How To Fix The Last Of Us Low GPU Usage?

M. Mateen
Apr 2, 2023

The Last of Us Part 1 is a critically acclaimed post-apocalyptic survival game. While the game is highly praised for its engaging storyline, captivating characters, and immersive gameplay, some players have reported low GPU usage issues on PC.

In The Last of Us, we found different causes that occur low GPU utilization. This can be caused by several factors, including outdated graphics drivers, a lack of system resources, in-game settings, and many others.

In this article, we have mentioned solutions to fix The Last Of Us low GPU usage issue on PC, so let’s dive into it.

How To Fix Low GPU Usage in The Last of Us

You can consider the following methods before trying other fixes.

First, Restart your PC.
Update The Last of Us.
Update your Windows OS to the latest version.
Run The Last of Us as an Administrator

If the problem persists then apply the below-mentioned solutions:

1. Update GPU Drivers

The first step to fixing low GPU usage while playing The Last of Us is to update your graphics drivers. Graphics card manufacturers release new drivers regularly to fix bugs, improve performance, and add new features.

Right-click on the Start button and click on Device Manager.
Expand Display adapters by clicking the arrow button.
Right-click on the display driver and select Update driver.
Click on Search automatically for drivers and it will automatically update drivers.

Best Way To Update Graphics Driver

Although NVIDIA and AMD release game-specific updates that you can download and install on your PC it takes time. But updating the graphics card drivers is a time-consuming task, and if you are a newbie you can end up installing the wrong drivers.

So we recommend downloading Driver Easy software on your PC. This program is a professional system driver updater that automatically scans a PC’s old driver and updates them instantly.

The Driver Easy is an N0.1 software updater tool in its field and for 12 years users are using it to fix their PC errors.

So download Driver Easy and let it deal with all the system drivers.

2. Close Unnecessary Tasks

If your computer doesn’t have enough RAM or CPU power, your GPU may not be able to run at full capacity. So, just close unnecessary programs.

Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc to open the Task Manager.
Check and identify any programs that are not required for the game.
Right-click on the program and select “End task“.
Launch The Last Of Us and check if the issue is resolved.

3. Enable High-Performance Mode

To enable high-performance mode in display settings in Windows 10, follow these steps:

Right-click on the desktop and select “Display settings.”
In the Display settings menu, scroll down and click on “Graphic settings.”
Find The Last of Us in the list below or click on the browse button and navigate to The Last of Us icon.
Click on The Last of Us and then click on Options.
Check on High performance.
Click on the Save button to apply your changes.

4. GPU Drivers In Performance Mode

Setting GPU drivers in performance mode can help improve performance in The Last of Us by optimizing the graphics card settings for high performance.

Here’s how you can do it:

Right-click on the desktop and select “NVIDIA Control Panel” or “AMD Radeon Settings,” depending on your graphics card.
In the control panel, navigate to the “Manage 3D settings” or “Gaming” category.
Find the “Power management mode” or “GPU Workload” option and set it to “Prefer maximum performance” or “Compute,” respectively.
Save your changes and exit the control panel.

5. Adjust In-Game Settings

The Last of Us has a variety of graphics settings that can be adjusted to improve GPU usage.

Launch The Last of Us.
Go to the graphics settings menu.
Set the graphics quality to high.
Adjust other settings such as texture quality, shadows, and ambient occlusion.
Increase the resolution if necessary.

6. Use a Performance Monitoring Tool

These tools can help you identify the cause of low GPU usage and adjust settings accordingly.

Download and install a performance monitoring tool such as MSI Afterburner or GPU-Z.
Launch the tool and monitor your GPU usage.
Adjust in-game settings according to the GPU usage readings.
Continue monitoring and adjusting settings until you find the optimal settings for your system.

7. Disable V-sync

The steps to disable V-Sync in The Last of Us:

Launch The Last of Us.
Go to the graphics settings menu.
Look for an option labeled “V-Sync” or “Vertical Sync.”
Disable the V-Sync option by toggling it off.
Save your changes and exit the graphics settings menu.

8. Enable Game Mode

Enabling Game Mode should prioritize system resources for gaming applications, including The Last of Us, and potentially improve performance.

Go to your PC Settings.
In the Settings menu, select the “Gaming” category.
In the “Gaming” menu, click on the “Game Mode” option in the left-hand sidebar.
Toggle on the “Game Mode” switch to enable it.
If desired, you can also enable the “Hardware-accelerated GPU scheduling” option by toggling its switch on.
Close the Settings menu.

9. Disable All-Power Preserving Mode

You can also set your power option to High-Performance Mode.

First, press Win + R to launch the Run dialog.
Paste powercfg.cpl in the box and press Enter to open the Power Options.
Choose High performance and confirm this change.

10. Repair The Last of Us

Repairing the game files is another option to fix any issues with The Last of Us that may be affecting its performance. Here’s how you can do it:

Open the Steam client and go to the Library.
Right-click on The Last of Us.
Find the option to “Verify Integrity of Game Files” or “Repair Game Files,” and click on it.
The launcher will then scan the game files and check for any corrupt or missing files.
Otherwise, you can also reinstall the game again.

11. Use a Dedicated GPU

Most PC has integrated and dedicated GPU. That’s what causes conflict in the utilization of low GPU. The best way is to disable the integrated GPU through Device Manager.

Follow these steps:

Press the Windows + X key on your keyboard to open the Quick Link menu, then select “Device Manager.”
In the Device Manager window, expand the “Display Adapters” category and you’ll see both the integrated GPU and the dedicated GPU listed.
Right-click on the integrated GPU and choose “Disable device,” then confirm any prompts that appear.
Once disabled, the dedicated GPU will become the primary graphics processor used by your computer.