You're playing Warzone or maybe just trying to vibe in Cyberpunk 2077, and suddenly there it is. A block of yellow or white text in the corner of your screen showing FPS GPU CPU LAT—or some variation of latency metrics—and it won't go away. It’s distracting. It breaks the immersion. Honestly, it’s annoying when you just want to see the game world, not a constant reminder that your frame times are spiking by three milliseconds.
Most people think there is a single "off" switch for these overlays. There isn't. Because "FPS GPU CPU LAT" isn't a single program; it's a readout that could be coming from five different places. You might have accidentally hit a hotkey in your graphics driver, or maybe a recent game update toggled a "Performance Monitoring" setting without asking you. Sometimes, it’s a third-party app like MSI Afterburner that you forgot was even running in the system tray.
To turn off FPS GPU CPU LAT displays, you have to play detective. You have to figure out which piece of software is drawing those numbers on your screen. Usually, it boils down to three main culprits: your GPU drivers (Nvidia or AMD), your game settings, or background utilities like Steam, Discord, or RivaTuner.
The Nvidia Reflex and Overlay Culprit
If you’re using an Nvidia card, specifically an RTX series, there’s a high chance you’re seeing the Nvidia Performance Overlay. This is part of GeForce Experience (now being rebranded simply as the "Nvidia App").
Usually, a fat-fingered mistake triggers this. The default shortcut is Alt + R. Try hitting that first. If the metrics disappear, you’re done. If they don't, you might need to dig into the settings. Open your Nvidia overlay by pressing Alt + Z, click the little cogwheel icon for Settings, and look for "HUD Layout." Inside that menu, there is a "Performance" tab. If "FPS" or "Latency" is selected, click Off.
Nvidia also introduced something called the Reflex Latency Analyzer. This is more common if you have a high-end G-Sync monitor. It shows "Lat" (latency) specifically to help competitive players minimize input lag. If you see a small box that says "Latency" and it persists even after closing the main overlay, check the "Performance" section of the Nvidia App and make sure "Latency" metrics are toggled to hidden.
AMD Software: Adrenalin Edition
AMD users aren't safe from this either. AMD's Adrenalin software has a very robust performance logging tool. It’s great when you're benchmarking, but it’s an eyesore when you're just trying to enjoy a narrative-driven RPG.
The magic key combo for AMD is usually Ctrl + Shift + O. This toggles the Performance Overlay. If that doesn't work, you'll need to open the Adrenalin software (usually by right-clicking your desktop), go to the Performance tab, and then the Overlay sub-tab. There’s a big toggle there that says "Enable Overlay." Flip it off. AMD also lets you customize exactly what shows up—FPS, GPU utilization, CPU status—so if you only see one of those, it’s definitely this setting.
Why "LAT" Appears in Your Game Settings
Sometimes the call is coming from inside the house. Many modern titles, especially "live service" games like Apex Legends, Overwatch 2, or Call of Duty, have built-in telemetry. Developers added these because they got tired of players complaining about lag when the issue was actually the player's own hardware or ISP.
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Go into your game's Options menu. Look for a tab labeled Interface, Video, or Telemetry.
- In Call of Duty, it's under "Interface." You’ll see options for "Telemetry" where you can individually toggle FPS Counter, Server Latency, and Packet Loss.
- In Valorant, it’s under "Video" and then "Stats." You can set these to "Hide," "Text Only," or "Graph."
- If you see "LAT," it almost always refers to "Latency," which is just another word for Ping or the time it takes for your input to reach the server and back.
The RivaTuner and MSI Afterburner Problem
If the text looks a bit "old school"—usually a blocky font in pink, orange, or green—it’s probably RivaTuner Statistics Server (RTSS). This usually installs alongside MSI Afterburner. It’s the gold standard for hardware monitoring, but it can be aggressive.
Look in your Windows System Tray (the icons near your clock). Look for a little blue computer monitor icon with a "60" on it. That’s RivaTuner. Right-click it and select "Show." There is a big toggle that says Show On-Screen Display. Turn that to Off. You can also set a "Global" profile so it never turns on unless you specifically tell it to for a certain game.
Steam and Third-Party Overlays
Don't forget the basics. Steam has its own FPS counter. It’s tiny and usually just white text. Go to Steam > Settings > In-Game and look for the "In-game FPS counter" dropdown. Set it to Off.
Discord also has an overlay that can show who is talking, but it occasionally glitches and shows performance data if you've messed with the "Developer Mode" or certain experimental plugins. Check Discord Settings > Game Overlay and disable it entirely to see if the FPS GPU CPU LAT text vanishes.
Dealing with Windows Game Bar
Windows 10 and 11 have a built-in "Game Bar." If you press Windows Key + G, a bunch of widgets pop up. One of those is a "Performance" widget that shows CPU, GPU, VRAM, and RAM usage.
Sometimes this widget gets "pinned." If it’s pinned, it stays on top of your game even when the Game Bar is closed. To fix this, hit Win + G, find the Performance window, and click the little "pin" icon so it’s uncrossed. Then close the Game Bar. It should disappear.
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The Technical Reality of Latency Metrics
Why do we even see "LAT" (Latency) specifically? In the last few years, the industry shifted. We realized that high FPS doesn't always mean a smooth game. If your "System Latency" is high, the game feels "heavy" or "floaty" regardless of whether you're hitting 200 FPS.
Total System Latency is the time between a mouse click and a pixel changing on the screen. It involves the CPU processing the input, the GPU rendering the frame, and the display finally showing it. When you see "CPU LAT" or "GPU LAT," the software is trying to tell you which part of your computer is the bottleneck. Usually, if GPU Latency is high, you need to lower your graphics settings. If CPU Latency is high, you might have too many background apps running (like Chrome with 50 tabs open).
How to Make Sure it Stays Off
Software updates are notorious for resetting these settings. Every time Nvidia releases a major "Game Ready" driver, there is a non-zero chance that the overlay shortcut might get re-enabled or the HUD might reset to default.
If you find that the FPS GPU CPU LAT overlay keeps coming back, you might have a "profile" system in your mouse or keyboard software (like Razer Synapse or Logitech G Hub) that is triggering a macro. It sounds crazy, but I’ve seen cases where a user mapped a key to "Mute" that also happened to be the toggle for a performance overlay in a different app.
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Step-by-Step Checklist to Clear Your Screen
If you're staring at the numbers right now and just want them gone, follow this sequence:
- The Quick Toggles: Hit Alt + R (Nvidia), then Ctrl + Shift + O (AMD), then Windows + G (Windows Game Bar). 90% of the time, one of these will kill the overlay immediately.
- Check the System Tray: Look for MSI Afterburner, RivaTuner, or EVGA Precision. Close them. If the numbers disappear, you’ve found the source.
- In-Game Telemetry: Open the game’s own settings. Look for "Telemetry," "Performance Stats," or "Interface." Turn off anything related to "Display Performance Stats."
- The Nuclear Option: If you can't find it, restart your computer and open the game. If the overlay is there the second the game launches, it's a game setting or a driver setting. If it only appears after you open a specific app (like Discord or Spotify), that app is the culprit.
- Check for "Overwolf": Many gamers install "buff" or "tracker.gg" apps to see stats. These almost always use an overlay to show your "win probability" or "FPS." If you use these types of apps, check their individual settings menus.
Once you’ve cleared the screen, your frames will feel exactly the same, but your brain will finally be able to focus on the game instead of the data. Performance monitoring is a tool for troubleshooting; it shouldn't be a permanent fixture of your gaming experience unless you're actively trying to solve a stuttering issue.