To experience Zwift at ultimate visual quality and performance, a Windows PC is required. This article is not intended to provide a comparison between the pros and cons of the various platforms, but rather to offer advice on running Zwift at its very best, which means at the highest levels of detail, resolution, and frame rate. Whilst there are many people who happily run Zwift on their mobile phone, tablet, Apple TV, or laptop, some may be considering ways to improve their experience.
There are many misconceptions addressed here – primarily that Zwift is all about the graphics card (not the whole story), that the CPU doesn’t matter (inaccurate), that you need an ‘expensive high-end gaming rig’ (incorrect) and that PCs inherently aren’t as stable as other platforms for running Zwift (codswallop). PCs do require some additional effort to set up versus other platforms, but I firmly believe the results are worth it.
The information here is based on having personally put together over 70 dedicated Zwift PCs for members of the community, and hundreds of hours of testing and discussion with fellow nerds enthusiasts. At this point, my own PC has been rebuilt and changed at least ten times…
Warning: a better-looking, smoother Zwift will not make you faster or stronger (unless it gets you on the bike more often). It’s just nicer. We’re all paying to stare at Zwift, so why wouldn’t we want it at its best? If you’re already content with a lower level of detail and/or a low frame rate, this article is not intended for you!
It’s important to note that almost all of what follows is NOT particularly good advice for PC gaming in general, because Zwift is different to most other modern games and there are diminishing returns beyond a certain point of investment. You don’t need the latest and most expensive parts. This guide is primarily aimed at those who want to use their PC solely or mainly for Zwift and want a great experience without wasting money unnecessarily. Despite recent graphics card supply and pricing issues, it’s still possible to do this for much less money than you may think.
Overview – Key components for Best Performance and Value in Zwift
Processor: Ideally use a CPU with strong raw (single thread) performance, to combat the frame rate swings when it’s busy. Zwift doesn’t take advantage of modern CPUs with many cores though, so don’t waste your money on an expensive, high-end model. Large performance improvements brought about by Intel’s 12th generation mean the choice is simple: if you want 60fps as often as possible then go for a new ‘Alder Lake’ i3 quad core CPU. I own the i3-12100F and it’s superb at keeping frame rates high in Zwift. If you don’t mind the frame rate dropping to around 30fps however, then just save the cash and build with a 4th gen ‘Haswell’ i3 dual core CPU from the i3-41X0 range, which represents by far the best value for money for Zwift. Notwithstanding incredible bargains, virtually every CPU in between ends up poor value because they’re either not as good as 12th gen, or too expensive compared to 4th gen.
- Performance/New: Intel Core i3-12100F
- Value/Used: Intel Core i3-41X0, or equivalent 4th gen Xeon if streaming/multitasking is your thing
- Ultimate: Overclocked Intel Core i5-12600KF
Graphics Card: For Ultra profile, look for a mid-range Nvidia graphics card of 900 series or newer with at least 2GB of VRAM. Remember that without a strong CPU as mentioned above then you’ll see the same bottlenecks no matter what graphics card you have, so don’t waste money on something really expensive if your CPU will just hold it back a lot of the time anyway. Don’t even bother with the 1080p in-game resolution setting, all the graphics cards listed here are capable of at least 1440p which looks better on a 1080p display.
- Ultra profile, 1440p resolution: Nvidia GeForce GTX 960, 1050 Ti or 1650
- Ultra profile, 2160p (4K) resolution: Nvidia GeForce GTX 980, 1060, 1650 SUPER or higher
- Ultimate: Nvidia GeForce GTX 1080 or higher, including any GeForce RTX graphics card
Display: To ensure the smoothest experience in all circumstances, an adaptive sync monitor (with compatible graphics card and DisplayPort) works best to iron out frame rate swings. A big TV is immersive, but you’ll almost certainly encounter stuttering at some point unless your CPU and graphics card are both strong enough to keep the frame rate consistently high.
- Smoothest: Freesync, G-Sync Compatible or G-Sync monitor
- Most immersive: Huge 1080p or 4K TV
- Ultimate: 120Hz 4K adaptive sync TV with HDMI 2.1 and RTX 3000 series graphics card
Memory: 8GB of DDR4 (or DDR3, depending on the CPU platform chosen) is plenty of system RAM for Zwift. More RAM won’t improve anything, in fact the game runs just as well in terms of frame rates on as little as 2GB, albeit with low-quality textures. You absolutely do not need 16GB+, as other modern games demand. RAM speed and latency doesn’t matter much to Zwift, so just grab the best value deal you can find.
