Modern Warfare Warzone’s High CPU Usage on PC

Are you experiencing high CPU usage while playing Modern Warfare Warzone? This guide will help you fix this problem. It is not unusual for video games like Warzone to have high memory and CPU usage, and it shouldn’t bother you in general cases. However, if the game is using about 80% or 90% of the CPU, you should not ignore the problem. It can cause overall performance issues on your PC. So, it is crucial to fix the high CPU usage of Warzone. Here, we will discuss several tips and methods to help you resolve the issue.

Why is Warzone CPU usage so high?

Before discussing the actual fixes, we will first examine what causes the high CPU usage in Warzone. This will help you apply a suitable fix to counter the problem. Here are some of the possible causes for this issue:

• The problem can occur if you do not have enough RAM to play.
• If you haven’t updated your graphics drivers to the latest version, it can cause performance, stability, and other issues for your games.
• A broken or slow CPU can be another reason for this problem.
• In case you have too many CPU-intensive applications running in the background, the problem may arise. Try closing unnecessary applications to resolve the issue.
• There can be other reasons for the same problem, such as if you have set higher in-game settings, you haven’t installed game updates, etc.

Now that you are aware of the scenarios that might trigger this issue, you can attempt the corresponding fix from the list below.

Fix Modern Warfare Warzone’s High CPU Usage on Windows 11/10

At first, you can try some general troubleshooting methods, like restarting the computer and game, and installing all pending Windows updates. If the problem persists, here are the methods to try for fixing the problem of high CPU usage of Warzone:

1. Update GPU card drivers.
2. Check for game updates.
3. Close unnecessary background programs.
4. Delete Temp files.
5. Increase VRAM.
6. Disable fullscreen optimizations.
7. Change priority level.
8. Lower your game’s graphics settings.

Let us discuss the above solutions in detail now!

1] Update GPU card drivers

Faulty GPU drivers can cause Warzone’s high CPU usage issue. With new driver updates, the previous bugs are fixed, and the updates also provide better compatibility and stability. So, it is always recommended to install all the latest updates for your graphics drivers, especially on a gaming PC. After installing the latest GPU drivers’ updates, see if the issue is fixed.

To update graphics drivers, you can opt for manually installing pending GPU drivers’ updates via the Windows Updates > Optional Updates feature in the Settings app. You can also automatically update graphics drivers using a driver updater. Or, you can even visit the official website of your device manufacturer and install the latest versions of GPU drivers from there.

If you are using the latest graphics card drivers and Warzone is still utilizing high CPU usage, try the next potential fix to resolve the problem.

Read: Fix Game Stuttering with FPS drops in Windows

2] Check for game updates

You also need to ensure that you have installed all the recent updates for COD: Warzone to improve stability and features. So, check if you have missed out any updates on your game and then download and install the updates.

For that, launch Battle.net and then go to the Call of Duty: MW game. Here, click on Options > Check for Updates to see if any updates are available. If yes, download and install the updates. After that, relaunch the game and check if the problem is fixed now.

3] Close unnecessary background programs

Try freeing up your system resources by disabling unnecessary apps running in the background. For that, open Task Manager using Ctrl + Shift + Esc hotkey, and in the Processes tab, end all the unnecessary background programs. Additionally, go to the Startup tab and disable all the unused startup applications. After doing so, relaunch your game and see if the issue is fixed.

Read: Fix CoD Warzone DEV ERROR 5476 or DEV ERROR 6635

4] Delete Temp files

Temp files are temporary files that hold temporary information created by programs or WIndows. You can try deleting temp files from your system to make some space. It may also help you resolve the issue of high CPU usage in Warzone.

To do that, evoke the Run dialog box using the Win+R hotkey and then enter %temp% in it. Now, select all temp files using Ctrl + A and delete them. Then, go to the desktop, right-click on the Recycle Bin, and select Empty Recycle Bin.

