One of the scariest parts of building a PC is dealing with overheating a CPU or GPU. A literally fried processor is a very real risk, and it can easily result in a loss of hundreds or thousands of dollars in equipment and an unusable PC. For most console gamers, that’s a potential barrier to entry they’ve never had to consider.

Admittedly, these kinds of issues are part of the double-edged sword of relying on a PC as a primary gaming device. The benefits of having control over every aspect of the hardware are many. It’s great knowing that console “generations” won’t directly impact what your gaming hardware is capable of. But that lack of restrictions also means missing out on components built specifically for gaming-related tasks and running the risk of one piece having a PC-bricking issue. It’s a hobby for people who don’t mind getting their hands dirty and risking lots of money.

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PCs are only getting faster and as physical bandwidth creeps ever upward, so to will temperatures inside your chassis. It’s even tough to nail down a universal “safe” temperature for a processor. The common refrain from PC enthusiasts is that anything below 80°C (176°F) is ideal, but most cards can handle about 100°C before a performance hit occurs. The resting temperature for most systems will be around 40-50°C in most cases, so as long as your gaming isn’t heating things up to more than twice that, things are likely okay.

The Uncertainty Around CPU & GPU Temperature Rules

Heat dissipation options can vary in any PC. Every aspect of how a PC is put together can impact how its components manage temperatures: from physical location within the chassis, to the materials of the chassis itself, to power consumption, to compatibility between each part, and so on. Additionally, temperature isn’t one all-encompassing number across the entire CPU or GPU. Depending on the task being assigned to it, an individual multiprocessor within a GPU can generate more heat than others. The card itself could be at 70°C but a few of its cores could be over 100°C and create problems.

Fortunately, we have two great ways to deal with overheating. The first is simply using software to monitor CPU temperature. Most versions of Windows 10 come with the option to check temperatures built into the OS. There are also lots of official and third-party programs that’ll give a nearly real-time update on the heat within the machine. The other tool at our disposal comes from advancements in modern processors. These days, unless the temperature demands are truly absurd for a consistent period of time, most CPUs and GPUs are equipped to either intelligently throttle performance in a way that doesn’t ruin the user’s experience or boost their own heat dissipation capabilities with things like fans or prioritized processing.

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Hubert Davis
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Hubert has been a journalist in spirit since age six, and can’t see any good reasons to argue with that, so here we are. He spends most of his days working to leave the world a better place than it was when he showed up and trying to be better at Street Fighter.

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