Storage: A 120GB SSD is easily enough storage for a PC with Windows and Zwift. The game can take a while to apply updates and load worlds, so be sure your system is running on an SSD rather than a mechanical HDD. In normal usage, starting the PC, loading Zwift, and getting to the pairing screen should take less than 60secs – even on budget hardware.
OS: Windows 10 is the easiest operating system to recommend for the foreseeable future, ideally clean installed onto the SSD from scratch. Installing as little extra software as possible ensures maximum stability.
Zwift uses OpenGL, so AMD graphics cards should generally be avoided for a dedicated Zwift PC due to how poorly their Windows drivers perform in this regard. It’s not that they won’t work, it’s just hugely inefficient. If AMD is the only choice, stick to the RX 580 and above. You will also be able to use adaptive sync with a Freesync monitor.
The Basics
Graphics in Zwift are determined by just two variables; the profile and the game resolution. Beyond manually tweaking some aspects of the configuration files (there’s a brilliant guide here on Zwift Insider) only the resolution is determined by the user, via the in-game settings menu.
The PROFILE is the level of detail determining polygon count – foliage, depth of field, texture resolution, reflections, lighting and shadows, and environmental elements such as water effects and wildlife seen – and the profile is chosen automatically by the game. What you see is based on your computer’s graphical ability and cannot be changed. For computers using integrated graphics (without a dedicated/discrete graphics card), you will almost always see the Basic detail profile. This is the lowest tier of graphics in Zwift and is the same as phones, most tablets, and all Apple TV models.
These profiles increase through Medium and High, up to Ultra for mid-range graphics cards and above. Zwift HQ manually account for every graphics card and decide on a profile for it, hence the reason why some people with newly released graphics cards sometimes see less detail than they are expecting for a while. Almost all consumer graphics cards from 2015 onwards receive Ultra profile, so in this respect there’s literally no difference between a GTX 960 and an RTX 3090 costing many times as much. What’s actually on screen is exactly the same.
The RESOLUTION determines how sharp the game appears on screen, and is accessed via the in-game settings menu. It’s not affected by your physical output resolution, it’s the internal render resolution within the game itself. This ranges from 576p through to 2160p (4K). Rather unhelpfully, these options use the same naming scheme so it’s understandable why some people get confused between the two (for example when considering the capabilities of the Apple M1 devices, which have been assigned High profile, not Ultra). Selecting the higher resolution options and hoping to maintain 60fps+ in the most demanding areas will require a stronger graphics card, but it won’t change the graphics you see – that’s based on the profile which is automatically determined.
Higher resolutions are just increasingly sharper and cleaner in terms of jaggies. Note that you’re not limited to the physical resolution of your display – for example with a 1080p TV or monitor, the 1440p in-game setting is ideal because it looks better with negligible impact on performance – just be aware that going up to 2160p (4K) has significantly higher demands. This is most notable in areas of dense foliage such as the Watopia jungle, Titans Grove, New York, and the Yumezi section of Makuri Islands. Dust clouds when following a large group are particularly taxing, and can bring even high-end graphics cards to their knees.
To recap, profile and resolution in Zwift are two separate things. To see the Ultra PROFILE you will simply need any decent mid-range Nvidia graphics card from 2015 or newer in your PC. To be able to select the highest RESOLUTIONS in the game’s settings menu and maintain 60fps as often as possible, the demands on the graphics card increase, particularly in areas of dense foliage and when a lot of dust kicks up.
Which Graphics Card?
Choosing a graphics card is easier to determine than it may appear, given that the profile is automatically selected and all mid-range graphics cards and above get the highest amount of detail with Ultra profile. All you really need to consider – aside from your budget of course – is the resolution you want to use, and whether you want to use adaptive sync (more on that later). The resolution you choose from the in-game settings menu doesn’t change what you see on screen, in terms of features and visual effects. It just looks sharper, that’s literally it.