See: Fix Memory Error 13-71 in Call of Duty Modern Warfare and WarZone

5] Increase VRAM

Warzone requires a minimum of 8 GB of RAM to run without any issue. In case your system is running out of memory during gaming, you can try boosting virtual memory by converting sectors of the hard drive into virtual memory. Here are the steps you can follow to do that:

1. Go to the Start menu search bar and type “Advanced System Settings” in the search box.
2. Select View advanced system settings from the results to open System Properties.
3. Go to the Advanced tab, click Settings under the Performance section.
4. In the next dialog window, navigate to the Advanced tab and press the Change button.
5. Uncheck the “Automatically manage paging file size for all drives” option and select the drive where the game is installed.
6. Select ‘Custom size’ and then enter a value of more than 2GB for both ‘Initial size’ and ‘Maximum size’.
7. Press the Apply > OK button to save changes.
8. Reboot your PC and then check if the issue is resolved now.

Read: Fix Error Code 664640 in Call of Duty Modern Warfare or Warzone

6] Disable fullscreen optimizations

Try disabling fullscreen optimizations to resolve the problem of high CPU usage of Warzone. It will enable Windows to stop making any optimization for the game that might be causing high CPU usage. Here are the steps to disable fullscreen optimizations for Warzone:

1. First, launch Battle.net and go to the Call of Duty: MW game.
2. Now, click on the Options > Show in Explorer option to open up the game’s installation directory. You can also directly go to the installation directory in the Fiel Explorer if you know the exact location.
3. Then, open the folder Call of Duty Modern Warfare folder and right-click on the ModernWarfareLauncher.
4. From the context menu, click on the Properties option and go to the Compatibility tab.
5. Next, select the checkbox named Disable fullscreen optimizations and then press Apply > OK button.
6. Also, repeat steps (3), (4), and (5) for ModernWarfare.exe.
7. Finally, launch the game and see if the high CPU usage problem is fixed now.

Read: Fix Dev Error 6034 in Call of Duty, Modern Warfare, and WarZone

7] Change priority level

You can try changing the priority level for Modern Warfare Warzone to avoid CPU spikes, as the game is already pretty CPU-intensive. Change the game priority to Normal and then check if the issue is resolved. Here are the steps to follow:

1. Firstly, open the Task Manager using Ctrl + Shift + Esc hotkey.
2. Next, locate and select Call of Duty: Modern Warfare under the Processes tab.
3. Now, right-click on the selected process and choose the Go to details option.
4. In the Details tab, right-click on the game’s executable.
5. Then, select Set priority to Normal.

See if this fixes up the high CPU usage problem now.

8] Lower your game’s graphics settings

You can also try lowering your in-game graphics settings to reduce CPU usage and improve game performance. To do that, here are the steps to follow:

1. Launch the game and then click on the Options button present at the bottom-left corner of the screen.
2. Select the GRAPHICS tab.
3. Lower the graphics settings like V-Sync: Disable, Shadow Quality: Medium, etc.
4. See if this fixes the issue for you.

Read: Fix COD Modern Warfare DEV ERROR 6068, 6606, 6065, 6165, 6071

How do I fix high CPU usage on Warzone?

The first thing you need to do is update the graphics driver and check for or install any available updates for the game. Following that, it is recommended to terminate all unnecessary apps that are running in the background and delete temporary files. Next, you can increase the VRAM and disable full-screen optimizations.

How do I fix 100% CPU usage while gaming?

To fix 100% CPU usage on Windows 11 while gaming, you can try some fixes like updating device drivers, running the Chkdsk command to repair file system errors, running SFC & DISM scans to fix system errors, running the Performance Troubleshooter, or examining System Health Report. If that doesn’t help, you can try uninstalling third-party web browsers, disabling the Windows Search Indexer, disabling the Print Spooler Service, or troubleshooting using Process Tamer.

Now read: Fix COD Warzone Dev Error 6036 on startup.