Every figure below is a measurement aggregated from published review charts — the CPU's frame-rate ceiling and the frame rate the GPU delivers in this game, combined. The CPU figure is the highest frame rate that CPU sustained in this game with a flagship GPU installed — past that frame rate, the CPU is the limit. Settings: Ultra preset, DX11, native rendering, no upscaling, no frame generation. CPU ceiling measured at 1080p, Medium preset (reviewers' CPU-isolation method), flagship GPU, Act III.
Mild GPU limit
Expected frame rate: 142–142 fps (measured range across sources).
The GPU side is lower by about 16.2% in this game at 1080p. The math, from the two measured figures above: the pair runs at the lower one (~142 fps), and the gap to the faster side is (169 − 142) ÷ 169 ≈ 16.2% of the faster side's output. That percentage belongs to this game, this resolution and these settings only — the same two parts score differently in another game, which is why no universal bottleneck percentage exists for a pair of parts. Upgrading the faster part alone would not raise the frame rate.
That range justifies a 144 Hz monitor in this game.
Confidence: MEDIUM — based on 2 source measurements for these two parts.
Strong GPU limit
Expected frame rate: 104–104 fps (measured range across sources).
The GPU side is lower by about 38.7% in this game at 1440p. The math, from the two measured figures above: the pair runs at the lower one (~104 fps), and the gap to the faster side is (169 − 104) ÷ 169 ≈ 38.7% of the faster side's output. That percentage belongs to this game, this resolution and these settings only — the same two parts score differently in another game, which is why no universal bottleneck percentage exists for a pair of parts. Upgrading the faster part alone would not raise the frame rate.
That range suits a 60 Hz monitor; a high-refresh panel would be underused in this game.
Confidence: MEDIUM — based on 2 source measurements for these two parts.
Strong GPU limit
Expected frame rate: 54–54 fps (measured range across sources).
The GPU side is lower by about 68.4% in this game at 4K. The math, from the two measured figures above: the pair runs at the lower one (~54 fps), and the gap to the faster side is (169 − 54) ÷ 169 ≈ 68.4% of the faster side's output. That percentage belongs to this game, this resolution and these settings only — the same two parts score differently in another game, which is why no universal bottleneck percentage exists for a pair of parts. Upgrading the faster part alone would not raise the frame rate.
That range sits under a smooth 60 in this game at the tested preset — expect to trade settings for frame rate.
Confidence: MEDIUM — based on 2 source measurements for these two parts.
GPUs measured in this game at 1440p that clear this CPU:
Full data: Baldur's Gate 3 benchmarks · how verdicts are computed.