Best CS2 Video Settings: Max FPS and Performance For Competitive Gameplay (2026)

Nothing is more frustrating than whiffing your shots in Counter-Strike 2 because your game looks choppy. Many players with real potential are held back by low FPS, holding them back from reaching their peak rank. Fortunately, there are ways around this, and optimizing your video settings is one of the most effective fixes.

In this guide, I’ll break down the best CS2 video settings, primarily focused on boosting FPS and performance.

Best CS2 Video Settings for FPS

The first group of settings you’ll want to adjust is found under Video Settings → Video. Here, you will find two of the most important video settings: aspect ratio and resolution.

Display Mode

Recommended Setting: Fullscreen

You should always play CS2 in Fullscreen mode. This mode will provide you with the highest possible FPS. Sure, it will be harder to tab out, but playing on Windowed or Fullscreen Windowed will seriously hurt your performance.

Aspect Ratio

Recommended Setting: Normal 4:3

Now, the aspect ratio typically comes down to personal preference, but Normal 4:3 is what I recommend for multiple reasons, especially if you are on a low-end PC:

• This aspect ratio heavily increases FPS since there are fewer pixels on screen.
• Player models become wider, making it easier for you to land shots on enemy players.
• There is less visual clutter on your screen, allowing you to focus on what is at hand.

I can tell you from experience that switching my aspect ratio to 4:3 felt like a cheat code. Not only did it give me a noticeable FPS boost, but it also provided a clear gameplay advantage in fights.

In fact, the majority of the best CS2 players – who are equipped with god-like gaming rigs – still use Normal 4:3. The advantage of wider player models is undefeated.

Resolution

Recommended Setting: 1280×960 (Stretched)

The resolution is directly paired with the aspect ratio. If you’re using Normal 4:3, 1280×960 in a stretched scaling mode is widely considered the best resolution for FPS in CS2.

Lower resolution means there are fewer pixels on your screen, so if you compare 1920×1080 to 1280×960, your computer has far less to render every frame. This directly results in higher FPS.

And, even though you’re playing on a lower resolution, 1280×960 still maintains clear player models to help you land your shots. This is also the resolution used by a large portion of Tier 1 professionals.

If your PC is extremely weak, you can even go lower to something like 1024×768. But for most players like kyousuke, 1280×960 hits the sweet spot.

Refresh Rate

Recommended Setting: Your Monitor’s Refresh Rate

This setting depends on your monitor. All you need to do is set this to the highest your monitor supports. For example: 144Hz, 165Hz, 240Hz, etc.

Your refresh rate doesn’t necessarily increase FPS, but it is important for making your game feel smooth and responsive.

Best CS2 Advanced Video Settings for Performance

Once your general video settings are locked in, we can head to the CS2 Advanced Video Settings, where most of the FPS gains come from.

Counter-Strike 2 is a game where you compete to win, not to be mesmerized by visuals. So even if you’re playing on a decent computer, it’s still worth sacrificing graphics for more FPS.

Boost Player Contrast

Recommended Setting: Enabled

Boost Player Contrast is something you always want to keep enabled, even if you have a struggling computer. It increases the visibility of enemy models by making them stand out more against the environment, making them easier to spot.

V-Sync

Recommended Setting: Off

V-Sync synchronizes your FPS with your monitor’s refresh rate. It can make your game look smoother, but it increases input lag. I highly recommend turning this off, as even a little bit of delay can throw off your aim.

Advanced Video Settings

Now we go into the main course. Here are the best advanced video CS2 settings for FPS:

Following my best CS2 video settings is sure to give you an FPS boost. However, if you’re on a strong PC, you can still turn things like shader or particle details up a notch.