Assuming Ultra profile at 60fps is the target, then for the 1440p in-game resolution setting an Nvidia GeForce GTX 960, 1050 Ti or 1650 is fine. These graphics cards are from three different generations but are all good for 1440p which looks great on a 1080p TV or monitor.
For the 2160p (4K) in-game resolution setting you’ll want at least an Nvidia GeForce GTX 980, 1060, or 1650 SUPER. Again, these are all different generations and are broadly similar in terms of Zwift performance at 4K. Anything higher, including any GeForce RTX model, just provides more headroom. The higher up each range you go, the most likely it is that your frame rate will stay at 60fps in the most graphically demanding areas. For example, a GTX 1070 would stay at 60fps more often than a GTX 1060, and an RTX 2060 even more often. There are diminishing returns of course, so be sensible. Spending more and more on the graphics card doesn’t make sense if your CPU is going to hold it back regularly – say if big group events are your favourite thing to do on Zwift.
Don’t worry about VRAM capacity, there’s no benefit in Zwift to having more.
Bear in mind that the 900 and 1000 series cards (GTX 1050 Ti excluded) are out of production, so you’ll need to trawl the used market for one of those. Keep your eyes peeled and try to grab something to suit your needs at a reasonable price; there’s really no need to buy a brand new, current-generation RTX 3000 series card for Zwift unless money is no object or the price difference is negligible.
It does get a little more complex if you wish to use adaptive sync for the smoothest experience though. To get the best from an affordable Freesync or G-Sync Compatible monitor then you need a 1000 series or newer graphics card with DisplayPort. Using adaptive sync on older generations of Nvidia graphics cards such as the 900 series requires an expensive dedicated G-Sync monitor. If you want to utilise adaptive sync on a modern 4K TV with HDMI 2.1, then you’ll need an RTX 3000 series card.
Unfortunately, in the current climate it may well be a case of using whatever you can find for a reasonable price. It’s worth noting again that whilst AMD graphics cards offer really good value for regular gaming, they perform particularly poorly in Zwift. This is due to their Windows drivers for the specific programming interface it uses (OpenGL) being much less well optimized than those offered by Nvidia. If you only have AMD graphics cards to choose from, then an RX 580 and above should be okay and you will be able to utilise adaptive sync with a Freesync monitor. But stick to Nvidia for the best results.
The CPU Problem
Here’s where it gets a bit more complicated. In a solo ride, in a relatively quiet area of say Watopia or London, virtually any decent graphics card will be able to hold 60fps in Ultra profile without much bother at all. However in a big group ride, following a popular Pace Partner or around busy spawn points, you will find that the frame rate tanks and for most systems this means the experience starts to stutter. This is irrespective of the graphics profile assigned and resolution selected. The impact can vary in significance, from being barely noticeable right down to making Zwift an expensive slideshow. The unfortunate truth is that this behaviour happens to everyone and it’s not the graphics card which is struggling. It happens because Zwift is very limited in how effectively it utilises the CPU in a system. All the data being sent to and from the servers about the riders around you requires crunching before the graphics card can be told where to draw everyone, and this process doesn’t take advantage of modern CPUs with many cores and hyperthreading. It all relies on raw processing power – that is, how much work the CPU can do in the shortest time possible.
What helps to prevent the frame rate dropping in these circumstances is not a stronger graphics card as many believe, but a CPU that can process the position data more quickly. This is almost always an Intel CPU; whilst AMD’s Ryzen series of CPUs are often good value and provide a great upgrade path because all Zen generations released to date can normally be installed in the same motherboard, up until the most recent 5000 series CPUs, their single-thread performance has trailed behind the Intel equivalents. In addition, because Zwift doesn’t benefit in any way from high core and thread counts, there’s no benefit to buying more than a quad-core CPU.
This unique combination of requirements means the 12th generation ‘Alder Lake’ Intel Core i3-12100F is the standout option for anyone looking to build with new parts. It’s cheap and does the job brilliantly, preventing the frame rate from dropping below 60fps in all but the very biggest group events. Ryzen CPUs have been excellent for value over the last few years and a lot of what you’ll see online will recommend them for gaming PC builds, but for Zwift in particular, the 12th gen Intel CPUs truly change the landscape. The i3-12100F beats even flagship i7 and i9 CPUs from previous Intel generations (and the very best Ryzen models) when it comes to single-thread performance, making it the obvious choice if you’re looking to build or upgrade a PC for Zwift. As the platform gets more popular with more riders online at once, the benefit of a strong CPU increases irrespective of the graphics card you use, whereas even the best graphics card will always be held back in Zwift by a weaker CPU when it’s busy.
