Microsoft Flight Simulator

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution and preset combination for this CPU/GPU pairing in Microsoft Flight Simulator?

A: At 1920x1080, Ultra settings run at 91.3 FPS average, and at 2560x1440, Ultra settings run at 71.8 FPS average. At 3840x2160, the best playable setting is Medium, which delivers 72.2 FPS average.

Q: Can this system maintain 60 FPS at 4K resolution?

A: Yes, but only with reduced settings. At 3840x2160, Low settings produce 93.6 FPS and Medium settings produce 72.2 FPS. High settings drop to 58.1 FPS, which falls below the 60 FPS playable threshold, and Ultra settings fall further to 53.6 FPS.

Q: How does the Intel Core i5-13400F compare to similar CPUs in benchmark scores?

A: The CPU has an average benchmark score of 25292 and sits at the 77th percentile among all CPUs. Its nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 9 6900HS, scores 25284 (a 0% difference), while the Intel Core 5 120 scores 25362 (0.3% higher) and the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X3D scores 25365 (0.3% higher).

Q: Where does the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 rank among all GPUs?

A: The GPU holds the 81st percentile among all GPUs with an average benchmark score of 37648. Its closest rival is the NVIDIA Tesla P4 at 37628 (0.1% higher), followed by the AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 at 37507 (0.4% lower).

Q: What is the FPS difference between Low and Ultra settings at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, Low settings average 133.6 FPS, while Ultra settings average 71.8 FPS. That represents a 61.8 FPS drop when moving from the lowest to the highest preset.

Q: Does the CPU or GPU bottleneck more at higher resolutions?

A: The data indicates the GPU becomes the limiting factor at 4K. At 3840x2160, the difference between Low and Ultra settings is 40 FPS (93.6 vs 53.6), while at 1920x1080, the same settings gap is 74.7 FPS (166 vs 91.3). This shows the GPU workload scaling heavily with resolution.

CPU and GPU Roles

The benchmark data reveals a clear division of labor between the Intel Core i5-13400F and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 across resolutions. At 1920x1080, the system produces 166 FPS on Low settings, indicating the CPU is capable of feeding the GPU at high frame rates. The drop to 91.3 FPS at Ultra settings shows the GPU beginning to take on more responsibility as graphical fidelity increases.

Moving to 2560x1440, the pattern continues with Low settings yielding 133.6 FPS and Ultra producing 71.8 FPS. The scaling from 1080p to 1440p at Ultra settings results in a 19.5 FPS reduction, demonstrating that the GPU is becoming more significant. The RTX 4070's 12 GB of GDDR6X memory over a 192-bit bus with 504.2 GB/s bandwidth handles the increased pixel throughput, but the frame rate still drops.

At 3840x2160, the GPU's dominance becomes pronounced. Ultra settings dip to 53.6 FPS, below the 60 FPS playable threshold. High settings also miss the mark at 58.1 FPS. The RTX 4070's 29.15 TFLOPS of FP32 compute and 158.4 GPixel/s pixel rate are insufficient to maintain 60 FPS at maximum quality in this flight simulator at 4K. Medium settings restore playability at 72.2 FPS, and Low settings reach 93.6 FPS.

The CPU's role diminishes as resolution climbs. The i5-13400F, with 10 cores and 16 threads based on Raptor Lake architecture, delivers strong single-thread performance with a 3dmark_single_thread score of 960 and a cinebench_r23_singlecore score of 3191. These results suggest the processor has ample headroom for simulation logic at lower resolutions. However, at 4K, the GPU's rendering workload dominates, and the FPS differences across settings become strictly GPU-bound.

The percentage scaling between resolutions reinforces this analysis. From 1080p to 1440p at Ultra, the FPS drops by 21.4%. From 1440p to 4K at Ultra, the FPS drops by 25.3%. This consistent degradation indicates the GPU is the primary constraint at higher resolutions, while the CPU maintains sufficient performance headroom throughout.

Similar Performance Alternatives

The Intel Core i5-13400F's nearest rivals in benchmark scores include the AMD Ryzen 9 6900HS, which scores 25284 (0% difference from the i5-13400F's 25292). This mobile-oriented chip delivers nearly identical average performance, making it a comparable option for simulation workloads. The Intel Core 5 120 scores 25362, 0.3% higher, while the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X3D scores 25365, also 0.3% higher. The AMD Ryzen 7 6800H scores 25201, 0.4% lower.

For the GPU side, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070's nearest rival is the NVIDIA Tesla P4 with an average score of 37628, just 0.1% higher than the RTX 4070's 37648. The AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 scores 37507, 0.4% lower, making it a close alternative. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 Mobile scores 38135, 1.3% higher, while the AMD Radeon PRO W6400 scores 37157, 1.3% lower.

