LoL FPS Drop: What Causes & How to Fix it

LoL FPS drops are mainly caused by the graphics card adapter

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League of Legends patch issues

One of the most frequent issues faced by users is the League of Legends random FPS drops and these may be caused by a LoL FPS bug, that’s true, but this isn’t always the case.

Our readers told us about LoL FPS drops even on high-end PCs. Therefore, it’s time to correct this common problem.

How can I fix LoL FPS drops on PC?

1. Close unused apps

1. Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc to launch the Task Manager.

2. In the Processes tab, you’ll see all the programs currently running on your computer.

3. Click on the CPU column to sort the active processes.

CPU to fix LoL FPS drop

4. Select the processes that take up much CPU and right-click on them.

5. Click on End task.

Terminate process to fix LoL FPS drop

A great way to fix FPS drops in LoL is to close the apps you don’t currently use. It is likely that your CPU is being used by them and that is why you are experiencing lag in your game.

Ending the unused apps can be easily done via Task Manager. All you need to do is sort the list of tasks by CPU usage and end those which use up a lot of it, for which you have no important use at the moment.

If Windows won’t end a task in Task Manager, learn how to solve the problem right away. Even more, if you want to know how to add or remove startup apps on Windows 10, check out this simple guide.

2. Run the latest drivers and game updates

  1. Install PC HelpSoft Driver Updater on your PC. Use the software to launch a scan.
  2. Wait for the detection of your faulty drivers.
  3. Select the ones you’d like fixed or choose to update all of them.
  4. Wait for the app to download and install the newest drivers.
  5. Restart your PC for the changes to take effect.

Make sure you’ve installed the latest drivers on your computer as well as the most recent game updates. Using the latest optimization resources significantly improves your gaming experience.

Updating drivers manually can cause damage to your system by downloading and installing the wrong driver versions. Thus, we strongly suggest doing it automatically by using PC HelpSoft Driver Updater.

This tool will definitely save you time and patience. Besides, you can use it for future similar processes, as well.

This way, you can save plenty of time and hassle. With reliable driver updater software, you can set regular driver scans and automatic updates.

Consequently, you won’t notice League of Legends 5 FPS issues anymore and can continue playing the game without any further drops.

⇒ Get PC HelpSoft Driver Updater

3. Optimize PC performance

Game performance can be significantly improved when you end unnecessary apps and then remove clutter files that take storage space and resources unnecessarily.

Dedicated PC repair tools are able to do these things and more in a quick and almost fully automatic way. They are reliable and remove the risks that may come when you try to do these tasks manually.

4. Change the game’s settings

You can also play around with League of Legends settings to find a good balance between performance and quality. Use the configuration listed below to see if this reduces or solves the FPS drop issues:

  • Settings: Custom
  • Resolution: Match desktop resolution
  • Character Quality: Very Low
  • Environment Quality: Very Low
  • Shadows: No Shadow
  • Effects Quality: Very Low
  • Frame Rate Cap: 60 FPS
  • Wait for Vertical Sync: Unchecked
  • Anti-Aliasing: Unchecked.

Also, adjust the interface options, using the following configuration:

  • Uncheck Enable HUD animations
  • Uncheck Show Target Frame on attack
  • Uncheck Enable line missile display
  • Uncheck Show Attack Range.

Also, to boost your PC performance so that it runs demanding processes, or games in this particular case, do not hesitate to try out a dedicated app such as Game Fire.

If the LoL FPS drop problem persists after making these changes, head to the next method.

5. Reset your graphics card software

Graphics cards come with their own software: NVIDIA comes with the NVIDIA Control Panel and AMD has the Catalyst Control Center.

Here’s how to reset the NVIDIA Control Panel:

  1. Right-click on your desktop and then select NVIDIA Control Panel.
  2. Select Manage 3D Settings.Manage 3D settings to fix LoL FPS drop
  3. Select Restore, and then choose the appropriate response in case a confirmation prompt pops up.Restore to fix LoL FPS drop

In order to reset the AMD Catalyst Control Center, right-click on your desktop, then select Catalyst Control Center (aka VISION center), go to Preferences and click on Restore Factory Defaults.

The two programs allow users to set up profiles that potentially interfere with League of Legends. By resetting them to default values, you allow LoL to take control over the graphics settings.

Once you are done resetting the graphics card, League of Legends FPS issues will be a thing of the past, and you shouldn’t come across this anymore.

