For a practical starting point, open Settings → Graphics Options → Run Benchmark and apply the suggested global quality preset. Then tune resolution, upscaling, and demanding graphics options for your own PC. The benchmark recommends a preset based on your hardware, but does not report FPS, so it cannot guarantee smooth performance in every area.
Start with the in-game benchmark
- Open Settings → Graphics Options → Run Benchmark.
- Apply the global quality preset the benchmark recommends.
- Play at your intended display resolution and check performance in areas where you notice slowdowns. The benchmark is a hardware-based starting point, not an FPS test.
The game lets you adjust individual graphics settings across Ultra, High, Medium, and Low. Graphics changes can affect GPU and CPU performance or VRAM, so make adjustments in small steps and compare the same kind of gameplay rather than assuming one option is always the bottleneck. Portkey Games’ PC Features FAQ explains the available controls and hardware considerations.
| # | Preview | Product | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
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Hogwarts Legacy | $38.95 | Buy on Amazon |
| 2 |
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Hogwarts Legacy Collector's Edition - PC | $345.45 | Buy on Amazon |
| 3 |
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Hogwarts Legacy: The Official Game Guide (Companion Book) (Portkey Games) | $12.28 | Buy on Amazon |
| 4 |
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Hogwarts Legacy | $42.99 | Buy on Amazon |
| 5 |
|
The Art and Making of Hogwarts Legacy: Exploring the Unwritten Wizarding World | $29.00 | Buy on Amazon |
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A tested starting configuration
PCGamesN’s guide, updated August 14, 2025, recommends the following performance-oriented starting point. The outlet says it developed the settings through a repeatable in-game sequence and disclosed a test PC with an Intel Core i7-11700F, GeForce RTX 4060, and 32 GB of RAM. Treat it as one tested recommendation, not a universal preset.
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| Setting | Recommended starting point |
|---|---|
| Upscale Type | NVIDIA DLSS or AMD FSR 2 |
| Upscale Mode | DLSS Auto or FSR 2 Quality |
| Frame Generation | On, if supported |
| NVIDIA Reflex Low Latency | On, if supported |
| VSync | Off |
| Frame rate | Uncapped |
| Effects, Material, Post Process, Texture, Population Quality | High |
| Fog, Sky, Foliage, Shadow, View Distance Quality | Medium |
| Ray Tracing Reflections, Shadows, Ambient Occlusion | Off |
These settings are a baseline to try at your own resolution and in your own gameplay conditions. PCGamesN’s results do not establish the same frame rate on other systems or scenes.
#1 Best Overall
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What to change when performance is uneven
Resolution and upscaling
Hogwarts Legacy defaults to the active display resolution, and resolution can affect performance. The PC FAQ lists NVIDIA DLSS, AMD FSR, and Intel XeSS upscaling. There is no supported single best option for all graphics cards. Try the compatible upscaler on your system, then choose an upscale mode that balances image clarity with performance. In windowed-fullscreen, upscaling can render at a percentage of the display resolution; the FAQ advises considering a higher target resolution in Upscale Mode to reduce visible artifacts.
If you are not using upscaling, the FAQ lists TAA High, TAA Low, and NVIDIA DLAA among the anti-aliasing options.
Rank #2
- EXPLORE AN OPEN WORLD. The wizarding world awaits you. Freely roam Hogwarts, Hogsmeade, the Forbidden Forest, and the surrounding Overland area.
- BE THE WITCH OR WIZARD YOU WANT TO BE. Learn spells, brew potions, grow plants, and tend to magical beasts along your journey. Get sorted into your house, forge relationships, and master skills to become the witch or wizard you want to be.
- EXPERIENCE A NEW WIZARDING WORLD ADVENTURE. Experience the wizarding world in an unexplored era to uncover a hidden truth from its past. Battle against trolls, Dark Wizards, goblins, and more as you face a dangerous villain threatening the fate of the wizarding world.
