You just scrolled past a viral clip of a player riding a giant sandworm across a glowing desert planet, or your friend won’t stop gushing about the latest space expedition update, and the first question that pops into your head is can I run No Man’s Sky on my current PC? It’s a totally fair question. Hello Games has released dozens of massive free updates since the game first launched, adding everything from base building to multiplayer to ray tracing, so the system requirements have shifted a lot over the years. I’ve put over 300 hours into No Man’s Sky across three different PCs, so I know exactly how confusing it can be to figure out if your build is up to snuff. This guide breaks down exactly what you need to run the game, what performance to expect from different build tiers, and easy fixes if you’re just barely missing the mark.
What Specs Do I Need to Confirm I Can Run No Man’s Sky?
First, let’s cover the official specs released by Hello Games, but keep in mind these are just baseline numbers. Real world performance can vary a lot based on what settings you use and if you run any mods. If you’re still asking can I run No Man’s Sky after looking at the official specs, you’re not alone. Many players have builds that fall somewhere between minimum and recommended, and it’s hard to tell what will work from just a list of parts.
The four components that have the biggest impact on No Man’s Sky performance are:
- CPU: No Man’s Sky relies heavily on single-core performance for procedural generation, so older quad-core CPUs may struggle even if they meet minimum specs on paper.
- GPU: Graphics card memory is far more important than raw speed here, especially if you run high-resolution textures or mods.
- RAM: Background apps can eat up available memory fast, so you’ll want more than the listed minimum if you run Discord or streaming software while playing.
- Storage: The game takes up roughly 15GB of space, but loading times are drastically faster on an SSD than a standard HDD.
Official minimum specs will get you 30fps at 1080p on low settings, with occasional stutters during planet transitions. These include an Intel Core i3-3210 or AMD equivalent, 8GB of RAM, an Nvidia GTX 750Ti or AMD Radeon R7 260X, and 15GB of available storage. Recommended specs for 60fps at 1080p high settings include an Intel Core i5-8400 or AMD equivalent, 16GB of RAM, an Nvidia GTX 1060 6GB or AMD RX 580, and an SSD for faster load times. For 4K max settings with ray tracing, you’ll need an Intel Core i7-10700K or equivalent, 16GB of RAM, and an RTX 3070 or AMD RX 6800.
Performance Expectations for Common PC Build Tiers
Official specs don’t always tell the full story, so I’ve broken down what you can expect from the most common PC builds people own right now. I tested all of these myself over the past few months to make sure the numbers are accurate, not just theoretical. If you’re wondering can I run No Man’s Sky with a 1050Ti, the answer is yes, as long as you’re okay with lower settings.
For budget builds under $500, usually with a 10th gen Intel i3, RX 580 or GTX 1050Ti, and 8GB of RAM, you can expect 35-45fps at 1080p on medium settings. You’ll want to turn off volumetric fog and motion blur to cut down on stutter, but the game is totally playable for casual exploration and story missions. Even if your build falls slightly below the recommended specs, you can still get a perfectly playable experience with a few setting adjustments.
Mid-range builds between $500 and $1200, usually with a 12th gen Intel i5 or AMD Ryzen 5, RTX 3060 or RX 6600, and 16GB of RAM, will run the game at 60fps at 1080p on max settings, or 45-55fps at 1440p on high settings. You can even run most lightweight texture and quality mods without noticing a frame drop. I use this exact tier of build for most of my playthroughs, and I rarely run into performance issues even during busy multiplayer expeditions.
High-end builds over $1200, with an RTX 4070 Ti or better, 32GB of RAM, and a 12th gen i7 or Ryzen 7, can run the game at 60+fps at 4K on max settings, with ray tracing enabled. You can run any combination of mods you want, and you’ll barely notice load times when jumping between planets.
Easy Tweaks to Boost Performance If You’re on the Spec Edge
You don’t have to run out and buy new hardware if your build is just barely missing the recommended specs. There are a handful of simple setting adjustments that can give you 10-20 extra frames per second without ruining the look of the game. I’ve used all of these tweaks myself when playing on my old 2018 laptop, and they made a huge difference in playability.
First, turn off volumetric clouds and volumetric fog first. These two settings alone take up 30% of your GPU usage on most planets, and turning them off barely changes the overall look of the game for casual players. You’ll still get the same colorful skies and alien landscapes, just without the extra layer of haze that causes stutter when you’re flying fast.
Next, lower shadow quality to medium. High shadows cause a lot of stutter during fast travel or when flying low over complex terrain, and you won’t notice the difference most of the time when you’re exploring on foot. You can also lower texture quality slightly if you have a GPU with less than 4GB of VRAM, though this will be more noticeable than adjusting shadow or fog settings.
Make sure your game is installed on an SSD if you have one available. I used to run No Man’s Sky on an HDD a few years back, and planet load times took 2-3 minutes, plus frequent stutters when new terrain generated. Switching to an SSD cut load times to under 30 seconds and eliminated 90% of those stutters, no other setting changes needed. You don't need to upgrade your entire PC to get a smooth No Man's Sky experience — a $30 SSD is one of the most impactful upgrades you can make for this specific game.
Last, close any unnecessary background apps before you launch the game. Discord, Chrome tabs, and streaming software can eat up 2-4GB of RAM, so closing those can make a huge difference if you only have 8GB total. You should also make sure your graphics drivers are up to date, as Hello Games works closely with Nvidia and AMD to release driver optimizations for every major update.
Common Issues That Stop No Man’s Sky From Running Even If You Meet Specs
Sometimes the game won’t run or will run poorly even if your build meets all the official requirements. These issues are almost always software related, not hardware related, so don’t rush to buy new parts before you check for these common problems. I’ve run into all of these at one point or another, and they’re all easy to fix.
First, make sure you’re running a 64-bit version of Windows 10 or 11. No Man’s Sky doesn’t support 32-bit operating systems or older versions of Windows like Windows 7, so the game won’t launch at all if you’re running outdated software. You can check your operating system version in your PC settings in less than a minute.
Corrupted game files are another common cause of crashes or poor performance. If you downloaded the game via Steam, you can verify the integrity of game files in your Steam library to fix missing or corrupted files that cause issues on launch. This takes 5-10 minutes, and it fixes 80% of random launch issues that have nothing to do with your hardware. Always check for software issues before you spend money on new hardware, as most performance problems can be fixed without upgrading parts.
Mod conflicts are another frequent culprit, especially if you play with a lot of custom content. A single outdated mod can cause the game to crash or run at 10fps even if you have a top-tier build. The easiest fix is to disable all mods and re-enable them one by one to find the one causing the problem. Most mod creators update their content within a week of a new No Man’s Sky update, so you usually won’t have to wait long for a fix.
If you play on a laptop, make sure you’re running the game on your dedicated GPU instead of your CPU’s integrated graphics. Many laptops default to integrated graphics for less demanding games to save battery, and this can cause No Man’s Sky to run at 10fps or less even if you have a powerful dedicated GPU. You can change this setting in your Nvidia or AMD control panel in a few clicks.
At the end of the day, the answer to can I run No Man’s Sky depends a lot more on how you want to play than just the numbers on the official spec sheet. If you’re a casual player who just wants to explore planets and follow the main story, even older budget builds will work perfectly fine with a few setting tweaks. If you want to take 4K screenshots or run high-end texture mods, you’ll need a more powerful build to get the most out of the game. Don’t let spec anxiety stop you from trying one of the most expansive exploration games ever made, even if you’re not sure your PC is up to par. Many players are surprised at how well it runs on older hardware once they adjust a few simple settings.
