Best The Last of Us Part 2 Settings for FPS and Performance

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The fastest way to boost FPS in The Last of Us Part 2 is to match Texture Quality to your VRAM, set DLSS or FSR to Quality, drop Shadows and Ambient Occlusion to High, and let the shader build finish before you play. This is a demanding, VRAM-hungry PC port, so managing video memory recovers more real-world smoothness than chasing any single graphics slider. This guide covers the best graphics, VRAM, and Windows settings for any PC.

The goal is even frame times as you move through a detailed, streaming level — not maxed textures that fill your VRAM and hitch every time a new area loads.

Best The Last of Us Part 2 settings

Set these in Options → Display and Options → Graphics:

SettingRecommended value
Display ModeFullscreen
V-SyncOff
Frame Rate CapCap slightly below refresh
UpscalingDLSS / FSR / XeSS — Quality
Texture QualityMatch VRAM (High 12GB+, Medium 8GB)
Shadow QualityHigh
Ambient OcclusionHigh
ReflectionsMedium–High
Depth of FieldMedium
Bounced LightingHigh
Volumetric EffectsMedium
Anisotropic Filtering8x–16x (cheap)
Motion BlurOff
Film GrainOff
Chromatic AberrationOff

The most expensive settings are Texture Quality (via VRAM), Shadows, Reflections, and the render resolution you set through upscaling — lower these first for the biggest FPS gain with the least visual loss.

Manage VRAM first

The Last of Us Part 2 is a VRAM-bound port. Its graphics menu shows a live memory estimate — keep that number a few hundred MB below your card’s total, because a full buffer causes texture pop-in and hitching rather than a clean FPS drop.

  • 8 GB cards: Texture Quality Medium, upscaling Quality, 1080p.
  • 12 GB cards: Texture Quality High, upscaling Quality, 1440p.
  • 16 GB cards: Texture Quality max, 4K with Quality upscaling.

Textures are nearly free on frame rate when they fit in VRAM but crippling when they don’t — so size them to your card before touching anything else.

Display and frame pacing first

These give the biggest improvement instantly:

  1. Use Fullscreen for the lowest input delay.
  2. Turn V-Sync off to avoid added latency — cap your FPS instead.
  3. Cap your frame rate for even frame times (see the caps below).
  4. Turn Motion Blur, Film Grain, and Chromatic Aberration off for a cleaner, more responsive image.

Good FPS cap starting points

  • 60 FPS for 60 Hz
  • 117 FPS for 120 Hz
  • 141 FPS for 144 Hz

A stable cap below your refresh keeps frame times even when the game streams a new area. For the reasoning, see How to Cap Your FPS Correctly.

Let the shaders build

Always let the initial shader compilation finish before playing, and never skip it. That step precompiles the effects the game uses so they don’t have to compile mid-scene, which is what causes the worst first-time hitching. The build runs again after a GPU driver update or a game patch, so if stutter returns after either, let it complete once more before judging performance.

Upscaling is your biggest FPS lever

The Last of Us Part 2 is built to run with upscaling — treat DLSS/FSR as a core setting, not a last resort.

  • Start with DLSS/FSR/XeSS on Quality for a large FPS boost with minimal clarity loss.
  • Drop to Balanced at 1080p only if Quality still isn’t enough.
  • Frame generation can raise smoothness on capable cards, but enable it only once your base frame rate is around 50–60 FPS, since it adds latency below that.

For the full breakdown of which upscaler to pick, see DLSS vs FSR vs XeSS for Gaming.

Best settings by goal

Smoother 1080p on a weaker PC

  • Texture Quality Medium, Shadows and Reflections Medium
  • FSR/DLSS Balanced on
  • sensible FPS cap, frame generation only if your base is stable

Cleaner high-refresh setup

  • DLSS/FSR Quality with Textures High and Shadows High
  • prioritize a stable, sustainable cap over maxed reflections

Windows-side checks worth doing

  1. Install the game on an NVMe SSD — it streams high-resolution assets constantly, and slow storage causes traversal hitching and long loads.
  2. Enable XMP/EXPO so your RAM runs at rated speed. See How to Enable XMP or EXPO for Gaming.
  3. Keep 15–20% free space on the drive and don’t run downloads while playing.
  4. Use the correct discrete GPU on laptops and set a high-performance power mode.
  5. Consider disabling VBS for extra CPU headroom.

For deeper system tuning, use How to Minimize Input Delay for Competitive Gaming and The Ultimate Guide to Timer Resolution for Gaming + Tier1Suite.

Build your The Last of Us cluster

The best The Last of Us Part 2 settings keep your frame rate steady while the game streams a detailed world. Match textures to your VRAM, lean on Quality upscaling, let the shaders build, install on an NVMe SSD, and cap your FPS at a rate you can hold — even frame times feel far smoother than a high number that collapses into hitching.

Frequently asked questions

What settings give the most FPS in The Last of Us Part 2?

Texture Quality, Shadows, and the render resolution (via upscaling) are the heaviest settings in The Last of Us Part 2. Because the game is VRAM-hungry, match Texture Quality to your card — High on 12 GB or more, Medium on 8 GB — then set DLSS or FSR to Quality and drop Shadows and Ambient Occlusion to High. Sizing textures to your VRAM removes the swap-in stutter that costs the most real-world smoothness, so it matters more than any single graphics slider.

How much VRAM does The Last of Us Part 2 need?

Plan for 8 GB of VRAM at 1080p on Medium-to-High textures, 12 GB at 1440p on High, and 16 GB for 4K with maxed textures. The Last of Us Part 2 shows a live VRAM meter in its graphics menu — keep the estimate a few hundred MB under your card's total, because a full VRAM buffer causes texture pop-in and hitching. If you see stutter, lower Texture Quality one step before touching anything else.

Should I use DLSS or FSR in The Last of Us Part 2?

Use DLSS on NVIDIA RTX cards for the sharpest image and FSR or XeSS on AMD, Intel, or older GPUs. Both lower the internal render resolution for a large FPS gain, and the game supports them natively. Set the upscaler to Quality at 1440p and 4K, or Balanced at 1080p if you still need frames. Enable frame generation only once your base frame rate is around 50-60 FPS, since it adds input latency below that.

Why does The Last of Us Part 2 stutter on PC?

Most The Last of Us Part 2 stutter comes from shader compilation and VRAM pressure. The game builds a shader cache on first launch, and skipping that step causes hitching the first time each effect appears. High textures also fill video memory quickly, so settings above what your VRAM holds trigger repeated swap-in stutter. Let the shader build finish and size textures to your VRAM to clear most of it.

Does The Last of Us Part 2 need an SSD?

Yes, an SSD is effectively required for smooth play. The Last of Us Part 2 streams high-resolution assets constantly as you move through levels, and a hard drive causes long loads plus in-world hitching. Install the game on an NVMe SSD with 15 to 20 percent free space, and let the initial shader build complete before playing so effects don't compile mid-scene.