Rust

Best Settings per Resolution

At 3840x2160, the most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS is Low, with an average of 62 FPS. The Medium preset drops to 41 FPS, which falls below the playability threshold, while High and Ultra average 35 FPS and 27 FPS respectively.

At 2560x1440, the best playable setting is Medium, delivering an average of 70 FPS. The low preset reaches 104 FPS, but since Medium maintains a comfortable margin above 60 FPS, it is the optimal choice for visual quality without sacrificing smoothness. High average 59 FPS, just missing the 60 FPS threshold, while Ultra falls to 45 FPS.

At 1920x1080, all four presets clear 60 FPS. The highest preset, Ultra, averages 65 FPS, making it the best setting at this resolution. High averages 86 FPS, Medium 102 FPS, and Low reaches 151 FPS, but Ultra provides the best balance of fidelity and performance. The data indicates that this combination handles 1080p with headroom across the entire settings range.

CPU and GPU Roles

The recorded FPS scaling across resolutions and presets reveals how the workload shifts between the Intel Core i5-11400F and the AMD Radeon RX 9060.

At 1920x1080, the difference between Low and Ultra is substantial: 151 FPS versus 65 FPS. This 86 FPS spread (about 57% drop from Low to Ultra) shows that the GPU is the primary limiter at this resolution, as raising graphical settings increases the load on the Radeon RX 9060. The CPU, with its 6 cores and 12 threads from the Rocket Lake architecture, has enough headroom to feed the GPU even at Low settings where the frame rate is highest.

Moving to 2560x1440, the gap between Low (104 FPS) and Ultra (45 FPS) widens in percentage terms. The Medium preset drops from 102 FPS at 1080p to 70 FPS at 1440p, a 31% reduction. This scaling indicates that the GPU is becoming more stressed as pixel count increases, but the CPU still keeps pace, as evidenced by the fact that Low settings at 1440p (104 FPS) nearly match Medium at 1080p (102 FPS).

At 3840x2160, the GPU dominates the performance picture. Low settings average 62 FPS, while Medium drops to 41 FPS and High to 35 FPS. The steep decline from Low to Medium at 4K (a 34% FPS loss) shows how quickly the RX 9060's 8 GB of GDDR6 memory and 128-bit bus become saturated at higher presets. The CPU's role diminishes here, as the frame rates are low enough that even a less capable processor could likely keep up.

In summary, the CPU handles the game's simulation and physics work without becoming a bottleneck at any resolution, given its 71st percentile ranking among all CPUs. The GPU is the decisive factor at 1440p and 4K, while at 1080p the combination is balanced enough that both components contribute meaningfully to the final frame rate.

Measured FPS Breakdown

3840x2160

• Low: average 62 FPS
• Medium: average 41 FPS, minimum 35 FPS, maximum 47 FPS
• High: average 35 FPS
• Ultra: average 27 FPS

The 4K data shows a clear hierarchy. Low is the only preset that stays above 60 FPS. Medium exhibits a notable drop, with the minimum dipping to 35 FPS, indicating occasional stutter even at this mid-level setting. High and Ultra are borderline unplayable, with averages below 40 FPS.

2560x1440

• Low: average 104 FPS
• Medium: average 70 FPS, minimum 59 FPS, maximum 80 FPS
• High: average 59 FPS
• Ultra: average 45 FPS

At 1440p, the Medium preset is the sweet spot, though its minimum of 59 FPS is just below the 60 FPS threshold. Low provides a comfortable 104 FPS average, which would be ideal for competitive play. High falls just short of playable, and Ultra is not viable.

1920x1080

• Low: average 151 FPS
• Medium: average 102 FPS, minimum 86 FPS, maximum 117 FPS
• High: average 86 FPS
• Ultra: average 65 FPS

At 1080p, all presets are playable. Low reaches 151 FPS, which is excellent for high-refresh-rate monitors. Medium maintains a minimum of 86 FPS, ensuring smooth gameplay even in demanding scenes. Ultra averages 65 FPS, crossing the 60 FPS line with a small margin, so users should expect occasional dips below 60 in heavy combat or large bases.

