MTA Settings

MTA Settings are the standard client settings for MTA:SA. They control client side options such as video, audio, binds, browser permissions, interface appearance, and advanced client behavior.

While playing CIT, these settings are opened through:

ESC > Settings

They are separate from:

/settings

which is used for CIT specific settings.

MTA vs CIT settings

Area	Open it with	Use
CIT server settings	`/settings`	CIT gameplay, HUD, binds, chat, sound, and feature settings.
MTA client settings	`ESC > Settings`	Nickname, saved server passwords, mouse controls, chat colors, browser permissions, and advanced client options.
Minimized game behavior	MTA minimized	FPS is set to `36`, and scripts stop rendering things to reduce CPU usage.
MTA sound while minimized	`ESC > Settings`	MTA has separate minimized mute options for all sounds, radio, SFX, MTA sounds, and voice.

Main tabs

The standard MTA settings menu includes these tabs:

Multiplayer
Video
PostFX
Audio
Binds
Controls
Interface
Web Browser
Advanced

Opening the settings menu

To open standard MTA settings while playing CIT:

press ESC
open Settings

To open standard MTA settings from the main MTA client:

start MTA:SA
open Settings from the main menu

MTA Settings vs CIT settings

Use MTA Settings for standard client options like:

nickname
saved server passwords
mouse controls
chat interface
browser permissions
advanced client options

Use /settings for CIT specific options like:

CIT HUD
gameplay helpers
custom CIT binds
CIT notifications
CITPhone settings

Multiplayer tab

The Multiplayer tab controls general multiplayer client options.

Setting	What it does
Nick	Changes your nickname.
Save server passwords	Stores passwords for protected servers so you do not need to type them again every time.
Auto refresh server browser	Refreshes the server browser automatically.
Allow screen upload	Allows screenshot uploads from your client. If it is disabled, server or resource features that rely on screen uploads can fail.
Allow external sounds	Allows externally hosted sounds to play, such as streamed radio or other outside audio sources.
Always show download window	Keeps the download window visible while server files are downloading.
Allow connecting with Discord Rich Presence	Enables Discord Rich Presence for the MTA client.
Allow GTA:SA ingame status on Steam	Allows your in game GTA:SA or MTA status to show on Steam when supported.
Save photos taken by camera weapon to GTA San Andreas User Files folder	Saves photos taken with the camera weapon to your GTA San Andreas User Files folder.
Ask before disconnecting from server using main menu	Shows a confirmation before disconnecting from a server through the main menu.
Opacity	Changes the transparency of the rendered map.
Image resolution	Changes the resolution used for the rendered map image. Higher values render the map more sharply.

Video tab

The Video tab controls display, rendering, and video quality settings.

Setting	What it does
Resolution	Changes the game resolution used by the MTA client.
Windowed	Runs MTA in a window instead of fullscreen.
DPI aware	Controls DPI aware scaling behavior for MTA.
Fullscreen mode	Changes how fullscreen is handled, such as normal fullscreen or borderless fullscreen modes.
FOV	Changes the field of view.
Draw Distance	Changes how far the game world is rendered.
Brightness	Changes the overall screen brightness.
FX Quality	Changes the quality level for visual effects.
Anisotropic filtering	Changes texture filtering quality, especially for surfaces viewed at an angle.
Anti aliasing	Smooths jagged edges in the image.
Aspect Ratio	Changes the aspect ratio mode used by the game.
HUD Match Aspect Ratio	Makes the HUD match the selected aspect ratio behavior.
Volumetric Shadows	Toggles volumetric shadow rendering.
Grass effect	Toggles grass rendering effects.
Heat haze	Toggles the heat haze visual effect.
Tyre Smoke etc	Toggles tyre smoke and similar visual effects.
Dynamic ped shadows	Toggles dynamic shadows for pedestrians.
Motion blur	Toggles the motion blur effect.
Corona rain reflections	Toggles rain reflection effects.
Full Screen Minimize	Controls whether MTA minimizes while running in fullscreen.
Enable Device Selection Dialog	Enables the device selection dialog used by MTA.
Render vehicles always in high detail	Keeps vehicles rendered in high detail.
Render peds always in high detail	Keeps pedestrians rendered in high detail.

PostFX tab

The PostFX tab controls post processing image adjustments.

Setting	What it does
Gamma	Changes the gamma level for the post processing adjustments.
Brightness	Changes post processing brightness.
Contrast	Changes post processing contrast.
Saturation	Changes post processing color saturation.
Apply adjustments in windowed/borderless mode	Applies the PostFX adjustments while MTA is running in windowed or borderless mode.
Apply adjustments in fullscreen mode	Applies the PostFX adjustments while MTA is running in fullscreen mode.

Audio tab

The Audio tab controls sound categories, radio audio, and minimized audio behavior.

Setting	What it does
Master volume	Changes the overall sound volume.
Radio volume	Changes the radio volume.
SFX volume	Changes sound effect volume.
MTA volume	Changes the volume of MTA client sounds.
Voice volume	Changes voice chat volume.
Radio Equalizer	Toggles the radio equalizer.
Radio Auto tune	Toggles radio auto tune.
Play mode	Changes how Usertrack audio is played.
Automatic Media Scan	Automatically scans for media for Usertrack use.
Mute All sounds when minimized	Mutes all sounds while MTA is minimized.
Mute Radio sounds when minimized	Mutes radio audio while MTA is minimized.
Mute SFX sounds when minimized	Mutes sound effects while MTA is minimized.
Mute MTA sounds when minimized	Mutes MTA client sounds while MTA is minimized.
Mute Voice sounds when minimized	Mutes voice audio while MTA is minimized.

