Estimate Microsoft Flight Simulator download time, identify package or network bottlenecks, and fix slow downloads without a full reinstall.
Microsoft Flight Simulator can take from under an hour to many hours to download; there is no fixed time. The total depends on the version and installed content, your sustained connection speed, server load, and how quickly the drive can unpack and verify packages. Brief speed drops during package processing are normal.
How long should Microsoft Flight Simulator take to download?
The most useful estimate comes from the remaining download size shown by the installer, not the initial launcher download. Editions, updates and optional aircraft or scenery packages can all change the total.
For a rough theoretical minimum, use:
hours ≈ (download size in GB × 8,000) ÷ (connection speed in Mbps × 3,600)
| Connection speed | Ideal time per 100 GB |
|---|---|
| 25 Mbps | About 8 hours 53 minutes |
| 50 Mbps | About 4 hours 27 minutes |
| 100 Mbps | About 2 hours 13 minutes |
| 250 Mbps | About 53 minutes |
| 500 Mbps | About 27 minutes |
Those figures assume a perfect, uninterrupted transfer. Microsoft Flight Simulator usually takes longer because it downloads, decompresses, writes and verifies packages during installation. A 100 Mbps connection also means a theoretical maximum of about 12.5 MB/s: Mbps and MB/s are not the same unit.
Why is the Microsoft Flight Simulator download so slow?
The installer is handling thousands of package files rather than copying one continuous archive, so its displayed network speed can rise, fall or briefly reach zero.
- Package processing: The simulator may stop downloading while it decompresses or verifies the package already received. High disk activity with little network activity usually means it is still working.
- Two-stage installation: On PC, particularly with Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020, the initial platform download may install only the launcher or core files. The much larger mandatory package download then begins inside the simulator.
- Slow storage: A hard drive, heavily used external drive or nearly full SSD can hold up extraction and verification even when the internet connection is fast.
- Server load and routing: Microsoft’s content servers may not deliver data at the full rate supported by your connection. If other large transfers are fast but MSFS alone is slow, this is a likely cause.
- Local competition: Streaming video, cloud backups, operating-system updates and downloads on other devices all reduce the bandwidth available to the simulator.
- Network interference: Weak Wi-Fi, packet loss, a VPN, proxy, metered connection or router bandwidth rule can cut transfer speed or repeatedly interrupt packages.
- Security scanning: Real-time security software may inspect each package as it is written. Do not disable protection globally; check for blocked simulator or launcher activity instead.
Do Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 and 2024 download the same way?
No. Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 generally installs more of its package content locally, which can make the initial installation and major updates lengthy. Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 uses a smaller local core and streams much of its content, although mandatory files, optional packages and cache data still require downloads.
This means a short MSFS 2024 installation does not represent all the data the simulator may use later. It can continue consuming bandwidth while loading aircraft, scenery and world data.
Is the download merely slow, or has it become stuck?
A fluctuating transfer is normal; repeated failure at the same package or complete inactivity is not.
| What you see | Likely explanation |
|---|---|
| Zero network speed but active disk usage | The installer is probably unpacking or verifying files. |
| Percentage pauses but the package name changes later | Normal processing; package sizes differ greatly. |
| The same package repeatedly restarts | An incomplete package, storage problem or connection interruption is likely. |
| No network or disk activity and no progress | The installer may have stalled. |
| Permanent “Checking for Updates” screen | This is an update-check or authentication fault rather than a slow package transfer. |
If it never passes the update check, use our safe checks for an MSFS 2020 update screen that will not progress. Repeated package failures or installation loops need the separate Microsoft Flight Simulator update-error fixes.
How can you speed up the download safely?
- Confirm that work is still happening. Check the remaining data, current package name, network transfer and disk activity. If the disk is busy, allow the package to finish rather than repeatedly closing the simulator.
- Stop competing traffic. Pause other game downloads, cloud synchronisation, video streaming and large transfers on the same network.
- Use a stable connection. Wired Ethernet is preferable. If Wi-Fi is unavoidable, move closer to the router and avoid a congested or weak signal.
- Remove avoidable restrictions. Disconnect an unnecessary VPN or proxy and check that the device or router is not enforcing a data cap or bandwidth limit.
- Check the installation drive. Keep ample temporary space available because compressed packages need room to unpack. Our storage and free-space guidance for Microsoft Flight Simulator explains why the final installed size is not the only figure that matters.
- Restart once, not repeatedly. Record the failing package if one is shown, close the simulator and launcher properly, restart the device, then resume using the same package location. Do not delete the
Officialor main Packages folder unless a specific repair procedure requires it; that mistake can trigger a complete re-download. - Retry later when only MSFS is affected. If the connection performs normally elsewhere and there is no package error, server congestion or routing is probably outside your device. Reinstalling or changing installation paths will not solve that.
What if the download finishes but the simulator remains slow?
Once all packages are installed, long startup times are a separate loading problem involving add-ons, package scanning, cache rebuilding or drive performance. Use our guide to diagnose slow MSFS 2020 loading after installation rather than downloading everything again.