginner guide covers the core loop before you start fine-tuning performance. Playing on console instead? The Arc Raiders PS5 settings guide covers the console-specific options separately.
Table of Contents
Check Your Bottleneck First
Changing graphics settings on the wrong component makes performance worse, not better. Identify where your system is struggling before applying any of the settings below.
How to check: Open MSI Afterburner or Windows Task Manager and monitor CPU and GPU usage during a live match - specifically in a populated area, not the lobby.
GPU-bound (GPU above 90%, CPU below 70%): Your graphics card is the limit. Lower Shadows, Effects, Post-Processing, and enable DLSS or FSR Balanced for an immediate FPS boost. This is the most common scenario for players on mid-range systems exploring the open world.
CPU-bound (CPU above 90%, GPU below 50%): Lowering graphics settings will not help. Arc Raiders is heavily CPU-intensive in multiplayer zones with active ARC machines and other players. Players have reported 100% CPU usage with GPU sitting at 40% during intense encounters.
In this case, close background applications, disable overlays, and check the Windows section below. Upgrading to a CPU with strong single-core performance - the Ryzen 7800X3D or 9800X3D are the current benchmarks for this game - has more impact than any GPU setting.
Balanced (both near 70-80%): Apply graphics settings normally and use the profiles below as a baseline.
Critical Driver Fixes
Sort this before anything else. Two driver issues cause more performance loss than any in-game setting.
NVIDIA: Update to the Latest Game Ready Driver
NVIDIA released driver 591.86 (January 27, 2026) as a dedicated Game Ready Driver for Arc Raiders, adding DLSS 4 optimizations and NVIDIA Reflex support specifically tuned for the game. This is the current recommended version. Update via the NVIDIA App or GeForce.com.
History note: Driver 581.80, released at launch in November 2025, had a widely reported 50% FPS regression in Arc Raiders, verified by independent benchmarking. If you have not updated since then and are experiencing poor performance, updating to 591.86 should resolve it.
If you experience a regression after any driver update: Roll back one version at a time using Display Driver Uninstaller (DDU) in Safe Mode for a clean uninstall. Have the target driver downloaded before running DDU.
AMD: Update to 25.11.1
Embark officially recommended AMD driver version 25.11.1 in Patch 1.3.0 patch notes to reduce crash issues on AMD GPUs. If you are on an older driver - particularly 25.10.2, which caused GPU timeout crashes and instability - update to 25.11.1.
On the in-game driver warning: Some players on 25.11.1 see a popup saying their driver version may cause issues and recommending a rollback. This is a false positive - the warning is hard-coded from launch week when older AMD drivers had stability problems, and the developers have not updated or removed it. You can dismiss it safely.
AMD driver 25.11.1 includes official Arc Raiders support, UE5 stability improvements, and a fix for DX12 GPU timeout crashes.
Best Arc Raiders Display Settings
| Setting | Recommended Value | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Window Mode | Fullscreen | Exclusive fullscreen minimizes input lag |
| Display Resolution | Native monitor resolution | Use upscaling for performance, not resolution drops |
| V-Sync | Off | Adds 1-2 frames of input latency |
| Frame Rate Limit | Monitor refresh rate | Set 3-5 FPS below refresh rate for stable frame pacing |
| NVIDIA Reflex Low Latency | On | Add Boost if CPU-bound |
| Field of View | 90-95 | See below |
On FOV: The default of 80 is too narrow for extraction play. You miss incoming threats from flanks and have a cramped sense of space in tight industrial corridors.
Going above 100 introduces fish-eye distortion and shrinks the apparent size of distant targets, hurting precision shots on ARC machines. The 90-95 range gives you broader awareness without the distortion penalty. A wider FOV also helps you spot and reach extraction points faster under pressure - see our Arc Raiders how to extract guide for the full extraction flow.
On V-Sync: Turn it off in-game and in your GPU control panel. Use G-Sync or FreeSync in your monitor settings instead if you experience screen tearing - these eliminate tearing without adding the latency that V-Sync introduces.
