Bottleneck Calculator
Every gaming PC has a weaker half. Choose your processor, graphics card and screen resolution to see which half it is and how large the gap between them is.
The verdict appears here
Both parts are placed on the same index and compared at your resolution.
What the card needs
Every graphics card is matched to the processor we judge it needs to stay fully used — an RTX 3070 to a Ryzen 5 5600 at 1080p, for example. Yours is measured against that.
Resolution shifts the balance
The higher the resolution, the less processor it takes to keep a given card busy.
Games differ
Strategy and simulation games lean on the processor far more than a linear shooter. Read the result as a rule of thumb.
Bottleneck questions
What does "bottleneck" actually mean here?
The part that hits its limit first. When the processor can’t hand frames over as fast as the graphics card can draw them, the card waits — that is a CPU bottleneck. When the card is flat out, it is a GPU bottleneck.
Which kind is worse?
A CPU bottleneck. Being limited by the graphics card is normal and means you are using what you paid for; lowering settings still helps. When the processor is the limit, lowering settings does little.
Why does the result change with resolution?
More pixels are extra work for the graphics card only. So the same pair can lean on the processor at 1080p and on the card at 4K.
How big a gap should worry me?
Below about 10% you will not notice it. Between 10% and 25% it is worth remembering when you next upgrade. Past 25% the slower part is clearly holding the faster one back.