What PC do I need to play Starfield: Guide and recommendations

The publication of the different levels of official requirements left many players with a question as simple as it is important, what PC will I need to play Starfield optimally? This question can be approached in two different ways, the first one in the face of upgrading an existing PC to be able to move it, and the second one aimed at assembling a new PC completely from scratch.

In this article I am going to help you to solve both questions in a simple and optimal way, i.e. always looking for the best possible ratio between upgrade or assembly cost of each PC to play Starfield and its performance. For all of you to be able to solve any possible doubt we will also see equivalences of past and present graphics cards, and if you still have any question you can leave it in the comments.

Before we start I would like to remind you that Starfield is a game promoted by AMDand therefore may be optimized for run better with the Radeon RX 6000 and RX 7000 graphics cards, something we have already seen with other titles such as Resident Evil Village and Resident Evil 4 Remake, to give two well-known examples.

Components that a PC must have to play Starfield in 1080p.

Starfield

This resolution still offers an excellent balance between graphics quality and hardware requirements. However, we must keep in mind that Starfield is going to be an Xbox S and X Series exclusive game, and therefore its requirements will clearly be above previous generation titles.

The minimum level to be able to play Starfield in 1080p and with medium graphics quality while maintaining an acceptable fluidity will be located in this configuration:

  • Windows 10 version 22H2.
  • Quad-core, eight-thread processor at the level of a Ryzen 5 1500X or an Intel Core i7-4770.
  • 16 GB RAM. It will probably work with 8 GB of RAM, but it is almost certain that with this amount we will end up having problems.
  • GeForce GTX 1070 graphics card with 8 GB of graphics memory or Radeon RX Vega 56 with 8 GB of graphics memory.
  • SSD storage drive.

Having an SSD will be essential for reduce load timesand to avoid problems in the streaming of assets (game files and data) that Starfield will work with in real time.

Within the most current generations of components the closest thing to that configuration would be a PC of this type:

  • Processor Intel Core i3-10100F or Ryzen 5 2500X. Both have a higher IPC and are more powerful than the Intel Core i7-4770 and Ryzen 5 1500X, but keep the 4 cores and 8 threads.
  • Graphics card GeForce GTX 1660 Super, GeForce RTX 3050 and Radeon RX 5600 XT. The latter two are slightly more powerful than the GeForce GTX 1070 and Radeon RX Vega 56.

Starfield

We go up a step and look for the configurations that our PC must meet to play Starfield in 1080p with maximum quality and total fluidity, and we take as a starting point the recommended requirements for 1080p:

  • Windows 10 version 22H2.
  • Ryzen 5 3600X or Intel Core i5-10600K processor.
  • 16 GB of RAM.
  • Radeon RX 7600 or GeForce RTX 2080 graphics card.
  • SSD with 125 GB of free space.

Well, we can draw from this that we are going to need a PC with a six-core, twelve-threaded CPU that has a IPC at the level of Zen 2 or Skylake, that this will need to have 16 GB of RAM and that we will need a €300 graphics card with 8 GB of graphics memory at the level of the Radeon RX 7600.

Both in previous generations and in more current generations we can find. configurations that would also meet these recommended requirements.among which the following stand out:

  • Processor Intel Core i7 8700K and Ryzen 5 5500.
  • Graphics card GeForce RTX 4060 and Radeon RX 6700. Older ones such as the GeForce GTX 1080 Ti, the Radeon RX 6600 XT and the Intel Arc A770. would fall just a hair below the recommended level in terms of raw power.

Ideal configuration to play Starfield in 1080p with all the guarantees.

Starfield

  • Windows 10 version 22H2.
  • Ryzen 5 3600X processor, Intel Core i7-8700K or equivalent. Six cores and twelve threads.
  • 16 GB RAM.
  • Radeon RX 7600 or GeForce RTX 4060 graphics card with 8 GB of graphics memory.
  • PCIe Gen3 x4 SSD with 125 GB of free space.

If we have a PC that meets these specifications we will have no problem playing Starfield in 1080p quality. very high or even maximumThe degree of optimization will depend on how well it is optimized, and we will be able to keep a total fluidity.

This configuration also should be enough to play at 1440p by adjusting the graphics quality level a bit. so as not to lose fluidity, or resorting to FSR2 to counteract that increase in resolution.

Components that a PC must have to play Starfield at 1440p.

In this case it was AMD itself that listed the requirements to be met. The truth is that these seem to be inflated, but we have no choice, for the time being, but to start from them to draw up the list of recommendations and equivalences. Let us recall these recommended requirements:

  • Ryzen 7 7700X processor with 8 cores and 16 threads. Its closest equivalent would be the Intel Core i5-13600K.
  • 16 GB of RAM.
  • AMD Radeon RX 6800 with 16 GB of graphics memory. Its closest equivalent would be a GeForce RTX 3070 Ti, although the latter has 8 GB of graphics memory.

With this configuration we could. play at 1440p with maximum quality and a high frame rate per second, i.e. we would have a fully optimal experience, which means that with lower settings we could also play perfectly well if we reduce the graphics quality level a bit.

Starfield

It is important to note that raising the resolution does not increase the CPU requirements of a game.but it does increase the GPU requirements. Nor will we need more RAM, and the cases in which we have seen different trends in the end it has turned out that we were faced with a simple problem of memory leakage. That was, in fact, what was happening with Diablo IV, and everyone took it for granted that it was because raising the texture quality consumed more RAM, which made no sense.

I want to point this out because in the end to play Starfield well. we are not going to need an 8-core, 16-thread processor. just because we raise the resolution, all we will need is a more powerful graphics card. This is not to say that we won’t notice a performance improvement when using a Ryzen 7 7700X, but in this case it would be more due to the increased IPC and working frequencies than the higher core and thread count.

