Call of Duty: Warzone costs nothing, but its PC demands are those of a full-fat game, and since late 2025 there’s an extra condition most older guides don’t mention at all: without Secure Boot and TPM 2.0 enabled, the game won’t let you in. We’ll go through the minimum, the recommended specs and the competitive tier, what applies on consoles and what to do when the game runs poorly.
PC requirements in a table
Activision lists three tiers: the minimum, the recommended specs for 60 FPS on high settings, and the Competitive / Ultra 4K tier for high frame rates or 4K.
| Component | Minimum | Recommended (60 FPS, high) | Competitive / Ultra 4K |
|---|---|---|---|
| OS | Windows 10 64-bit, latest update | Windows 11 64-bit | Windows 11 64-bit |
| CPU | Ryzen 5 1400 or Core i5-6600 | Ryzen 5 1600X or Core i7-6700K | Ryzen 5 5600X or Core i7-10700K |
| Memory | 8 GB | 12 GB | 16 GB |
| Graphics | Radeon RX 470, GeForce GTX 970 or 1060, Intel Arc A580 | Radeon RX 6600XT, GeForce RTX 3060, Intel Arc B580 | Radeon RX 9070XT, GeForce RTX 4080 or 5070 |
| Video memory | 3 GB | 8 GB | 12 GB |
| Storage | SSD, 116 GB free space | SSD, 116 GB free space | SSD, 116 GB free space |
On top of that, a few things apply to all three tiers that aren’t in the table: the game needs DirectX 12 and a broadband connection, it only runs on Intel and AMD processors with the AVX instruction set, and Intel Arc graphics cards require Resizable Bar to be enabled.
Steam still lists an older set of numbers for the game: a weaker CPU, a GTX 960 and 125 GB of space with no mention of an SSD. The difference isn’t a mistake on either side; the store page just isn’t updated as often as the support site. So treat the values from Activision support as the valid ones and Steam as a floor you can’t plan a purchase around.
Secure Boot and TPM 2.0 are mandatory
This is now the most common reason the game won’t start on a machine that comfortably meets the specs in the table. Since the season that arrived in Warzone on 4 December 2025, the Ricochet anti-cheat requires your PC to boot in a verified state. In practice, that means four things at once:
- Secure Boot enabled in UEFI, not in Legacy mode.
- TPM 2.0: older versions 1.0 to 1.2 won’t pass.
- A drive with a GPT partition table, not MBR.
- Windows 10 version 22H2 or newer, if you’re not on Windows 11.
On Windows 11, you almost certainly have both enabled already, simply because the system itself requires it. On Windows 10 it’s a lottery, and TPM sometimes comes disabled in the BIOS from the factory. If you don’t meet the conditions, you don’t just get an error message: Activision limits those players to a subset of modes and playlists, locking them out of Ranked Play among other things, and may put them into separate matchmaking with others in the same situation. To check your setup, Activision has released the Secure Attestation Wizard, so you don’t have to guess what exactly you’re missing.
How much RAM and what kind of drive
Eight gigabytes of memory really is just the minimum: twelve is the recommended amount, and sixteen only shows up in the competitive tier. If you’re choosing between adding memory and upgrading your graphics card, with eight gigabytes it pays to sort out the memory first.
The drive is simpler: an SSD is listed for all three tiers and a traditional hard disk isn’t on the list at all. It’s not just about loading speed; the game streams in textures while you play. Plan for extra headroom above the listed 116 GB too, because mandatory updates need additional space and the install grows with each season. How to cut the size down by uninstalling packs you don’t play is covered in our guide to downloading and installing Warzone.
Which consoles Warzone runs on
The current generation, meaning PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S, comes with no strings attached. With PlayStation 4 and Xbox One it’s more complicated, and it’s good to know this ahead of time if you’re planning:
- On 4 June 2026 the game disappeared from the stores of both older consoles, so you can no longer download it there.
- On 25 June 2026 the in-game store on them shut down as well.
- It stays playable until the end of Season 06 in Black Ops 7. With the launch of Modern Warfare 4’s first season, support for the older consoles ends completely.
If you play on an older console and don’t want to lose your progress, it’s simple: just continue on a current console or on PC with the same linked Activision account, and your inventory and progress come with you. If you’re thinking about moving to PlayStation 5, also take a look at the best PS5 games. Warzone is free, so the cost of the console gets spread across other titles too.
When the game runs poorly
Before you start tweaking settings, go through the things Activision lists as first aid on its support site. They work surprisingly often:
- Let shader preloading finish. On first launch, the game prepares shaders, and if you leave the main menu at that point, you interrupt the process and then wonder why the game stutters.
- Update your graphics driver. Support currently recommends AMD 25.12.1, NVIDIA 591.59 and Intel 32.0.101.8531. For Maxwell and Pascal cards, Game Ready driver support has ended and the last recommended version is 581.80.
- Check the game files. In Battle.net it’s Scan and Repair; on Steam it’s verifying the integrity of game files.
- Add the game folder to your antivirus exclusions. Activision recommends excluding the whole folder, not individual files.
- Turn off overlay apps. Specifically NZXT CAM, MSI Afterburner and Razer Cortex; for Razer Synapse, updating the driver is enough.
- Try a clean boot with only essential programs. If you’ve ever disabled ASLR in Windows, turn it back on.
Once you’ve gone through this and the game still doesn’t run as it should, it’s time for graphics settings, resolution and frame rate caps. We cover that separately in our article on the best Warzone settings, which explains what to turn off first and what to leave alone.
FAQ
Yes, eight gigabytes is the listed minimum. The recommended amount is twelve, though, and sixteen for the competitive tier, so on eight expect to compromise on graphics settings.
Yes, both are mandatory. Without them the game limits you to a subset of modes and playlists, locks you out of Ranked Play and may put you into separate matchmaking. On Windows 10 you also need version 22H2 or newer.
Activision support lists an SSD with 116 GB of free space, while Steam’s older listing says 125 GB. Leave some extra headroom for mandatory updates.
For now, yes, but only until the end of Season 06 in Black Ops 7. The game can’t be downloaded there since 4 June 2026, and support for the older consoles ends with the launch of Modern Warfare 4’s first season.
Information verified as of 3 September 2026. What to set up in the game once you meet the requirements is covered in our article on Warzone settings, where to download the game and how to shrink the install in our download guide, and what costs money in the game in our article on whether Warzone is free. The rest of our guides are in the Warzone section.