Best Fortnite Settings
Every graphics, display, and audio setting explained — with competitive, balanced, and quality presets. Filter by what matters most to your PC and playstyle.
Choose Your Preset
How to Get More FPS in Fortnite
Enable Performance Mode
The single biggest FPS gain available in Fortnite is switching to Performance rendering mode under Advanced Graphics. This bypasses Unreal Engine's DirectX renderer and can double frame rates on some systems. It requires a one-time asset download of around 3–5 GB.
Turn Off Shadows First
Shadows are the most GPU-intensive setting in Fortnite. Disabling shadows entirely — setting them to Off — typically gains 30 to 60 FPS on mid-range hardware. This is the first thing to do if you are experiencing frame rate issues during builds or large team fights.
Windows Settings That Help
Outside of Fortnite, make sure your GPU is set to Maximum Performance in NVIDIA or AMD control panel, Game Mode is enabled in Windows, and that the game is running with High priority in Task Manager. Also ensure your monitor is set to its maximum refresh rate in Windows Display settings.
Why Pros Use Low Settings
Many competitive players use low graphics settings because higher FPS can reduce input latency. At 240 FPS, a frame is ~4ms; at 60 FPS, ~16ms. That difference is noticeable for aim and building — but comfort and visuals still matter if you are not chasing tournament latency.
Frequently asked questions
What is the single best FPS setting to change in Fortnite?
Turning Shadows off gives the biggest single gain — typically 30 to 60 FPS on mid-range hardware. If your GPU supports it, switching Rendering Mode to Performance is the next biggest win.
Should I play Fortnite in Performance Mode or DirectX 12?
Performance mode bypasses Unreal Engine's standard renderer and runs noticeably faster on most hardware, especially older or lower-end GPUs. DirectX 12 unlocks better visuals and ray tracing but costs frame rate, so it suits Quality/Casual setups more than competitive ones.
Does turning off shadows really help FPS?
Yes. Shadows are consistently the most expensive graphics setting in Fortnite. Setting Shadows to Off is the first change most competitive players make, and it also removes visual clutter that can hide enemies.
What is the best competitive Fortnite settings preset?
Most competitive players run low Shadows, Effects, Post Processing, and Textures, 100% 3D Resolution, Fullscreen, VSync off, and NVIDIA Reflex on. Use the Competitive / Max FPS preset above as a starting point, then adjust View Distance and Anti-Aliasing to taste.
Do these settings work on console?
Console (PS5, Xbox Series X/S) exposes far fewer graphics options than PC — mainly a Performance vs Fidelity mode toggle. Performance mode prioritises frame rate similarly to the PC Competitive preset above; Fidelity mode favours visuals like the Quality preset.