Best Arc Raiders Graphics Settings
Arc Raiders uses Unreal Engine 5 but deliberately avoids the features that typically cause UE5 performance problems - no Nanite, no Lumen, no Virtual Shadow Maps. Instead it uses RTXGI for global illumination. Traditional shadow maps are cheaper than Virtual Shadow Maps, and turning off RTXGI produces the single largest FPS gain of any setting in the game.
UE5 still compiles shaders on demand, so you may see one-time stutter when entering new areas for the first time - this is why the Shader Cache tip in the Windows section matters.
Once your frames are stable, your next competitive edge comes from Arc Raiders augments - the skill upgrades that change how you move and fight.
| Setting | Recommended | FPS Gain | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| RTXGI / Ray Tracing | Off | 50-80% | The biggest single performance lever in the game |
| Post-Processing | Low | 15-17% | Controls bloom, color grade, depth of field, motion blur |
| Shadows | Low | 9-20% | Also improves enemy readability against simplified backgrounds |
| Effects | Low | 5-10% | Fewer particles during explosions, fire, and smoke |
| Global Illumination Resolution | Low | 5% | Simplifies lighting without significant visual loss |
| Foliage | Low | 2-4% | Mandatory for competitive play - see below |
| View Distance | Medium | Minor | Low causes pop-in of objects; Medium preserves situational awareness |
| Textures | Medium | VRAM only | Only go lower if you have less than 4GB VRAM |
| Anti-Aliasing | TAA Low | Minor | Never None - aliasing is noticeable due to the lighting style |
| Reflections | Low | Minor | No competitive value |
| Motion Blur | Off | 3-5% | Obscures targets during tracking and turning |
| Depth of Field | Off | Minor | Blurs background when ADS, can obscure flanking enemies |
| Camera Shake | Off | N/A | Disrupts aim during explosions and sprinting |
| Frame Generation | Off | N/A | Increases displayed FPS but adds real input latency |
The Foliage Problem
Setting Foliage Quality to Low removes entire bushes and grass patches from your screen. Players on High or Epic see dense vegetation they believe provides cover - you can shoot through it. This is a confirmed competitive imbalance similar to early PUBG grass rendering issues.
Set Foliage to Low until Embark normalizes rendering across quality levels. It is also a better way to spot enemies using vegetation as cover - their silhouettes stand out clearly against the simplified terrain.
Understanding how Arc Raiders enemies move and use cover will help you get even more out of the visibility improvements these settings provide.
DLSS, FSR, and Upscaling
Arc Raiders supports DLSS (NVIDIA), FSR 3 (AMD/Intel), and XeSS. These work by rendering the game at a lower internal resolution and using algorithms to reconstruct a higher-resolution image - a far better trade than dropping native resolution outright.
Which upscaler to use:
- NVIDIA RTX card: Use DLSS. The tensor core acceleration produces cleaner reconstruction than FSR at equivalent modes.
- AMD or Intel GPU: Use FSR 3 Quality. It performs well at 1440p and above. At 1080p it can appear slightly soft - pair with in-game sharpening if needed.
Which quality preset:
- Balanced is the right call for most players. At 1440p it renders at roughly 960p internally and outputs a sharp image that is difficult to distinguish from native at normal viewing distances.
- Quality if you are already hitting your FPS target and want slightly better image fidelity.
- Performance or Ultra Performance only on very low-end hardware. These modes sacrifice enough clarity that distant enemies become harder to track.
CNN vs Transformer (DLSS): The CNN rendering model is approximately 10-12% faster than Transformer. Use CNN unless you have a specific reason to prefer Transformer’s reconstruction. The visual difference is minimal at Balanced mode.
Frame Generation - always off for PvP. Frame Generation inserts AI-generated frames between real ones to inflate your FPS counter. Your actual input responsiveness remains tied to the lower base framerate plus added latency.
Your shots will feel delayed in gunfights even when the counter shows a high number. Leave it off for any PvP encounter. It is acceptable for casual visual exploration runs where responsiveness is not critical.
