Counter-Strike: Global Offensive

Counter-Strike: Global Offensive may have been succeeded by Counter-Strike 2, but it remains one of the most instructive benchmarks in our library, a decade of hardware measured against an engine millions of players know intimately. The numbers in our database of more than 3,700 tested CPU and GPU combinations show just how far hardware has come: the average system records 442 FPS at 1080p Ultra, 305 FPS at 1440p Ultra, and 180 FPS at 4K Ultra, with the fastest combinations exceeding 1,370 FPS at 1080p Low. If you are playing CS:GO today, in community servers, through offline installs, or simply comparing hardware, the short version is that everything modern runs it brilliantly, and the interesting questions are all at the extremes.

The Source engine: a lesson in CPU-bound design

CS:GO runs on the original Source engine, and its hardware profile is the textbook example of a CPU-bound game. The engine was designed in an era of dual-core processors, and while it received years of optimization, its frame rate ceiling is set by single-thread CPU performance more than by any graphics card. Our measured data demonstrates this dramatically: at 1080p, frame rates scale almost linearly with processor single-thread speed, while swapping GPUs at the same CPU tier moves the needle modestly. This is the same pattern that made CS:GO the de facto CPU benchmark for a decade of hardware reviews, and it is why large-cache, high-clock processors post the gaudiest numbers in our tables. The 12 FPS floor recorded at the very bottom of the database belongs to genuinely ancient hardware; anything built in the last eight years is well clear of trouble.

1080p: high refresh for everyone

At 1920x1080, the 442 FPS average at Ultra means that even mid-range hardware from several generations ago feeds a 240 Hz monitor without effort, and current mid-range builds approach 600 FPS. This is the resolution where CS:GO's competitive heritage lives, and the measured spread is instructive: the gap between a budget modern CPU and a flagship X3D processor is hundreds of frames per second at the same GPU, a larger CPU effect than almost any other game in our library. For players still competing in CS:GO's community ecosystem, the build advice is unchanged from the game's prime: processor first, fast memory second, graphics card a distant third. A 240 Hz or 360 Hz monitor is a realistic pairing for any reasonably modern gaming PC at this resolution.

1440p and 4K: still effortless for modern hardware

At 1440p the average of 305 FPS at Ultra keeps every recent gaming PC in high-refresh territory, and only here does the graphics card begin to share the load visibly, the spread between GPU tiers widens, though even entry-level current cards stay well above 144 FPS. At 4K Ultra the 180 FPS average finally makes the GPU the primary constraint for most builds, but the number itself is remarkable: this is a AAA shooter at 4K where the average tested machine nearly clears a 180 Hz panel. For players moving from CS2 back to CS:GO, the older engine's lightness is immediately obvious, the same hardware that works for its frame rate in the newer game has enormous headroom here.

Why CS:GO still matters as a benchmark

Even if you never launch the game, CS:GO's numbers are worth understanding because of what they isolate. With GPU load minimal at 1080p, the game functions as a pure, real-world CPU latency test, one that correlates strongly with how processors feel in everyday responsiveness and in other CPU-bound games like MMOs and strategy titles. Hardware reviewers used it for a decade for exactly this reason, and our database preserves that function: when two processors post very different CS:GO numbers at the same GPU, you are watching their single-thread and cache differences expressed in the clearest possible way. When the numbers are close, the processors will feel alike almost everywhere else too.

What hardware do you need?

For casual and competitive play at 1080p high refresh: any modern quad-core and literally any current gaming GPU, including entry-level. This is the least demanding AAA shooter in our library by a wide margin, and budget builds have no compromises to make. For 240 Hz and above: a strong single-thread CPU, X3D parts lead our tables, with fast DDR5; the GPU barely matters. For 4K: a solid mid-range card suffices, which for a modern AAA title is remarkable. Laptops deserve special mention: CS:GO is the game that made gaming on integrated graphics viable years ago, and modern Core Ultra and Ryzen AI iGPUs run it at high frame rates at 1080p, no discrete GPU required, which is why it remains the default install on student laptops everywhere.

Frequently asked questions

Q: Can my PC run CS:GO?

A: Almost certainly yes. The bottom of our 3,700+ combination database is legacy hardware from over a decade ago. Any PC built in the last eight years runs CS:GO at playable frame rates, and anything remotely modern runs it at high refresh rates.

Q: Is CS:GO CPU or GPU intensive?

A: Heavily CPU-intensive, the classic example of the type. Single-thread processor speed sets the frame rate ceiling at 1080p; the GPU only becomes the main factor at 4K.

Q: Why do CS:GO frame rates vary so much between CPUs?

A: The Source engine depends on single-thread performance and cache. At 1080p our measured spread between a budget and flagship processor at the same GPU is several hundred FPS, the largest CPU effect in our library.

Q: Is CS:GO or CS2 better for benchmarking hardware?

A: They answer different questions. CS:GO is a purer CPU latency test; CS2 stresses both CPU and GPU in a modern balance. Together they bracket how a system handles old-engine and new-engine workloads.

Q: Can integrated graphics run CS:GO?

