Rust

The Intel Core i9-14900K paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 delivers a wide spread of performance across Rust’s preset ladder, with results that scale predictably from 1080p up to 4K. At 1920x1080, the combination is overwhelmingly fast: Low settings produce an average of 224.2 FPS, Medium drops to 153.6 FPS, High yields 127.1 FPS, and even the Ultra preset holds an average of 95.7 FPS. Moving to 2560x1440, the averages are still well above the 60 FPS playable threshold: Low runs at 156.5 FPS, Medium at 103.8 FPS, High at 87.4 FPS, and Ultra at 68 FPS. At 3840x2160, the picture changes notably—Low still delivers a strong 93.9 FPS, Medium falls to 59.4 FPS, High drops to 54.2 FPS, and Ultra dips to 41.6 FPS. The data set includes no min or max FPS values, so the analysis relies entirely on average frame rates across the twelve tested configurations.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured results show a clear hierarchy based on resolution and preset. At 1920x1080, the lowest preset tested (Low) produces 224.2 FPS average, which is more than double the 60 FPS threshold. Medium reduces that to 153.6 FPS, still a very comfortable margin. High comes in at 127.1 FPS, and Ultra—the most demanding preset in the data—still averages 95.7 FPS. This means at 1080p, every preset tested clears the playable threshold by at least 59.6%.

At 2560x1440, the pattern continues but with tighter margins. Low averages 156.5 FPS, Medium 103.8 FPS, High 87.4 FPS, and Ultra 68 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra is 88.5 FPS, showing a substantial cost for the highest quality settings. Even at Ultra, the average remains 8 FPS above the 60 FPS threshold, which indicates headroom for demanding scenes.

At 3840x2160, the performance cliff becomes evident. Low still averages 93.9 FPS, which is above the threshold by 33.9 FPS. Medium drops to 59.4 FPS—just 0.6 FPS below the playable line. High averages 54.2 FPS, a deficit of 5.8 FPS, and Ultra falls to 41.6 FPS, which is 18.4 FPS short of 60. The scaling from Low to Ultra at 4K is a 52.3 FPS drop, indicating that the RTX 4070’s 12 GB of GDDR6X memory and 504.2 GB/s bandwidth are sufficient for lower presets but not for the full visual load at this resolution.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested combinations for Rust, this CPU-GPU pairing holds the rank of 783 out of 3723 combos. That places it in the top 21% of all tested configurations, which is a strong showing for a high-end desktop setup. The rank reflects the combined capability of the 24-core i9-14900K and the RTX 4070, but it also indicates that many other pairings—likely those with higher-tier GPUs or more recent architectures—achieve higher average frame rates. The percentileVsAllCpus of 95 for the CPU and percentileVsAllGpus of 81 for the GPU suggest the processor is more of a standout relative to its peers than the graphics card. In practical terms, the combo’s rank means it outperforms roughly 79% of all tested systems in Rust, but it is not near the top of the leaderboard. The gap to the best combos is likely driven by GPU limitations at 4K Ultra, where the data shows the RTX 4070 struggles to maintain 60 FPS.

Best Settings per Resolution

The playable threshold is defined as 60 FPS average, and the data indicates which preset is the most demanding that still stays at or above that line at each resolution. At 1920x1080, the best setting is Ultra, which averages 95.7 FPS. This is the highest quality preset tested, and it clears the threshold by 35.7 FPS, so there is no need to compromise on visuals at this resolution. At 2560x1440, the best setting is also Ultra, with an average of 68 FPS. This is only 8 FPS above the threshold, so while it is playable, the margin is modest and may dip below 60 FPS in heavy scenes. At 3840x2160, the best setting is Low, which averages 93.9 FPS. Medium is just below the threshold at 59.4 FPS, so Low is the only preset that reliably clears 60 FPS at 4K. The verdictByResolution field confirms this: 4K lists only Low as playable, while 1440p and 1080p list all four tested presets as playable.

Similar Performance Alternatives

The nearestRivals data provides context for what other hardware would behave similarly to this combo. On the CPU side, the Intel Core i9-14900KF has an average benchmark score of 79371, which is 0.3% lower than the i9-14900K’s average of 79097. The Intel Core Ultra 9 290HX Plus scores 79574, 0.6% higher. The AMD EPYC 7413 scores 80041, 1.2% higher, and the AMD Ryzen AI Max+ 395 scores 77740, 1.7% lower. These deltas are all within 2%, so any of these CPUs would produce nearly identical frame rates in Rust, assuming the GPU remains the same.

