Rockstars has constantly upgraded Grand Theft Auto V to keep up with modern standards, adding tons of graphics settings and visual effects. While this sounds good, players with weak PCs will find it increasingly difficult to play this game. The following instructions will help everyone have the best chance to experience GTA 5, even if the computer has low configuration.
Before starting to make these changes, players need to make sure their PC is powerful enough to at least be able to run GTA 5. Although there are ways to get weak PC to run the game, play GTA 5 in super low graphics is no longer worth it.
Minimum requirements to run GTA 5
- Processor: Intel Core 2 Quad CPU 6600 @ 2.40GHz (4CPUs) / AMD Phenom 9850 Quad-Core Processor (4CPUs) @ 2.5GHz
- Video card: NVIDIA 9800 GT 1GB / AMD HD 4870 1GB
- Memory: 4GB
- HDD capacity: 90GB
If the PC has met the above minimum requirements, everyone can start referring to the best ways to improve GTA 5 performance on low-end PCs.
Using Cheat Engine software
Cheat Engine is a free software that anyone can use to speed up the game. Players just need to download Cheat Engine and install it on their PC.
- First, launch Grand Theft Auto DRAW.
- Minimize the game and open Cheat Engine.
- Click small computer icon in the top left corner to show all the current processes going on on the PC.
- Choose a game GTA 5 and click the button Enable Speed Hack.
This is a mandatory way for slow PCs to load GTA 5. It will speed up the incoming game so that players don’t feel any lag anymore.
If people are playing GTA 5 on extremely low performance PC, set the value to somewhere between 5-8 then start playing and then reduce further as needed. The sound of the game will be broken with the speed hack, so it is best to turn off or reduce the sound of the game.
Use graphics mods
There are many different mods that can be used to reduce lag or downgrade graphics, allowing GTA 5 to run smoothly on low-end PCs. Most mods work by activating hidden graphics profiles that are locked in the release version. The result might look like this.
Most of the mods are downloadable from Gta5-mods.com, the game’s most reputable mod site. The best mods for low end PCs are HD Low End (for low end PCs), Very Low End PC Setting (for lower end PCs) and Extreme Low End PC Settings (512Mb VRAM) for the lowest possible. . After downloading these mods, everyone can play GTA 5 with PS2 graphics.
Change PC and in-game settings
Another way besides downloading Cheat Engine and mods on PC, people can change the settings on the device itself to make GTA 5 run smoothly.
Install PC to make GTA run smoothly
Before optimizing the settings in the game, everyone needs to deal with the settings of the PC. First, everyone should disable fullscreen optimization and enable high DPI settings for GTA 5 apps following the steps below.
- Go to GTA 5 folder, right click on GTA 5 app and select Properties.
- Find the option to disable full screen optimization in the Compatibility. Select it and click Change high DPI settings.
- Select Override high DPI behavior and click Ok to save it.
- Apply the same properties to GTA 5 and PlayGTAV launchers.
Furthermore, people should shut down all other applications on their PC while running Task Manager.
GTA 5 graphics settings for low profile PC
After completing the above PC settings, everyone starts GTA 5 and follows the settings below for maximum graphics performance on GTA 5.
| Ignore Suggested Limits: Off | Population Density: Low or Medium | Reflection MSAA: Off |
| Directx Version: Directx 11 | Population Variety: Low | Grass Quality: Medium |
| Resolution: 1280 × 720 | Distance Scaling: Low | Soft Shadows: Sharp |
| Aspect Ratio: Default | Texture Quality: Medium | Post FX: Normal |
| Refresh Rate: Default | Shader Quality: Medium | Motion Blur: Off |
| FXAA: On | Shadow Quality: Low | Depth of Field: Off |
| MSAA: X4 | Reflection Quality: Low | Anisotropic Filtering: Off |
| Nvidia TXAA: Off | Water Quality: Medium | Ambient Occlusion: Off |
| Vsync: Off | Particles Quality: Low | Tessellation: Off |
Advanced Graphics Settings
- Long Shadows: Off
- High-Resolution Shadows: Off
- High Detail Streaming While Flying: Off
- Extend Detail Scaling: Off
- Extend Shadows Distance: Off
- Frame Scaling Mode: Off
Furthermore, people also need to disable Screen Kill Effects and First Person Ragdoll in Display and Camera settings. And now, even with a low-performance PC, everyone can still enjoy the hit game GTA 5.
Complete optimization of GTA 5 . settings
Select Anti Aliasing settings
There are 3 Anti Aliasing options in GTA 5:
- FXAA easiest to run but tends to look unsightly and make the screen blurry.
- MSAA More demanding but offers the most visual enhancements. Higher multipliers should require more GPU work.
- TXAA is a type of AA specific to NVIDIA. It can affect performance more than FXAA.
Although players can use all 3 of these Anti Aliasing options at the same time, it is best to stick to the FXAA settings only if the PC is low on configuration. The look of the game doesn’t look good, but it should deliver decent performance.
Turn off VSync
VSync, or vertical sync, is a graphics technology that synchronizes the game’s frame rate with the gaming monitor’s refresh rate. By disabling it, the frame rate limitation will be removed, which can improve performance even better. However, if you experience tearing, re-enable Vsync to eliminate the problem
Reduce shader quality
The quality of the shader governs how detailed the distant objects will be rendered. Adjusting it low will reduce the details gamers see on the map, which is barely noticeable unless actively looking for differences.
Reduce resolution to 720p
Any increase in resolution can greatly affect performance. If you are in Full HD or 4K, try to reduce the resolution until there is a noticeable improvement in performance. After that, people can also modify GTA 5’s aspect ratio scaling system. Scale down to less than 1x to increase FPS.
Lower texture quality
Texture quality dominates the visuals of small objects and details in GTA V. By lowering it, the game’s performance will increase dramatically.
Although the image quality of the grass and water may not be good, but adjusting the texture to the lowest level, players will enjoy a smooth frame rate.
Disable MSAA mirroring
The quality of the reflection determines the sharpness and detail in the reflections around Los Santos. Overall, those are just side effects that players barely notice. Low-profile PC users to play GTA 5 are best advised to reduce or disable this setting.
Reduce population density and diversity
GTA 5 is a huge game with lots of objects, and the more objects there are on the map, the harder it is for the PC to work. Therefore, to get better FPS, reduce population density and diversity in settings.
This will reduce the number of cars and pedestrians in the world, making it a little more empty. This can also increase performance significantly, especially on older laptops or PCs.
Turn off advanced shadow settings
The advanced shadow setting (under Advanced Graphics) is another setting that can significantly affect performance when playing, especially High Resolution Shadows and Extended Shadows Distance. For better performance, keep these options as low as possible.
Without these options, the PC will not render the shadows of distant objects, thus making them a bit impractical. In addition, choosing sharp shadows and turning off long shadows also helps to increase FPS.
Reduce distance ratio
Of the settings, Extended Distance Scaling is the most demanding. Try to reduce this setting or turn it off to increase performance when playing games.
However, lowering it will increase the effect of the sudden appearance of objects on the screen. Turning off this setting greatly increases the frame rate inside cities, as there are a lot of objects to load there.
Other GTA 5 settings for low-end PCs
GTA 5’s other low-end PC settings don’t have much of an impact on the game’s performance, however, if you’re hungry for an FPS boost, lowering them all is definitely a good option.
- Particle quality governs the granularity of particle effects such as sparks and smoke, which can be set to normal.
- Tessellation Add details to trees and other objects.
- Anisotropic filtering Sharpen the textures in the environment. No noticeable difference in turning it off.