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Windows · power
Windows power plan for gaming: High performance or Balanced
The Windows power plan controls how quickly CPU and GPU can raise clocks under load. For gaming on a laptop on AC, you usually pick High performance or Ultimate Performance when it exists. Balanced can be fine on a desktop or on battery when you accept lower limits. In SmoothWizard, Change power plan lives in Basic. It is not HAGS, not Game Mode, and not an overlay.
One Windows switch, one test on the same map. A power plan will not fix post-patch shaders, but it can remove a laptop CPU cap in eco mode.
Why it stutters
Balanced parks cores and lowers clocks when Windows thinks load is not sustained. In games that sometimes looks like random micro-stutter or a weaker 1% low, especially on battery or with a thermal cap. High performance holds a higher power floor. Some AMD users prefer Balanced - so you test both states in Basic instead of copying a forum default.
Key points
- Laptop: AC adapter and a performance plan before ranked. Battery is a different scenario.
- High performance is not HAGS. HAGS is a separate Graphics toggle.
- SmoothWizard Basic sets the plan. On AMD, test it on and off locally.
- 1
Confirm you are not on battery
Win+A or the battery icon: plug in the adapter. On battery, Windows often enforces savings regardless of plan. AC first, then plan - otherwise the test is meaningless.
- 2
Open power plans
Win+R > powercfg.cpl or Settings > System > Power & battery > Power mode (Windows 11). Look for High performance, Ultimate Performance, or Best performance. Older builds may lack Ultimate - then High performance.
- 3
Set High performance for the test
Pick High performance (or Ultimate / Best performance). Play the same warmup: same map, same overlays off. If you can, do not stack this test with shader cache clearing the same day.
- 4
Compare with Balanced locally
Switch back to Balanced, same scenario. On Intel, High performance often stays. On AMD, Balanced sometimes feels smoother - that is a test, not a rule. No borrowed FPS.
- 5
Do not confuse with HAGS or Game Mode
Hardware-accelerated GPU scheduling is Settings > System > Display > Graphics. Game Mode is Settings > Gaming. A power plan does not replace those toggles. HAGS has its own guide. This page is CPU/GPU power only.
- 6
SmoothWizard Basic
Optimization tab: Change power plan. On Intel you usually enable and keep it. On AMD, test with the box on and off. PRO adds process pause on fullscreen. The app does not change HAGS.
Notes
English Windows plan names: Balanced, High performance, Ultimate Performance. A Polish SKU may show Zrównoważony and Wysoka wydajność - same profiles.
FAQ
Click a question to show the answer. The first one is open.
Does High performance always add FPS?
We do not promise frames. The plan raises the power floor. On some laptops it reduces CPU throttle micro-stutter. On desktops the gap can be small. You measure locally.
Is this the same as HAGS?
No. Power plan is CPU and power policy. HAGS is GPU scheduling in Windows Graphics. You can test both, separately.
Laptop on battery - which plan?
Balanced or battery saver. High performance on battery shortens runtime and may still hit thermal limits. Ranked is saner on AC.
Does SmoothWizard set the plan for me?
Basic includes Change power plan in one-click Optimization. It does not force a plan on every game launch unless you run it.