If you want to hold 60fps even more consistently, consider an i5-12600KF. This ideally requires an expensive enthusiast-tier motherboard and adequate cooling – adding to the cost – as well as the patience to find stable overclock settings. For most people there’s no need to go down this route over an i3-12100F for Zwift unless you’re happy to spend the extra effort and money. Higher tier 12th gen models exist but the returns diminish rapidly.
Note that both the i3-12100F and i5-12600KF need to be used with a dedicated graphics card (denoted by the ‘F’ suffix); they do not have integrated graphics which makes them cheaper to buy. If the 12th gen CPUs are too expensive, more budget-friendly options are detailed later in the guide.
To help demonstrate the impact of being CPU limited, and with excellent analysis courtesy of Zwiftalizer.com, here are two examples from popular Tour de Zwift group events. It can be clearly seen that as the number of riders nearby (and therefore data transferred, represented in yellow) increases, the frame rate in blue decreases.
In both examples the frame rate drops down from the desired 60fps as the pen populates and the event begins, before recovering back to 60fps once the field becomes suitably stretched. Despite the frame rate becoming lower than desired, the GPU utilisation during this period is much lower than expected, because it’s limited by the CPU. Only 100 of the nearest rider avatars are ever rendered on screen in Zwift, doubly confirming that the low frame rate is not caused by too much load on the GPU. Note that there are two differences between these PC configurations – in the second screenshot a substantially weaker graphics card is used and the resolution setting has been dropped from the very highest (4K) to the very lowest (576p). Despite these changes, the behaviour is exactly the same in both examples, because the CPU used for the tests is the same and so the limiting factor is unchanged.
The game needs to know and be able to visualise the live positions, speeds, and drafting physics of potentially thousands of other riders at the same time and lots of these calculations are done at the client end – on our systems. The graphics card’s GPU becomes severely under-utilised whilst this is going on because it’s waiting for instructions from the CPU, and so the frame rate drops. It may seem counterintuitive but it’s preferable for a GPU to be working at a high utilisation in games, that way you’re getting the maximum out of it. Utilisation being low means it’s being stopped from working its hardest by some other aspect of the system – a bottleneck. Or to put it the other way around, if GPU utilisation was at 100% (the graphics card trying its best) and the resultant frames rates were lower than desired then it would be clear that upgrading to a stronger graphics card would improve performance, but that’s often not the case in Zwift. Likewise, reducing the resolution setting does not help when the CPU is the limiting factor. So you shouldn’t spend too much money on a graphics card, because that’s not where the bottleneck is whenever there are lots of other riders nearby.
It’s worth noting here that since its launch and up until the time of writing, the whole of Makuri Islands and particularly Neokyo is inexplicably CPU limited at all times, even when there are no other riders around. This behaviour is different to every other world on Zwift. So if the frame rate is much lower than you are expecting on Neokyo, it’s almost certainly because your CPU isn’t strong enough, NOT your graphics card.
Mitigation with Adaptive Sync
There’s no sign that the fundamental behaviour of Zwift will change, so all we can do is mitigate it. The only ways to retain a smooth performance are to have a CPU and graphics card that are both strong enough to prevent the frame rate dropping too far, or to accept that the performance will always suffer in certain circumstances and use your display to address it with adaptive sync technology. For several years now, Freesync support has been available on Nvidia graphics cards for its 1000 series graphics cards and newer when using a DisplayPort cable (it won’t work over HDMI). Previously you needed to buy a high end dedicated G-Sync monitor but this is no longer the case with more recent graphics cards. Likewise, if you want to run Zwift on a big screen and always have the smoothest experience, HDMI 2.1 TVs are becoming more affordable and can usually utilise adaptive sync technology. This requires a current generation RTX 3000 series graphics card though.
On a typical TV or fixed refresh rate monitor, a drop in frame rate results in a mismatch which introduces stuttering. Adaptive sync smooths out frame rate drops at the other end of your system by ironing out the stuttering associated with mismatched frame rates and refresh rates. When adaptive sync is operating, a display automatically adjusts its refresh rate in real time to match your frame rate – smoothing out all the fluctuations.
