Rust

The Intel Core i5-10400F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 delivers a highly playable Rust experience across all tested resolutions, with the data showing that the primary limitation is the CPU at lower settings, while the GPU dominates at 4K. At 1080p and 1440p, the combination easily clears the 60 FPS threshold even on Ultra presets, but at 4K, the Ultra preset dips below that benchmark, making High the optimal choice. This pairing ranks in the top 20% of all tested combos, indicating strong overall performance, though the CPU bottleneck becomes evident when comparing scaling between resolutions.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The recorded data provides average FPS figures for four settings presets (Low, Medium, High, Ultra) at three resolutions. No minimum or maximum FPS values were recorded; the analysis below relies solely on the average FPS metrics.

At 1920x1080, the combo produces its highest frame rates. The Low preset achieves an average of 146.3 FPS. Moving up to Medium, the average drops to 129 FPS, a decline of 17.3 FPS. The High preset records an average of 123.9 FPS, which is 5.1 FPS lower than Medium. The Ultra preset yields an average of 107.9 FPS, representing a 16 FPS drop from High. The spread from Low to Ultra is 38.4 FPS, showing that the graphical settings have a meaningful impact on performance, but even the most demanding preset remains well above the 60 FPS playability threshold.

At 2560x1440, the same pattern holds but with lower absolute numbers. The Low preset averages 133.6 FPS, which is 12.7 FPS lower than the 1080p Low result. Medium comes in at 111.4 FPS, a drop of 22.2 FPS from Low. High records 108.8 FPS, nearly identical to Medium with only a 2.6 FPS difference. Ultra averages 96.3 FPS, which is 12.5 FPS below High. The total spread from Low to Ultra at this resolution is 37.3 FPS, similar to the 1080p spread, indicating that the performance scaling with settings is consistent regardless of resolution.

At 3840x2160, the performance impact of the higher resolution becomes pronounced. The Low preset averages 109.7 FPS, which is 23.9 FPS lower than the 1440p Low result. Medium averages 89.3 FPS, a drop of 20.4 FPS from Low. High averages 77.2 FPS, down 12.1 FPS from Medium. The Ultra preset records 58.2 FPS, which is 19 FPS below High and falls short of the 60 FPS playability threshold. The spread from Low to Ultra at 4K is 51.5 FPS, significantly larger than at lower resolutions, showing that the GPU is under considerably more stress at 4K.

Comparing across resolutions, the data shows that moving from 1080p to 1440p reduces average FPS by roughly 8 to 13 FPS depending on the preset. Moving from 1440p to 4K causes a larger reduction, ranging from 23.9 FPS at Low to 38.1 FPS at Ultra. This non-linear scaling indicates that the GPU becomes the limiting factor at higher resolutions, particularly at 4K.

Best Settings per Resolution

The database defines the best settings as the most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS. Based on the measured averages, each resolution has a clear winner.

At 1920x1080, all four presets are playable, but the Ultra preset is the best choice. It delivers an average of 107.9 FPS, which is 47.9 FPS above the playability threshold. This provides a substantial margin for demanding scenes, making Ultra the recommended setting for 1080p.

At 2560x1440, the Ultra preset also remains the best option. It achieves an average of 96.3 FPS, comfortably above the 60 FPS threshold. The margin is 36.3 FPS, which is lower than at 1080p but still sufficient for smooth gameplay in most situations.

At 3840x2160, the situation changes. The Ultra preset falls to 58.2 FPS, which is 1.8 FPS below the playability threshold. Therefore, the best settings at 4K are High, which averages 77.2 FPS. This yields a 17.2 FPS margin above the threshold. The Medium preset also qualifies at 89.3 FPS, but High is the most demanding preset that maintains 60 FPS, offering better visual quality.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i5-10400F and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 holds a rank of 749 out of 3,723 tested combos in Rust. This places it in the 79.9th percentile, meaning it outperforms roughly four out of every five tested configurations. The ranking reflects the strong GPU performance, which compensates for the older CPU architecture.

However, the rank also indicates that there are 748 combos that perform better. Given the RTX 5090 is one of the most powerful GPUs available, the ranking is likely held back by the CPU. The i5-10400F has a percentile of 68 against all CPUs, which is solid but not exceptional. The GPU, on the other hand, has a percentile of 92 against all GPUs, showing that it is in the top 8% of all graphics cards. The disparity between these percentiles suggests that the CPU is the weak link in this pairing.

