Microsoft Flight Simulator

Microsoft Flight Simulator with an Intel Core i3-12100F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti places 488th out of 3,714 tested combos, a top 13% result that hinges on a stark imbalance between the CPU and GPU. The data shows this pairing delivers playable frame rates even at 4K Ultra, but the quad-core processor clearly caps performance at lower resolutions, leaving the high-end graphics card underutilized.

CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The Intel Core i3-12100F is a 4-core, 8-thread Alder Lake-S desktop processor with a base clock of 3.30 GHz and a boost clock of 4.30 GHz. It features a 12 MB shared L3 cache and 1.25 MB L2 cache per core, running on a 10 nm Intel process. This is a modest configuration for a flight simulator that is known to stress single-thread performance heavily. The CPU's benchmark scores reflect its dual nature: it achieves a 3DMark single-thread score of 893 and a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 1674, which are strong for its class, but its multi-threaded scores are more limited. The Cinebench R23 multi-core score is 11,860, and the 3DMark 16-thread score is 4,051, showing that scaling beyond 8 threads yields almost nothing—the max-thread score of 4,023 is actually lower than the 16-thread result, indicating the processor is fully saturated.

In the context of Microsoft Flight Simulator, the game's heavy reliance on draw calls and physics calculations means the i3-12100F's high single-thread boost clock is the critical asset. The benchmark results show that at 1080p Low settings, the combo reaches 182 FPS, which is an excellent figure, but this is where the CPU's limitations start to show. The gap between the 1080p Low and 1080p Ultra scores (182 FPS vs 108 FPS) is largely driven by GPU load, yet the CPU still manages to feed the RTX 4070 Ti adequately at these settings. The processor's 68th percentile ranking among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 13,494, places it near the Intel Core i5-9500 (delta 0.3%) and just 1.1% behind the Intel Core i7-1250U, per the nearestRivals data. This indicates that while the i3-12100F is not a top-tier processor, it sits in a competitive mid-range position. The 58W TDP and dual-channel DDR4/DDR5 memory support are typical for this segment, but the data reveals that in this specific game, the CPU becomes the primary bottleneck at 1080p, where its 4 cores struggle to maintain the same scaling as the GPU can deliver.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

The combination of the Intel Core i3-12100F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti achieves a combo rank of 488 out of 3,714 tested combos in Microsoft Flight Simulator. This positions the pairing in the top 13.1% of all configurations tested, which is a strong showing given that the CPU is a budget-oriented part. The ranking suggests that the overall system is more capable than the processor alone would indicate, thanks largely to the GPU's headroom. However, the rank also highlights the mismatch: many combos with lower-tier GPUs but stronger CPUs likely outperform this pairing at 1080p, where the i3-12100F's 4 cores become a limiting factor.

The data shows that the combo's performance is heavily dependent on resolution. At 4K Ultra, the average FPS is 64, which is playable but not high-refresh territory. At 1080p Ultra, the average FPS jumps to 108, but this is still well below what the RTX 4070 Ti could achieve with a more powerful CPU. The combo's rank of 488 reflects this compromise—it is neither a top-tier enthusiast setup nor a low-end compromise. The GPU, which ranks in the 84th percentile among all GPUs with an average benchmark score of 44,795, is clearly the stronger component. Its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 Mobile (delta -0.8%) and the AMD Radeon Pro 5500 XT (delta -1.3%), showing it is just below the mobile flagship but above many desktop workstation cards. This imbalance means the combo rank is likely dragged down by the CPU's inability to fully utilize the GPU at lower resolutions, a common issue in simulation titles that favor raw single-thread speed over core counts.

Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

The measured FPS data reveals a clear pattern of resolution scaling that exposes the CPU as the limiting component at lower resolutions. From 1080p to 1440p, the average FPS at High settings drops from 113 to 91, a 19.5% decrease. From 1440p to 4K, the drop is from 91 to 67, a 26.4% decrease. This non-linear scaling is typical of a system where the GPU becomes more dominant as resolution increases. At 1080p, the CPU is the bottleneck: the i3-12100F's 4 cores and 8 threads are pushed to their limits, and the frame rate is constrained by the processor's ability to issue draw calls. The 3DMark 8-thread score of 4,026 and 4-thread score of 2,859 show that the CPU's multi-threaded performance is modest, which directly impacts the game's ability to process the complex scenery and AI traffic that Microsoft Flight Simulator demands.

At 4K, the GPU becomes the primary limiter, and the frame rates drop to a range where the RTX 4070 Ti's 12 GB of GDDR6X memory and 504.2 GB/s bandwidth are fully utilized. The 4K High average of 67 FPS is respectable, but the 4K Ultra average of 64 FPS shows only a small additional hit, indicating that the GPU is nearing its limits. The fact that the 1080p Low average is 182 FPS, while the 4K Low average is 115 FPS, demonstrates that even at Low settings, the game scales heavily with resolution. This suggests that the CPU is not the primary constraint at 4K Low, where the GPU's fill rate and memory bandwidth are the decisive factors. The data indicates that the sweet spot for this combo is 1440p, where the 1440p High average of 91 FPS balances CPU and GPU loads, avoiding the severe CPU bottleneck at 1080p while maintaining playable frame rates.