These benchmark deltas are small, suggesting that swapping the i5-13400F for any of its listed rivals would produce nearly identical frame rates in Microsoft Flight Simulator. Similarly, replacing the RTX 4070 with the Tesla P4 or RX Vega 56 would yield comparable GPU-bound performance at 4K, where the graphics card becomes the limiting factor. The RTX 4080 Mobile's 1.3% advantage would translate to roughly 0.7 FPS at 4K Ultra settings, which is imperceptible in practice.

The Verdict

This system can run Microsoft Flight Simulator with playable frame rates at all three tested resolutions, provided settings are adjusted appropriately. The playable threshold is 60 FPS, and the verdict by resolution is clear.

At 1920x1080, all four settings presets clear 60 FPS. Low averages 166 FPS, Medium averages 129.7 FPS, High averages 94.8 FPS, and Ultra averages 91.3 FPS. The best setting is Ultra with 91.3 FPS, leaving substantial headroom above the threshold.

At 2560x1440, all four presets also clear 60 FPS. Low averages 133.6 FPS, Medium averages 102.7 FPS, High averages 79.5 FPS, and Ultra averages 71.8 FPS. Ultra is the best playable setting with 71.8 FPS, maintaining an 11.8 FPS margin above the threshold.

At 3840x2160, the system struggles with higher presets. Low averages 93.6 FPS and Medium averages 72.2 FPS, both clearing 60 FPS. However, High drops to 58.1 FPS and Ultra falls to 53.6 FPS, both below the playable threshold. The best playable setting is Medium with 72.2 FPS.

The overall combination ranks 918th out of 3714 tested combinations, placing it in the top 24.7% of systems for this game. The i5-13400F's 77th percentile CPU ranking and the RTX 4070's 81st percentile GPU ranking combine to deliver a well-balanced experience for flight simulation, though 4K enthusiasts will need to compromise on visual fidelity.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the measured average FPS values are as follows: Low settings produce 166 FPS, Medium settings produce 129.7 FPS, High settings produce 94.8 FPS, and Ultra settings produce 91.3 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra is 74.7 FPS, with the largest single-step drop occurring between Low and Medium at 36.3 FPS.

At 2560x1440, Low settings average 133.6 FPS, Medium settings average 102.7 FPS, High settings average 79.5 FPS, and Ultra settings average 71.8 FPS. The step from Low to Medium costs 30.9 FPS, while the step from High to Ultra costs only 7.7 FPS, indicating diminishing returns at the highest preset.

At 3840x2160, Low settings average 93.6 FPS, Medium settings average 72.2 FPS, High settings average 58.1 FPS, and Ultra settings average 53.6 FPS. The drop from Medium to High is 14.1 FPS, crossing below the 60 FPS threshold. The difference between High and Ultra is only 4.5 FPS, suggesting the Ultra preset adds significant visual load for minimal frame rate impact.

The scaling from 1080p to 1440p at each preset shows reductions of 32.4 FPS at Low, 27 FPS at Medium, 15.3 FPS at High, and 19.5 FPS at Ultra. Moving from 1440p to 4K, the reductions are 40 FPS at Low, 30.5 FPS at Medium, 21.4 FPS at High, and 18.2 FPS at Ultra. This pattern shows that lower presets scale more steeply with resolution, while higher presets are already GPU-limited and thus show smaller absolute reductions.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 1920x1080, the most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS is Ultra, which averages 91.3 FPS. This provides a 31.3 FPS margin above the threshold, giving headroom for complex scenes with dense scenery or weather effects.

At 2560x1440, Ultra is also the best playable preset, averaging 71.8 FPS. This leaves an 11.8 FPS margin, which is adequate but less forgiving than at 1080p. For users who prefer a larger safety buffer, High settings at 79.5 FPS offer a 19.5 FPS margin with a modest visual reduction.

At 3840x2160, the best playable preset is Medium, averaging 72.2 FPS with a 12.2 FPS margin above the threshold. High settings fall below 60 FPS at 58.1 FPS, making them unsuitable for consistent playability. Low settings at 93.6 FPS are also viable but sacrifice significant visual quality.

For users prioritizing maximum visual fidelity, the 1440p Ultra experience at 71.8 FPS is the strongest balance of image quality and performance. At 4K, the Medium preset at 72.2 FPS is the recommended choice, as it maintains playability while delivering substantially better visuals than Low settings. The RTX 4070's 12 GB VRAM and Ada Lovelace architecture provide enough headroom for texture-heavy scenes even at the Medium preset, though the GPU's 200 W TDP and 550 W suggested PSU indicate the system is running near its designed performance envelope.