Rust

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i5-11400F paired with the AMD Radeon RX 9070 lands at rank 1190 out of 3723 tested combos in Rust, placing it in the upper third of all systems in the database. That percentile positioning suggests a combination that is decidedly above average for this survival title, though not at the very top tier where the most extreme hardware configurations sit. The CPU itself holds a 71st percentile ranking against all processors, while the GPU sits at the 69th percentile against all graphics cards, making this a balanced pairing where neither component dramatically outclasses the other in synthetic benchmarks.

What matters more for Rust specifically is how these two parts interact under the game's workload. The recorded data shows the combo can push past the 60 FPS playability threshold at every resolution tested, but the margin of comfort varies significantly. At 1080p, the system delivers 91 FPS on Ultra settings, which is a healthy 52% above the playability threshold. At 1440p, Ultra settings still clear 60 FPS with a 63 FPS average, just barely above the line. At 4K, however, only Low settings remain playable, with an 86 FPS average that is 43% above the threshold. The ranking reflects this: the combo is strong, but it has clear limits as resolution climbs.

Similar Performance Alternatives

Looking at the nearest rivals for the CPU, the Intel Core i5-11400F is bracketed by processors that score within a fraction of a percent in average benchmark performance. The AMD EPYC 7H12 is 0.3% ahead, the Intel Core i5-12450H is 0.4% behind, the AMD Ryzen 3 PRO 8300G trails by 0.6%, and the Intel Core Ultra 7 164U leads by 0.6%. In practical terms, these chips would deliver nearly identical frame rates in Rust, meaning users upgrading from any of these CPUs to another would see no meaningful change in gameplay smoothness. The differences are well within run-to-run variance for most games, and Rust is no exception.

On the GPU side, the AMD Radeon RX 9070 sits close to several NVIDIA and AMD alternatives. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN Z is 0.6% ahead, while the AMD Radeon RX 6800S is 0.8% behind. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Mobile is 1.1% ahead, and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER trails by 1.2%. These deltas are tiny, so any of these graphics cards paired with a similar-class CPU would produce essentially the same Rust experience. For a game like Rust, which can be sensitive to both CPU and GPU performance depending on the scene, these near-identical scores suggest that swapping between these GPUs would not alter the playable settings at any resolution. The data indicates that the RX 9070's performance envelope is well understood: it delivers strong 1080p and 1440p results, but 4K Ultra is out of reach.

CPU and GPU Roles

Rust's workload distribution becomes apparent when examining the scaling of frame rates across resolutions and presets. At 1080p, the CPU has more room to feed the GPU, and the results show high averages across all settings. The jump from Low to Ultra at 1080p costs 84 FPS (from 175 down to 91), which is a 48% reduction. At 1440p, the same settings transition drops from 146 to 63 FPS, a 57% reduction. At 4K, the drop from Low to Ultra is from 86 to 37 FPS, a 57% reduction as well. This consistent scaling pattern suggests that both the CPU and GPU are contributing to the performance ceiling, but the GPU becomes more dominant as resolution increases.

The CPU's role is most visible at 1080p with Low settings, where the 175 FPS average indicates the processor can sustain very high frame rates without bottlenecking the GPU. The i5-11400F's six cores and twelve threads, with a boost clock of 4.40 GHz, appear sufficient to keep up with Rust's simulation and networking demands at these frame rates. As resolution climbs to 1440p and 4K, the GPU becomes the limiting factor, which is evident from the larger percentage drops when raising settings at those resolutions. At 4K, even Low settings only reach 86 FPS, and Ultra drops to 37 FPS, showing that the RX 9070 is the primary constraint at that resolution. The verdict data confirms this: at 4K, only Low is playable, while at 1440p and 1080p, all settings including Ultra clear the 60 FPS bar.

