Show the FPS counter in MSFS 2024 and 2020, read MainThread and GPU limits, and fix a missing performance overlay.
On PC, enable Developer Mode in Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 or 2020, then use the Developer menu bar to turn on Display FPS. The on-screen panel shows frame rate, frame time and the active bottleneck. The built-in Developer Mode counter is not available in the standard console versions.
Show the FPS counter in MSFS 2024
In Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 on PC, the counter is switched on from the Developer Mode menu.
- Open Advanced Options. From Settings, enter Advanced Options and set Developer Mode to On.
- Return to the simulator. A Developer menu bar should appear along the top of the screen.
- Open the FPS panel. Select Debug, then Display FPS.
The panel is most useful after loading into an aircraft rather than while sitting in the main menu. To remove it, select Display FPS again. Disable Developer Mode when finished if you also want to remove the top menu bar.
Show the FPS counter in MSFS 2020
In Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020, Developer Mode is enabled through General Options.
- Open the developer settings. Go to Options, General Options, then Developers.
- Enable Developer Mode. Set it to On and apply the change.
- Display the counter. On the Developer menu bar at the top, choose Options, then Display FPS.
There is no default one-key shortcut for the native Developer Mode panel. Leaving Developer Mode enabled can also affect normal achievement, logbook or activity tracking, so we recommend switching it off after testing.
Why is the MSFS FPS counter not showing?
The usual reason is that Developer Mode was not applied properly or the simulator is running on a console.
- No Developer menu bar: confirm Developer Mode is On, apply the setting and return to the flight. If necessary, reload the flight after enabling it.
- No useful reading in the menus: load into an aircraft and wait for the scene to finish settling. Menu frame rates do not represent cockpit performance.
- Xbox or PlayStation: the built-in Developer Mode FPS display is a PC feature. Standard Xbox Series X|S and PlayStation 5 builds do not expose it.
- The panel disappears: check that Display FPS remains selected and that another full-screen panel has not covered the developer overlay.
What do MainThread and GPU mean on the FPS display?
The Developer Mode panel identifies which part of the system is taking longest to prepare each frame, making it more useful than a simple FPS number.
| Reading | What it means | What to investigate |
|---|---|---|
| FPS | Frames produced each second | Judge it alongside frame time and smoothness, not in isolation |
| Frame time | Time required to produce a frame | Lower and steadier is better; roughly 16.7 ms equals 60 FPS and 33.3 ms equals 30 FPS |
| Limited by MainThread | The main CPU simulation thread is the bottleneck | Traffic, Terrain Level of Detail, complex airports and glass-cockpit workload |
| Limited by GPU | The graphics card is the bottleneck | Resolution, render scaling, clouds, shadows and other graphics settings |
A brief change between MainThread and GPU is normal. Diagnose a sustained limit while using the same aircraft, location and camera view. If the panel consistently reports a CPU bottleneck, follow our advice for reducing a MainThread limitation in MSFS 2024. For a GPU limit, start with the settings that have the greatest graphics and frame-rate impact.
For a broader tuning order covering frame time, resolution scaling and traffic, see our MSFS 2024 performance troubleshooting process.
Can I show FPS without Developer Mode?
Yes, on PC you can use a platform or graphics-driver performance overlay, but it will usually show only FPS rather than MSFS bottleneck data.
Windows users can press Win+G, open the Performance widget and pin its FPS reading over the simulator. The first use may require permission and a restart. A Steam FPS overlay can also provide a small counter when running the Steam edition.
Console output information reported by a television is not a dependable substitute. It may show the display refresh rate or VRR signal rather than the simulator's true rendered frame rate.
Why do two FPS counters disagree?
Different counters can measure frames at different points in the rendering chain. With frame generation enabled, one overlay may count generated or presented frames while the Developer Mode panel focuses on the simulator's rendered workload. Sampling intervals and rounding also cause small differences, so use one counter consistently when comparing settings.