Expected gains with DLSS Balanced at 1440p (community benchmarks on mid-range hardware, results vary by GPU):
- Native 1440p, no DLSS: ~85 FPS
- DLSS Balanced: ~125 FPS
- DLSS Performance: ~145 FPS
Windows and System Optimizations
These apply to all games, but matter particularly in Arc Raiders where UE5’s CPU demands are higher than average.
Disable Memory Integrity (VBS): Enabled by default on Windows 11. Reduces FPS by 5-10%, up to 33% in some hardware configurations. Settings - Privacy & Security - Windows Security - Device Security - Core Isolation - Memory Integrity - Off. Requires restart.
Disable Xbox Game Bar: Adds 18-23ms of input latency and consumes 200-400MB RAM in the background. Settings - Gaming - Game Bar - Off.
Enable Game Mode: Prioritizes system resources for your game and pauses background maintenance tasks. Settings - Gaming - Game Mode - On.
Ultimate Performance Power Plan (desktop only): Open Command Prompt as Administrator and enter: powercfg -duplicatescheme e9a42b02-d5df-448d-aa00-03f14749eb61. Select it in Power Options. Laptop users should select High Performance instead.
Run Arc Raiders from an SSD: UE5’s streaming architecture means an HDD causes texture pop-in and shader stutter that no graphics setting fixes. If your game is on a spinning drive, move it.
Disable overlays: Close Discord overlay, NVIDIA overlay, and Xbox Game Bar overlay before launching. Discord overlay alone is confirmed to cause micro-stutter in Arc Raiders even at high FPS.
Disable Fullscreen Optimizations: Right-click the Arc Raiders .exe - Properties - Compatibility - check “Disable fullscreen optimizations.” This improves frame time consistency in DirectX 12.
Enable HAGS (Hardware Accelerated GPU Scheduling): Settings - System - Display - Graphics - Change Default Graphics Settings - Hardware-Accelerated GPU Scheduling - On. Frees 5-10% CPU.
Set Shader Cache size (NVIDIA): In NVIDIA Control Panel, set Shader Cache Size to 10GB. This reduces stutter when entering new areas.
Best Arc Raiders Keybinds
Most guides treat keybinds as a separate topic from graphics. They are not - the same principle applies: small changes with the right reasoning produce better outcomes than random remapping. The table below references official defaults from the Arc Raiders wiki.
| Action | Default | Recommended | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dodge Roll | Left Alt | Mouse Side Button (or keep Left Alt) | A thumb button keeps your aiming hand on the mouse during dodges |
| Crouch (Hold) | Left Ctrl | Left Ctrl | Keep - for fast combat crouching and bob-and-weave |
| Crouch (Toggle) | C | C | Keep - for extended stealth movement without holding a button |
| Unarmed | H | 4 | Continues the logical 1-2-3 weapon slot pattern |
| Shoulder Swap | X | Second Mouse Side Button | Instant peek angle changes from cover without moving your hand |
| Walk (Toggle) | V | V | Keep - quieter movement between crouch speed and sprinting |
| Push to Talk (Standard) | Z | Z | Keep |
| Push to Talk (Proximity) | B | B | Keep |
Why dual crouch matters: Left Ctrl for quick in-and-out combat crouching; C toggle for sneaking so you are not holding a button through long flanking routes. The difference shows up in firefights where you need to repeatedly crouch behind cover without your hand cramping.
The unarmed speed boost: Holstering your weapon is widely reported to give a minor movement speed increase. Binding this to 4 - a natural extension of slots 1, 2, and 3 - lets you close distance to a wounded player or reposition between cover pieces, then re-equip cleanly without looking away from your target.
Shoulder swap for corner play: Switching which shoulder your camera sits over changes your visible angle and which side your weapon appears on. Binding this to a thumb mouse button means you can swap peek angles mid-fight without removing your hand from the mouse - critical when holding tight corners.
Understanding your best loadout options pairs well with knowing how to use cover effectively.
