How To Fix Random FPS Drops on Gaming Laptop?

Gaming laptops are an excellent incentive if you are a gamer and have to travel a lot. 

Gaming laptops are portable with high-performing hardware. However, these laptops may develop issues that disrupt your gaming experience. One of the common issues is the FPS drop during gaming. 

FPS depends on many factors, including hardware and software. A random or sudden FPS drop on your gaming laptop indicates that one of these might be at fault. Here, we will discuss a detailed review of why FPS is dropping on gaming laptops and how quickly you can fix this issue. 

How To Fix Random FPS Drops on Gaming Laptop?

The main reasons include outdated GPU drivers, unnecessary background apps, GPU-intensive settings, the laptop’s battery, low CPU or GPU power settings, dusty laptop fans and cooling systems, and corrupted game or Windows files. All these software and hardware issues may lead to random FPS drops.

FPS measures how many frames are displayed on the screen per second. The higher the frame rate, the smoother and more responsive the game. Lower FPS can cause the game to feel sluggish and unresponsive, making it difficult to play and compete. Here are some methods to fix random FPS drops on gaming laptops.

Update Graphics Drivers

The first thing you have to look for is the graphics driver. Drivers are the components that enable the hardware to communicate with the software. Internal graphics cards are installed on most gaming laptops for maximum gaming performance. These graphics cards have drivers you need to install after the operating system. 

So, if you are using an outdated driver for your GPU, you will face this random FPS drop on your gaming laptop. Most GPU manufacturers, like NVIDIA, give you notifications if new drivers are available. You can download and install it using the NVIDIA control panel.

But sometimes, you must manually visit the manufacturer’s website to download and install the drivers. You can also try the device manager method. You must open the task manager and go to the “Display” tab. Here, click on your graphics driver and then click on update. Follow the on-screen instructions and install drivers automatically over the internet.

Close Unnecessary Background Apps

Unnecessary apps in the background consume data and resources. The resources that you need to run games and apps. By closing the unnecessary background apps, you can free up valuable system resources that your game needs to run smoothly. It should help reduce random FPS drops and improve gaming performance. 

To close unnecessary background apps, press “Ctrl+Shift+ESC” to open the task manager. Once opened, click on the unnecessary application and press “End Task.” After doing this, you will feel a significant increase in your FPS.

Turn Off Graphic Intensive settings

There are several graphics-intensive settings like shadow, anti-analyzing, and texture details. If your card is old and still in use, try decreasing these settings to low. In games, shadow, anti-analyzing, and texture settings give you a realistic view. 

But these settings are graphic-intensive settings. It means these settings require more graphics than others while playing the game. You can reduce these settings from the game settings to avoid this random FPS drop issue. 

Lower FPS settings

Lowering the FPS limit in a game can help to reduce or even eliminate the random FPS drop issue by placing the limit on the maximum number of frames in the game that will try to render each second. It can help to stabilize the game’s performance by reducing the strain on the computer’s CPU and GPU. 

Both these components are sometimes overwhelmed by the demands of running a high-performance game. FPS fluctuations cause the game to appear laggy and stuttery, which can be visually distracting and harder to play. It is also important to note that lowering FPS settings may reduce overall game performance.

Try Replacing Laptop Battery

A laptop battery provides power to the laptop when it is not plugged in. If the battery is old or damaged, it may not be able to deliver the right amount of power to the components. This power shortage may result in a random FPS drop on your gaming laptop. 

So, always ensure that you are using a fault-free battery. Sometimes, your battery health is reduced to 10%, causing such issues. If your battery is incompatible or causes charging issues, you should replace it immediately with a new one. It will also resolve your random FPS issue. 

Test CPU GPU Power

CPU and GPU require a sufficient amount of Power to perform tasks. Testing the CPU and GPU power can help identify the root cause of random FPS drops in a game or application. By testing the CPU and GPU power, you can ensure that your system meets the minimum requirements of the game or application. If your system falls short, upgrading your hardware may be necessary to eliminate the FPS drop issue.

Additionally, testing can help identify other issues, such as overheating or outdated drivers. Overheating can cause your CPU or GPU to throttle, leading to reduced performance and FPS drops. Updating your drivers can also improve performance and resolve compatibility issues with the game or application. You can use several applications for this purpose, like CPU-Z and HW-Monitor.

