Should I upgrade my CPU, GPU or RAM for flight sims?

Upgrade the component with the longest measured frame time: the CPU when the main thread is slower, the GPU when GPU time is slower, and RAM only when memory pressure causes paging or crashes. This rule applies to Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 and MSFS 2020; requirements alone do not reveal the bottleneck.

This is general PC flight-simulator advice covering Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 and 2020, X-Plane, DCS, Prepar3D and FSX. Aircraft complexity, airport density, traffic, add-ons, resolution, weather and cockpit view can move the bottleneck during the same flight.

MSFS 2024 PC specs: minimum, recommended and ideal

Microsoft publishes the following PC specification tiers for Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024. These remain the baseline requirements through Sim Update 5, released in April 2026.

The named AMD and Intel parts are Microsoft’s tier examples, not promises that every listed processor or graphics card will perform identically. The 50 GB figure also excludes sensible extra space for caches, locally stored packages and add-ons; an SSD is strongly preferable even where storage type is not shown as a separate tier.

Meeting a tier does not guarantee smooth performance at 4K, in VR, at a busy international hub or in a complex airliner with heavy AI traffic. The requirements do not specify a guaranteed frame rate, resolution or graphics preset. Even the ideal tier can become main-thread limited in a demanding airport scenario, while a recommended PC can be GPU-limited by 4K, high render scaling or VR.

Internet bandwidth matters because MSFS 2024 relies heavily on streamed content. An unstable connection, high latency or saturated home network can produce delayed scenery and pauses that resemble a hardware problem. MSFS 2024 is also available on Xbox Series X|S and, since 8 December 2025, PS5 and PS5 Pro, but their CPU, GPU and memory cannot be upgraded separately.

Is Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 CPU or GPU intensive?

Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 is a mixed workload: dense airports, AI traffic and complex aircraft often pressure the CPU’s main thread, while high resolution, render scaling, demanding clouds and VR put more pressure on the GPU.

• CPU or main-thread pressure: most visible at detailed hubs, close to the ground, with high Terrain Level of Detail, high Objects Level of Detail, busy traffic and sophisticated avionics or aircraft systems.
• GPU pressure: increases at 1440p, ultrawide and 4K resolutions, in VR, with high render scaling, volumetric clouds, shadows, reflections, ambient occlusion and anti-aliasing.
• VRAM pressure: can cause severe hitching, delayed textures or sudden quality reductions when high-resolution assets exceed dedicated graphics memory.
• System RAM pressure: causes paging, long pauses and possible crashes when the simulator, aircraft, scenery and background applications exceed available physical memory.
• Streaming or storage pressure: can interrupt otherwise healthy CPU and GPU frame times while scenery or aircraft data is being delivered.

Low total CPU utilisation does not rule out a CPU bottleneck. One critical simulation or rendering thread can be saturated while the other cores remain partly idle. Likewise, low GPU utilisation may simply mean that the graphics card is waiting for the main thread, V-Sync or a frame-rate cap.

How do I tell whether the CPU, GPU or RAM is the bottleneck?

Compare main-thread and GPU frame times in one repeatable flight, then change one class of settings at a time.

1. Create a repeatable test. Use the same aircraft, airport, runway position, weather, traffic and cockpit view. Test the kind of flying that performs badly rather than an empty external view over open countryside.
2. Expose the native bottleneck. Temporarily disable V-Sync, frame-rate caps, dynamic resolution or dynamic settings, and frame generation. Frame generation can raise the displayed FPS without reducing the main thread’s work or improving control response by the same proportion.
3. Open the simulator’s performance display. In MSFS 2020, enable Developer Mode in the Developers section of General Options and select Display FPS from the developer toolbar. In MSFS 2024, enable Developer Mode through its Advanced Options and use the developer toolbar’s FPS display. Read the main-thread and GPU times rather than relying only on the FPS number.
4. Compare frame times. The side taking longer to produce a native frame is the active limit. For reference, 16.7 ms is about 60 FPS, 20 ms is about 50 FPS and 33.3 ms is about 30 FPS before caps and frame-generation output.
5. Run the GPU test. Reduce output resolution or Render Scaling substantially, such as from 100 to 70, while leaving traffic and LOD settings unchanged. A clear, repeatable improvement points to a GPU limit; little change means the graphics card was probably waiting for the CPU or another resource.
6. Run the CPU test. Restore the normal resolution, then reduce Terrain Level of Detail, Objects Level of Detail, AI traffic, airport activity and cockpit display refresh demands. A meaningful improvement with little change in GPU settings indicates a main-thread limit.
7. Check RAM and VRAM separately. Use Windows memory monitoring to inspect available physical memory, committed memory and page-file activity. Watch dedicated GPU memory separately. Page-file use by itself is normal; the warning sign is paging or hard-fault activity that coincides with stutters.
8. Check delivery problems. If neither CPU nor GPU frame time explains the pause, watch storage and network activity. Repeated scenery-loading delays, an overfilled drive, cache trouble or a specific add-on should be investigated before replacing hardware.

