My games are performing badly, but the GPU usually stays around 20–30% usage instead of working harder. I'm using a GTX 1650 with a 9th-generation Intel i5, playing titles such as Helldivers 2, MechWarrior Online, Armored Core 6, Palworld, and ARC Raiders at 1920×1080. Overall CPU usage is usually around 30–40%. What could be causing the low GPU utilization and poor performance?
3 Answers
Overall CPU usage can be misleading because one CPU core may be maxed out while the total average remains around 30–40%. Check per-core CPU usage, clock speeds, temperatures, and the game's FPS. If one core is at or near 100%, the processor or game engine may be limiting the GTX 1650. Also make sure there isn’t an FPS cap, V-Sync limit, or background process restricting performance.
At 1080p, some of these games may be limited by the CPU, game engine, or a frame-rate limiter rather than the GPU. Monitor GPU usage, individual CPU cores, GPU and CPU clocks, temperatures, RAM usage, and FPS at the same time. If lowering the graphics settings does not increase FPS, that strongly points to a CPU or software limitation instead of a GPU problem.
Check the basic configuration first: confirm the monitor cable is connected to the graphics card, verify that the games are using the GTX 1650 rather than integrated graphics, and select a high-performance power profile in Windows and the NVIDIA Control Panel. Updating or clean-installing the graphics driver can also help.
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