On the GPU side, the NVIDIA Tesla P4 has an average score of 37628, which is 0.1% higher than the RTX 4070’s 37648. The AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 scores 37507, 0.4% lower. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 Mobile scores 38135, 1.3% higher, and the AMD Radeon PRO W6400 scores 37157, 1.3% lower. These deltaPct values are all under 1.5%, meaning that swapping the RTX 4070 for any of these alternatives would result in roughly the same frame rates. However, note that the RTX 4080 Mobile is a laptop part, so its desktop equivalent would likely perform differently. For a user considering similar hardware, the i9-14900KF is the closest CPU substitute, while the Tesla P4 is the closest GPU substitute in terms of raw benchmark scores.

CPU and GPU Roles

The data reveals how the balance between CPU and GPU shifts across resolutions. At 1920x1080, the CPU’s high single-thread performance (Geekbench single-core score of 2655, Passmark single-thread score of 4697) is likely the limiting factor, as the GPU has spare capacity. The scaling from Low to Ultra at 1080p is a 128.5 FPS drop (from 224.2 to 95.7), which is a 57.3% reduction. This large drop indicates that the GPU becomes more stressed at higher presets, but even at Ultra, the frame rate stays high, suggesting the CPU can feed the GPU adequately.

At 2560x1440, the GPU’s role grows. The drop from Low to Ultra is 88.5 FPS (from 156.5 to 68), a 56.5% reduction. The absolute numbers are lower than at 1080p, consistent with the GPU being more loaded. At 3840x2160, the GPU is clearly the dominant factor. The drop from Low to Ultra is 52.3 FPS (from 93.9 to 41.6), a 55.7% reduction. The fact that Low at 4K (93.9 FPS) is only slightly below High at 1440p (87.4 FPS) shows that resolution scaling is primarily a GPU burden. The CPU’s role is consistent across resolutions—it provides the baseline performance—but the GPU determines the ceiling at higher resolutions and presets. The i9-14900K’s 24 cores and 32 threads are far more than Rust needs, as the game is not heavily multithreaded in this data set. The RTX 4070’s 29.15 TFLOPS of FP32 performance is the limiting factor at 4K Ultra.

The Verdict

This PC can run Rust at 60 FPS in most configurations, but not all. At 1920x1080, all four presets—Low, Medium, High, and Ultra—average above 60 FPS, with Ultra at 95.7 FPS providing the best visual quality without sacrificing playability. At 2560x1440, all four presets also clear 60 FPS, but Ultra is close at 68 FPS, so users may prefer High (87.4 FPS) for a larger safety margin. At 3840x2160, only Low is playable, averaging 93.9 FPS. Medium falls just short at 59.4 FPS, and High and Ultra are not viable for smooth gameplay. The verdictByResolution field confirms these findings: 4K lists only Low as playable, while 1440p and 1080p list all settings. For a 4K monitor, this combo requires dropping to Low settings, which may be a significant visual compromise. For 1440p or 1080p, the system is fully capable of running Rust at maximum quality.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest preset that maintains 60 FPS at 1920x1080?

A: Ultra, with an average of 95.7 FPS. All four tested presets at 1080p exceed the 60 FPS threshold.

Q: Can this system run Rust at 4K with medium settings?

A: No. At 3840x2160, Medium averages 59.4 FPS, which is 0.6 FPS below the 60 FPS playable threshold. Low is the only playable preset at 4K, averaging 93.9 FPS.

Q: How much faster is Low compared to Ultra at 2560x1440?

A: Low averages 156.5 FPS, while Ultra averages 68 FPS. That is a difference of 88.5 FPS, or roughly 2.3 times higher frame rate for Low.

Q: Which component is more important for 4K performance in Rust?

A: The GPU. At 3840x2160, frame rates drop sharply as presets increase (from 93.9 FPS on Low to 41.6 FPS on Ultra), indicating the RTX 4070 is the bottleneck. The CPU’s performance remains constant across resolutions.

Q: What CPU would perform nearly identically to the i9-14900K?

A: The Intel Core i9-14900KF, which has an average benchmark score 0.3% lower than the i9-14900K. Other close matches include the Intel Core Ultra 9 290HX Plus (0.6% higher) and AMD EPYC 7413 (1.2% higher).

Q: Is the RTX 4070 similar to any other GPU in terms of benchmark scores?

A: Yes. The NVIDIA Tesla P4 has an average score 0.1% higher than the RTX 4070, and the AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 is 0.4% lower. The RTX 4080 Mobile is 1.3% higher, though it is a laptop component.