Though the steps listed are for Nvidia and AMD, you can similarly fix the LoL FPS drop in Intel CPU. But, for LoL FPS drop on Mac, the steps will be completely different, and will have to check the official website for that.

6. Repair corrupt game files

  1. Open League of Legends
  2. Click on the question mark (?) icon in the top right-hand corner.
  3. Click Repair and wait for the process to finish.

The repair process can take up to 30 minutes, depending on how bad the situation is, so be patient.

7. Make sure your computer is not overheating

If it works fine for an hour and then suddenly you see League of Legends 10 FPS, your computer is probably overheating. Check if there’s extremely hot air coming out of your computer, and try these methods to fix overheating.

Clean your PC’s vents or fans with compressed air. Computer fans often clog with dust, dirt, and hair. Cleaning your computer’s vents and fans regularly keep your machine cool. Also, buy a cooling pad. They’re really useful.

8. Disable all game sounds

This is a classic workaround that often works after you disable game sounds in League of Legends. You’ll experience a performance boost after disabling in-game sounds. Once done, check if the LoL FPS drop issue is fixed.

9. Clean your computer’s registry

All programs make modifications to the system registry. Over time, these changes can affect your computer’s performance.

There are various registry cleaners that you can choose from to repair your registry. Install one on your computer and you’ll notice the difference.

How can I fix League of Legends FPS drops on Windows 11?

1. Set LoL process priority to high

  1. Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc to launch the Task Manager, and go to the Details tab from the top.Details tab to fix LoL FPS drop
  2. Locate the League of Legends process, right-click on it, hover the cursor over Set Priority, and select High from the list of options.Set priority to high to fix LoL FPS drop
  3. Click on Change priority in the confirmation prompt that pops up.Change priority to fix LoL FPS drop

Once you have set the League of Legends priority to High, check if the FPS drop issue is fixed in Windows 11.

2. Set FPS cap in LoL

  1. While playing League of Legends, hit the Esc key to launch the Options.
  2. Now, go to the Video tab from the navigation pane.Select Video tab to fix LoL FPS drop league of legends fps drops
  3. Click on the Frame Rate Cap dropdown menu and select 60 FPS from the list of options. You may select any other desired rate here, but make sure you system can support it.Cap FPS to fix league of legends fps drops
  4. Finally, click on OK at the bottom to save the changes. Save Changes to league of legends fps drops

Apart from simply uncapping it, you now also know how to increase FPS in League of Legends Windows 10.

3. Undo overclocking

If none of the fixes listed above have worked and you have overclocked your PC, it’s time you remove it. Although overclocking is meant to enhance performance, oftentimes, the result is quite the opposite.

Certain components may not work effectively when overclocked and lead to issues with the system performance, which is often visible as LoL FPS drop. Once you have undone overclocking, the error should be fixed.

Also, apart from the methods listed to fix FPS drop in Windows 11, you can also try the ones for Windows 10, since those also work on the latest iteration.

What’s the best FPS for League of Legends?

That’s a question many users seem to ask. While there is no fixed FPS for an ideal gaming experience, it depends both on your expectations and your system configuration.

But anywhere between 30-60 FPS is good and will actually enjoy playing the games. If you can get it higher, say 75 FPS, it’s surely going to enhance the experience. It’s best if you try out various FPS settings, and choose the one where the game runs the best.

Also, remember that setting the FPS too low will drastically affect the gaming experience. And in the case of this issue, several users have reported that LoL FPS drops to 0.

In case you’re still stuck with these issues, here are some other useful FPS-related guides to take a look at:

Are there more games affected by FPS drops?

League of Legends is definitely not the only game affected by these annoying frame rate problems; here’s a couple of other games that we’ve covered and specific guides for them:

If you can’t find the issue that you are looking for in the list, for instance, Warzone FPS drops when moving the mouse.

Fortnite FPS drops when moving the mouse, Minecraft frame drops when moving the mouse, or Cold War FPS drops when moving the mouse, check this guide to fix FPS drops and stuttering in games.

Is 60 FPS good for LoL?

It depends on which graphics settings you’re getting to the 60 FPS with. If all the graphics settings are maxed, yes, 60 FPS is great and you should keep those settings.

You basically need to find the right balance between the game speed and graphics quality.

We’ve covered LoL FPS drop extensively, and we believe there are a couple of things you might be interested in:

If your gaming experience is buggy on Windows 10 or Windows 11, as you can see, rest assured that every single problem can be solved. Let us know how you’ve also managed to correct LoL FPS drops.

More about the topics: FPS, League of Legends