All in all, just so you have a series of references I leave you below the. closest direct equivalences to the recommended requirements given by AMD:

  • Intel Core i5-13600K or Ryzen 7 5800X3D processor.
  • In graphics cards there are no close direct equivalents to those two models. The GeForce RTX 2080 Ti would be the closest below, i.e. inferior to both and the GeForce RTX 4070 would be the closest above, i.e. superior to both.

Ideal configuration for playing Starfield at 1440p with full guarantees.

  • Windows 10 version 22H2.
  • Ryzen 5 7600 processor, Intel Core i5-12600K or equivalent. Six cores and twelve threads.
  • 16 GB RAM.
  • Radeon RX 6800 or GeForce RTX 4070 graphics card. The GeForce RTX 4070 is about 11% more powerful.
  • PCIe Gen3 x4 SSD with 125 GB of free space.

This would be the realistic and properly tuned configuration we will need to play Starfield in fully optimal conditions at 1440pstarting from current components whenever possible. As I said, with a PC of this type we will be able to run such a game in that resolution with maximum quality while maintaining total fluidity.

The configuration we have seen will also be able to run Starfield at 2160p, although adjusting graphics quality downwards. to maintain a good level of fluidity, or resorting to FSR2 to counteract again the performance loss of increasing the resolution.

Components that a PC must have to play Starfield in 2160p.

Starfield

Jumping to 4K assumes un important increase in the requirements that our PC will have to meet, especially if we want to enjoy a truly optimal experience. However, we must bear in mind that in the end the graphic quality settings we use will also have an influence, since obviously the level of demand will not be the same if we set the game to medium or if we set it to high quality.

According to AMD, to be able to play in 2160p enjoying. the best experience without compromise we will need to meet these specifications:

  • Windows 10 version 22H2.
  • Ryzen 7 7800X3D processor with 8 cores and 16 threads. Its closest equivalent would be the Intel Core i9-13900K for single-threaded performance.
  • 16 GB of RAM.
  • AMD Radeon RX 7900 XT with 20 GB of graphics memory. Its closest equivalent would be a GeForce RTX 3090 Ti, although the latter has 24 GB of graphics memory.

I understand that AMD is referring, when it says “no compromises”, to. playing Starfield in 4K at maximum quality without giving up full fluidity. As we can see, again the CPU requirements are increased, something that as I have already said makes no sense, and less in this resolution, since it is precisely in 4K when it is minimized. the dependence on the processor is minimized and its impact is greatly reduced.

Therefore, the optimal level at the CPU level would still actually be set at. a Ryzen 5 7600 or an Intel Core i5-12600Kalthough as I said before having a more powerful processor could contribute to slightly improve performance, always depending on the specific model. That Ryzen 7 7800X3D would be precisely the one that would make the biggest difference, but even in this case it would be relatively small.

In spite of everything, I leave you a list of hardware equivalences for your reference when validating and interpreting these recommended requirements:

  • Intel Core i9-13900K processor,
  • The closest equivalent to the Radeon RX 7900 XT is the GeForce RXT 3090 Ti. Below it would be the GeForce RTX 4070 Ti, which is on average 10% slower, and above it would be the GeForce RTX 4080, which is 15% faster.

Starfield

Ideal configuration to play Starfield in 1440p with all the guarantees.

  • Windows 10 version 22H2.
  • Ryzen 5 7600 processor, Intel Core i5-12600K or equivalent. Six cores and twelve threads.
  • 16 GB RAM.
  • Radeon RX 7900 XT or GeForce RTX 3090 Ti graphics card.
  • PCIe Gen3 x4 SSD with 125 GB of free space.

This configuration is totally realistic for me to play in 4K with maximum quality and without any problem of fluidity, as long as Bethesda has done their homework. and that the optimization is minimally taken care of. It is important to keep in mind that the game will be limited to FSR2 technology, and that activating this in quality mode when playing in 4K is an excellent way to improve performance without making a major sacrifice in image quality.

Tips for upgrading a PC to play Starfield

From all that we have seen so far we can make clear some very important things that will mark us. the objectives to be met with this component upgrade. I think that listing those objectives and leaving some recommendation directly next to each one of them is the best way to approach this part, since it will be very easy to read and understand.

However, keep in mind that in case you have a very old PC, it is very likely that a complete change of equipment would be ideal.especially if we are unable to meet the minimum requirements that we have indicated at the beginning of this article.

  1. GPU upgrade target: change GPU to one that is at least on par with a GeForce RTX 2060, GeForce GTX 1070 Ti, Radeon RX Vega 56 or Radeon RX 5600 XT for 1080p.
  2. CPU upgrade target: the minimum level is at a quad-core, eight-threaded processor at the level of a Ryzen 5 1500X or Intel Core Gen4, but a six-core, twelve-threaded CPU would be highly recommended.
  3. RAM upgrade target: upgrading the memory from 8 GB to 16 GB will make a substantial difference, as it will eliminate micro-stutters and possible stalls, resulting from memory dump and load cycles
  4. Storage upgrade target: moving from an HDD to an SSD, even if it is a low-cost SATA III drive, will mark a very big improvement. It will be very worthwhile.

If we have, for example, a PC with a Ryzen 5 2500X, 8 GB of RAM and a GeForce GTX 970 or a Radeon RX 570 we should. prioritize upgrading the RAM to 16 GB and changing the graphics card to a more powerful model.

I give you another more extreme example to close this guide. If we had a PC configured with Intel Core i5-2400, 4 GB of RAM and a GeForce GTX 660 Ti the most advisable would be to change the equipment completely, although we could get to play Starfield if we change the CPU to Intel Core i7-2600K, expand the RAM to 16 GB and mount a Radeon RX 580 8 GB. The experience would not be optimal, but it could be acceptable.

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