How To Work Out GPU Power Limit For A Laptop
Two laptops with the same graphics inside may not perform the same. Performance will vary based on the power limit of the GPU.
Unfortunately, in most cases the power limit is not specified on the spec sheet, so how can you find out? Let’s take a look at how you can easily check this with your own laptop, and what you can do to find out for a laptop you aren’t able to test.
For a laptop you have access to
What does software report?
After a recent Nvidia driver update, you can open the Nvidia control panel and select Help from the top bar, then system information. This will show you the “Maximum Graphics Power” value, in the below example this laptop is 130W.
The actual value can of course vary based on dynamic boost though, so I recommend actually testing and confirming.
Checking actual power limits yourself
The process I use to determine the power limit the GPU actually runs at is to simply run a GPU workload and monitor the results – like so:
- Download and run HWInfo
- Run a consistent GPU load such as a game with high settings, I use the Unigine Heaven benchmark.
- In HWInfo, scroll down to the GPU and check “GPU Power”, as highlighted below.
In this case, my RTX 2070 Super laptop GPU runs at 115W, which is considered Max-P or full performance.
You don’t need to run your test for long, the example above was a 30 minute stress test and the average in the far right column was 114W. This will dip and rise at times, however the average is close to the expected 115W limit of the machine.
Other software like GPU-Z will show the power levels the GPU is running at too, the principle is the same, run a GPU load and monitor.
Depending on the laptop, the limit may change when the CPU is also engaged. After this, try a CPU stress test like Aida64 at the same time and see how GPU power behaves.
For a laptop you do not have access to
If the power limits are not specified by the vendor, your best bet is to check reviews. Good reviewers will note the power limits they observe as this is a key factor affecting performance. Failing that, you could ask the question to the vendor directly through support channels or who ever is selling the machine.
In an ideal world, all vendors would specify the power limit for the GPU, but unfortunately this is not yet the case. There has been some change in this area recently, hopefully we start to see more companies doing it as Nvidia continues to segment their GPU lineup.
28 Comments
Kunal Das
What is the power limit of GTX 1660Ti Max Q?
Jarrod
Anything below 80W I assume, given that is the maximum for 1660 Ti. It can vary based on the limits set by the vendor, which is part of the problem – just saying it’s Max-Q isn’t very helpful in this regard.
Ultra DMX
Are max-q GPUs just tdp limited or have different specs that their Original counterparts? If they are tdp limited, Considering you have great cooling, can you remove the tdp limit?
Jarrod
Yes, only way you can remove the limit is by flashing custom VBIOS I think.
Abdul
Hey Jarrod, Just curious, of all the laptops you’ve reviewed so far, which one has the best speakers (excluding the macbook lineup).
Jarrod
I say if they’re amazing in the review, unfortunately can’t remember them all or even most of them, but recently XPS 17 and Zephyrus G14 were very good.
ABDUL
Hmm Okay, was hoping you’d say the GT76 Titan or the GT75 Titan.
JC
Hi Jarrod, I really want to know the power limit of the RTX 2060 inside the Acer Predator Helios 300 2020 version. I just can’t find any info about this. The new 115 watt rtx 2060 has a great performance boost compared to last year’s 80 watt variant. It might be a deal breaker to me as I want to buy that laptop. Thanks!
Jarrod
I haven’t tested it yet but others have reported 90W, but I have not been able to confirm this.
Naraku
hello jarrod i am having some confusion regarding power limit i have asus tuf a15 1650 model and when my gpu reaches 50 watts it shows power limit throttling and clocks remain same around 1700mhz so is it normal or there is something wrong with my laptop
Jarrod
The 1650 is listed as a 50 watt part at the high end on the Nvidia website, so that’s normal.
Ahm ed
What is the best laptop for video editing under 1200
Ahm ed
What is the best laptop for video editing under 1300 dollars
Michael
Is it fine to increase power limit for a laptop?
If not. Is it okay my laptop is reaching its power limit?
Jarrod
Sure, some laptops are locked and changing it will either do nothing, otherwise you’ll just see higher temperatures, as that’s the trade off of more power.
Avinash Tripathi
Hi Jarrod,
Hope you’re safe and sound.
I want to buy Asus zephyrus M15 laptop, is it value for money?
Can you please do a review of it?
Thank you
Jarrod
I haven’t had that one for testing yet so can’t say just now, hoping ASUS will be able to have it available in my country to lend me soon.
David C
Hello Jarrod
There has been a problem recently with the Lenovo legion 7i laptops, their hinges are breaking due to poor design and many users have faced this problem.. so can you please make a video on it and check it’s durability with the design. Much appreciated.
Jarrod
This is not something I can do. Not only do I not have a 7i anymore, I only get to borrow laptops for a couple of weeks so I am never able to comment on long term durability issues.
Abhimanyu
Hey, my dell 7577’s gpu always power limits while gaming. What can I do to run it at a consistent clockspeed? It’s a 1060 max-q.
Jarrod
Max-Q is meant to power limit by design, there’s nothing you can do to boost it unless you want to roll the dice on some random customized VBIOS.
Abhimanyu
So basically the clockspeed is always meant to throttle? Idk why but my laptop is not performing as it should. The temps are way under control. But still both the cpu and gpu power limit throttle. After uninstalling intel dynamic platform and thermal framework the cpu doesn’t power limit throttle. My Cpu & Gpu temps are between 68-78°C and 68-71°C during gaming.
Jarrod
Companies set power limits to avoid temperatures getting too hot, the trade off is it can leave performance on the table depending on the workload, sometimes you can boost the power limits with software if it’s not locked.
Abhimanyu
So there’s nothing I can do to have better performance? My gpu temps are way under control. It barely goes above 70°C. Since 7577 is marketed as a gaming machine I was hoping that it’ll perform better.
Jarrod
You could try a custom VBIOS with higher GPU power limit, but it’s risky if you don’t know what you’re doing.
Abhimanyu
I have no idea about that so I think I’ll pass and focus on building myself a proper rig next time. Thanks man
Vit
Hi Jarrod
For Nvidea based laptops – is it now possible to verify the GPU power limit via Nvidea control panel? Would you know how to go about doing this? Thank you
Jarrod
Nvidia has said that with newer laptops, however I have not seen it reported yet.