How many FPS does No Man's Sky get on the Mac mini M1? 1080p, 1440p and 4K performance
37FPS
1080p High
Estimate
23
1440p
12
4K
About 37 FPS at 1080p on High: No Man's Sky runs natively on the Mac mini M1 (Apple M1, 8-core GPU, 8 GB). It is playable, with little headroom. For 60 FPS, use 1080p Low + MetalFX Quality (about 64 FPS).
Data reviewed October 1, 2026 · how we calculate it
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No Man's Sky FPS on Mac mini M1 by resolution and quality
Estimate| Resolution | Low | Medium | High | Ultra |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1080p | 52FPS | 44FPS | 37FPS | 31FPS |
| 1440p | 32FPS | 28FPS | 23FPS | 19FPS |
| 4K | 17FPS | 14FPS | 12FPS | 10FPS |
Estimated average in normal gameplay with the game and macOS up to date. Green: 60+ · lime: 45+ · amber: 30+ · orange: 20+ · red: under 20.
Recommended settings
For 60 FPS
1080p · Low
+ MetalFX Quality
≈ 64 FPS
For 30 FPS
1440p · Low
≈ 32 FPS
Moving to 1440p High puts the Mac mini M1 at about 23 FPS. MetalFX renders at a lower resolution and upscales, so it is the cheapest way to play at the display’s native resolution.
Performance with MetalFX
MetalFX renders No Man's Sky at a lower internal resolution and reconstructs the image: you gain FPS for a little sharpness. Figures on High with 8 GB.
| Resolution | Native | Quality | Balanced | Performance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1080p | 37FPS | 45FPS | 55FPS | 62FPS |
| 1440p | 23FPS | 28FPS | 34FPS | 39FPS |
| 4K | 12FPS | 15FPS | 18FPS | 20FPS |
All figures are without ray tracing. The real MetalFX gain varies by game and version.
The MacGameFPS verdict
Calibrated on real Mac benchmarks, not spec sheets
Is the Mac mini M1 enough for No Man's Sky?
Just about: 37 FPS at 1080p High is playable but has no headroom. Dropping to Medium or turning on MetalFX steadies it.
Playable · 1440p 23 FPS · 4K 12 FPS
Mac mini M1 or MacBook Air M2 for No Man's Sky?
In No Man's Sky at 1080p High, the Mac mini M1 gets 37 FPS and the MacBook Air M2 40 FPS: 8% more.
Mac mini M1 specs
- Chip
- Apple M1
- GPU cores
- 8
- Unified memory
- 8 / 16 GB
- Cooling
- Fan
- Geekbench Metal
- 33,264
- Tier
- Entry level · 9/100
Other Macs with the M1 chip
The Apple M1 also powers the MacBook Air M1, the MacBook Pro M1, and the iMac M1. In No Man's Sky, the MacBook Pro M1 gets 36 FPS at 1080p High, 3% less than the Mac mini M1.
How much memory do you need?
On Apple Silicon the GPU shares memory with the system, so the RAM you picked when buying the Mac is also your video memory. No Man's Sky asks for 8 GB minimum.
| Memory | 1080p High | 1440p High |
|---|---|---|
| 8 GB | 37FPS | 23FPS |
| 16 GB | 38FPS | 24FPS |
Other Macs for No Man's Sky
1080p · High
MacBook Pro M1
M1 · 8 GPU
36FPSView analysis
MacBook Air M1
M1 · 7/8 GPU
29FPSView analysis
iMac M1
M1 · 7/8 GPU
32FPSView analysis
MacBook Pro M1 Pro
M1 Pro · 14/16 GPU
69FPSView analysis
MacBook Air M2
M2 · 8/10 GPU
40FPSView analysisMac mini M2
M2 · 10 GPU
55FPSView analysis
Mac Studio M1 Max
M1 Max · 24/32 GPU
116FPSView analysisMacBook Pro M2
M2 · 10 GPU
54FPSView analysis
Shopping for an all-round gaming Mac? Mac ranking by real FPS →
Other games on the Mac mini M1
- Death Stranding Director's Cut34FPS
- Hitman World of Assassination40FPS
- Lies of P51FPS
- Metro Exodus30FPS
- Frostpunk 237FPS
- GRID Legends47FPS
- Resident Evil 237FPS
- Resident Evil 7 biohazard37FPS
- Rise of the Tomb Raider43FPS
- Shadow of the Tomb Raider31FPS
Official Mac requirements
- Minimum
- Any Mac with Apple silicon, including MacBook Air · macOS Ventura or later (Metal 3)
Source: www.nomanssky.com
FAQ
Can the 8 GB Mac mini M1 run No Man's Sky?
Yes. With 8 GB we estimate 37 FPS at 1080p High.
Can No Man's Sky hit 60 FPS on the Mac mini M1?
Yes: at 1080p Low + MetalFX Quality it runs around 64 FPS.
What about 1440p and 4K?
On High, the Mac mini M1 gets about 23 FPS at 1440p and about 12 FPS at 4K in No Man's Sky. These are native figures: MetalFX raises both noticeably.
Do these figures include MetalFX or ray tracing?
No. The headline figure is native resolution, no MetalFX and no ray tracing. The table below shows MetalFX turned on. Ray tracing, where a game offers it, costs a lot of FPS on any Mac.
Is No Man's Sky native on Apple Silicon?
Yes, it has a native Apple Silicon version, available on Steam. No CrossOver, Parallels or Game Porting Toolkit needed.