Microsoft Flight Simulator

The AMD Ryzen 7 7700 paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 delivers a consistently playable Microsoft Flight Simulator experience across all three tested resolutions. The CPU ranks in the 87th percentile among all processors, and the GPU ranks in the 82nd percentile among all graphics cards. The combination ranks 722nd out of 3,714 tested combos in this game, and the measured frame-rate data shows that 1080p and 1440p runs clear the 60 FPS playable threshold at every preset, while 4K requires dropping from Ultra to High.

Similar Performance Alternatives

The CPU's nearest rivals are all within 0.6% of its average benchmark score of 40,081. The AMD Ryzen AI 9 365 scores 0.1% higher at 40,048, the Intel Core 5 221E scores 0.2% lower at 40,144, the AMD Ryzen 9 270 scores 0.4% lower at 40,246, and the Intel Core i9-13905H scores 0.6% lower at 40,313. Any of these processors would deliver essentially identical CPU-bound performance in Microsoft Flight Simulator, meaning that a system built around any of them paired with the same RTX 5070 would produce frame rates within a fraction of a percent of what this combo achieves.

On the GPU side, the RTX 5070's nearest rivals are similarly tight. The AMD Radeon Pro 580 scores 0.1% higher at 40,318, the AMD Radeon Pro WX 7100 scores 0.8% higher at 40,063, the AMD Radeon Pro 5300 scores 1.2% lower at 40,870, and the NVIDIA RTX A500 Mobile scores 2% higher at 39,568. The spread here is slightly wider than on the CPU side, but still small enough that all of these cards would produce visually indistinguishable frame rates in this title when paired with the same Ryzen 7 7700.

Because both components have such close rivals, users who already own any of the CPUs or GPUs listed above can expect their existing hardware to behave nearly identically to this combo in Microsoft Flight Simulator. The differences between these alternatives are within the run-to-run variance of most game benchmarks.

CPU and GPU Roles

The data shows a clear shift in bottleneck behavior across resolutions. At 1920x1080, the frame rates are high enough across all presets — 97.6 FPS at Ultra, 102.1 FPS at High, 136.9 FPS at Medium, and 175.9 FPS at Low — that the CPU's ability to feed draw calls and simulation logic is the primary constraint. The Ryzen 7 7700's 8-core, 16-thread Zen 4 design, with a boost clock of 5.30 GHz, is well suited to this role; its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 18,760 and single-core score of 1,930 indicate strong throughput in both heavily threaded and lightly threaded workloads. The CPU has a launch MSRP of $329.

As resolution increases, the GPU becomes progressively more dominant. Moving from 1080p to 1440p at High settings drops the average frame rate from 102.1 to 81.1 FPS. Moving from 1440p to 4K at High settings drops it further to 63.9 FPS. This consistent scaling pattern is the signature of a GPU-bound workload: the CPU can produce frames faster than the GPU can render them, so raising the pixel count directly reduces frame rate.

The gap between presets also widens at higher resolutions. At 1080p, the difference between Low and Ultra is substantial (175.9 vs 97.6). At 4K, the difference is narrower (104.3 vs 56.3). This narrowing indicates that at 4K Ultra, the GPU is so heavily loaded that even the fastest presets cannot compensate for the rendering cost. The RTX 5070's 12 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 192-bit bus with 672.0 GB/s of bandwidth is the limiting resource at 4K Ultra. The GPU has a launch MSRP of 549 USD.

For this game specifically, the CPU's role is more visible at 1080p and in the difference between Low and Medium presets, where the simulation logic and terrain streaming dominate. The GPU's role is more visible at 4K and in the difference between High and Ultra, where pixel throughput and memory bandwidth determine the outcome.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo produces an average of 175.9 FPS on Low settings, 136.9 FPS on Medium, 102.1 FPS on High, and 97.6 FPS on Ultra. Every preset clears the 60 FPS playable threshold by a wide margin, and even the most demanding Ultra preset leaves ample headroom.

At 2560x1440, the averages are 140.9 FPS on Low, 112.4 FPS on Medium, 81.1 FPS on High, and 80.3 FPS on Ultra. The drop from Low to Ultra is substantial, but every preset still remains above 60 FPS. The Ultra preset at 1440p is only slightly slower than High, suggesting that the High and Ultra presets at this resolution are both limited by the same bottleneck — likely the CPU's simulation thread or the GPU's geometry throughput.

