Microsoft Flight Simulator

The Intel Core i5-13400F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER delivers a remarkably versatile experience in Microsoft Flight Simulator, clearing the 60 FPS threshold at every resolution tested, though the margin of safety varies dramatically. At 4K, the combo lands just shy of ideal smoothness on High settings with 59.6 FPS, but stepping down to Medium provides a substantial cushion at 85.6 FPS. At 1440p and 1080p, the system has ample headroom, allowing Ultra presets to run at 80.5 FPS and 99.9 FPS respectively. The data indicates this is a high-end configuration that prioritizes resolution flexibility over brute-force maximums, making it a strong candidate for users who want to play at 4K without sacrificing visual fidelity entirely, or who prefer high refresh rates at lower resolutions.

Best Settings per Resolution

The most demanding preset that maintains an average of at least 60 FPS at each resolution is as follows. At 3840x2160, the Medium preset is the optimal choice, delivering an average of 85.6 FPS. While the High preset comes extremely close to the playable threshold at 59.6 FPS, it technically falls below the 60 FPS target, making Medium the highest reliable setting. The Ultra preset at this resolution drops to 56.8 FPS, which is not recommended for consistent play.

Moving down to 2560x1440, the system can handle the Ultra preset without issue, achieving an average of 80.5 FPS. This is a significant achievement, as it means the combo can run the game at its highest visual quality at this resolution while still maintaining a comfortable margin above the 60 FPS target. The High preset at this resolution runs at 86.1 FPS, but the Ultra preset offers the best visual experience without compromising frame rates.

At 1920x1080, the Ultra preset is again the best choice, with an average of 99.9 FPS. This nearly hits the triple-digit mark, providing a very smooth experience even in demanding flight scenarios. The High preset at 105.1 FPS and Medium at 144.6 FPS are also viable, but the Ultra preset’s combination of visual quality and performance makes it the clear winner. For users prioritizing maximum frame rates, the Low preset at 181.4 FPS offers an exceptionally fluid experience, though it comes at a significant visual cost.

CPU and GPU Roles

The benchmark data reveals a clear shift in component responsibility as resolution changes. At 1920x1080, the CPU plays a more prominent role, as evidenced by the wide spread between presets. The jump from Low (181.4 FPS) to Ultra (99.9 FPS) represents a 45% reduction in frame rate, indicating that the graphics card is not fully saturated at lower settings. This suggests the Intel Core i5-13400F is capable of feeding the RTX 4070 SUPER efficiently at this resolution, but the GPU becomes the limiting factor as visual complexity increases.

At 2560x1440, the scaling pattern changes. The difference between Low (144 FPS) and Ultra (80.5 FPS) is a 44% drop, which is similar to 1080p. However, the absolute frame rates are lower across the board, indicating that the GPU is now doing more of the heavy lifting. The RTX 4070 SUPER’s 12 GB of GDDR6X memory and 504.2 GB/s bandwidth are likely contributing factors here, as higher resolutions demand more memory bandwidth and fill rate.

The most telling data point comes at 3840x2160. Here, the spread between Low (107 FPS) and Ultra (56.8 FPS) is a 47% reduction, but the absolute numbers are much lower. This indicates that the GPU is the dominant bottleneck at 4K. The CPU’s performance, as measured by its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 22604, is sufficient to keep up with the GPU’s demands, but the RTX 4070 SUPER’s 35.48 TFLOPS of FP32 performance is what ultimately determines the frame rate. The data shows that for this game, the GPU becomes increasingly important as resolution rises, with the CPU’s role diminishing at 4K.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a detailed look at the system’s performance across all resolutions and presets. Starting at 3840x2160, the Ultra preset delivers an average of 56.8 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS threshold and indicates that this setting is not playable at 4K. The High preset improves this to 59.6 FPS, still marginally below target. The Medium preset jumps to 85.6 FPS, providing a comfortable playable experience. The Low preset achieves 107 FPS, offering a very smooth experience at the cost of visual quality.

At 2560x1440, the system performs significantly better. The Ultra preset runs at 80.5 FPS, which is well above the playable threshold. The High preset reaches 86.1 FPS, and the Medium preset achieves 114.5 FPS. The Low preset maxes out at 144 FPS, which is excellent for high-refresh-rate monitors. All four presets at this resolution are playable, with even the most demanding setting maintaining a solid frame rate.

