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How to Monitor CPU and GPU Usage While Gaming

See CPU and GPU usage, FPS and temperatures while gaming with a Windows overlay. Compare Steam, Game Bar, GPU-vendor tools and Afterburner with RTSS.
Length4 min Posted Quest giverVGSources Team
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On a Windows gaming PC, use an overlay from your game platform or GPU software for a quick view, or MSI Afterburner with RivaTuner Statistics Server (RTSS) when you want to choose individual sensors. Start with FPS, CPU and GPU utilization, and temperatures if available. Which readings appear—and whether an overlay works in a particular game—depends on the hardware, software version and game.

Choose an overlay that fits your setup

Try an option already available through the platform you use to launch games or the software for your graphics card. If you want a more customizable display, use Afterburner with RTSS. The measurements and compatibility differ, so the table describes what the cited documentation establishes, not a guarantee for every PC.

Option Best fit Documented measurements and caveats
Xbox Game Bar A quick Windows overlay Xbox’s 2020 announcement describes GPU utilization and GPU memory, with customizable tracked metrics and pinned widgets. Check behavior on your current Windows build and in your game. Xbox Wire announcement
Steam Performance Monitor Games launched through Steam Reports FPS including and excluding frame generation, offers clues about possible CPU or GPU bottlenecks, and may show GPU temperature on supported cards. Steam Support FAQ
NVIDIA App overlay Supported GeForce systems NVIDIA documents frame rates, clock speeds, GPU temperatures and other metrics for desktop and laptop GeForce RTX and GTX 600-series-and-newer users. NVIDIA support
AMD Software: Adrenalin Edition Radeon Overlay Radeon systems using AMD software AMD lists FPS, CPU and GPU utilization, clocks, temperatures, GPU power and fan speed, VRAM and system RAM utilization. Available metrics depend on the software and hardware. AMD support
MSI Afterburner + RTSS A customizable hardware-stat OSD Select the sensors to display; MSI says RTSS is required to show the OSD. Some games may not display it. MSI setup guide
NVIDIA FrameView 1.1 Detailed frame and power measurements The version 1.1 guide describes frame percentiles, dropped frames, latency and power-related metrics alongside CPU and GPU readings. It specifies Windows 10 and above and single-GPU configurations for NVIDIA GeForce, AMD and Intel; verify current availability and compatibility before relying on it. FrameView 1.1 user guide

Set up each overlay

MSI Afterburner with RTSS

  1. Install MSI Afterburner and RTSS. MSI states that RTSS must be installed for the hardware data to appear in the on-screen display.
  2. Open Afterburner and select Settings, then the Monitoring tab.
  3. Select a sensor, such as GPU usage or GPU temperature, and enable Show in On-Screen Display. Repeat for each reading you want.
  4. Apply the changes and launch a game to check the display. The OSD can be configured through RTSS. MSI’s OSD guide notes that some games may not show it; Game Bar is one alternative to try, not a universal fix.

Xbox Game Bar

Open Game Bar in Windows and use its Performance widget, if available on your build, to view and pin performance readings. Xbox’s October 2020 announcement describes GPU utilization and GPU memory tracking. Because that source documents the feature as announced in 2020, confirm the widget’s current options and in-game behavior on your PC.

Steam Performance Monitor

Use Steam’s In-Game Overlay Performance Monitor to render a monitor in a screen corner. Follow the current controls and options in Steam’s FAQ, since menu details may change. Steam documents FPS readings that distinguish frame-generation-inclusive FPS from base-game frame rate, and says GPU temperature may appear on supported vendor cards.

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NVIDIA App overlay

For supported desktop and laptop GeForce RTX and GTX 600-series-and-newer systems, NVIDIA documents Alt+Shift+R to cycle performance metrics. To change shortcuts, its support page directs users to Alt+Z, Settings, then Shortcuts. These controls can change with app versions; consult NVIDIA’s current support page if the labels or shortcut differ.

AMD Radeon Overlay

AMD documents Performance Monitoring in Radeon Overlay, including FPS, GPU and CPU utilization, GPU engine and memory clocks, GPU temperature, power and fan speed, VRAM utilization and system RAM utilization. The OSD can be customized for location, size, transparency, columns and colors. See AMD’s guide for the current controls and supported metrics.

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Read the numbers without over-interpreting them

FPS is not the whole frame-time story

FPS describes how many frames are produced over time, but a single average can hide inconsistent delivery. Where available, frame-time behavior, percentile readings and dropped-frame measures provide additional context. Steam distinguishes frame-generation-inclusive FPS from base-game FPS; FrameView 1.1’s guide lists 90th, 95th and 99th frame percentiles and dropped frames as metrics, not as findings about a particular game.

Utilization can suggest a limit, but does not prove one

High or low CPU and GPU utilization readings are clues, not a verdict by themselves. Steam says its monitor can help a player judge whether CPU utilization might be a bottleneck or the GPU might be one. Compare readings while reproducing the same gameplay and settings, and consider FPS and frame-time behavior alongside them. Do not treat percentages from different overlays as automatically interchangeable: Steam says its CPU percentage uses the same metric as Windows Task Manager’s “% Processor Utility,” while other readings may measure differently.

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Use temperatures, clocks, power and memory as context

These readings can help explain performance changes, but metric availability varies by overlay and hardware. AMD’s documentation and Afterburner’s sensor selection describe broad sets of readings; the documented Steam and NVIDIA overlay descriptions are narrower. The cited sources do not establish one universal CPU or GPU percentage threshold or safe temperature range for all systems and games.

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If a reading or overlay is missing

  • The OSD does not appear: Confirm RTSS is installed and the relevant sensor is enabled in Afterburner’s Monitoring settings. Some games may still not show the Afterburner OSD; try a platform or GPU-vendor overlay instead.
  • A sensor is absent: Check whether your hardware and current software support that metric. Not every overlay exposes the same readings.
  • The reported GPU seems wrong: Check which GPU the overlay identifies, especially on a system with integrated and discrete graphics. MSI notes that Afterburner may list integrated graphics as a second GPU.
  • A shortcut or menu label differs: Software controls are version-sensitive. Check the relevant vendor’s current support page rather than assuming an older shortcut or menu path still applies.

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