At 3840x2160, the averages are 104.3 FPS on Low, 83.1 FPS on Medium, 63.9 FPS on High, and 56.3 FPS on Ultra. This is the only resolution where any preset falls below the 60 FPS threshold: Ultra averages 56.3 FPS, which is short of playable. High stays above 60 FPS, and Medium and Low are comfortably ahead.

The scaling between resolutions at each preset is consistent. For High settings, the frame rate drops from 102.1 at 1080p to 81.1 at 1440p to 63.9 at 4K. For Low settings, the drop is from 175.9 to 140.9 to 104.3 — a steeper decline at the 4K step than at the 1440p step, which reflects the GPU becoming the limiting factor at 4K even on Low.

The Verdict

This PC can run Microsoft Flight Simulator at a playable level across nearly all tested configurations. The playable threshold is 60 FPS, and the verdict data confirms that at 1920x1080, all four presets (Low, Medium, High, Ultra) clear that threshold, with Ultra averaging 97.6 FPS. At 2560x1440, all four presets also clear 60 FPS, with Ultra averaging 80.3 FPS.

At 3840x2160, the situation is slightly more nuanced. The playable settings are High, Low, and Medium, with High being the best preset that stays at or above 60 FPS, averaging 63.9 FPS. Ultra falls short at 56.3 FPS, so 4K users who want to run the game at maximum quality would need to accept a frame rate below the playable threshold or reduce the resolution.

In practical terms, this means the combo is best suited to 1440p gaming, where it can run at Ultra settings with 80.3 FPS average, or to 1080p gaming, where it can run at Ultra with 97.6 FPS average. For 4K, High settings at 63.9 FPS is the recommended ceiling.

How This Combo Ranks

The AMD Ryzen 7 7700 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 combination ranks 722nd out of 3,714 tested combos in Microsoft Flight Simulator. That places it in the upper tier of all tested combinations, which is a strong result for a mainstream desktop CPU paired with a mid-to-high-end graphics card.

The CPU itself sits in the 87th percentile among all processors, and the GPU sits in the 82nd percentile among all graphics cards. Both components are individually well above average, and their combined ranking in this game reflects that. The 722nd rank out of 3,714 combos means the majority of tested combinations perform worse, and only a smaller number perform better — most of which would include higher-end GPUs.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 1920x1080, the most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS is Ultra, which averages 97.6 FPS. This leaves substantial headroom, so users could consider additional graphical mods or higher render scales if desired.

At 2560x1440, the most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS is also Ultra, averaging 80.3 FPS. This is the sweet spot for this combo: maximum quality with ample headroom over the playable threshold.

At 3840x2160, the most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS is High, averaging 63.9 FPS. Ultra is not playable at this resolution, as it averages 56.3 FPS, which is below the threshold.

FAQ

Q: Can this PC run Microsoft Flight Simulator at 60 FPS on Ultra settings?

A: At 1920x1080, yes — Ultra averages 97.6 FPS. At 2560x1440, yes — Ultra averages 80.3 FPS. At 3840x2160, no — Ultra averages 56.3 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS threshold.

Q: What is the best preset for 4K gaming with this combo?

A: High is the most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS at 3840x2160, averaging 63.9 FPS. Medium averages 83.1 FPS and Low averages 104.3 FPS.

Q: How does the Ryzen 7 7700 compare to its nearest CPU rivals?

A: The AMD Ryzen AI 9 365 scores 0.1% higher, the Intel Core 5 221E scores 0.2% lower, the AMD Ryzen 9 270 scores 0.4% lower, and the Intel Core i9-13905H scores 0.6% lower in average benchmark score.

Q: How does the RTX 5070 compare to its nearest GPU rivals?

A: The AMD Radeon Pro 580 scores 0.1% higher, the AMD Radeon Pro WX 7100 scores 0.8% higher, the AMD Radeon Pro 5300 scores 1.2% lower, and the NVIDIA RTX A500 Mobile scores 2% higher.

Q: What rank does this combo hold among all tested combinations?

A: It ranks 722nd out of 3,714 tested combos in Microsoft Flight Simulator.

Q: At which resolution does this combo have the most FPS headroom?

A: At 1920x1080 on Low settings, it averages 175.9 FPS, which is well above the 60 FPS threshold. Even at Ultra settings at 1080p, it averages 97.6 FPS, which is also above the threshold.