Similar Performance Alternatives

The nearest rivals for the CPU provide context for its performance. The Intel Xeon 6756E has an average score of 14,163, which is 0.2% higher than the i5-10400F's average score of 14,185. The Intel Core 7 160UL scores 14,232, which is 0.3% lower. The AMD EPYC 7552 scores 14,115, which is 0.5% higher. The AMD Ryzen 3 7320C scores 14,277, which is 0.6% lower. These four CPUs are all within a 1% performance band of the i5-10400F, meaning that swapping to any of them would result in nearly identical CPU-bound performance in Rust.

For the GPU, the nearest rivals are closer in relative terms. The NVIDIA Tesla P100 PCIe 16 GB has an average score of 79,605, which is 0.3% higher than the RTX 5090's 79,842. The NVIDIA Tesla P100 PCIe 12 GB scores 79,396, which is 0.6% higher. The AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT scores 78,940, which is 1.1% higher. The AMD Radeon Pro Vega 64X scores 80,959, which is 1.4% lower. All four GPUs are within 1.4% of the RTX 5090's average score, suggesting that they would deliver nearly identical frame rates in GPU-bound scenarios.

In practice, this means that a system with an i5-10400F and an RTX 5090 would behave almost identically to one with a Xeon 6756E or a Ryzen 3 7320C paired with the same GPU. Similarly, swapping the RTX 5090 for a Tesla P100 or RX 6850M XT would produce negligible differences in average FPS, assuming the CPU remains the same.

CPU and GPU Roles

The data reveals distinct roles for the CPU and GPU at different resolutions. At 1920x1080, the difference between Low and Ultra settings is 38.4 FPS, which indicates that the GPU is handling the increased graphical load. However, the CPU's influence is visible when comparing the 1080p Low result of 146.3 FPS to the 1440p Low result of 133.6 FPS. This 12.7 FPS drop at the same settings suggests that the GPU is still capable of scaling, but the CPU is starting to become a factor.

At 2560x1440, the spread between Low and Ultra is 37.3 FPS, nearly identical to the 1080p spread. This consistency indicates that the GPU is still the primary driver of performance changes due to settings. The drop from 1440p Low to 4K Low is 23.9 FPS, which is larger than the 1080p to 1440p drop of 12.7 FPS. This acceleration in performance loss points to the GPU becoming more heavily utilized at 4K.

At 3840x2160, the spread between Low and Ultra expands to 51.5 FPS, which is 13.1 FPS larger than at 1440p. This widening gap shows that the GPU is now the dominant bottleneck, as the increased pixel count places a much heavier load on the graphics card. The CPU's role diminishes at 4K because the frame rates are lower, giving the CPU more time to process each frame.

The scaling between resolutions provides further evidence. At Low settings, the FPS drops from 146.3 at 1080p to 133.6 at 1440p, a 9.5% reduction. From 1440p to 4K, it drops from 133.6 to 109.7, a 21.8% reduction. At Ultra settings, the drop from 1080p to 1440p is from 107.9 to 96.3, a 11.5% reduction, and from 1440p to 4K is from 96.3 to 58.2, a 39.6% reduction. The larger percentage drops at higher settings and resolutions confirm that the GPU is the limiting factor at 4K Ultra, while the CPU is more relevant at 1080p and 1440p with lower settings.

FAQ

Q: Can this combo run Rust at 4K with playable frame rates?

A: Yes, but not on the Ultra preset. The High preset averages 77.2 FPS at 3840x2160, which is above the 60 FPS threshold. The Ultra preset averages 58.2 FPS, which is below the threshold.

Q: What is the best settings preset at 2560x1440?

A: The Ultra preset is the best choice at 1440p, delivering an average of 96.3 FPS. This is well above the 60 FPS playability threshold.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested configurations?

A: It ranks 749th out of 3,723 tested combos, placing it in the top 20% of all configurations. This is a strong result, driven primarily by the GPU's high percentile ranking.

Q: Are there other CPUs that would perform similarly to the i5-10400F in this game?

A: Yes, the Intel Xeon 6756E, Intel Core 7 160UL, AMD EPYC 7552, and AMD Ryzen 3 7320C all have average scores within 0.6% of the i5-10400F. Any of these would produce nearly identical CPU-bound performance.

Q: Does the CPU or GPU matter more at 1920x1080?

A: The data suggests the CPU has a larger influence at 1080p. The FPS drop from Low to Ultra is 38.4 FPS, but the drop from 1080p to 1440p at Low settings is only 12.7 FPS, indicating the GPU has headroom and the CPU is more likely to limit maximum frame rates.

Q: Is the RTX 5090 a good match for the i5-10400F in Rust?

A: The pairing is effective overall, but the CPU is the weaker component. The GPU ranks in the 92nd percentile while the CPU ranks in the 68th percentile. At 4K, the GPU is the clear bottleneck, but at 1080p, the CPU may prevent the GPU from reaching its full potential.