Measured FPS Breakdown — resolution by resolution, settings by settings, exact numbers

The measured FPS data provides a comprehensive view of the combo's performance across three resolutions and four quality settings. At 1920x1080, the average FPS ranges from 182 at Low settings to 108 at Ultra settings. The Medium setting averages 150 FPS with a minimum of 128 and maximum of 173, while High averages 113 FPS. The 1080p results show a significant drop from Low to Ultra (74 FPS difference), indicating that the GPU is well-utilized at this resolution, but the CPU's limitations are evident in the fact that even at Low settings, frame rates do not exceed 200 FPS, which a stronger CPU might achieve.

At 2560x1440, the averages are 156 FPS at Low, 121 FPS at Medium (with a minimum of 103 and maximum of 139), 91 FPS at High, and 87 FPS at Ultra. The difference between Low and Ultra at 1440p is 69 FPS, similar to 1080p, showing consistent scaling. The 1440p Medium result of 121 FPS is notable because it offers a good balance of visual quality and performance, with the minimum frame rate of 103 FPS ensuring smooth gameplay. At 3840x2160, the averages drop to 115 FPS at Low, 89 FPS at Medium (minimum 76, maximum 103), 67 FPS at High, and 64 FPS at Ultra. The 4K results show a much smaller difference between Low and Ultra (51 FPS), indicating that the GPU is the limiting factor here, as the CPU is less stressed at higher resolutions. The 4K Medium average of 89 FPS is particularly strong, offering a playable experience with good visual fidelity. The minimum frame rate of 76 FPS at 4K Medium is above the 60 FPS threshold, suggesting stable performance.

GPU Role — VRAM, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti is an Ada Lovelace architecture GPU with 12 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 192-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 504.2 GB/s. It has a base clock of 2310 MHz and a boost clock of 2610 MHz, with a memory clock of 1313 MHz (21 Gbps effective). The GPU features 7,680 shading units, 240 texture mapping units, and 80 ROPs, along with 60 RT cores and 240 tensor cores. These specifications make it a high-end card, as evidenced by its 84th percentile ranking among all GPUs and an average benchmark score of 44,795. In Microsoft Flight Simulator, the GPU's role is to render the detailed terrain, aircraft models, and weather effects, which are extremely demanding on both the fill rate and memory bandwidth.

The 12 GB VRAM is ample for this game, even at 4K Ultra, where the average FPS of 64 indicates that the GPU is working hard but not running out of memory. The FP32 performance of 40.09 TFLOPS and pixel rate of 208.8 GPixel/s are high, but the game's complex draw calls and shader complexity mean that the GPU's raw compute power is not the only factor. The 4K High average of 67 FPS and 4K Ultra average of 64 FPS show that the GPU is the limiting factor at this resolution, as the CPU is less burdened. The GPU's nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 Mobile (delta -0.8%), which is slightly faster, and the AMD Radeon Pro 5500 XT (delta -1.3%), which is slightly slower. This places the RTX 4070 Ti in a strong position, but its performance is clearly bottlenecked by the i3-12100F at lower resolutions. The 1080p Ultra average of 108 FPS is well below what the GPU could achieve with a more capable CPU, as the GPU's benchmark scores suggest it can handle much higher frame rates in less CPU-bound scenarios.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this CPU/GPU combo in Microsoft Flight Simulator?

A: The data shows that 1440p Medium provides the best balance, with an average FPS of 121 and a minimum of 103, avoiding the CPU bottleneck seen at 1080p and the GPU strain at 4K.

Q: How does the Intel Core i3-12100F compare to its nearest rivals in CPU benchmarks?

A: The i3-12100F has an average benchmark score of 13,494, which is 0.3% ahead of the Intel Core i5-9500 (13,452) and 1.1% ahead of the Intel Core i7-1250U (13,351). It is 0.7% behind the Intel Core 5 120UL (13,594).

Q: Does the combo maintain playable frame rates at 4K Ultra settings?

A: Yes, the 4K Ultra average is 64 FPS, which is above the 60 FPS threshold for playability, but it is the lowest average of all tested settings, indicating the GPU is near its limit.

Q: What is the GPU's performance percentile and how does it affect the combo ranking?

A: The RTX 4070 Ti ranks in the 84th percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 44,795. This high ranking contributes to the combo's 488th place out of 3,714, but the CPU's lower 68th percentile (avg score 13,494) holds back the overall result.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor at 1080p Low settings?

A: The 1080p Low average FPS is 182, which is high but not exceptional. The data suggests the CPU is the limiting factor here, as the i3's 4 cores and 8 threads cannot push frame rates higher, despite the GPU's capability.

Q: What are the minimum and maximum FPS at 1440p Medium settings?

A: At 1440p Medium, the minimum FPS is 103 and the maximum is 139, with an average of 121, indicating a smooth and stable experience without significant frame drops.