The Verdict

The data shows that this PC can run Rust at all three tested resolutions, but the playable settings vary. At 3840x2160, the only playable setting is Low, which delivers an 86 FPS average. Medium at 4K falls short at 58 FPS, and High (49 FPS) and Ultra (37 FPS) are not viable. At 2560x1440, every setting is playable: Low runs at 146 FPS, Medium at 98 FPS, High at 83 FPS, and Ultra at 63 FPS. The best playable setting at 1440p is Ultra, just barely clearing the threshold with a 63 FPS average. At 1920x1080, all settings are also playable, with Low at 175 FPS, Medium at 142 FPS, High at 120 FPS, and Ultra at 91 FPS. The best setting at 1080p is Ultra, offering a comfortable 31 FPS margin above the 60 FPS threshold.

For users targeting 60 FPS as the minimum playability bar, the recommendation is clear: 1080p Ultra and 1440p Ultra are both achievable, while 4K users must settle for Low settings. The 4K Medium preset at 58 FPS is tantalizingly close but misses the threshold by 2 FPS, which could matter for those with variable refresh rate displays. Overall, this combo is best suited for 1080p and 1440p gaming, with 4K limited to competitive or low-fidelity play.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 3840x2160, the recorded averages are as follows: Low settings produce 86 FPS, Medium produces 58 FPS with a minimum of 49 and a maximum of 67, High produces 49 FPS, and Ultra produces 37 FPS. The Medium preset has the only complete min/max data at this resolution, showing a 18 FPS spread between the lowest and highest recorded frames. The gap between Low and Ultra at 4K is 49 FPS, which represents a 57% performance penalty for maxing out the graphics settings.

At 2560x1440, the averages are: Low at 146 FPS, Medium at 98 FPS with a minimum of 83 and a maximum of 113, High at 83 FPS, and Ultra at 63 FPS. The Medium preset again has the full min/max range, showing a 30 FPS spread. The transition from Low to Ultra at this resolution costs 83 FPS, a 57% drop, which mirrors the 4K scaling pattern. Interestingly, the High preset at 1440p (83 FPS) matches the Low preset at 4K (86 FPS) within a small margin, suggesting that resolution scaling has a consistent impact on performance.

At 1920x1080, the averages are: Low at 175 FPS, Medium at 142 FPS with a minimum of 121 and a maximum of 164, High at 120 FPS, and Ultra at 91 FPS. The Medium preset has a 43 FPS min/max spread, the largest of any resolution. The drop from Low to Ultra at 1080p is 84 FPS, a 48% reduction, which is less severe than at higher resolutions. This indicates that at 1080p, the CPU is able to maintain higher minimum frame rates even when settings are increased, since the GPU has more headroom to work with.

FAQ

Q: Can this system run Rust at 60 FPS on Ultra settings at 1080p?

A: Yes. The recorded data shows a 91 FPS average at 1920x1080 with Ultra settings, which is 31 FPS above the 60 FPS playability threshold.

Q: What is the best playable setting at 4K resolution?

A: Low is the only playable setting at 3840x2160, delivering an 86 FPS average. Medium falls short at 58 FPS, just below the 60 FPS threshold.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The Intel Core i5-11400F scores within 0.6% of its nearest rivals, the AMD EPYC 7H12, Intel Core i5-12450H, AMD Ryzen 3 PRO 8300G, and Intel Core Ultra 7 164U. These differences are negligible for gaming performance.

Q: Is the GPU or CPU more limiting at 1440p Ultra?

A: At 2560x1440 Ultra, the system averages 63 FPS, which is just above the threshold. The GPU is the primary constraint here, as the CPU can sustain high frame rates at lower resolutions (175 FPS at 1080p Low), but the GPU cannot maintain similar performance at higher resolutions with maxed settings.

Q: What frame rates can be expected at 1440p Medium settings?

A: The recorded data shows a 98 FPS average at 2560x1440 Medium, with a minimum of 83 FPS and a maximum of 113 FPS. This is well above the 60 FPS threshold and provides a smooth experience.

Q: How does the RX 9070's performance compare to the RTX 2080 SUPER?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 9070 is 1.2% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER in average benchmark score. In Rust, this would translate to nearly identical frame rates, with the RX 9070 having a slight edge.