Bottleneck Calculator
Pick a processor and a graphics card and we will tell you which one is holding the other back, using the same performance ratings the build advisories run on. 35 processors and 33 cards, priced for India.
Pick a processor and a graphics card to see how well they pull together.
We deliberately do not print a “37% bottleneck” figure. No such number can be measured — real frame rates depend on the game, the resolution and the settings, and a pairing that is CPU-limited at 1080p is often perfectly balanced at 1440p. What we can tell you honestly is which half is the weaker one, and by roughly how much.
Common questions
- What is a CPU bottleneck?
- A bottleneck is simply the part that runs out of headroom first. If the processor cannot prepare frames as fast as the graphics card can draw them, the card sits idle and you paid for performance you never see. The reverse is just as common: a strong processor next to a modest card is limited by the card.
- Is a bottleneck always a problem?
- No. Every build is limited by something — that is what it means to have a fastest and a slowest part. It only matters when the gap is wide enough that money spent on the stronger half is wasted. A mismatch of a class or two is normal and not worth fixing.
- Why does this calculator not give a percentage?
- Because no such number can be measured. Whether a pair is CPU-limited depends on the game, the resolution and the settings — the same pairing can be CPU-limited at 1080p and perfectly balanced at 1440p. A single percentage implies a precision that does not exist, so we name the weaker half instead.
- How do I fix an unbalanced pairing?
- Move money from the stronger half to the weaker one rather than adding to the total. If the graphics card is the weaker half, a card one class up usually costs less than the performance it unlocks. If the processor is the weaker half, raising the resolution you play at often closes the gap for free.
Checking the whole machine, not just the pair
A matched CPU and GPU is one of several ways a build goes wrong. The full builder also checks socket and chipset, memory type and slot counts, graphics card length and cooler height against the case you picked, and power supply headroom against measured draw.