Change Power Management Settings

Changing power management settings on a gaming laptop can eliminate random FPS drops because it can affect the performance of the CPU and GPU. When a gaming laptop is set to power-saver mode, the CPU and GPU will throttle down to conserve power, resulting in lower clock speeds and less performance. 

It can cause huge FPS differences and drops during gameplay because the laptop cannot keep up with the demands of the game. On the other hand, setting the laptop to high-performance settings will ensure that your laptop is getting enough power to meet all components. These components include the CPU and GPU. To change the power settings, simply left-click on the battery sign of your laptop and drag the performance bat to “Best performance.” 

Clean Your Laptop Cooling System

Cleaning your laptop’s cooling system, including the fans, will help you eliminate the FPS issue, preventing your system from overheating. When your laptop overheats, it can cause your CPU and GPU to throttle, resulting in FPS drops and performance issues. 

Over time, dust and debris can accumulate in fans and other parts of your laptop cooling system. It can restrict the proper airflow in the laptop and make it harder for it to dissipate heat, leading to higher temperatures and frequent FPS drops. 

Cleaning your laptop’s cooling system will remove the dust and debris clogging up the system and improve airflow. It can help to lower your laptop’s temperature and prevent the component from throttling. 

Upgrade Hardware

Lastly, if you still get the same amount of FPS even after trying the above solutions, the last option is upgrading your hardware. Upgrading the hardware, including the CPU, GPU, and RAM, can eliminate the FPS drop issue on your gaming laptop. Each component has its role and needs to be upgraded to produce a stable output. 

Can You Get High FPS On A Gaming Laptop?

Gaming laptops have a limit of FPS as they have a limited monitor hertz. Note that not all gaming laptops are created equal. Some may have superior hardware specifications, which can significantly impact your FPS. So, if you have a high-end gaming laptop, you will get high FPS like most gaming PCs.

For instance, a laptop with a powerful graphics card and a high-refresh-rate display can typically achieve higher FPS than one with a weaker graphics card and a lower-refresh-rate display.

Another variable that can affect FPS is the game being played. Some games are more demanding than others, so a less powerful laptop may not be able to achieve a high FPS. In addition, some games may be optimized for specific hardware configurations, which can also impact the FPS you can achieve.

Finally, it’s important to consider the game settings you’re using. Higher graphics settings generally result in lower FPS, whereas lower settings can help you achieve a higher frame rate. If you are willing to sacrifice some visual quality for a more fluid gameplay experience, you may be able to achieve a higher FPS.

How Many FPS Can You Get On Gaming Laptop?

After optimization and picking the right gaming laptop, you can get up to 144 FPS on a gaming laptop. The FPS you can get on a gaming laptop also depends on the hardware specifications of the laptop, the game being played, and the configuration settings. 

The higher the frame rate, the smoother and more responsive the gameplay. CPU (Central Processing Unit), GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), and RAM (Random Access Memory) are the hardware components that have the greatest impact on your frame rate.

The CPU and GPU collaborate to process and render the game’s graphics, while the RAM stores and retrieves the data required for a fluid gameplay experience. 

Generally, a gaming laptop with a powerful CPU, high-end GPU, and sufficient RAM will achieve a higher FPS than one with inferior components. The actual FPS you can achieve depends on your game and the settings you configure.

For instance, if you are playing a graphically intensive game with high-resolution textures, advanced lighting and particle effects, and other demanding visual features, your frame rate will likely be lower than if you were playing a simpler game with less demanding graphics.

Similarly, configuring the game to run at a high resolution or with advanced graphics settings will impact your FPS. 

Conclusion 

Random FPS drops can greatly annoy gamers, especially on gaming laptops. Various issues can impact gaming laptops’ performance despite their portability and robust hardware. FPS can be attributed to out-of-date GPU drivers, unneeded background applications, GPU-intensive settings, low CPU or GPU power settings, dusty laptop fans and cooling systems, and corrupted game or Windows files. 

Fortunately, there are a variety of solutions for preventing random FPS drops on gaming laptops. The FPS achievable on a gaming laptop is ultimately determined by the hardware specifications and the game being played. 

Generally, laptops with strong components and a high-refresh-rate display can achieve higher FPS than one with weaker and lower-refresh-rate components. 

Moreover, some games may be optimized for particular hardware configurations, affecting your desired FPS. With the proper optimization and hardware, a gaming laptop can achieve up to 144 frames per second.