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Best Counter-Strike 2 settings for the NVIDIA GTX 980 (2026)

On a NVIDIA GTX 980 (paired with a balanced Intel Core i5-8600K-class CPU), Counter-Strike 2 runs at roughly 154 FPS at 1080p with our optimized settings — up from about 154FPS with everything maxed. Here's the configuration and what each setting costs.

The NVIDIA GTX 980 is a entry-level graphics card with 4GB of VRAM, and Counter-Strike 2 is a lightweight, high-frame-rate esports title. Paired with the Intel Core i5-8600K, it flies at 1080p — about 154 FPS with FrameCoach's optimized settings. That already clears a smooth frame rate on High, so our tuning keeps the visuals as high as possible instead of chasing extra frames.

Across resolutions you can expect around 154 FPS at 1080p and 93 FPS at 1440p, dropping to roughly 71 FPS at 4K. The biggest free win is FSR upscaling — set it to Quality for a large FPS boost at little visual cost.

ResolutionAll-High FPSOptimized FPS
1080p154154
1440p9393
4K5271
Recommended settings
Upscaling — FSROff
CS2 offers AMD FidelityFX Super Resolution (FSR) on all GPUs. Most competitive players leave it Off at 1080p (CS2 is CPU-limited there) but it helps a lot at 1440p/4K.
Anti-Aliasing Mode4x MSAAbaseline
MSAA is the single biggest GPU cost in CS2. Dropping from 4x/8x to CMAA2 frees a lot of frames for a small edge-smoothing loss — a popular competitive choice.
Global Shadow QualityHighbaseline
Shadow detail. Many players keep this at least Medium, because enemy shadows are a genuine source of information in CS2.
Boost Player ContrastEnabledbaseline
Makes enemy player models pop against the background. Nearly free and a competitive advantage — keep it Enabled.
Ambient OcclusionHighbaseline
Soft contact shadows. Cheap; Medium is plenty for a clear competitive image.
Shader DetailHighbaseline
Surface and lighting shader complexity. Modest cost; safe to lower for extra frames.
Particle DetailHighbaseline
Smoke, sparks and debris. Lowering can actually help you see through busy fights as well as gain FPS.
Model / Texture DetailHighbaseline
Character and world texture sharpness. Costs almost no FPS on any modern card — keep it High.
Texture Filtering ModeAnisotropic 16xbaseline
Keeps long sightlines (like Dust II’s long A) sharp into the distance. Essentially free — use Anisotropic 16x.
Dynamic ShadowsAllbaseline
Keep this on All: it costs almost no FPS but lets you spot the moving shadows of enemies around corners — a genuine competitive advantage, so we never lower it.
High Dynamic RangeQualitybaseline
Leave this on Quality. It costs barely any FPS and avoids the grainy, noisy image Performance mode can produce on some maps.

⚡ Fine-tune this for your exact CPU & target FPS →

🎯 Can the NVIDIA GTX 980 run Counter-Strike 2? See the verdict →

Counter-Strike 2 on other GPUs
Other games on the NVIDIA GTX 980
Frequently asked

What FPS does the NVIDIA GTX 980 get in Counter-Strike 2?

With FrameCoach's optimized balanced settings, the NVIDIA GTX 980 averages around 154 FPS at 1080p in Counter-Strike 2 — up from about 154 FPS with everything on High.

Can the NVIDIA GTX 980 run Counter-Strike 2 at 1440p?

At 1440p with optimized settings, the NVIDIA GTX 980 averages roughly 93 FPS in Counter-Strike 2 — a smooth experience.

What are the best Counter-Strike 2 settings for the NVIDIA GTX 980?

Use a balanced preset, keep ray tracing off for maximum FPS, and ease the heaviest options like Anti-Aliasing Mode and Global Shadow Quality down a notch. The full per-setting breakdown is above.

FPS figures are estimates from a generalized model (hardware tier × game load × per-setting weights), not live benchmarks — real performance varies by scene, drivers and game version.