How do I enable and configure HDR10 in MSFS 2024?

To enable HDR10 in Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024, switch on HDR for the display in Windows before launching the simulator, then set HDR10 to On in its graphics options. Calibrate the display in Windows first; Xbox Series X|S and PS5 use their console-level HDR calibration instead.

How to enable HDR10 on PC

MSFS 2024 can enter native HDR mode only when Windows and the complete display connection report HDR support before the simulator starts.

1. Check the display connection. Windows must identify the selected monitor or television as HDR-capable. If it does not, check the display’s input mode, GPU port, cable and any receiver, adaptor or dock between them. A direct GPU-to-display connection is best for diagnosis.
2. Turn on Windows HDR. Open Settings > System > Display, select the screen used for MSFS, open its HDR controls and enable Use HDR. With multiple monitors, make sure you have selected the correct one.
3. Calibrate the display. Use Windows’ HDR calibration facility where available. Set the black point, peak luminance and ordinary content brightness using its patterns, then keep the monitor in the same HDR picture mode.
4. Launch MSFS 2024. Open the simulator’s general graphics settings, find HDR10, set it to On and apply the change. If Windows HDR was enabled while the simulator was already running, close and reopen MSFS.
5. Confirm the HDR signal. Many displays show an HDR notification or status entry when the mode changes. Check a bright daytime scene with cockpit shadows and detailed white clouds; HDR should expand highlight and shadow range rather than simply make every colour brighter.

Windows Auto HDR is not a substitute for native HDR10. Auto HDR converts SDR games, while MSFS 2024 can produce its own HDR output. Leave Auto HDR off when diagnosing incorrect brightness or colour.

What are the best HDR10 settings for MSFS 2024?

There are no universal HDR10 values because peak brightness, black level and tone mapping vary between displays. Copying another simmer’s luminance numbers is a common cause of clipped clouds and crushed cockpit shadows.

Not every MSFS 2024 platform or build exposes separate black, peak and paper-white controls. When they are absent, use the system calibration and the display’s HDR mode rather than trying to compensate with unrelated gamma or exposure controls.

HDR does not sharpen textures or replace anti-aliasing, resolution and cloud-quality adjustments. Our guide to balancing MSFS image quality and frame rate covers those settings separately.

The rendering cost of HDR10 is normally small. However, insufficient connection bandwidth at high resolution and refresh rates can force a lower refresh rate or chroma subsampling, which may soften cockpit lettering. Use a display port and cable rated for the selected output mode, or reduce refresh rate rather than lowering unrelated in-sim graphics settings.

How do I enable HDR10 on Xbox Series X|S and PS5?

On consoles, enable and calibrate HDR at system level first; MSFS 2024 then uses the supported HDR output, and it may not show the same HDR switch as the PC version.

• Xbox Series X|S: Open Settings > General > TV & display options, enable Allow HDR10 under the video modes and run Calibrate HDR for games. Confirm that the console reports HDR10 support at the chosen resolution and refresh rate. If Dolby Vision for gaming is active, the console may use that format instead; disable it temporarily only when specifically testing HDR10.
• PS5 and PS5 Pro: Open Settings > Screen and Video > Video Output, set HDR to On When Supported, then run Adjust HDR. Complete this before launching Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024.

Why is the MSFS 2024 HDR10 option missing or greyed out?

A missing or unavailable HDR10 option usually means the operating system did not expose an active HDR display when MSFS started.

• Enable HDR before launch. Close MSFS, turn on Windows HDR and restart the simulator.
• Check the selected monitor. Windows can have HDR enabled on one screen but launch MSFS on another. Cloning an HDR display to an SDR screen can also prevent a valid HDR mode.
• Inspect the signal chain. A receiver, dock, adaptor, cable or non-enhanced television input may block the HDR capability information. Test a direct connection.
• Check for a display handshake. If Windows itself does not report HDR support, changing MSFS settings cannot fix the problem.
• Repair settings that revert. If HDR is detected but the switch will not stay enabled, first restore the simulator’s graphics settings safely. Advanced PC users can also check where UserCfg.opt is stored and what it controls when graphics choices repeatedly fail to save.

Why does HDR look washed out, too dark or overbright?

Incorrect HDR usually comes from mismatched calibration, colour range or display tone mapping rather than the MSFS scenery itself.

• Grey blacks and flat colour: check that the GPU’s RGB range and the television’s black-level setting agree. Automatic is generally safest; forcing Full at one end and Limited at the other raises or crushes blacks.
• Featureless white clouds: recalibrate peak luminance. Also avoid combining aggressive display-level dynamic tone mapping with a calibration created for a static or HGiG-style mode.
• An excessively dark cockpit: raise paper-white brightness modestly if that control is available. Do not raise the black point, as that turns shadows grey.
• Oversaturated scenery: return the display to an accurate HDR or game picture preset and disable unrelated vivid-colour enhancements.
• Washed-out screenshots or recordings: HDR material viewed through an SDR capture or image workflow needs tone mapping. The live simulator output may be correct even when the saved image is not.
• No HDR notification from the display: treat this as an output or handshake problem, even if the in-sim switch says HDR10 is enabled.