Guides/Windows
Overlays and background apps that cause stutter
Background apps rarely lower your average frame rate much. What they cause are short freezes: an app that wakes up, polls hardware or draws over the game. Here's how to find the one that does it.
Quick answerClose overlays (Discord, Steam, NVIDIA, AMD, recording tools) and hardware monitoring and RGB tools one at a time, and replay the same scene after each. The one that makes the freezes go away is the cause.
The usual suspects#
- Overlays: Discord, Steam, the NVIDIA App or AMD Software overlays, Xbox Game Bar. Each one draws on top of the game. One is usually fine; three at once is asking for trouble.
- Hardware monitoring and RGB tools: programs that read sensors or control lighting can poll the hardware in a way that blocks the system for a moment. Several at once make it worse.
- Browsers playing video: a video on a second monitor uses the graphics card. Hardware acceleration in the browser is usually fine, but it can cause hitches on some setups.
- Cloud sync and updaters: OneDrive, game launchers and updaters downloading in the background compete for the disk and network.
How to find the one#
- Pick a scene where the freezes happen reliably.
- Close one app completely (also from the notification area), then play the scene again.
- When the freezes stop, you've found it. Turn the others back on.
Startup apps: Task Manager → Startup apps lists everything that starts with Windows and how much it slows the start. Disable what you don't need.
Questions#
Does the Discord overlay lower FPS?
A little on some PCs, and it can cause hitches in some games. If you don't use it, turn it off in Discord's settings under Game Overlay.
Do RGB programs cause stutter?
Some do, especially several at once, because they poll the hardware regularly. Test by closing them completely.
Check it automatically
Get Frametide →Frametide lists the common overlays with where to switch each one off, and can switch hardware acceleration in Chrome and Edge for you. Frametide measures FPS, 1% and 0.1% lows and stutters per minute in your own game with PresentMon, before and after a change, so you don't have to guess (Premium).