The Verdict

This PC can run Rust at 1920x1080 with all presets, including Ultra, which averages 65 FPS. The database's verdict lists all four settings as playable at this resolution, so users can choose between maximum visual quality or high frame rates depending on preference.

At 2560x1440, the system is playable on Low and Medium, with Medium being the recommended setting at 70 FPS average. High misses the 60 FPS mark by a single frame on average, making it borderline, and Ultra is not recommended.

At 3840x2160, only Low is playable, averaging 62 FPS. Medium, High, and Ultra all fall well below the 60 FPS threshold, so 4K gaming is limited to the lowest preset.

Overall, this combination is a solid 1080p performer, a capable 1440p machine with adjusted settings, and only marginally playable at 4K with significant visual compromises.

Similar Performance Alternatives

The nearest rivals for the Intel Core i5-11400F are all within 0.6% of its average benchmark score of 17177. The AMD EPYC 7H12 scores 17120, which is 0.3% lower. The Intel Core i5-12450H scores 17239, 0.4% higher. The AMD Ryzen 3 PRO 8300G scores 17278, 0.6% higher. The Intel Core Ultra 7 164U scores 17074, 0.6% lower. Any of these processors would deliver nearly identical frame rates in Rust, as the CPU is not the limiting factor in most tested scenarios.

For the AMD Radeon RX 9060, the nearest rivals are equally close. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti scores 16129, which is 0.7% higher than the RX 9060's 16014 average. The AMD Radeon R9 370X scores 15862, 1% lower. The AMD Radeon RX 7700 scores 15852, 1% lower. The AMD Radeon Pro W5500 scores 15679, 2.1% lower. In practice, swapping the RX 9060 for an RTX 3060 Ti would yield nearly identical performance, while the Radeon RX 7700 would be a slight downgrade.

Users considering this build should note that the CPU rivals are from different market segments, including a server chip (EPYC 7H12) and a laptop processor (Core i5-12450H), but their similar average scores mean they would behave comparably in Rust's CPU-bound scenarios.

FAQ

Q: Can this PC run Rust at 60 FPS on a 4K monitor?

A: Only on Low settings, which averages 62 FPS. Medium drops to 41 FPS, and High and Ultra are below 35 FPS.

Q: What is the best settings preset at 1440p?

A: Medium, with an average of 70 FPS. Low averages 104 FPS, but Medium offers better visuals while staying above the 60 FPS threshold.

Q: How much performance is lost when going from 1080p to 4K on Low settings?

A: The average FPS drops from 151 at 1080p Low to 62 at 4K Low, a reduction of 89 FPS or approximately 59%.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU more important for Rust at 1080p?

A: The GPU is the primary factor, as evidenced by the 86 FPS difference between Low (151 FPS) and Ultra (65 FPS) at 1080p. The CPU's 71st percentile ranking suggests it is not a bottleneck.

Q: Does the RX 9060 perform similarly to an RTX 3060 Ti in this game?

A: Based on average benchmark scores, the RTX 3060 Ti is 0.7% faster, so the frame rates in Rust would be virtually indistinguishable between the two.

Q: What is the minimum FPS recorded for the Medium preset at 1440p?

A: The minimum is 59 FPS, which is one frame below the 60 FPS playability threshold, though the average is 70 FPS.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i5-11400F + AMD Radeon RX 9060 combination ranks 2190 out of 3723 tested combos in Rust. This places it in the upper-middle portion of the database, which is consistent with its measured performance: strong at 1080p, capable at 1440p with settings adjustments, and limited at 4K.

The ranking reflects that while the GPU sits at the 59th percentile among all GPUs, the CPU is at the 71st percentile. The combination works well together because the CPU does not bottleneck the GPU at any of the tested resolutions or presets. The 1080p results, where all four presets exceed 60 FPS, are the primary driver of this ranking. The 4K results, where only Low is playable, prevent it from ranking higher.

Given that the combo outperforms approximately 41% of tested configurations in this game, users can expect a smooth experience at mainstream resolutions (1080p and 1440p) with appropriate settings. The system's rank of 2190 out of 3723 indicates that there is room for improvement, particularly at higher resolutions where the RX 9060's 8 GB VRAM and 128-bit memory bus become limiting factors.