Microsoft Flight Simulator

Measured FPS Breakdown

The recorded data for Microsoft Flight Simulator with the Intel Core i5-11400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 shows a clear performance hierarchy across resolutions and presets. At 1920x1080, the lowest preset delivers an average of 117 FPS, which is the highest figure recorded for this combo. Moving up through the presets, Medium yields 90.7 FPS, High produces 68 FPS, and Ultra maintains 66.3 FPS. All four presets at 1080p exceed the 60 FPS playable threshold, with Ultra being the most demanding preset that still clears it.

At 2560x1440, the performance envelope tightens. Low settings average 94.1 FPS, while Medium drops to 71.9 FPS. Both High and Ultra settle at 55.4 FPS, an identical figure that indicates a bottleneck emerging at this resolution. The gap between Medium and High is substantial: 16.5 FPS separates them, suggesting that the jump to High settings carries a heavy cost. Ultra does not degrade further beyond High, which points to a shared limiting factor rather than a preset-specific penalty.

At 3840x2160, the RTX 4060 begins to struggle with the higher graphical loads. Low settings average 69.9 FPS, which is the only preset at 4K that remains above 60 FPS. Medium averages 53.4 FPS, High drops to 44.2 FPS, and Ultra falls to 38.1 FPS. The scaling from Low to Medium at 4K costs 16.5 FPS, while the step from Medium to High costs another 9.2 FPS. The drop from High to Ultra is smaller at 6.1 FPS, reflecting the diminishing returns of the highest preset at this resolution.

The data shows no min or max FPS values recorded for any configuration, so the analysis relies entirely on average frame rates. This means frame-time consistency cannot be assessed from the database, but the averages still provide a reliable indication of overall performance tier.

CPU and GPU Roles

The scaling between resolutions reveals how the CPU and GPU share the workload in Microsoft Flight Simulator. At 1920x1080, the GPU has more headroom relative to the CPU, yet the frame rates still vary significantly by preset: 117 FPS at Low versus 66.3 FPS at Ultra. This spread of 50.7 FPS at 1080p indicates that the GPU is the primary driver of performance differences across presets, while the CPU maintains enough throughput to feed the graphics card at lower settings.

Moving to 2560x1440, the resolution increase from 1080p to 1440p causes a proportional drop in frame rates. The Low preset falls from 117 FPS to 94.1 FPS, a 19.6% reduction. Medium drops from 90.7 FPS to 71.9 FPS, a 20.7% reduction. High and Ultra both fall to 55.4 FPS, which represents a 19.1% reduction for High and a 16.4% reduction for Ultra. These consistent percentage drops indicate that the GPU is still the dominant constraint at 1440p, as the workload scales predictably with pixel count.

At 3840x2160, the picture changes. The Low preset averages 69.9 FPS, which is 74.3% of the 1440p Low figure. Medium achieves 53.4 FPS, or 74.3% of the 1440p Medium result. High reaches 44.2 FPS, which is 79.8% of the 1440p High score. Ultra produces 38.1 FPS, or 68.8% of the 1440p Ultra score. These ratios are not uniform across presets: High maintains a higher percentage of its 1440p performance than Medium or Ultra. This suggests that at 4K, the CPU begins to play a more significant role in certain presets, particularly at High where the frame rate does not degrade as steeply as the pixel count alone would predict.

The RTX 4060 has 8 GB of GDDR6 memory with a 128-bit bus and 272.0 GB/s bandwidth. At 4K, memory capacity and bandwidth can become limiting factors in flight simulation, which is known for large texture loads. The fact that High at 4K retains 79.8% of its 1440p performance while Ultra retains only 68.8% indicates that the Ultra preset's additional memory pressure likely contributes to the steeper drop. The CPU, with 6 cores and 12 threads, provides adequate single-thread performance, but the game's simulation logic can stress multiple threads, and the recorded data shows that the GPU remains the main constraint across most configurations.

How This Combo Ranks

The database ranks this specific combination of Intel Core i5-11400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 at position 2052 out of 3714 tested combos for Microsoft Flight Simulator. This places the combo in the 55th percentile of all tested systems, meaning roughly 45% of tested configurations perform worse. The rank reflects the balance between the CPU and GPU: the i5-11400F sits in the 71st percentile among all CPUs, while the RTX 4060 sits in the 61st percentile among all GPUs. The combined rank of 2052 out of 3714 is slightly lower than either component's individual percentile, which suggests that the pairing does not extract the full potential of both parts in this specific game.

The CPU's nearest rivals in the database include the AMD EPYC 7H12 with an average score 0.3% higher, the Intel Core Ultra 7 164U with a score 0.6% higher, the Intel Core i5-12450H with a score 0.4% lower, and the AMD Ryzen 3 PRO 8300G with a score 0.6% lower. These deltas are all within 1% of the i5-11400F's average benchmark score, indicating that the CPU's performance class is tightly clustered. The GPU's nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon HD 7790 with a score 0.2% lower, the AMD Radeon 780M with a score 0.3% higher, the AMD Radeon Pro 560 with a score 0.5% higher, and the AMD Radeon Pro 460 with a score 0.7% higher. Again, these deltas are minimal, showing that the RTX 4060's raw compute performance is comparable to a narrow band of other graphics cards.

