Microsoft Flight Simulator

The Intel Core i7-13700K and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER combination delivers a broad performance envelope in Microsoft Flight Simulator, a flight simulation title released on 2020-08-17. The measured data shows this pairing is capable of high frame rates at 1080p and solid playability at 4K, with the CPU and GPU each playing distinct roles depending on resolution and settings. This analysis breaks down the measured FPS results, component contributions, and how this combo stacks against other tested configurations.

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

The Intel Core i7-13700K is a 16-core, 24-thread processor from the Core 13th Gen series, built on the Raptor Lake architecture and manufactured on Intel’s 10 nm process node. It features a base clock of 3.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz, with a 125 W TDP. The chip includes 80 KB of L1 cache per core, 2 MB of L2 cache per core, and 30 MB of shared L3 cache, along with support for both DDR4 and DDR5 memory over a dual-channel bus. Its integrated UHD Graphics 770 is present, but the measured gaming results rely on the discrete GPU.

In synthetic benchmarks, the 13700K scores 1136 in 3dmark_single_thread and 12412 in 3dmark_max_threads, with a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 30745 and a single-core score of 2116. These figures place the CPU in the 89th percentile against all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 46881. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen 9 5900 (avg score 46971, delta -0.2%), the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX PRO 375 (avg score 47022, delta -0.3%), the AMD Ryzen 9 7845HX (avg score 46654, delta 0.5%), and the Intel Xeon w3-2535 (avg score 46653, delta 0.5%). The 13700K is effectively within 0.5% of these competitors in aggregate CPU performance.

For Microsoft Flight Simulator, the CPU’s role is most evident at lower resolutions where the GPU is less strained. At 1080p Low settings, the combo hits 194 FPS average, which is the highest measured FPS across all configurations. This suggests that the 13700K’s single-thread and multi-thread performance — reflected in its 3dmark_single_thread score of 1136 and passmark_single_thread score of 4333 — is sufficient to feed the GPU without bottlenecking. The game is known for heavy physics and world-simulation workloads, and the 16-core, 24-thread design with a 5.40 GHz boost clock provides the headroom needed to maintain high frame rates even when many objects are on screen. At 4K Ultra, the average FPS drops to 64, but this is more attributable to GPU load than CPU limits, as the CPU’s performance does not degrade proportionally with resolution.

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

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER is based on the Ada Lovelace architecture with the AD103 chip, manufactured on TSMC’s 5 nm process. It has 8448 shading units, 264 TMUs, and 96 ROPs, along with 66 ray tracing cores and 264 tensor cores. The GPU operates at a base clock of 2340 MHz and a boost clock of 2610 MHz, with memory clocked at 1313 MHz (21 Gbps effective). It features 16 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 256-bit bus, providing 672.3 GB/s of bandwidth. The card’s FP32 performance is 44.10 TFLOPS, and it supports DirectX 12 Ultimate, OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4.

In GPU benchmarks, the RTX 4070 Ti SUPER scores 5569 in 3dmark_steel_nomad_dx12, 199267 in Geekbench OpenCL, and 31811 in Passmark G3D. It sits in the 76th percentile against all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 31087. Its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA Quadro M5000 (avg 31206, delta -0.4%), NVIDIA GRID M60-1Q (avg 31220, delta -0.4%), NVIDIA RTX PRO 4500 Blackwell (avg 31532, delta -1.4%), and NVIDIA TITAN RTX (avg 31676, delta -1.9%). The 4070 Ti SUPER trails these by 0.4% to 1.9%, indicating near-parity in aggregate GPU performance.

In Microsoft Flight Simulator, the GPU’s role becomes dominant at higher resolutions and settings. At 4K Ultra, the combo averages 64 FPS, while at 4K High it reaches 68 FPS — a modest difference of 4 FPS, suggesting that the Ultra preset adds graphical features that strain the GPU more than the CPU. The 16 GB VRAM is ample for the game’s texture-heavy environments, and the 672.3 GB/s bandwidth supports high-resolution asset streaming. At 1080p Low, the GPU is underutilized, allowing the CPU to push frame rates to 194 FPS, but as resolution increases to 1440p and 4K, the GPU’s pixel throughput and memory bandwidth become the limiting factors. The 4070 Ti SUPER’s boost clock of 2610 MHz helps maintain consistent performance, as seen in the 4K Medium results (90 FPS average, 77 FPS minimum, 104 FPS maximum), which show a narrower range than the 1080p Medium results (151 FPS average, 129 FPS minimum, 174 FPS maximum).

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

The measured data shows a clear FPS progression across resolutions. At 1080p Low, the average FPS is 194; at 1440p Low, it drops to 157; and at 4K Low, it falls to 116. This represents a 40% decrease from 1080p to 1440p and a further 26% decrease from 1440p to 4K. For High settings, the drop is from 114 FPS at 1080p to 92 FPS at 1440p (a 19% reduction) and then to 68 FPS at 4K (a 26% reduction from 1440p). Medium settings show a similar pattern: 151 FPS at 1080p, 122 FPS at 1440p, and 90 FPS at 4K. Ultra settings begin at 108 FPS at 1080p, decrease to 87 FPS at 1440p, and bottom out at 64 FPS at 4K.