Best Arc Raiders Mouse Settings
| Setting | Recommended | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Mouse Smoothing | Off | Makes sensitivity feel inconsistent - always disable |
| DPI (hardware) | 400-800 | Lower is more precise; 800 is a common starting point |
| Horizontal Sensitivity | Default +15-20 | Allows faster 180s when hit from behind |
| Vertical Sensitivity | Slightly below horizontal | Helps with full-auto recoil control |
| Mouse Acceleration | Off | Also disable in Windows (see below) |
In Windows: Disable “Enhance Pointer Precision” in Mouse Settings (Control Panel - Mouse - Pointer Options). This feature adds acceleration that breaks the 1:1 relationship between physical movement and crosshair movement, making your aim inconsistent at different speeds.
Set DPI before touching in-game sensitivity. In-game sensitivity multiplies on top of your hardware DPI. Get your DPI into a comfortable range first, then use in-game sensitivity to fine-tune.
Best Arc Raiders Audio Settings
Audio in Arc Raiders is a tactical layer, not just ambience. The right settings let you hear enemy footsteps, ARC machine movements, and approaching threats before they appear on screen.
Night Mode: On. Night Mode equalizes all audio levels - explosions and gunfire become quieter, footsteps and subtle environmental sounds become louder. Everything sits closer to a middle volume range.
This is the most important single audio setting in the game for competitive awareness.
Patch 1.29.0 changed footstep audio significantly. Embark adjusted footstep volumes for standing still, walking, crouching, running, and sprinting, and added comb filtering to footstep and movement sounds for clearer perception of distance, elevation, and movement direction. They also increased metal slide volume.
If you calibrated your audio before this patch, the directional tracking from Night Mode is now more reliable and precise than it was at launch.
Music: Off or very low. Music actively masks footstep audio cues. Turn the music volume down specifically - not master volume.
Voice Chat:
- Proximity chat: enable and assign to B (default)
- Standard team voice: Z (default)
Subtitles: On (Small). Subtitles can help you identify sounds you might miss through headphones during intense sequences. Small size keeps them from covering critical screen space.
Once your audio is dialed in, pair it with the right gear - the Arc Raiders best PvP weapons guide covers which loadouts hold up in close-quarters encounters where sound and reaction time decide the outcome.
Accessibility Settings Worth Changing
Two settings live in the Accessibility tab that should not be ignored.
Invert Flash Color: On. When you are flashed, your screen goes black instead of white. Significantly reduces the strain on your eyes from bright flash effects and makes the recovery period feel shorter. There is no competitive downside to enabling this.
Damage Direction Indicator: On (default). The red mark showing which direction damage came from is a core piece of tactical information. Leave this enabled.
Crosshair color: Personal preference, but choose a color that stays visible across Arc Raiders’ dark industrial environments. Cyan and bright green are the most commonly cited for contrast. Enable the outline option for maximum visibility against both light and dark backgrounds.
Key Takeaways
- Check your bottleneck first - CPU-bound players get no benefit from lowering graphics settings
- NVIDIA users: update to driver 591.86 or newer - the launch-era 581.80 had a 50% FPS regression that this fixes
- AMD users should update to driver 25.11.1 per Embark’s official recommendation
- RTXGI (Ray Tracing) off is the single largest FPS gain in the game, up to 80% improvement
- Set Foliage to Low - it is a competitive requirement, not just a performance tweak
- Frame Generation inflates FPS numbers but adds real input latency; keep it off in PvP
- FOV 90-95 is the competitive sweet spot; the default 80 is too narrow for extraction play
- Enable Night Mode audio - Patch 1.29.0 made directional footstep audio more reliable
- Disable Mouse Smoothing and Windows Enhance Pointer Precision for consistent 1:1 input
- Disable Discord overlay, Xbox Game Bar, and Memory Integrity for meaningful system-level gains
FAQ
What are the best Arc Raiders graphics settings for low-end PCs?
Set everything to Low, disable Ray Tracing and Motion Blur, and use FSR Performance or Ultra Performance mode. Prioritize closing background apps, running the game from an SSD, and enabling Game Mode in Windows.
