Why Does My Minecraft Lag? How to Get More FPS & Fix Performance Issues

Before applying fixes, it's important to understand what's causing your Minecraft to lag:

Check Task Manager While Playing

Press Ctrl+Shift+Esc to open Task Manager while Minecraft is running, then look for these common bottlenecks:

The fastest way to boost FPS and reduce lag is to optimize your in-game settings:

• Render Distance: Lower to 8-12 chunks for a significant FPS boost (6-8 for low-end PCs).
• Graphics: Set to Fast instead of Fancy to reduce GPU load.
• Smooth Lighting: Set to Minimum or Off for better performance.
• Clouds: Set to Off or Fast for an immediate FPS increase.
• Particles: Set to Minimal to reduce lag during intense gameplay.
• Entity Distance: Reduce to 50-75% for better performance.
• Vsync: Turn off for higher FPS (may cause screen tearing).
• Max Framerate: Set to match your monitor's refresh rate (e.g., 60, 144, or 240).
• Biome Blend: Set to OFF or lowest setting for better chunk loading.
• Mipmap Levels: Set to 0 for a small performance boost.

Insufficient RAM is a common cause of Minecraft lag and stuttering. Here's how to allocate more RAM:

1. Open the Minecraft Launcher and select your profile.
2. Click "More Options" and find the JVM Arguments box.
3. Look for -Xmx2G in the arguments (this sets 2GB of RAM).
4. Change it to -Xmx4G for 4GB, -Xmx6G for 6GB, or -Xmx8G for 8GB, depending on your available RAM.
5. Important: Don't allocate more than 50% of your total RAM. For modded Minecraft, 6-8GB is recommended.

Pro Tip: For advanced users, adding -XX:+UseG1GC -XX:+ParallelRefProcEnabled -XX:MaxGCPauseMillis=200 -XX:+UnlockExperimentalVMOptions -XX:+DisableExplicitGC -XX:+AlwaysPreTouch -XX:G1NewSizePercent=30 -XX:G1MaxNewSizePercent=40 -XX:G1HeapRegionSize=8M -XX:G1ReservePercent=20 -XX:G1HeapWastePercent=5 -XX:G1MixedGCCountTarget=4 -XX:InitiatingHeapOccupancyPercent=15 -XX:G1MixedGCLiveThresholdPercent=90 -XX:G1RSetUpdatingPauseTimePercent=5 -XX:SurvivorRatio=32 -XX:+PerfDisableSharedMem -XX:MaxTenuringThreshold=1 to your JVM arguments can significantly improve garbage collection and reduce stuttering.

Outdated Java or graphics drivers can cause significant performance issues:

• Java: Ensure you're using the correct Java version:
  • Minecraft 1.17+ works best with Java 17 or newer
  • Minecraft 1.12-1.16.5 works best with Java 8
  • Download the latest Java from Adoptium
• Graphics Drivers: Update to the latest version from your manufacturer:
  • NVIDIA Drivers
  • AMD Drivers
  • Intel Drivers

Performance mods can dramatically improve FPS and reduce lag:

Note: For the best performance, use Fabric with Sodium, Lithium, and Phosphor/Starlight. This combination typically provides better FPS than OptiFine.

Your PC settings can significantly impact Minecraft performance:

• Close resource-intensive applications:
  • Web browsers (especially Chrome with multiple tabs)
  • Video editing software
  • Other games or game launchers
  • Streaming apps (Twitch, OBS, etc.)
  • File synchronization tools (Dropbox, OneDrive)
• Check startup programs: Disable unnecessary programs from starting with Windows (Task Manager > Startup).
• Update Windows/macOS/Linux: Keep your operating system up to date.
• Set Minecraft as high priority:
  • Windows: Task Manager > Details > javaw.exe > Set Priority > High
  • Mac: Activity Monitor > javaw > Priority > Higher
• Disable Windows Game Bar and Game DVR: These can cause FPS drops.
• Use Performance Power Plan: In Windows, set your power plan to "High Performance".
• Clean your computer: Physically clean dust from fans and vents to prevent thermal throttling.
• Defragment HDD: If using a hard drive (not needed for SSDs).
• Scan for malware: Malware can significantly impact game performance.

If you're running a Minecraft server or experiencing lag on multiplayer:

• Use Paper or Purpur: These server implementations offer significant performance improvements over vanilla or Spigot.
• Optimize server.properties:
  • Set view-distance=8 (or lower)
  • Set simulation-distance=6 (or lower)
  • Set network-compression-threshold=256
• Increase server RAM: Allocate at least 4GB for vanilla servers, 6-8GB for modded.
• Limit entities: Use plugins like ClearLag to remove excess items and mobs.
• Optimize redstone: Complex redstone contraptions can cause significant lag.
• Use a world border: Limit the explorable world to reduce chunk generation.
• Pre-generate chunks: Use plugins like Chunky to pre-generate the world.
• Use Aikar's flags: Optimize Java garbage collection with Aikar's JVM flags.

Identify specific performance issues with these tools:

• F3 Debug Screen: Press F3 to view FPS, chunk updates, and memory usage.
• Lag Goggles:
  Minecraft Forge
  mod that visually shows lag sources in your world.
• Spark:
  Spark
  provides detailed performance profiling for both client and server.
• MSI Afterburner: Monitor GPU and CPU temperatures and usage.
• Alt+F3: Shows a simplified performance graph (Java Edition).
• Shift+F3: Shows full debug profiling information.

Tip: If you see "ms" spikes in the F3 graph, you're experiencing lag spikes. If your FPS is consistently low, focus on graphics settings and performance mods.