Xbox Series X|S May Lag If Friend List and Chat Data Are Too Full

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Xbox Series X|S May Lag If Friend List and Chat Data Are Too Full

Many game consoles may slow down or experience lag over time, whether due to excessive installed files or cooling performance declining after prolonged use. The Xbox Series X and S, despite their excellent specs, are no exception. Some users have reported that system performance can be affected by accumulated chat messages and an oversized friends list.

So big update on this, here is the whole story:

For months now, I started to randomly get a very odd glitch when I played Halo that made my game seem like it was in turbo mode. It was so weird and we couldn't pinpoint why it was happening.

Then about 10 days ago my Xbox… https://t.co/oc3I8yRDQM
— Brett Leonard (@Naded) December 27, 2025

Lag Linked to Chat and Friends

Even with high-end AMD Zen 2 CPUs and ultra-fast SSD storage, a user named Brett Leonard shared that his Xbox Series X showed unusual bugs while playing games for several months. Clearing the cache didn’t fix the problem, but he noticed performance improved after deleting years’ worth of chat history.

Curious, Brett then tried removing friends from his account—over 1,000 people in total—and found the console’s performance improved significantly. Menus no longer lagged, and input lag in FPS games decreased noticeably. He showcased the process on his stream, leaving viewers surprised at the impact of chat and friends list data on performance.

Possible Causes

While no official explanation exists, Brett speculates that the console may constantly access backend systems tied to friend lists and chat history. Years of accumulated messages and thousands of friends could increase the load on the system, leading to slower operation and lag.

Xbox Series X|S Hardware

The Xbox Series X and Series S are available globally and feature AMD Zen 2 processors and solid-state drives, supporting up to 8K resolution on Series X and 2K on Series S. These consoles also allow backward compatibility with older Xbox titles at high resolution, providing a powerful and smooth gaming experience—provided the system data is managed efficiently.

For players experiencing unexpected slowdowns, clearing old chat logs or trimming down a massive friends list could restore smooth performance on these next-gen consoles.

Source: Reddit, Brett Leonard