What CPU do I need for the GeForce RTX 4080?

At 1440p, the Core i3-13100 is the slowest processor that keeps the GeForce RTX 4080 fully fed. At 1080p the card can run faster, so you need more: the Ryzen 5 9500F or better.

Is the GeForce RTX 4080 good for 1440p?

Yes. It averages around 133 FPS at 1440p on high settings in our model, enough for a high-refresh monitor in most games.

Is 16GB of VRAM enough on the GeForce RTX 4080?

Yes. 16GB covers high textures at 4K in current games and leaves headroom for the next few years.

Is the GeForce RTX 4080 faster than the Radeon RX 7900 XTX?

They are effectively tied, within 1% at 1440p in our model. Price, memory (16GB against 24GB) and features should decide it.

GeForce RTX 4080 CPU pairing and bottleneck

Model frame rate limits of 164, 133 and 86 FPS at 1080p, 1440p and 4K, assuming the processor never gets in the way.

The GeForce RTX 4080 is one of the fastest graphics card in our database and a genuine 4K card that also has headroom for very high refresh rates at 1440p.

Its 16GB of memory leaves room for high textures at any resolution for years.

Its closest AMD rival is the Radeon RX 7900 XTX, which lands within a few percent of it at 1440p.

Estimated FPS in Popular Games

Game (settings)	1080p	1440p	4K
Cyberpunk 2077 (High, no ray tracing)	~130	~105	~70
Fortnite (High, DirectX 12)	~215	~175	~110
Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 (High)	~190	~155	~100
Counter-Strike 2 (High)	~395	~320	~205

Modelled estimates with a processor fast enough not to hold the card back, rounded to the nearest 5 FPS. Counter-Strike 2 is usually limited by the processor well before these figures. See the methodology for how they are produced.

The slowest CPU that will not hold it back

Resolution	Minimum processor	Estimated FPS
1080p	Ryzen 5 9500F	157
1440p	Core i3-13100	129
4K	Ryzen 5 2600	82

Notice how the requirement drops as resolution rises. At 4K this card is working so much harder per frame that a far slower processor keeps up without trouble. The search starts at four cores and eight threads: below that a game stutters whatever the average frame rate says.

The processors it lands closest to

The 24 processors whose frame rate limit sits nearest this card's, fastest first. The tag after each number says which part hits its limit first. For any other combination, use the calculator.

Processor	1080p	1440p	4K
Core i5-13400	142 cpu	133 gpu	86 gpu
Core i5-13400F	142 cpu	133 gpu	86 gpu
Core i5-14400	141 cpu	133 gpu	86 gpu
Core i5-14400F	141 cpu	133 gpu	86 gpu
Ryzen 9 5950X	138 cpu	133 even	86 gpu
Core i3-14100	135 cpu	133 even	86 gpu
Core i3-14100F	135 cpu	133 even	86 gpu
Ryzen 5 8400F	135 cpu	133 even	86 gpu
Ryzen 5 5500X3D	135 cpu	133 even	86 gpu
Ryzen 9 5900X	135 cpu	133 even	86 gpu
Core i9-11900K	134 cpu	133 even	86 gpu
Core i5-12400	132 cpu	132 even	86 gpu
Core i5-12400F	132 cpu	132 even	86 gpu
Ryzen 7 5800X	131 cpu	131 even	86 gpu
Core i3-13100	129 cpu	129 even	86 gpu
Core i3-13100F	129 cpu	129 even	86 gpu
Ryzen 7 5700X	129 cpu	129 even	86 gpu
Core i7-11700K	126 cpu	126 cpu	86 gpu
Ryzen 5 5600	126 cpu	126 cpu	86 gpu
Ryzen 5 5600G	126 cpu	126 cpu	86 gpu
Ryzen 5 5600X	126 cpu	126 cpu	86 gpu
Ryzen 5 5600X3D	126 cpu	126 cpu	86 gpu
Core i3-12100	123 cpu	123 cpu	86 gpu
Core i3-12100F	123 cpu	123 cpu	86 gpu

Specifications

Manufacturer	NVIDIA
Series	NVIDIA RTX 40 Series
Video memory	16 GB
3DMark Time Spy (graphics)	27,751
PCI Express	4.0 ×16
Released	2022

GeForce RTX 4080