This makes adaptive sync a great solution for a game ‘on rails’ like Zwift, where the frame rate can change by a large amount purely due to the circumstances of the ride. It removes the stutter, and there’s no tearing. Ideally you want a wide enough adaptive sync range to allow for every eventuality you will encounter, so check the specifications of any monitor you are considering using. On 144Hz gaming monitors you’re basically covered no matter what, because even below the adaptive sync range, Low Framerate Compensation (LFC) kicks in to avoid stuttering.
Whilst Freesync now works with Nvidia graphics cards in addition to those from AMD, unless a Freesync monitor is officially certified as ‘G-Sync Compatible’, then you won’t know if adaptive sync will work correctly with an Nvidia graphics card until you try it. So be sure to check online reviews, Reddit, etc to see how other people got on; you’ll normally find someone somewhere has tried the particular monitor model and reported back. Most of them work just fine even without certification, but it’s worth checking before spending your money. High-end dedicated G-Sync monitors will always work perfectly, even with older graphics card models such as the 900 series.
Summary
- The frame rate always drops when it’s busy, and how severe this is depends on the CPU, not the GPU.
- A 12th generation Intel i3 is good enough to maintain 60fps in all but the most extreme of circumstances.
- It’s not necessary to buy the latest and greatest graphics card, and there are diminishing returns.
- You DO NOT need to spend mega money on a gaming PC to get a great experience in Zwift, so don’t!
- Spend your money in the right places if you want to mitigate stuttering issues caused by frame rate drops.
- This is much easier with an adaptive sync monitor but is also increasingly possible with modern TVs.
Nvidia Driver Info
There are very few options in the Nvidia Control Panel which really help the experience, and the only important one is to enable triple buffering (it’s disabled by default). This setting allows the frame rate in Zwift to be truly variable, rather than dropping hard to 50% refresh rate – usually 30fps on a typical TV or monitor – and sometimes being stuck there. This hard drop behaviour is caused by Vsync, which Zwift uses as standard. Disabling Vsync introduces tearing though, so keep it enabled in tandem with triple buffering for the best results. It’s worth noting here that I have seen no evidence whatsoever that the Nvidia driver version used has any bearing on stability or performance when it comes to Zwift. So don’t worry about it.
System RAM and Storage
Zwift only requires 8GB of system RAM, and typically uses less than 2GB when you’re riding. In fact the only real reason to have as much as 8GB is because the game automatically serves up low-quality textures otherwise. If you’re streaming and/or heavily multitasking then 16GB may be more suitable, but it’s absolutely not necessary for Zwift alone, and adding more RAM doesn’t help performance. Likewise, RAM generation, speed, and latency doesn’t affect much in Zwift so just go for the best value deal you can find. You will need DDR4 for a modern platform, and potentially DDR3 for something older.
Nobody likes waiting for updates or the game to load, so be sure to install both Windows and Zwift on an SSD. These are extremely good value because they absolutely transform the general performance of any computer. If your system will only be used for Zwift, a 120GB SSD is plenty of space. With an SSD, Windows typically starts up in around 15 seconds, Zwift updates take a few minutes at most, and the game loads to the pairing screen in 30 seconds or less. If you’re usually waiting longer than this and don’t already have an SSD, I strongly recommend buying one to replace your HDD.
Whichever storage type you use, ideally you should clean install Windows 10 from scratch before downloading Zwift. All in this should take less than an hour, depending on your internet connection speed. The less software you can have on your Zwift PC, the more likely it is to be stable, and it makes troubleshooting easier.
Building on a Budget
If you’re not willing or able to stretch to a modern 12th generation i3 for Zwift, then the next best option is to drop down to 4th gen. That’s not to say that the CPU generations in between aren’t better, it’s just that the incremental steps up in performance are nowhere near enough to justify the extra cost versus just going straight up to 12th gen. Even flagship CPUs from previous generations aren’t as good at Zwift as the i3-12100F, despite often costing many times as much and normally requiring expensive motherboards and cooling solutions to get the most from them through overclocking. So if 12th gen is too expensive then you’re better off accepting the frame rates will drop when it’s busy and go for something older at the best price to performance ratio. If you’re using adaptive sync then the impact is far less obtrusive anyway.
