How to improve FPS in Stellaris (PC)
Stellaris isn't a game that suffers from low framerates: its Clausewitz engine renders a simple top-down camera that almost any current GPU handles effortlessly. The real bottleneck shows up over hours of play, when galaxy simulation (AI empires, populations, economy, fleets) grows to the point where each calendar tick takes seconds to resolve. This isn't about optimizing for "more FPS", but about keeping the simulation pace smooth in long games on large galaxies. This article clearly separates both problems and prioritizes the settings that actually affect the late-game "turn lag". If you play short games or small galaxies, you'll barely need any of these settings.
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Calculations based on our FPS model combined with the % gain of each setting (measured in public benchmarks).
1. Quick wins (no visual loss)
Start here. Each one adds a little, but together they give +17% free FPS.
Shadow Quality
Shadows in Stellaris are barely noticeable given the usual distant top-down viewpoint. Lowering them frees up some GPU load without changing the actual visual experience.
Anti-Aliasing
Edge smoothing has a minimal cost in this engine, but FXAA is enough to clean up the outlines of planets and ship models without hurting performance.
Effects Quality (particles/nebulae)
Nebulas and background particle effects are purely decorative and add no gameplay information. Reducing them to Medium saves some GPU in scenes with lots of fleets.
Reflections and Post-Processing
Reflections on ship hulls and post-processing add superficial shine with no gameplay relevance. In a game with a distant camera, this setting goes unnoticed.
V-Sync
Being a strategy game with no need for extreme input latency, V-Sync adds nothing except tearing on high-refresh monitors. Disabling it reduces cursor and menu input lag.
2. Medium impact settings
Here's where most of the FPS is. Minor visual impact, major performance impact.
Ship and Planet Model Detail
With fleets of hundreds of ships in the late game, the geometric detail of each model can indeed show up on the GPU. Dropping it to Medium keeps silhouettes recognizable while lightening massive battle scenes.
Galactic Map Draw Distance
Controls how many systems and effects render when zooming out on the galaxy map. Lowering it helps especially on large galaxies with hundreds of systems visible at once.
Texture Resolution
Planet and space station textures carry a moderate VRAM weight. On cards with little video memory, dropping one notch avoids microstutters when zooming in on a planet.
Dynamic Star System Lighting
The lighting cast by stars onto nearby planets and fleets has a real cost when many systems are lit up on screen at once, like in large border battles.
3. Upscaling (DLSS / FSR / XeSS)
The biggest gain in the game. Compatible with almost any modern GPU.
4. Tips by GPU
NVIDIA
- •Any mid-range NVIDIA GPU from the last 6 years is more than enough to max out Stellaris; it's not a game that benefits from DLSS or top-tier cards.
- •Enable the FPS limit in the NVIDIA Control Panel (say, 60) to reduce power draw and fan noise, since the game needs no more than that to play well.
- •If you notice microstutters when opening the full galaxy map at far zoom, check that the game isn't accidentally using the integrated GPU on laptops with dual graphics.
AMD
- •Mid-range AMD GPUs perform the same as their NVIDIA equivalents in Stellaris, since the real bottleneck is never in 3D rendering.
- •Use Radeon Chill or a similar FPS cap to save power in long strategy sessions, where you don't need constant high framerates.
- •Verify the game isn't forcing the GPU's power-saving mode on laptops, since it can introduce hitching when switching from system to galaxy view.
Sistema
- •CPU single-core performance is by far the component that most determines your real experience in advanced games: prioritize CPUs with high per-core frequency over powerful GPUs.
- •Close background applications (browser, Discord with overlays) during long games, since they compete for the same thread Stellaris uses to calculate AI simulation.
- •Install the game on an SSD and make sure you have enough free RAM (16GB recommended for large-galaxy games): disk swapping during pop and economy calculations worsens turn lag.
5. Known game issues
Progressive simulation slowdown in long games
As active empires, colonized planets, and populations increase, the calculation time for each game tick grows non-linearly because much of the logic runs on a single CPU thread. In large galaxies after 150-200 years of play, each day can take several seconds to process even on powerful CPUs.
Memory spikes and hitching when AI empires merge or are eliminated
When an AI empire is conquered, goes extinct, or merges with another, the engine recalculates diplomatic relations and trade routes for the entire galaxy, causing a noticeable one-off hitch regardless of graphics power.
Performance degradation after hundreds of hours on the same save
Some players report that saves loaded and reloaded many times over hundreds of hours accumulate some overhead in the save file, also extending load times on top of turn lag.
Estado: Partially mitigated in recent save-optimization patches, though the underlying issue (single-thread calculation) persists
6. Frequently asked questions
Why does Stellaris get slower and slower the more the game progresses?▾
Does buying a better GPU help Stellaris run smoother in the late game?▾
What can I do to reduce turn lag in advanced games?▾
Do Stellaris's graphics settings affect late-game simulation lag?▾
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Calculate FPS for Stellaris →Calculations based on consensus of technical sources and our own FPS model. More about our methodology →