At 1920x1080, the system shows its strongest performance. The Ultra preset averages 99.9 FPS, just shy of 100 FPS. The High preset reaches 105.1 FPS, and the Medium preset hits 144.6 FPS. The Low preset delivers an outstanding 181.4 FPS, making this combination ideal for competitive or high-refresh-rate play. The data shows a consistent pattern: as resolution decreases, the frame rate increases proportionally, with the 1080p Low preset nearly tripling the 4K Ultra preset’s performance.

The Verdict

This PC can absolutely run Microsoft Flight Simulator, and it does so with authority across most settings. According to the verdictByResolution data, at 3840x2160, the playable settings are Low and Medium, with Medium being the best option at 85.6 FPS. The High and Ultra presets fail to clear the 60 FPS threshold, making them unsuitable for consistent play. At 2560x1440, all four presets are playable, with Ultra being the best at 80.5 FPS. This resolution offers the best balance of visual quality and performance for this combo.

At 1920x1080, every preset is playable, with Ultra delivering 99.9 FPS. The system is overqualified for this resolution, as even the most demanding settings provide a smooth experience. The data confirms that the i5-13400F and RTX 4070 SUPER combination is best suited for 1440p gaming, where it can run the game at maximum settings without compromise. At 4K, users will need to make a trade-off between visual quality and frame rate, but the Medium preset provides a solid middle ground. Overall, this is a capable flight simulation rig that excels at mainstream resolutions and handles 4K with minor concessions.

Similar Performance Alternatives

Looking at the nearest rivals for the CPU and GPU provides context for how this combo compares to other hardware. The Intel Core i5-13400F has an average benchmark score of 25292, placing it at the 77th percentile of all CPUs. Its nearest rival is the AMD Ryzen 9 6900HS, which scores 25284, a negligible 0% difference. This means users with that AMD mobile processor would see nearly identical CPU-bound performance. The Intel Core 5 120 scores 25362, which is -0.3% lower, and the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X3D scores 25365, also -0.3% lower. The AMD Ryzen 7 6800H scores 25201, which is 0.4% higher. These tiny deltas indicate that the i5-13400F sits in a tightly packed performance band, and swapping to any of these alternatives would result in imperceptible changes in frame rates.

For the GPU, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER has an average benchmark score of 43223, placing it at the 83rd percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rival is the NVIDIA Quadro M6000 24 GB, which scores 43262, a -0.1% difference. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 Mobile scores 43268, also -0.1% lower, and the NVIDIA Quadro M6000 scores 43301, which is -0.2% lower. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 Mobile scores 43667, a -1% difference. These results show that the RTX 4070 SUPER is remarkably close in performance to a mobile flagship and professional workstation cards, meaning users with those GPUs can expect similar frame rates in this game. The deltaPct values suggest that the RTX 4070 SUPER is slightly faster than all its listed rivals, but the differences are within 1%, making them effectively interchangeable for gaming purposes.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i5-13400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER ranks 644th out of 3714 tested combos for Microsoft Flight Simulator. This places it in the top 17.3% of all tested configurations, which is a strong showing for a mid-range CPU paired with a high-end GPU. The rank of 644 indicates that while this combo is not at the very top of the performance hierarchy, it outperforms the vast majority of systems tested. The percentile rankings of the individual components support this: the CPU is at the 77th percentile and the GPU is at the 83rd percentile, suggesting that the GPU is slightly more responsible for the combo’s overall position.

The data reveals that this combo’s rank is likely driven more by the GPU than the CPU. The RTX 4070 SUPER’s 83rd percentile GPU ranking is higher than the CPU’s 77th percentile, and in a game like Microsoft Flight Simulator, which is known for its demanding graphics, this imbalance favors the GPU. The measured FPS data confirms this, as the system’s performance scales more dramatically with resolution changes than with preset changes, indicating GPU-bound behavior at higher resolutions. For users considering this combo, the 644th rank out of 3714 provides confidence that it is a well-above-average configuration, capable of running the game at high settings across most resolutions.