The consistent FPS drops across all settings indicate that the GPU is the primary limiting component as resolution increases. For example, at 1080p Ultra, the combo delivers 108 FPS, which is well above the 60 FPS threshold, but at 4K Ultra, it drops to 64 FPS — a 41% reduction. This scaling is typical for a flight simulator where the GPU must render vast landscapes and complex geometry. The CPU’s performance, as measured by its benchmark scores, does not change with resolution, so the FPS decline is attributable to the GPU’s ability to fill pixels. The fact that 4K Low (116 FPS) is higher than 1080p Ultra (108 FPS) further confirms that the GPU, not the CPU, is the bottleneck at higher resolutions. The 4070 Ti SUPER’s 16 GB VRAM and 672.3 GB/s bandwidth are sufficient to handle 4K textures, but the sheer pixel count demands more compute, leading to the observed FPS reductions.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

In the benchmark database, this specific combination of the Intel Core i7-13700K and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER ranks 395 out of 3714 tested combos for Microsoft Flight Simulator. This places it in the top 10.6% of all configurations, indicating strong overall performance. The rank reflects the combined capabilities of the CPU and GPU, with the 13700K’s high single-thread score (1136 in 3dmark_single_thread) and the 4070 Ti SUPER’s solid rasterization performance (31811 in Passmark G3D) working together to deliver high frame rates.

When compared to the CPU’s nearest rivals, the 13700K’s aggregate benchmark score is within 0.5% of the AMD Ryzen 9 5900, AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX PRO 375, AMD Ryzen 9 7845HX, and Intel Xeon w3-2535. Similarly, the GPU’s nearest rivals (Quadro M5000, GRID M60-1Q, RTX PRO 4500 Blackwell, TITAN RTX) are within 0.4% to 1.9% of its average score. This suggests that the combo’s rank is not due to an outlier component but rather a balanced pairing. The rank of 395 out of 3714 means there are 394 combos that outperform it, likely featuring higher-end CPUs (e.g., more cores or higher clocks) or GPUs (e.g., RTX 4090-class cards), but the 13700K + 4070 Ti SUPER still delivers competitive frame rates, as evidenced by the measured FPS data.

Settings Recommendations — which preset gives the best experience per the measured rows

Based on the measured FPS rows, the best experience depends on the target resolution. At 1080p, the Low preset yields 194 FPS, which is far above the typical 60 FPS target, but the Medium preset (151 FPS) provides a better balance of visual quality and speed. The High preset (114 FPS) and Ultra preset (108 FPS) are also playable, with Ultra offering the highest visual fidelity while still maintaining above 100 FPS. For 1080p, the Ultra preset is recommended if visual quality is the priority, as the 108 FPS average leaves ample headroom for dips.

At 1440p, the Medium preset delivers 122 FPS (with a 104 FPS minimum and 140 FPS maximum), which is smooth and visually pleasing. The High preset (92 FPS) is also viable, while the Ultra preset (87 FPS) remains above 60 FPS but approaches the threshold. The Low preset (157 FPS) is unnecessary unless maximum frame rates are desired. For 1440p, the Medium preset offers the best compromise between frame rate and visual detail.

At 4K, the situation tightens. The Low preset averages 116 FPS, which is excellent for 4K, but the Medium preset (90 FPS, with a 77 FPS minimum) is the highest quality setting that maintains a comfortable margin above 60 FPS. The High preset (68 FPS) is playable but close to the edge, and the Ultra preset (64 FPS) dips to just above 60 FPS, which may result in noticeable stutters in complex scenes. For 4K, the Medium preset is the recommended choice, as it provides 90 FPS average with a 77 FPS minimum, ensuring smooth gameplay without sacrificing too much visual fidelity. The High and Ultra presets are acceptable for less demanding scenarios, but the Medium preset is the safest for consistent performance.

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

The measured FPS data covers three resolutions (1920x1080, 2560x1440, 3840x2160) and four settings (Low, Medium, High, Ultra). At 1920x1080, the Low preset averages 194 FPS, the Medium preset averages 151 FPS with a minimum of 129 FPS and a maximum of 174 FPS, the High preset averages 114 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages 108 FPS. These numbers show that even at the highest settings, the combo exceeds 100 FPS at 1080p, making it well-suited for high-refresh-rate monitors.

At 2560x1440, the Low preset averages 157 FPS, the Medium preset averages 122 FPS with a minimum of 104 FPS and a maximum of 140 FPS, the High preset averages 92 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages 87 FPS. The 1440p results show a tighter spread between settings, with a 70 FPS difference between Low and Ultra, compared to an 86 FPS difference at 1080p. This indicates that the GPU becomes more of a limiting factor at 1440p, as the pixel count increases.

At 3840x2160, the Low preset averages 116 FPS, the Medium preset averages 90 FPS with a minimum of 77 FPS and a maximum of 104 FPS, the High preset averages 68 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages 64 FPS. The 4K results show a 52 FPS difference between Low and Ultra, with the Ultra preset barely maintaining 60 FPS. The Medium preset’s minimum of 77 FPS is notable, as it suggests that even in demanding scenes, the frame rate stays well above the playability threshold. Overall, the data indicates that this combo is best suited for 1080p and 1440p gaming, with 4K playable at Medium or Low settings.