- The Hogwarts Legacy Collectors Edition includes Life-Size Floating Ancient Magic Wand with Book Base, Steel Case, Kelpie Robe, Thestral Mount, Dark Arts Cosmetic Set, Dark Arts Garrison Hat, Dark Arts Battle Arena, and 72 Hours Early Access.
- Preorder Hogwarts Legacy Deluxe Edition and receive the Onyx Hippogriff Mount. Content will be delivered as a packed in code with game.
Quality settings
If the benchmark preset is not smooth enough, reduce selected quality options a step at a time and retest. The published baseline above keeps several settings at Medium while leaving textures and selected effects at High; that is a useful pattern to test, not proof that any one setting will be limiting on your PC. If performance is already acceptable, raise options you care about visually and check whether the trade-off works for you.
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For a performance-oriented starting point, leave ray tracing off. It is off by default, and its features are controlled individually. Portkey says ray tracing can affect both GPU and CPU performance; changing ray-tracing state requires restarting the game. The January 30, 2025 PC update added exposed ray-tracing quality controls, including geometry quality, improved fidelity for ray-traced reflections, and reflections on bodies of water. The patch notes say quality controls are exposed individually except for ray-traced ambient occlusion. Read the official PC patch notes.
Frame generation and latency options
The PC FAQ lists NVIDIA DLSS Frame Generation. The January 2025 update added NVIDIA DLSS 4, Ray Reconstruction, and Multi-Frame Generation for RTX 50-series GPUs. Availability depends on hardware and the relevant feature support; the PCGamesN baseline’s recommendation to enable Frame Generation applies only when supported. The FAQ also lists NVIDIA Reflex Low Latency.
Use the official PC tiers as context, not a guarantee
Warner Bros. Games publishes the following hardware tiers and target settings. They are stated specifications, not a promise of measured performance on every PC. All configurations require DirectX 12.
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| Publisher tier and target | CPU | Memory | Graphics card | Storage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum / Low: 720p, 30 fps, Low | Intel Core i5-6600 or AMD Ryzen 5 1400 | 16 GB RAM | NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960 4 GB or AMD Radeon RX 470 4 GB | 85 GB HDD; SSD preferred, HDD supported |
| Recommended / High: 1080p, 60 fps, High | Intel Core i7-8700 or AMD Ryzen 5 3600 | 16 GB RAM | NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti, AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT, or Intel Arc A770 | 85 GB SSD |
| Ultra: 1440p, 60 fps | Intel Core i7-10700K or AMD Ryzen 7 5800X | 32 GB RAM | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 Ti or AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT | 85 GB SSD |
| Ultra 4K: 2160p, 60 fps | Same CPU tier as Ultra 1440p | 32 GB RAM | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 Ti or AMD Radeon RX 7900 XT | 85 GB SSD |
These targets help frame the gap between low-resolution play and 4K Ultra, but do not identify which component is limiting an individual PC. The specifications list HDD support at the minimum tier and SSD for the higher tiers; they do not establish that buying an SSD by itself will improve frame rate. See Warner Bros. Games’ PC specifications.
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A preset or short benchmark run is not a guarantee for every scene. PCGamesN notes that locations can stress the GPU differently and frame rates can fluctuate between environments. Test where performance matters to you, and avoid judging a configuration solely by a menu or one scene. None of the cited sources provides controlled FPS gains for each individual graphics setting, so there is no reliable universal percentage to promise for a particular change.
PC update context
The latest PC feature update identified here is dated January 30, 2025. Avalanche Software said the patch added ray-tracing updates and support for DLSS 4 and the latest GeForce RTX 50 Series GPUs, alongside modding support. Avalanche’s update announcement quotes Jose Villeta, Director of Software Engineering: “With our new PC patch, we have some key updates around modding support and raytracing features, as well as support for NVIDIA DLSS 4 and the latest GeForce RTX 50 Series GPUs.”
Quick Recap
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