With this in mind, by far and away the best value options are 4th gen ‘Haswell’ i3 CPUs such as the i3-4130/50/60/70. These are dual-core CPUs with hyperthreading, which is all Zwift needs to work well. If you’re streaming and/or heavily multitasking then a quad-core may be better, so look for a Haswell Xeon CPU which fit in the same motherboards without issue and are far cheaper than their equivalent consumer i5 and i7 counterparts whilst performing just as well. With any of these 4th gen CPUs, the frame rate will drop to around 30fps when there are a lot of other riders around. When you consider how cheap and readily available the 4th gen platform parts are, this is outstanding value for the money, and being prudent on the CPU may allow you to buy a better graphics card.
To save even more money, look for an ex-office desktop PC with the aforementioned i3-4130 (or similar) already installed and ready to go. There are loads of these systems available cheaply on the likes of eBay. Ideally get one without proprietary power connectors inside, which makes upgrading the power supply much easier if required. Good examples are the HP ProDesk 400 G1 MT, Dell Inspiron 3847, and Acer Veriton M2631G. Upgrade it in accordance with the rest of this guide – 8GB of system RAM, 120GB SSD, and clean install Windows 10 – then begin your search for a reasonably-priced graphics card… good luck!
The absolute minimum graphics card I would recommend for Zwift is a GT 1030 (GDDR5 version), which gets Medium profile and can often do 60fps at the 1080p resolution setting when not otherwise limited by the CPU. Whilst this is clearly inferior to the Ultra profile cards mentioned earlier, it still represents a much-enhanced experience over phones, most tablets, and Apple TV. Importantly, Medium profile gets rider shadows, which make a huge difference to the overall look and feel of the game.
I find repurposing cheap old PCs like this for Zwift particularly satisfying; PCs that may have been otherwise destined for landfill. Helping to reduce e-waste whilst getting fantastic results on this platform at low cost feels like a win for everyone.
Whatever you decide to go for, I hope this guide has helped in some way and you manage to put together a PC which makes your Zwift experience more enjoyable. Cheers, and Ride On!
Acknowledgments
Huge thanks to J.Levie, M.Hanney, S.Louvet, M.Wozniak, S.Norman, S.Clogg, C.Peerman, and many others on the ZPCMR Facebook group for their input and help when compiling this guide.
Appendix
- zwiftalizer.com – to check PC performance from your rides and troubleshoot device dropouts
- cpubenchmark.net/singleThread.html – to compare CPU single thread performance – higher is better
- browser.geekbench.com/processor-benchmarks – an alternative way of comparing CPUs
- techpowerup.com/gpu-specs/?mfgr=NVIDIA&sort=generation – to compare Nvidia graphics cards
- videocardbenchmark.net/high_end_gpus.html – an alternative way of comparing graphics cards
- amd.com/en/products/freesync-monitors – to find a monitor’s adaptive sync range and filter by size etc
- zwiftinsider.com/config-file-tweaks – if you want to mess about with the graphical details settings manually
- pcpartpicker.com – for putting together proposed PC builds, checking compatibility and comparing prices
Nice work, Eric!
My only add is that RAM is still relatively cheap…I would not recommend 8GB for a Win10 machine; even one that is purpose-built. Go for 16GB, and you’ll never go wrong…cost differential is nonexistent, and in some cases, the 8GB sticks will cost more.
2X8GB set of 16GB gaming RAM runs $55-80…stepping over $$ to save…well not to save!
Have an awesome race tonight!
Definitely true if buying modern/new DDR4 (hence the mention of buying the best value deal you can find), but not with used DDR3 where 4GB sticks are ridiculously cheap. The main point was only that 16GB isn’t required for Zwift, and doesn’t improve anything.
Yeah well done Eric……Eric Eric who the f*** is Eric…..oh Dave ‘Eric’ Higgins
This article was written by Dave Higgins.
My machine was built with Dave’s guidance and expertise and runs 8gb RAM with zero problems.