Which MSFS 2024 and MSFS 2020 settings should I lower?

Lower CPU-heavy settings for a main-thread limit and graphics-heavy settings for a GPU limit; reducing an entire preset at once hides which change actually helped.

After each change, return to the same cockpit view and wait for temporary loading or shader activity to settle. Record native frame time as well as FPS. A successful CPU-side change may increase GPU utilisation because the processor can now submit frames faster; that is normal.

If the diagnosis remains ambiguous, use our full CPU, GPU, VRAM, RAM and scenery-delivery bottleneck workflow. For this simulator specifically, our MSFS 2024 RAM-stutter, streaming and frame-time checks cover the follow-up tests in greater detail.

Will adding more RAM improve flight simulator FPS?

More RAM usually fixes capacity-related stutters, paging and crashes; it rarely raises average FPS when the existing capacity is already sufficient.

MSFS 2024 lists 16 GB as its minimum, 32 GB as recommended and 64 GB as ideal. That does not mean every 32 GB PC benefits from 64 GB. Upgrade when available physical memory repeatedly runs low, committed memory approaches the system limit, page-file activity aligns with frame-time spikes, or complex flights produce low-memory warnings and crashes.

Keep the Windows page file enabled. Disabling it does not create more RAM and can turn manageable memory pressure into a crash. Correct dual-channel operation and appropriate memory speed can help a CPU-limited system modestly, but capacity, compatibility and stability come first.

VRAM is a different resource. Adding system RAM does not convert it into fast dedicated graphics memory, even though Windows may report shared GPU memory. If lowering textures, resolution or render scale fixes hitching while dedicated VRAM is full, the graphics card is the relevant upgrade.

MSFS 2024 PC aufrüsten: what should I upgrade first?

For readers looking to aufrüsten, or upgrade, an MSFS 2024 PC, first separate a machine that falls below the minimum requirements from one that already meets them but has a measured bottleneck.

Upgrading an older PC to meet the minimum

• CPU below minimum: treat this as a platform decision. A suitable processor may require a different motherboard, cooler and memory rather than a simple chip swap.
• GPU below minimum: choose a DirectX 12-capable card with at least 4 GB of dedicated VRAM and performance above the published baseline. Buying an old minimum-tier card solely because its name appears in the table leaves little headroom.
• Less than 16 GB RAM: install a compatible matched kit where possible. Confirm the motherboard’s supported capacity and memory type before ordering.
• Insufficient storage: free at least 50 GB, with additional space for caches and packages. Moving from a hard drive to an SSD can reduce loading and asset-delivery pauses, although it will not cure a measured main-thread or GPU limit.
• Internet below the baseline: hardware upgrades will not solve streamed-content stalls caused by an unreliable or saturated connection.

Upgrading a PC that already meets the requirements

Resolution and workload should set the target. Our practical flight-sim PC targets for 1080p, 4K and VR help distinguish a basic requirements upgrade from a high-end build. If the GPU is the measured limit, compare resolution and memory needs using our flight-simulator GPU and VRAM guidance.

Check the dependent costs before buying. A CPU may bring a motherboard, memory and cooler with it; a larger graphics card may need more case clearance, suitable power connectors and a higher-capacity power supply. Several linked replacements can make a new platform better value than upgrading one part at a time.

Do the same upgrade rules apply to other flight simulators?

The frame-time rule applies across modern flight simulators, although each engine places pressure on different components.

Plugins and add-ons can change these patterns. If only one aircraft or location performs poorly, reproduce the flight with default content before treating it as evidence that the whole PC needs upgrading.

What should I check before buying hardware?

Rule out throttling, artificial caps, add-on faults and delivery problems before paying for a faster component.

• Check CPU and GPU temperatures, clock speeds and power behaviour under load. A replacement part will not correct an unsuitable cooler or severely restricted airflow.
• Test a default aircraft at the same airport, then a default airport with the troublesome aircraft. This separates aircraft complexity from scenery load.
• Disable add-ons in controlled groups rather than removing everything and immediately reinstalling it.
• Confirm that V-Sync, a driver cap or frame generation is not disguising the native limit.
• Leave enough free SSD space and check for background downloads, antivirus scans or cloud synchronisation during the test.
• Allow shader compilation and initial scenery loading to settle before recording frame times.
• Change one setting at a time. Comparing whole presets makes the result difficult to attribute.

Should I replace one component or buy a new flight-sim PC?

Replace one component when the bottleneck is clear and the rest of the system can support a worthwhile upgrade; replace the platform when several interdependent parts are below target.

A CPU upgrade that also requires a motherboard, cooler and memory is no longer a simple CPU purchase. The same applies when a GPU needs a new power supply and case. Compare the complete cost, not just the headline price of the bottlenecked component.

The reliable decision remains simple: buy a CPU for a measured main-thread limit, a GPU for a measured graphics or VRAM limit, and RAM for demonstrated capacity pressure. Requirements establish whether the simulator can run; frame times establish what should be upgraded.