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Best Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 settings for the NVIDIA RTX 3090 (2026)

On a NVIDIA RTX 3090 (paired with a balanced Intel Core i9-12900F-class CPU), Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 runs at roughly 89 FPS at 1440p with our optimized settings — up from about 89FPS with everything maxed. Here's the configuration and what each setting costs.

The NVIDIA RTX 3090 is a high-end graphics card with 24GB of VRAM, and Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 is a demanding, graphically heavy game. Paired with the Intel Core i9-12900F, it runs well at 1440p — about 89 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 131 FPS at 1080p and 89 FPS at 1440p, dropping to roughly 68 FPS at 4K. Its 24GB of VRAM is plenty for Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020, so textures can stay maxed. The biggest free win is DLSS upscaling — set it to Quality for a large FPS boost at little visual cost.

ResolutionAll-High FPSOptimized FPS
1080p131131
1440p8989
4K5168
💡 Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020: Often limited by the CPU main thread over cities - Terrain/Objects LOD are the real levers there, Volumetric Clouds the big GPU one.
Recommended settings
Upscaling — DLSSOff
MSFS supports DLSS and FSR (plus a Render Scaling slider). Big GPU savings — though note the sim is often limited by its main CPU thread, where upscaling doesn’t help.
Texture ResolutionUltra-1% FPS
Ground and aircraft texture sharpness. Needs VRAM more than GPU power — Ultra wants 10GB+.
Terrain Level of Detail100baseline
The most important setting in the sim — how far detailed terrain streams in. It loads the CPU’s main thread heavily; 100 is the sweet spot, 200 is for top-end CPUs only.
Volumetric CloudsHighbaseline
The heaviest pure-GPU setting. Ultra clouds look spectacular but can cost 20%+ FPS in overcast weather — High is the sweet spot.
Objects Level of Detail100baseline
Draw distance for buildings and scenery objects. Also CPU-bound — lower it together with Terrain LOD if your FPS is "limited by main thread."
BuildingsHighbaseline
Autogen building density and detail — matters most low over cities.
Shadow Maps1536baseline
Shadow resolution. 1536 looks nearly identical to 2048 from the cockpit.
Terrain Shadows256baseline
Shadows cast by mountains and valleys — subtle except at dawn/dusk.
ReflectionsMediumbaseline
Water and aircraft reflections. Medium is plenty at altitude.
Light ShaftsMediumbaseline
God-rays through clouds. Pretty at sunset, cheap to lower the rest of the time.
Glass Cockpit Refresh RateMediumbaseline
How often the digital cockpit displays redraw. Runs on the CPU — Medium frees main-thread time in glass-cockpit airliners with no real downside.

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

🎯 Can the NVIDIA RTX 3090 run Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020? See the verdict →

Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 on other GPUs
Other games on the NVIDIA RTX 3090
Frequently asked

What FPS does the NVIDIA RTX 3090 get in Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020?

With FrameCoach's optimized balanced settings, the NVIDIA RTX 3090 averages around 89 FPS at 1440p in Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 — up from about 89 FPS with everything on High.

Can the NVIDIA RTX 3090 run Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 at 1440p?

At 1440p with optimized settings, the NVIDIA RTX 3090 averages roughly 89 FPS in Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 — a smooth experience.

What are the best Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 settings for the NVIDIA RTX 3090?

Use a balanced preset, keep ray tracing off for maximum FPS, and ease the heaviest options like Terrain Level of Detail and Volumetric Clouds 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.