Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 launches on PC on Friday, October 23, 2026. If you pre-ordered the Standard Digital or Vault Edition, campaign early access opens a week earlier, on October 16. Here's everything you need to know before you drop in: the official PC specs, the setup steps that trip people up, and how to get your rig launch-ready.
MW4 at a glance
- Launch date: Friday, October 23, 2026
- Campaign early access: October 16, for digital pre-orders of the Standard or Vault Edition
- PC storefronts: Steam, Battle.net and Xbox on PC
- PC preload: opens October 15 for digital pre-purchases
- PC version: developed by Infinity Ward, with Beenox leading the PC port
What's the story?
MW4 picks up after Modern Warfare III. North Korea launches a full-scale invasion of the South, while John Price, now off the grid after the events of the last game, wages his own war on the run. The campaign moves from trench warfare in Korea to fights in New York, Paris and Mumbai. You don't need to have played the earlier games to jump in.
MW4 PC system requirements
Activision publishes three PC tiers. Here are the final specs announced ahead of launch:
| Minimum | Recommended | Ray tracing | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Graphics | GTX 970 / GTX 1060, RX 470 or Arc A580 | RTX 3060 Ti, RX 6600 XT or Arc B580 | RTX 5070 Ti or RX 9070 XT |
| Video memory | 3GB | 8GB | 16GB |
| Processor | Ryzen 5 1400 or Core i5-6600 | Ryzen 5 3600 or Core i7-8700K | Ryzen 7 3700X or Core i7-10700K |
| Memory | 8GB | 16GB | 32GB |
| Windows | Windows 10 64-bit | Windows 11 64-bit | Windows 11 64-bit |
| Storage | SSD with 115GB free at launch (future updates may need more) | ||
Activision says the Recommended tier targets 90 FPS in multiplayer on High settings. The Ray tracing tier is built for 4K with upscaling.
Heads up: you'll see older, lower numbers floating around (a 70GB install, an RTX 3060 recommended card). Those came from the beta. Check Activision's official PC requirements page before you buy anything, because specs can change before launch.
The requirements that catch people out
These apply at every tier, and they're the reason "my PC is fast enough, why won't it launch?" posts show up on day one (on an NCG rig, TPM 2.0, Secure Boot and Windows 11 come set up):
- TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot are required. No exceptions, even on the Minimum tier.
- An SSD is required. A hard drive won't cut it.
- DirectX 12 and a broadband connection.
- Intel or AMD processors with AVX support only.
- Intel Arc cards need Resizable BAR turned on.
Launch-day prep checklist
-
Check TPM 2.0. Press
Win + R, typetpm.mscand press Enter. You want "The TPM is ready for use" and a Specification Version of 2.0. -
Check Secure Boot. Press
Win + R, typemsinfo32, and look for "Secure Boot State: On". If it's off, it's enabled in your motherboard's BIOS/UEFI settings. Look up your board's manual before changing anything there. - Clear 115GB+ on an SSD. Give yourself headroom: day-one patches are a thing.
- Update your GPU driver. NVIDIA and AMD usually ship a game-ready driver around big launches.
- Preload on October 15 if you pre-purchased digitally, so launch night is spent playing, not downloading.
- Run the built-in benchmark. Activision says the PC version includes one, so you can dial in settings before your first match.
PC features worth knowing
According to Activision, the PC version supports NVIDIA DLSS 4.5, AMD FSR Redstone and Intel XeSS 3 upscaling, plus ray tracing and HDR. If you're on an RTX 50-series card, DLSS 4 Multi Frame Generation is exclusive to that generation.
Need a rig before October 23?
Our Ready to Ship gaming PCs are already built and tested, so there's no build queue between you and launch. Every one runs an RTX 50-series card and ships with Windows 11, TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot, so MW4's must-haves are covered out of the box.
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|---|---|---|---|
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MW4 PC FAQ
When does Modern Warfare 4 come out on PC?
Friday, October 23, 2026. Digital pre-orders of the Standard or Vault Edition get campaign early access on October 16.
Is MW4 on Steam?
Yes. It's on Steam, Battle.net and Xbox on PC.
How much storage does MW4 need?
115GB free on an SSD at launch, per the final specs. Plan for more as updates land.
Does MW4 need TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot?
Yes, on every tier. See the checklist above for how to check both.
Can I run MW4 on an RTX 3060?
The RTX 3060 sits above the Minimum spec (GTX 1060) but just under the final Recommended card (RTX 3060 Ti), so expect to play with settings to hit your target frame rate.
What do I need for ray tracing?
Activision's Ray tracing tier calls for an RTX 5070 Ti or RX 9070 XT with 16GB of video memory, plus 32GB of RAM.
Specs and features are from Activision's published Modern Warfare 4 information as of October 12, 2026 and may change. "Best for" resolution guidance is general across modern games and is not an MW4-specific test; performance varies by game, settings and updates. Game sold separately. Call of Duty and Modern Warfare are trademarks of Activision Publishing, Inc. No Compromise Gaming is not affiliated with or endorsed by Activision.
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