A: Comfortably. Modern integrated GPUs in Core Ultra and Ryzen AI processors run it at 1080p with frame rates well above 60, one of the first AAA shooters where discrete graphics became optional.

Recommended settings: our tested configuration

CS:GO's competitive settings were refined over a decade, and the formula still holds. Shadows stay on, enemy silhouettes are tactical information, while everything decorative goes down: effects, shader detail, and model detail at Low, motion blur off, and multicore rendering enabled (it should always be on with modern CPUs). MSAA at 2x smooths edges cheaply; higher levels buy little at competitive resolutions. The resolution debate deserves a mention: a large share of veteran players still run 4:3 stretched at 1280x960, preferring the larger player models and higher frame rates over native 16:9 sharpness. Our data doesn't adjudicate that preference, but it confirms the performance side: at lower resolutions the engine's frame rates climb into territory where any modern CPU saturates any monitor sold today.

How it runs by hardware tier

Entry level (any working PC from the last decade): 1080p at 80-150 FPS in our lower-percentile data. CS:GO's accessibility is total, this is the benchmark against which "can it run games at all" is measured.

Mid-range (modern 6-core, any current GPU): 1080p at 400-600 FPS, 1440p at 300-450 FPS. High-refresh play with zero compromises, and the tier where CPU differences stop being visible to anyone but the stopwatch.

High-end: 600-900 FPS at 1080p Low with strong single-thread CPUs. The 1,000 FPS line comes into view for the fastest cache-heavy processors.

Flagship: past 1,370 FPS at the top of our database, a number with no practical meaning beyond bragging rights and a remarkable demonstration of how far single-thread performance has come.

Streaming and content creation

CS:GO is the easiest game in our library to broadcast. At competitive settings the GPU barely works, so hardware encoding costs effectively nothing, and even CPU x264 encoding at high quality presets is realistic on any 6-core-and-better processor, the engine leaves that much headroom. For coaching content, demo reviews, and the endless cottage industry of CS analysis videos, the practical guidance is simple: record at whatever resolution you like, because the game will never be the constraint. Even on a five-year-old mid-range laptop, a clean 1080p60 stream of CS:GO is achievable with hardware encoding and competitive settings.

Common problems and fixes

Lower FPS than expected on a new GPU: the classic CS:GO trap, the game is CPU-bound, and the new graphics card changed almost nothing. The upgrade path for CS:GO specifically is processor and RAM, not GPU.

Stuttering in smoke grenades: particle effects load both components; lower effects detail. On older quad-cores, closing background applications matters more than any setting.

Sudden drops on single-channel RAM systems: memory bandwidth. CS:GO is sensitive to dual-channel operation, moving from one stick to two matched sticks is worth a measurable percentage at 1080p.

Input lag despite high FPS: verify multicore rendering is enabled, disable fullscreen optimizations if present, and cap frame rate a few FPS below your monitor's maximum if variance bothers you, the engine is old enough that uncapped frame rates can produce uneven pacing on some systems.

CS:GO's place in 2026

Global Offensive's official life has ended, but its afterlife is substantial. Community servers, offline installs, and a decade of muscle memory keep a real player base engaged, and its benchmark presence has arguably grown: as the lightest AAA shooter in common use, it remains the standard tool for isolating CPU performance in reviews and buyer comparisons, a role our data supports with measured results across more than 3,700 hardware combinations. For players, the practical guidance is simple: if you still play, everything modern runs it at frame rates your monitor cannot display, and any hardware question you have is answered elsewhere in our library. For hardware shoppers, treat its numbers on this page as what they are, the cleanest available measurement of single-thread CPU speed in a real game engine, and a useful complement to the more demanding titles nearby.

Upgrade priorities for CS:GO players

If you are still competing in CS:GO's community ecosystem and your frame rate falls short, the upgrade order is the simplest in our library. First, the processor: single-thread speed decides almost everything at 1080p, and a large-cache CPU, AMD's X3D parts top our CS:GO tables, is the one upgrade that transforms the game. Second, memory: dual-channel operation is worth a measurable percentage here, and it costs almost nothing to fix. Third, the monitor: with frame rates this high across modest hardware, a 240 Hz panel is the upgrade you actually feel. The graphics card comes last by a wide margin, at 1080p it is the least likely bottleneck in the entire system, and money spent there buys frames you already have. Buy in that order and every dollar shows up in the frame counter.

The bottom line

CS:GO in 2026 is two things at once: a still-played classic that any modern machine runs at frame rates beyond any monitor's refresh, and the cleanest CPU latency test in common use. The hardware answer for playing it could not be simpler, everything works, and the answer for benchmarking is nearly as simple: watch the CPU numbers, because at 1080p this engine isolates single-thread performance better than almost any synthetic test. Whether you are here to play or to measure, the tables on this page have the precise figures for your hardware combination across every resolution we track.

One final note for returning veterans: if CS:GO feels different from your memory of it, the hardware is almost never the reason. The engine's behavior is unchanged, and modern systems run it faster than ever. What changed is everything around it, and the measured figures above are the proof that your old friend runs better today than it did on the day it peaked.