FOV (field of view): horizontal vs vertical, the right value for 16:9 and ultrawide, and its FPS cost

Horizontal, vertical and aspect ratio

Games store FOV either horizontally or vertically and derive the other from the aspect ratio. "Hor+" games keep vertical FOV fixed, so a 21:9 ultrawide monitor sees more to the sides; "Vert−" games keep horizontal FOV, cropping the top and bottom on wide screens. 90° horizontal on 16:9 equals about 59° vertical; the same 59° vertical gives roughly 106° horizontal on 21:9.

Console shooters traditionally used 65–80° because players sit far from a TV; PC players at a desk prefer 90–110° to avoid the "tunnel vision" effect.

Gameplay and comfort

Low FOV plus head bob is a common cause of motion sickness; raising FOV to 90–100° fixes it for many players. Very high FOV distorts edges and makes distant enemies tiny, which hurts aim in shooters that reward precision.

Effect on FPS

More FOV means more objects pass frustum culling and more pixels show detailed geometry instead of sky. In our measurements and public tests, going from 80° to 110° costs about 5–15 % in open-world games and less in corridors. The pixel count is unchanged, so the extra cost comes from geometry and draw calls — partly a CPU load. Weapon models are often rendered with a separate, fixed FOV so they do not stretch.