What CPU do I need for the GeForce RTX 4090?

At 1440p, the Core i7-12700K is the slowest processor that keeps the GeForce RTX 4090 fully fed. At 1080p the card can run faster, so you need more: the Ryzen 9 9900X or better.

Is the GeForce RTX 4090 good for 1440p?

Yes. It averages around 160 FPS at 1440p on high settings in our model, enough for a high-refresh monitor in most games.

Is 24GB of VRAM enough on the GeForce RTX 4090?

Yes. 24GB covers high textures at 4K in current games and leaves headroom for the next few years.

Is the GeForce RTX 4090 faster than the Radeon RX 7900 XTX?

Yes. The GeForce RTX 4090 is about 19% faster at 1440p in our model (160 vs 134 FPS).

GeForce RTX 4090 CPU pairing and bottleneck

Model frame rate limits of 190, 160 and 108 FPS at 1080p, 1440p and 4K, assuming the processor never gets in the way.

The previous generation's flagship, with 24GB of memory. Even after the RTX 50 launch it remains one of the fastest gaming cards made, ahead of the RTX 5080 in raw performance.

Its closest AMD rival is the Radeon RX 7900 XTX, which is 19% slower at 1440p.

Estimated FPS in Popular Games

Game (settings)	1080p	1440p	4K
Cyberpunk 2077 (High, no ray tracing)	~150	~130	~85
Fortnite (High, DirectX 12)	~245	~210	~140
Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 (High)	~220	~185	~125
Counter-Strike 2 (High)	~455	~385	~260

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 9 9900X	181
1440p	Core i7-12700K	155
4K	Ryzen 5 3600X	103

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 i9-12900KS	170 cpu	160 gpu	108 gpu
Core Ultra 7 265K	169 cpu	160 gpu	108 gpu
Ryzen 5 9600X	169 cpu	160 gpu	108 gpu
Core i7-14700	168 cpu	160 even	108 gpu
Core i7-14700F	168 cpu	160 even	108 gpu
Core i7-13700K	168 cpu	160 even	108 gpu
Ryzen 7 7700	168 cpu	160 even	108 gpu
Core i5-14600K	165 cpu	160 even	108 gpu
Ryzen 5 7600X	164 cpu	160 even	108 gpu
Core Ultra 7 265F	163 cpu	160 even	108 gpu
Ryzen 5 9600	163 cpu	160 even	108 gpu
Core i7-13700	162 cpu	160 even	108 gpu
Core i7-13700F	162 cpu	160 even	108 gpu
Core i9-12900K	161 cpu	160 even	108 gpu
Core Ultra 5 245K	160 cpu	160 even	108 gpu
Core i5-13600K	159 cpu	159 even	108 gpu
Ryzen 5 7600	158 cpu	158 even	108 gpu
Ryzen 5 9500F	157 cpu	157 even	108 gpu
Core i7-12700K	155 cpu	155 even	108 gpu
Ryzen 5 7500F	155 cpu	155 even	108 gpu
Ryzen 7 5800X3D	155 cpu	155 even	108 gpu
Core i7-12700	151 cpu	151 cpu	108 gpu
Core i7-12700F	151 cpu	151 cpu	108 gpu
Core i5-12600K	150 cpu	150 cpu	108 gpu

Written up in detail

GeForce RTX 4090 Compared

RTX 5080 vs RTX 4090 — The RTX 4090 is about 9% faster than the RTX 5080 at 4K and 7% faster at 1440p.
RTX 5090 vs RTX 4090 — The RTX 5090 is about 29% faster than the RTX 4090 at 4K and 28% faster at 1440p.
RTX 4090 vs RX 7900 XTX — The RTX 4090 is about 26% faster than the RX 7900 XTX at 4K and 19% faster at 1440p.

Specifications

Manufacturer	NVIDIA
Series	NVIDIA RTX 40 Series
Video memory	24 GB
3DMark Time Spy (graphics)	35,519
PCI Express	4.0 ×16
Released	2022

GeForce RTX 4090