Check if your CPU and GPU are properly balanced for gaming. Identify performance bottlenecks, get upgrade recommendations, and optimize your PC build for maximum gaming performance at your target resolution.
Select your CPU, GPU, resolution, and game type to analyze potential bottlenecks and get optimization recommendations.
Pre-configured CPU and GPU combinations for different budgets and use cases
A bottleneck occurs when one component in your PC limits the performance of another component. In gaming, this typically means either your CPU or GPU is working at maximum capacity while the other component sits idle waiting for work. Every system has a bottleneck somewhere - the key is understanding which component limits performance and whether that matters for your use case.
Think of it like a water pipe system: if you have a large pipe (powerful GPU) connected to a small pipe (weaker CPU), water flow is limited by the small pipe regardless of the large pipe's capacity. In PC gaming, this manifests as lower frame rates, stuttering, or inability to utilize your hardware's full potential.
CPU Bottleneck: Occurs when your processor cannot keep up with your graphics card. The CPU maxes out at 95-100% usage on one or more cores while the GPU sits at 60-80% utilization. This prevents higher frame rates and causes stuttering because the CPU cannot deliver frames fast enough. Lowering graphics settings does not help because the CPU is the limit. Common in competitive games at 1080p, strategy games, and simulation titles.
GPU Bottleneck: Occurs when your graphics card cannot keep up with your CPU. The GPU runs at 95-100% utilization while CPU usage remains moderate at 40-70%. This is actually the ideal scenario for gaming because it means you are fully utilizing your graphics card. You can improve performance by lowering graphics settings or resolution. Common at higher resolutions (1440p, 4K) and in graphically demanding titles.
Resolution dramatically impacts which component bottlenecks your system. At 1080p, the GPU renders about 2 million pixels per frame. At 1440p, this jumps to 3.7 million pixels. At 4K, it explodes to 8.3 million pixels - over 4 times more than 1080p. Meanwhile, CPU workload remains largely the same regardless of resolution since it handles game logic, physics, and AI calculations.
This is why powerful GPUs often become CPU bottlenecked at 1080p but GPU bottlenecked at 4K. For example, an RTX 4090 paired with a mid-tier CPU will be CPU limited at 1080p in many games, but fully utilized at 4K. If you experience CPU bottleneck at 1080p, increasing resolution to 1440p or 4K can actually improve system balance by shifting load back to the GPU.
Not necessarily. Every system has a bottleneck - something will always limit performance first. The question is whether that bottleneck prevents you from achieving your goals. If you want 60 FPS and consistently get it despite a 20% CPU bottleneck, there is no actual problem. GPU bottleneck is actually preferred because it means full GPU utilization and you can improve performance by adjusting settings.
CPU bottleneck is less ideal because it wastes GPU potential, cannot be fixed by lowering graphics quality, and often causes stuttering. However, even CPU bottlenecks are acceptable if you are hitting your target frame rate. The myth that you need "zero bottleneck" is unrealistic - perfectly balanced systems are rare and temporary. Focus on whether your PC delivers the gaming experience you want rather than obsessing over bottleneck percentages below 15-20%.