PC for War Thunder: requirements and recommended builds

War Thunder is one of the less demanding games: according to Steam, Gaijin recommends a Core i5 or Ryzen 5 3600 processor, 16 GB of RAM and a GeForce GTX 1060 or Radeon RX 570 graphics card. For Full HD at high detail, any current gaming card is enough, for example the RTX 5050 or RX 9060 XT 8 GB. For 1440p and a 144 Hz monitor, choose the RX 9060 XT 16 GB or RTX 5060 Ti; for the highest preset (Movie) with SSAA anti-aliasing and for 4K, the RX 9070 or RTX 5070.

Summary

• The minimum is very low: a 2.2 GHz dual-core, 4 GB of RAM and a GTX 660. The game does, however, require 64-bit Windows 10.
• Set aside 70–95 GB of disk space. The game is updated often and grows with every major update.
• The biggest demands come from SSAA anti-aliasing and high presets – these decide whether your PC is enough for a 60 Hz or a 144 Hz monitor.
• The game supports VR (SteamVR). In virtual reality the demands are significantly higher than on a monitor.

What are the official War Thunder requirements

The values are from the game's Steam page (as of 10/2026).

The minimum means 720p resolution, low detail and long battle loading times. The recommended build handles Full HD, but with no headroom for a browser, Discord or recording. That is why it makes sense to build above it.

Which PC for War Thunder: three builds for 2026

The components are available as of 10/2026. We don't list prices – because of the memory shortage, they change too quickly.

Why War Thunder needs more than the requirements suggest

War Thunder combines tanks, aircraft, helicopters and ships on one map. In mixed ground battles, the game simultaneously calculates ground combat and the aircraft above the battlefield, and renders the landscape over long distances. That puts more load on both the processor and the graphics card than a typical tank game.

Gaijin also doesn't work with vehicle “hit points”. Damage is calculated for individual modules and crew members, and every hit is simulated. That is why on a dual-core processor the game drops in demanding moments, even though it formally meets the minimum. For smooth gameplay, count on at least six cores.

Graphics card and monitor

The Dagor engine is well optimised, so in Full HD even a mid-range card is usually enough. Performance only becomes decisive at higher presets, at 1440p and 4K, and with high-resolution textures. In air battles, a 144 Hz monitor is worth it – you can track distant opponents more smoothly.

Memory and storage

Fit the recommended 16 GB of RAM as two modules. The game is large and frequently updated, so leave around 100 GB of headroom on the SSD. Battles load significantly more slowly from a conventional hard drive.

How to set up War Thunder for higher FPS

1. Start with a quality preset one step lower than you want, then increase individual items.
2. Turn off SSAA anti-aliasing. It is extremely demanding because it renders the scene at a higher resolution. Use less demanding anti-aliasing or upscaling instead.
3. If the graphics settings offer upscaling, use it: DLSS on NVIDIA cards, FSR on AMD and Intel cards. At 1440p and 4K this gains you the most headroom.
4. Lower the quality of clouds, shadows and grass. In air battles, try reducing clouds first; in ground battles, grass.
5. Turn off vertical sync if you have a FreeSync or G-Sync monitor, and cap FPS just below your monitor's refresh rate.
6. On very weak machines, the lowest quality mode with simple textures helps. The game looks worse, but is playable.

What next

• Do you also play World of Tanks? You will find a comparison of requirements in our article PC for World of Tanks.
• Want the cheapest possible build that will run War Thunder? We advise in our article The cheapest gaming PC.
• Does your older PC stutter in battles? At the PC Praha PC repair service, we will find the cause and advise what to do.

Sources

• Steam: War Thunder – system requirements
• Tom's Hardware: best gaming CPUs (10/2026)
• PC Gamer: best graphics cards (10/2026)