diff --git a/src/citra/citra.cpp b/src/citra/citra.cpp
index c98cbb33e..5635b6ddd 100644
--- a/src/citra/citra.cpp
+++ b/src/citra/citra.cpp
@@ -40,6 +40,13 @@
 #include "core/settings.h"
 #include "network/network.h"
 
+#ifdef _WIN32
+extern "C" {
+// tells Nvidia drivers to use the dedicated GPU by default on laptops with switchable graphics
+__declspec(dllexport) unsigned long NvOptimusEnablement = 0x00000001;
+}
+#endif
+
 static void PrintHelp(const char* argv0) {
     std::cout << "Usage: " << argv0
               << " [options] <filename>\n"
diff --git a/src/citra_qt/main.cpp b/src/citra_qt/main.cpp
index b2951de11..96580ddd1 100644
--- a/src/citra_qt/main.cpp
+++ b/src/citra_qt/main.cpp
@@ -54,6 +54,13 @@
 Q_IMPORT_PLUGIN(QWindowsIntegrationPlugin);
 #endif
 
+#ifdef _WIN32
+extern "C" {
+// tells Nvidia drivers to use the dedicated GPU by default on laptops with switchable graphics
+__declspec(dllexport) unsigned long NvOptimusEnablement = 0x00000001;
+}
+#endif
+
 /**
  * "Callouts" are one-time instructional messages shown to the user. In the config settings, there
  * is a bitfield "callout_flags" options, used to track if a message has already been shown to the