Binds tab

The Binds tab is where keyboard, mouse, and controller bindings are changed for MTA actions.

Binds tab basics

Item	What it does
Key	The main bind for an action.
Alt. Key	Additional keys you can assign to the same action.
Load defaults	Resets the bind list to the default MTA key bindings.

Bind categories

Category	What it means
GTA GAME CONTROLS	Main gameplay actions like firing, movement, camera, jumping, sprinting, crouching, vehicle controls, radio controls, horn, handbrake, and aiming.
MULTIPLAYER CONTROLS	Multiplayer related actions like entering as a passenger, taking screenshots, opening chat, radar controls, voice push to talk, and other online client controls.

Server specific binds

While connected to a server, server resources can add their own bindable actions. That is why resource specific entries like CITHUD or CITradar can appear in the MTA Binds tab.

Controls tab

The Controls tab handles mouse, aircraft, steering, and joypad behavior.

Setting	What it does
Invert mouse vertically	Reverses up and down mouse look.
Steer with mouse	Lets you steer vehicles with the mouse.
Fly with mouse	Lets you control aircraft with the mouse.
Mouse sensitivity	Changes the general mouse movement sensitivity.
Vertical aim sensitivity	Changes how sensitive vertical aiming feels.
Standard controls (Mouse + Keyboard)	Uses the normal mouse and keyboard control style.
Classic controls (Joypad)	Switches the controls to the classic joypad style.
Dead Zone	Controls how far a stick must move before MTA starts registering input.
Saturation	Controls how strongly the stick range is used once input starts registering.

Joypad buttons themselves are changed in the Binds tab.

Interface tab

The Interface tab controls client language, skin, chat appearance, layout, and some interface behavior.

General interface options

Setting	What it does
Language	Changes the language used by the MTA client interface.
Skin	Changes the MTA menu skin or theme.
Chat Presets	Lets you choose and load a saved chatbox preset.
Load	Applies the selected chat preset to your current chatbox settings.

Chat colors

Setting	What it does
Chat Background	Changes the color and transparency of the chatbox background.
Chat Text	Changes the color and transparency of normal chat text.
Input Background	Changes the color and transparency of the chat input background.
Input Text	Changes the color and transparency of the text you type in chat input.
Red	Changes the red value for the selected chat element.
Green	Changes the green value for the selected chat element.
Blue	Changes the blue value for the selected chat element.
Transparency	Changes the transparency value for the selected chat element.

Chat layout

Setting	What it does
Lines	Changes how many chat lines are shown.
Scale	Changes the size of the chatbox. The layout tab shows separate horizontal and vertical scale values.
Width	Changes how wide the chatbox is.
Fade out old lines	Makes old chat lines fade away instead of staying fully visible.
after	Sets how long a chat line stays visible before fading starts.
for	Sets how long the fade lasts once fading begins.
Horizontal	Changes the horizontal position of the chatbox.
Vertical	Changes the vertical position of the chatbox.
Text Align	Changes the alignment of the chat text.
X-Offset	Adjusts the chatbox position on the horizontal axis.
Y-Offset	Adjusts the chatbox position on the vertical axis.

Chat options

Setting	What it does
Font	Changes the chat font. The visible options are Tahoma, Verdana, Tahoma Bold, and Arial.
Hide background when not typing	Hides the chat input background until you start typing.
Nickname completion using the 'Tab' key	Lets you use Tab to auto complete player nicknames in chat.
Allow server to flash the window	Allows a server to flash the game window for attention.
Allow tray balloon notifications	Allows MTA to show tray balloon notifications.
Chat text black/white outline	Adds an outline effect to chat text for readability.

Web browser tab

The Web Browser tab controls MTA browser permissions and domain filters.

Setting	What it does
Enable remote websites	Allows remote websites to load in MTA browsers.
Enable Javascript on remote websites	Allows Javascript on remote pages.
Enable GPU rendering	Enables browser GPU acceleration.
Custom blacklist	Blocks domains you add there.
Custom whitelist	Allows domains you add there.

Advanced tab

The Advanced tab controls troubleshooting, update channels, browser behavior, process behavior, and client resource access.

Setting	What it does
Fast CJ clothes loading	Controls the fast loading path for CJ clothes.
Browser speed	Advanced browser or download troubleshooting option.
Single connection	Advanced connection troubleshooting option.
Packet tag	Prepends network packets with the word `mtasa`.
Progress animation	Controls MTA progress animation behavior.
Process priority	Changes the Windows process priority used by MTA.
Debug setting	Switches special troubleshooting modes.
Streaming memory	Changes the memory budget used for streaming content.
Client resource files	Shows your local client resource folder path and includes a Show in Explorer button.
Set CPU 0 affinity to improve game performance	Pins MTA to CPU 0 to try to improve performance or compatibility on some systems.
Update build type	Changes the MTA update channel.
Check for update now	Manually checks for updates for the selected update build type.

Extra settings notes

Standard MTA settings are client side settings.
While playing CIT, they are still opened through ESC > Settings.
CIT specific gameplay, HUD, and feature settings are handled separately through /settings.

Extra settings details

Minimized game FPS is set to 36 and scripts stop rendering to reduce CPU usage.