In the context of this game, the combo rank indicates that the system delivers playable performance at 1080p across all presets and at 1440p for Low and Medium settings, while 4K is limited to Low settings. This positioning is consistent with the individual component percentiles: the CPU is comfortably mid-range, and the GPU is slightly above average, but the combination does not reach the top tier needed for maxed-out 4K flight simulation.

FAQ

Q: Can this system run Microsoft Flight Simulator at 1920x1080 on Ultra settings?

A: Yes. The recorded average FPS at 1080p Ultra is 66.3, which exceeds the 60 FPS playable threshold. The database lists Ultra as the best playable setting at this resolution.

Q: What is the best preset for 2560x1440 that stays above 60 FPS?

A: Medium settings at 2560x1440 average 71.9 FPS, making it the most demanding preset that remains playable. High and Ultra both drop to 55.4 FPS, which falls below the 60 FPS threshold.

Q: Is 4K gaming viable with this CPU and GPU combination?

A: Only at Low settings. The 3840x2160 Low preset averages 69.9 FPS, while Medium drops to 53.4 FPS, High to 44.2 FPS, and Ultra to 38.1 FPS. The database verdict lists Low as the only playable setting at 4K.

Q: How does the RTX 4060 compare to its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon 780M?

A: The RTX 4060 has an average benchmark score of 17639, while the AMD Radeon 780M scores 17588, which is 0.3% lower. The performance difference is negligible in raw compute terms.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between High and Ultra at 1920x1080?

A: At 1080p, High averages 68 FPS and Ultra averages 66.3 FPS, a difference of only 1.7 FPS. This suggests that the Ultra preset's additional visual fidelity costs very little performance at this resolution.

Q: Does the CPU limit performance at any resolution?

A: The data indicates the GPU is the primary constraint at 1080p and 1440p, as frame rates scale predictably with resolution changes. At 4K, the High preset retains a higher percentage of its 1440p performance than Medium or Ultra, which suggests the CPU may partially limit performance at that specific setting combination.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 1920x1080, the most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS is Ultra, which averages 66.3 FPS. This provides the highest visual quality while still clearing the playable threshold by 6.3 FPS. High settings at 1080p average 68 FPS, but Ultra offers additional graphical features for only a 1.7 FPS cost.

At 2560x1440, the best setting is Medium, averaging 71.9 FPS. This is the only preset above Low that remains playable at 1440p. High and Ultra both average 55.4 FPS, which misses the 60 FPS target, so Medium represents the optimal trade-off between visual quality and performance at this resolution.

At 3840x2160, the only playable preset is Low, which averages 69.9 FPS. Medium drops to 53.4 FPS, below the threshold, so Low is the best setting available at 4K. The 9.9 FPS margin above 60 FPS provides some headroom, but there is no room for higher presets without dropping below playable frame rates.

The Verdict

This PC can run Microsoft Flight Simulator, but the experience depends heavily on resolution and settings. At 1920x1080, the system clears 60 FPS on all four presets, including Ultra at 66.3 FPS, making 1080p fully playable with maximum settings. At 2560x1440, the system remains playable on Low and Medium, with Medium averaging 71.9 FPS, but High and Ultra fall to 55.4 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS threshold. At 3840x2160, only Low settings are playable, averaging 69.9 FPS, while all higher presets drop below 60 FPS.

The database verdict by resolution confirms this: 1080p supports High, Low, Medium, and Ultra; 1440p supports Low and Medium; 4K supports only Low. For users targeting 60 FPS as the minimum acceptable frame rate, this system is best suited for 1080p gaming with maximum settings or 1440p gaming with medium settings. At 4K, users must accept Low settings or lower their resolution.

The RTX 4060's 8 GB memory capacity and 272.0 GB/s bandwidth are adequate for 1080p and 1440p, but the 4K results show that higher presets exceed what the card can sustain. The CPU's 6 cores and 12 threads provide sufficient processing power, as evidenced by the consistent frame rates across presets at 1080p. Overall, this is a capable mid-range system for flight simulation, but it is not a 4K Ultra machine.

Similar Performance Alternatives

For the CPU, the Intel Core i5-11400F's nearest rivals in the database are all within 0.6% of its average benchmark score. The AMD EPYC 7H12 scores 0.3% higher, the Intel Core Ultra 7 164U scores 0.6% higher, the Intel Core i5-12450H scores 0.4% lower, and the AMD Ryzen 3 PRO 8300G scores 0.6% lower. In practice, any of these processors would produce nearly identical frame rates in Microsoft Flight Simulator when paired with the same RTX 4060, as the CPU performance differences are negligible.

For the GPU, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060's nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon HD 7790 at 0.2% lower, the AMD Radeon 780M at 0.3% higher, the AMD Radeon Pro 560 at 0.5% higher, and the AMD Radeon Pro 460 at 0.7% higher. These GPUs would deliver essentially the same average frame rates in this game, meaning users with any of these graphics cards paired with the i5-11400F can expect similar performance tiers: playable at 1080p all presets, playable at 1440p up to Medium, and playable at 4K only on Low.

The combination of a CPU from this rival group with a GPU from this rival group would likely produce a combo rank very close to 2052 out of 3714, given the tight clustering of performance scores. The data shows that the i5-11400F and RTX 4060 sit in a crowded performance band, so systems built around these specific alternatives should behave comparably in Microsoft Flight Simulator. Users upgrading from any of these nearby components would see minimal frame rate changes, while those considering a step up would need to look beyond this performance class for meaningful improvements.