Stable 60 FPS is achievable on budget hardware with these changes. If you are still struggling, check whether your CPU is the actual bottleneck before lowering GPU settings further.
Should I use DLSS or FSR in Arc Raiders?
Use DLSS if you have an NVIDIA RTX card - it produces cleaner image reconstruction than FSR at equivalent quality presets. On AMD or Intel GPUs, FSR 3 Quality is the correct choice and performs well at 1440p and above. Both are significantly better options than dropping to a lower native resolution.
What FOV should I use in Arc Raiders?
Set FOV to 90-95. The default of 80 is too narrow for extraction gameplay and limits your awareness of flanking threats. Going above 100 introduces distortion and reduces the apparent size of distant targets, which hurts precision shots on ARC machines.
Does Frame Generation help in Arc Raiders?
Not for competitive play. Frame Generation raises your displayed FPS by inserting AI-generated frames between real ones, but your actual input responsiveness stays tied to the lower base framerate. You will lose gunfights where your shots feel delayed. Keep it off in PvP and only consider it for casual or visual exploration runs.
Why does Arc Raiders stutter even with good hardware?
The most common causes are an outdated or buggy driver, Discord overlay enabled, or a CPU bottleneck in multiplayer zones. Arc Raiders is CPU-heavy in populated areas - if your CPU is at 100% while your GPU sits at 40%, lowering graphics settings will not help.
For NVIDIA users, ensure you are on 591.86 or newer - the launch-era driver 581.80 had a 50% FPS regression. Set your NVIDIA Shader Cache to 10GB to reduce one-time stutter when entering new map areas for the first time.
Is Arc Raiders more CPU or GPU intensive?
It depends on the situation. In open exploration Arc Raiders is GPU-bound. In multiplayer zones with lots of players and active ARC machines, it becomes heavily CPU-bound.
Players have reported 100% CPU usage with GPU sitting at 40% during intense encounters. Identify your bottleneck before adjusting settings.
What is the best audio setting in Arc Raiders?
Enable Night Mode audio. It equalizes all volume levels, making explosions quieter and footsteps louder. Patch 1.29.0 also improved directional audio with comb filtering and adjusted footstep volumes across all movement states, making sound awareness a more reliable tactical tool than it was at launch.
Should I use Fullscreen or Borderless Window in Arc Raiders?
Use Fullscreen for the lowest input lag. Fullscreen gives the game exclusive control of your display, which minimizes latency compared to Borderless Window. If you frequently alt-tab or use a multi-monitor setup, Borderless Window is acceptable but adds a small latency cost.
Why is my FPS low in Arc Raiders after a driver update?
If you have been on NVIDIA driver 581.80 since launch and never updated, that version had a confirmed 50% FPS regression. Update to driver 591.86 or the latest Game Ready Driver - NVIDIA released 591.86 in January 2026 specifically optimizing Arc Raiders with DLSS 4 support.
If a more recent update caused a regression, roll back one version using Display Driver Uninstaller (DDU) in Safe Mode. AMD users experiencing crashes should update to driver 25.11.1, which Embark officially recommended in Patch 1.3.0. If you see an in-game popup warning that 25.11.1 is unsupported, dismiss it - it is an outdated false positive from launch week.
Does Foliage Quality affect visibility in Arc Raiders?
Yes, significantly. Setting Foliage Quality to Low removes entire bushes and grass patches from your screen. Players on High or Epic settings see dense vegetation they believe provides cover, while you can shoot through it freely. This is a known competitive imbalance. Set Foliage to Low until Embark normalizes rendering across quality levels.
What mouse settings should I use in Arc Raiders?
Start with 800 DPI on your mouse hardware and turn off Mouse Smoothing in Arc Raiders’ settings. Adjust horizontal sensitivity slightly above default for faster 180-degree turns.
Disable Enhance Pointer Precision in Windows mouse settings for consistent 1:1 input. Vertical sensitivity can be slightly lower than horizontal to help with recoil control.
