MSI Afterburner: Setup Guide, Best Settings, FPS Overlay & Fan Curve (2026)
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MSI Afterburner is the go-to free tool for monitoring and tuning almost any GPU, regardless of brand. This guide covers everything a gamer needs: live monitoring, a custom fan curve, overclocking, undervolting, and an on-screen overlay for FPS and temps.
Afterburner works on NVIDIA and AMD cards alike. It’s the Swiss-army knife of GPU tuning — and it’s free.
Install and set up
- Download MSI Afterburner from MSI’s official site (it bundles RivaTuner Statistics Server, which powers the overlay).
- Install both Afterburner and RivaTuner Statistics Server (RTSS).
- Launch Afterburner — you’ll see sliders for clocks, voltage, power, and fans.
The main controls
| Control | What it does |
|---|---|
| Core Clock | Offsets GPU clock for overclocking |
| Memory Clock | Offsets VRAM clock |
| Power Limit | Raises the power ceiling for higher boost |
| Temp Limit | Sets the thermal throttle point |
| Fan Speed | Manual or custom curve |
| Voltage (Ctrl+F) | Curve editor for undervolting |
Set up the on-screen overlay (FPS + temps)
The overlay is one of Afterburner’s best features:
- Open Settings → Monitoring.
- Tick the stats you want (GPU temp, GPU usage, Framerate, CPU temp, RAM usage) and enable “Show in On-Screen Display” for each.
- Go to Settings → On-Screen Display and set a hotkey to toggle it.
- In-game, press the hotkey to see live FPS, temps, and usage — essential for diagnosing stutter and bottlenecks.
Build a custom fan curve
- Open Settings → Fan and enable user-defined software automatic fan control.
- Drag the curve so fans ramp earlier as temps rise — a cooler card boosts higher.
- Balance noise vs cooling to taste, then Apply.
Overclock safely
- Raise Power Limit to max first.
- Add small Core Clock offsets (e.g. +15 MHz steps), testing each with a benchmark.
- Then tune Memory Clock the same way.
- Back off when you see artifacts or crashes. Full method: Best GPU Overclock Guide for Gaming.
Undervolt with the curve editor
Press Ctrl + F to open the voltage/frequency curve and follow How to Undervolt Your GPU for cooler, quieter, more stable performance.
Save profiles and apply at startup
- Click the save icon and store your tuned settings to a profile slot.
- Enable “Apply overclocking at system startup” so it loads automatically.
Troubleshooting and safety
- Afterburner not detecting your GPU, or the overlay won’t show? Work through MSI Afterburner not working — fixes for no detection & overlay.
- Wondering if it’s still safe and maintained? See Is MSI Afterburner safe & still updated in 2026?.
- Just want a lighter FPS counter? Compare all five in how to show an FPS overlay in any game.
Related guides
- MSI Afterburner Not Working — Fixes
- Is MSI Afterburner Safe & Still Updated in 2026?
- RivaTuner Statistics Server (RTSS) Guide
- How to Undervolt Your GPU
- Best GPU Overclock Guide for Gaming
- How to Check for a CPU or GPU Bottleneck
MSI Afterburner does it all: monitor your GPU, run an FPS/temps overlay, set a fan curve, overclock, and undervolt — for free, on any card. Set up the overlay first, then tune clocks and voltage and save a startup profile.
Frequently asked questions
What are the best MSI Afterburner settings?
For monitoring: enable Framerate, Frametime (as a graph), GPU/CPU usage and temps under Settings → Monitoring, and Show in On-Screen Display for each. For tuning: raise Power Limit to max, add small Core Clock offsets tested with a benchmark, then Memory Clock, and use the Ctrl+F curve editor to undervolt for cooler, quieter, stable performance. Save it to a profile and enable 'Apply overclocking at system startup.'
Is MSI Afterburner safe to use in 2026?
Yes. MSI Afterburner is a long-established, free tool that's safe on NVIDIA and AMD cards when downloaded from MSI's official site. Overclocking carries the usual small risk, but the monitoring, fan-curve, and undervolt features are low-risk. For the full breakdown of safety and its update status, see is MSI Afterburner safe.
Does MSI Afterburner still work on Windows 11 24H2?
Yes, the current build works on Windows 11, including 24H2, though development has slowed and some setups hit detection or overlay issues after major updates. If Afterburner won't detect your GPU or the overlay stops showing, the fixes are in our MSI Afterburner not working guide.
Why is MSI Afterburner not detecting my GPU?
The usual causes are a missing or blocked RivaTuner Statistics Server, an outdated Afterburner build after a Windows update, Hardware-Accelerated GPU Scheduling conflicts, or another overlay app grabbing the hook first. Reinstalling the latest Afterburner + RTSS as administrator resolves most cases — see the full checklist in MSI Afterburner not working.