Pick High performance for games and video editors, Power saving to stretch battery, and Let Windows decide when you want Windows to pick. These three choices live in Settings > System > Display > Graphics, where you can add desktop or Microsoft Store apps, point Windows at the correct .exe and, on newer builds, choose a specific physical GPU for High performance tasks. Use the setting to force heavy apps onto a discrete card for better frame rates, or to force integrated graphics to save battery or to isolate crashes. This guide walks through the steps, common pitfalls and when to prefer Windows settings over vendor control panels.

For games and video editors, choosing High performance usually delivers smoother frame rates because the discrete GPU handles rendering instead of the integrated processor graphics.

1. Decide which apps to change and why

Start by naming the applications that need a different GPU and why you want to change them. The most obvious candidates are games, video editors and 3D modelling tools. These tend to benefit from a discrete GPU when frame rate, rendering time or viewport responsiveness are the priority. Laptops and other battery-sensitive machines are the reverse case: assign integrated graphics to preserve battery life, or to test whether a crash or display issue is caused by the discrete card.

Windows normally switches between integrated and discrete graphics automatically. But automatic switching can misidentify an app or be defeated by an application bug. For troubleshooting and intentional power management, a manual assignment is the reliable option: it removes the automatic choice and forces a known GPU at process start.

Worked example: if a video editor exports slowly, set it to High performance; if a laptop gives poor battery life while browsing, set the browser to Power saving for a battery-friendly baseline.

2. Open the Graphics settings in Windows 11

Open Settings, go to System, then Display. Scroll to the Related settings section and open Graphics. The Graphics page lists recognised apps and the GPU each uses by default.

If the application you want to change is already listed, select it and use Options to change the preference. If it's not shown, use the add control to register it with Windows. For desktop Win32 programs you add the program by pointing to the program's .exe file. For Microsoft Store and other UWP apps you pick the app from the list presented by Windows.

Worked example: many games launch via a client or launcher. Adding the wrong executable is a common mistake; the executable you add must be the process that performs rendering rather than the launcher itself.

3.

Choose the app and select the GPU preference

After adding or selecting the app, click Options. Windows presents three main choices: Let Windows decide, which leaves the choice to the operating system; Power saving, which runs the app on the lowest-power GPU, typically the integrated graphics; and High performance, which runs the app on the most capable GPU, typically the discrete card.

On builds of Windows 11 that include the newer Graphics control, a Specific GPU option appears when multiple high-performance GPUs are present. That lets you pick exactly which physical GPU Windows will use for the High performance profile. Some versions also include a toggle labelled Optimizations for windowed games which you can enable for games running in windowed or borderless-windowed mode. Save the selection and close the dialog.

Worked example: on a desktop with two discrete cards, select Specific GPU to ensure the game uses the faster card rather than the slower one. On a laptop, choose Power saving for the web browser to prioritise battery life during travel.

4. Restart the application and verify

Windows applies the new GPU assignment at process start. Close and relaunch the application to make the change take effect. If the app still appears to be using the wrong GPU after relaunch, check whether you added the correct executable and whether any launchers or helper processes actually perform rendering.

Use the Graphics page to inspect which GPU Windows reports for each app. If the app remains misassigned, proceed to vendor-level checks described later.

Worked example: if a game still runs on integrated graphics after you set High performance, re-open Graphics settings, confirm you pointed at the renderer .exe rather than the game launcher, then relaunch the game to force Windows to start the process with the new assignment.

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5. Differences across Windows 11 releases

The layout and some options in the Graphics settings vary by Windows 11 build. Newer releases, including Windows 11 24H2 and later and other explicitly mentioned newer builds, present the refined Add desktop app / Add Microsoft Store app controls and the Specific GPU option when multiple discrete GPUs are installed.

Older Windows 11 releases present the same basic Let Windows decide, Power saving and High performance options but may have slightly different wording and UI flows. If a third-party guide references a different Settings layout, confirm the Windows build you are running before following step-by-step screenshots or menu labels.

Worked example: if your guide shows a Specific GPU dropdown but your Settings page does not, you are likely on an older build of Windows 11 that hasn't yet received the refined control set.

Graphics vendors supply their own control panels that can override or complement the Windows settings. NVIDIA and AMD drivers expose per-application and global profiles in their respective control panels.

On systems where you want the discrete GPU used for everything by default, the NVIDIA Control Panel offers a Manage Display Mode option that can be set to force the NVIDIA GPU only. That makes the discrete GPU the default for all applications unless you explicitly set an app to use integrated graphics in Windows Graphics settings. That mode is a practical way to enforce a system-wide default, while Windows per-application settings remain useful to make exceptions.

Understand that vendor control panels can conflict with or supersede Windows preferences in some configurations. Use the vendor tool to set a global default and the Windows Graphics page to make exceptions, or vice versa, depending on which workflow produces the intended behaviour on your machine.

Worked example: set NVIDIA to force the discrete GPU for all processes if you want everything to use the faster card, then use Windows Graphics to force integrated graphics for a single app that must conserve battery life.

If an app doesn't behave as expected after changing settings, run through this checklist in order. First, confirm you added the program's correct .exe. Many games start via a launcher, but the executable you added must be the process that performs rendering. Second, restart the app and, when necessary, sign out or reboot. Third, update graphics drivers from the GPU vendor; outdated drivers frequently cause the system to ignore preferences.

Fourth, check the vendor control panel. If it's configured to force a different GPU globally, either adjust that setting or use the vendor control panel to set per-application exceptions. Fifth, when testing whether a GPU is in use, rely on tools or OS indicators that show GPU utilisation rather than solely on perceived performance.

Finally, for power-sensitive laptops, verify the Windows power plan and any manufacturer battery-conservation utilities. These can bias the system toward integrated graphics even when Windows is told to prefer High performance, so they're a common source of surprising behaviour.

Worked example: if a game keeps using integrated graphics despite correctly set preferences, update the GPU driver, check for a manufacturer battery saver utility and confirm the NVIDIA or AMD control panel isn't forcing an alternate GPU.

To revert a per-app assignment, open the Graphics page, select the app and use the Reset or Remove options provided by Windows to restore the system default. Removing the app from the list returns control to the automatic selection logic.

Vendor control panels also provide options to restore driver defaults. If you previously set the GPU vendor control to a single-GPU mode, use the vendor panel to clear that global force setting.

Worked example: if you want to return a game to automatic handling, remove it from the Graphics list in Settings and, if you used NVIDIA's Manage Display Mode, switch that back to an automatic option in the NVIDIA Control Panel.

Use Windows Graphics settings when you want a straightforward, OS-level per-app preference that survives driver updates and is easy to manage without installing vendor software. Use vendor tools when you need finer control, to force a GPU for every process, or to set driver-level profiles and performance tuning.

For the most predictable results on systems with hybrid graphics, combine approaches. Set a global default in the vendor control panel if you want all apps to favour the discrete GPU, and use Windows Graphics settings to force integrated graphics on the specific apps where battery life or compatibility matters.

Worked example: set AMD or NVIDIA to prefer discrete graphics generally, then use Windows Graphics to force integrated graphics for a single productivity app that must run long on battery without a power brick attached.

First, open Settings > System > Display > Graphics and add the app you want to control.

Second, choose Let Windows decide, Power saving or High performance, and pick Specific GPU when available.

Third, restart the app to apply the assignment and use the Graphics page and vendor control panels if things still look wrong.

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Open Settings > System > Display > Graphics, add or select the application, choose Let Windows decide, Power saving, High performance or Specific GPU where available, save and relaunch the app so Windows starts it with the new assignment.

This article was created with AI assistance.