PC Throttling What It Is and How to Stop It

What is throttling?

Throttling is when your CPU or GPU automatically reduces its clock speed (and therefore performance) to protect the hardware from overheating or to stay within its power delivery limits. Throttling is a self preservation mechanism without it, running too hot would permanently damage the processor. The problem is that throttling causes FPS drops, stuttering, slow application performance, and general sluggishness that often gets misdiagnosed as needing a hardware upgrade.

Types of throttling

Thermal throttling

The most common type. Occurs when the CPU or GPU temperature exceeds a safe threshold typically 90 100°C for CPUs and 83 90°C for GPUs. The processor reduces clock speed to generate less heat. Symptoms: performance is good at the start of a gaming session then degrades gradually as the system heats up.

Power throttling

Occurs when the power delivery to the processor cannot sustain its maximum clock speed common in laptops where the power supply wattage or battery output is insufficient to power the CPU and GPU simultaneously at full load. Symptoms: performance is lower when on battery than when plugged in, or when both CPU and GPU are heavily loaded simultaneously.

Windows Power throttling

Windows 10 and 11 include a Power Throttling feature that reduces the clock speed of background applications to save battery. This is intentional and beneficial for battery life but can occasionally throttle applications incorrectly. Disable by setting power plan to High Performance.

How to detect throttling

GPU throttling

Open techtester.online/gpu tester/ and run both the Benchmark and Stress Test modes. If your score starts high in the benchmark but drops during the sustained stress test, thermal throttling is confirmed. Also watch GPU temperature in MSI Afterburner if temperature exceeds 85°C and performance drops simultaneously, thermal throttling is the cause.

CPU throttling

Open Task Manager then Performance then CPU watch the CPU frequency displayed in the bottom right during a demanding task. If the frequency drops below the base clock speed (e.g. a 3.6GHz CPU running at 2.4GHz), throttling is occurring. MSI Afterburner and HWiNFO64 both show CPU frequency and temperature simultaneously for easier diagnosis.

How to stop throttling

Fix 1 Clean heatsink and fans

Dust accumulation on heatsink fins and fan blades is the most common cause of thermal throttling. Use compressed air to clean laptop vents, desktop CPU cooler fins, and GPU heatsink fins. On heavily used systems this should be done every 6 to 12 months.

Fix 2 Replace thermal paste

Thermal paste between the processor and heatsink degrades over 3 to 5 years, reducing heat transfer efficiency. Replacing it with fresh paste (Arctic MX 4, Thermal Grizzly Kryonaut) typically reduces temperatures by 5 15°C, which can eliminate throttling entirely on systems with marginal cooling.

Fix 3 Improve case airflow

Desktop PCs need adequate case airflow cool air in through the front, hot air out through the rear and top. Ensure front intake fans are not blocked by cables or panels. Adding an additional case fan to improve airflow is inexpensive and can reduce temperatures by 5 10°C.

Fix 4 Laptop cooling pad

For laptops, a cooling pad with active fans underneath the chassis can reduce operating temperatures by 5 to 15°C and eliminate or reduce thermal throttling. Particularly effective for gaming laptops with bottom mounted air intakes.

Fix 5 Adjust power limits in GPU software

MSI Afterburner allows setting a custom power limit for the GPU reducing it by 10 to 15% reduces heat output significantly while having a smaller impact on performance. This is called undervolting and is a common solution for laptop GPUs that thermal throttle.

FAQ

How do I know if my PC is thermal throttling?

Run the stress test in TechTester GPU tester at techtester.online/gpu tester/ if the benchmark score drops during sustained load, GPU throttling is occurring. For CPU throttling, watch CPU frequency in Task Manager during demanding tasks. If frequency drops below base clock speed, CPU throttling is active.