How to fix lag in Marvel Rivals

Like other competitive games, it’s crucial for players to have the most seamless experience possible with Marvel Rivals ^[1]. Every second counts, and even some lag could potentially hinder your chances of winning the match for your team.

Before you chew out your ISP and blame them for your Marvel Rivals problems, consider doing things like ensuring your device meets the game’s minimum requirements, using an SSD, switching to Ethernet, and enabling switch shader compilation mode.

If you’re facing lag issues in Marvel Rivals but aren’t sure why, here are some fixes you should try.

Use an Ethernet connection with better bandwidth

A good internet connection is essential for how smooth Marvel Rivals feels. If you are on a weak or unstable connection, you can experience packet loss and high ping, which can cause freezes, unwanted teleporting, or lag in real time. They are annoying and can make the game unplayable during fast-paced team fights.

To smooth things out, switch to a wired Ethernet connection for a steadier and faster experience. Consider bumping up your internet speed, as the extra bandwidth adds a boost when a lot is going on in-game. This upgrade can reduce lag significantly, making Marvel Rivals smoother and more enjoyable.

Ensure you’re connected with the right server

Because Marvel Rivals has a worldwide player base, the developer ensures players all over the world can play with dedicated servers set in different regions. Thanks to this, players can choose between multiple servers, though the one that will give them the best connectivity is usually selected by default.

Those who experience lag in just Marvel Rivals should consider ensuring they have the correct Marvel Rivals servers selected before they search for a match in the lobby. If you have multiple servers selected, deselect them all and ensure you’re matched up with just the server that gives you the best ping.

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Upgrade your RAM, CPU, and GPU

Older parts like a GTX 1060 or Ryzen 5 1600X struggle to keep up during intense action in Marvel Rivals. While meeting the minimum requirements, they struggle during heavy action, leading to frame drops, stutters, and delayed inputs. This lag can hold you back in a fast-paced shooter like Marvel Rivals.

Consider upgrading to the recommended specs, like a Ryzen 5 5600X and an RTX 2060 Super, or something close. It will make things much smoother and give stable performance. While you are at it, upgrade your RAM to 16 GB to avoid annoying app slowdowns.

Download Marvel Rivals on an SSD

Installing Marvel Rivals on an SSD instead of an old hard drive can boost serious performance. The game constantly loads textures, audio, and effects in real time, and a slow or aging hard drive can struggle to keep up. These delays cause frustrating lag during big moments, where a split-second freeze can mess with your momentum.

By upgrading to an SSD, the game will load much faster, meaning quicker map transitions, smoother gameplay, and significantly fewer hitches. While it does not directly boost FPS, it smoothens the overall experience and keeps things consistent.

Lower the Marvel Rivals graphics settings for better performance

If upgrading your hardware is not an option, you can make the game smoother by dialing the graphics settings down. Start by lowering the render scaling, which reduces game sharpness but gives a noticeable FPS boost. You should also consider capping your FPS down to 60 or 45 to prevent sudden frame drops in big moments.

For an easy fix, use the low graphics quality preset. But if you prefer fine-tuning things yourself, focus on turning global illumination and reflection quality off, which are heavy hitters in performance costs. Set the shadow detail to low, and as for the rest, like model detail, textures, or effects, you can adjust between medium and low depending on what your hardware can handle. Focus less on visuals and more on performance, your priority should be smoother gameplay. 

Enable the Marvel Rivals switch shader compilation mode

The switch shader compilation mode can also improve performance and reduce lag. To turn it on, open the launcher and tick the box next to the launch button before starting the game. It cuts down on real-time stutters, especially if working with less than 16 GB of RAM, where memory management disrupts performance.

If your game usually hitches during big moments, this setting can help clean it up. However, if you have a lower-end CPU and are using AMD FSR3 Frame Generation, you may run into extra stutters with this on, making it worth leaving it off. But for most setups, this has been proven to make the game less choppy and give a minor FPS boost.

Disable app overlays to free system resources

Apps like Steam, Discord, and your GPU use seemingly harmless overlays but quietly eat up resources in the background. They display on your game to show chat windows or performance stats, but can cause stutters, freezes, or frame drops. Turning them off frees more breathing room for your system, making Marvel Rivals smoother while you play.

Here is how to turn them off for each major app:

• Steam > View > Settings > In-Game > uncheck Enable the Steam Overlay while in-game.
• Discord > User Settings > Activity Settings > Game Overlay > toggle off Enable In-Game Overlay.
• Radeon Software > Settings > Preferences > disable In-Game Overlay.
• GeForce Experience > Settings > Features > toggle off NVIDIA Overlay.

Disable unnecessary background processes

Marvel Rivals can lag when you have a bunch of background apps running, like browsers, updates, or random software, quietly hogging your RAM and CPU power. It can drag lower-end systems down, leading to significantly worse performance during matches in Marvel Rivals.

To clean things up, open Task Manager (Ctrl + Shift + Esc) and close anything that does not need to run while you play. You can also go to Settings > Apps > Startup and disable unnecessary apps from auto-launching. It keeps the system lean and helps the game run smoother.

FAQs

Why am I experiencing lag in Marvel Rivals even with a stable internet connection?

Lag in Marvel Rivals can occur due to server-side issues, high player traffic, or background processes on your device that interfere with performance. Even if your connection is stable, problems like packet loss or high ping can still result in delayed inputs or rubberbanding during matches.

Does the server region affect lag in Marvel Rivals?

Yes, playing on a server that’s far from your physical location can significantly increase ping and cause lag. Always make sure you're connected to the region closest to you in the settings. If you're being matched to other regions automatically, it might be due to low local player activity or matchmaking times.

References

1. [1] "Official Marvel Rivals website". www.marvelrivals.com. Retrieved May 09, 2025