Yes, all credit to Dave Higgins for sure! I’m just the editor over here… 🙂
While I may not have the best or newest setup as listed here, my computer is still able to perform both live streaming of Zwift while at it simultaneously with a i7-6700, 32GB RAM and a GTX1070 Ti Mini (8GB). Compared to my ASUS mini PC of i5-6400, 8GB RAM and using Intel HD 530, it is a far cry difference between 1080P and current display at Ultra 4K.
For the best display experience, PC is definitely the way to go.
I’m looking forward to seeing how Intel’s new Arc graphics processors perform. I have an ultrabook (Dell XPS 13), and Zwift runs fine on it, but not spectacularly. I’m not interested in a dedicated gaming rig (or even Zwift rig), but if I can get a step up from integrated graphics on an ultrabook, that’ll be great.
I have read a couple of articles on the Arc and nary a mention of OpenGL. The Intel spec says it will support up to OpenGL 4.6 I do not think that means a whole lot.
Brilliant advice and in easy to understand language Ride on
I’m not a techie, but like to think that I have a reasonable grasp of technology. I am, however, completely lost with this article. I run Zwift on a 4-5 year old laptop with a 43″ tv for the display, The visuals look fine to me and I don’t experience any of the stuttering that you mention. My computer has a i3-1005G1 CPU but I have no idea how that compares to the value or performance CPUs that you mention. How about a simplified version of the article for non tech people to understand, I can’t believe that I am… Read more »
Good tip on the profile not changing with the in-game selection. I’ve had mine set to Ultra, but am going to try dropping it since I only use a 1080p monitor. I’ll also check if I have triple buffering enabled. I’ve been running an overclocked 1st gen i7-860 / 16GB DDR3 machine after a fresh Windows 10 install on an SSD. This ancient machine is from 2009, but since I dropped in a 1660 Super it runs Zwift great. My frames are typically 45-60 FPS, but will dip to around 20 in massive event starts and settle in normal than… Read more »
Whoops, sorry. I meant to create a new comment and not a reply.
The selection (i.e. “ultra”) you can make in-game is just resolution. The graphics profile “ultra” “basic” etc. is determined by Zwift and does not have an option in-game to switch. It’s confusing and poorly-implemented.
Correct, so I was meaning I could gain frames dropping to a lower resolution but keep the profile settings since they aren’t tied to Ultra. I may not gain much since the CPU is really being taxed by other rider data and not from supersampling. My GPU is overkill, but 1650 non-Super prices were only $20 less at the time.
Dropping the resolution won’t change anything, because as explained in the article the CPU is the bottleneck when it’s busy. 1440p is already the best resolution setting for a 1080p display and your GPU is easily strong enough (it’s fine for 4K60). You’d see a massive benefit from upgrading your i7 to an i3-12100F, and be at 60fps in almost all circumstances. Obviously you’d need a new mobo and RAM for that though.
Ya, a new CPU would help, but it’ll wait til I’ve built a new gaming PC and move my current desktop over into retirement as a Zwift rig. I had originally planned to get an i3 and board just for Zwift thinking the first gen i7 would do terrible. However, I was pleasantly surprised by its performance and kept using it.
$200 spent on the GPU ended up working out great and I haven’t had to suffer with the Apple 4K’s TV remote for 2 years now.
Hi Henry, Further information and support can be had on the facebook group Dave has set-up. I had zero knowledge on PC builds a few months ago but have successfully navigated these and now have a PC running ultra HD for under £180.
Regarding AMD, you could mention that _if_ you’re for some reason using macOS, the AMD Radeon RX 580 performs quite well. I’m on a MacBook with an eGPU using this card, and it runs very well with the Ultra profile and 1440p resolution. Also in big events with many riders and “challenging” terrain like the dust clouds of the jungle. The only issue I experience is when I forget to attach it (e.g. after bringing my laptop to somewhere else) and realise it in the middle of some important event or race… That’s definitely not fun, but luckily it doesn’t… Read more »
I think Eric once researched this for a xmas post but could anyone maybe link to a good and affordable ready-built pc on amazon for zwift?
Nice write-up! Any recommendations for pre-built systems (to save myself a bit of effort and hopefully not get fleeced as badly on a GPU)? I’d like to spend around $1000 on something that can run Zwift in Ultra 4k mode and driving sims like iRacing and Assetto Corsa.
iRacing also favors Nvidia, so anything with a $1K budget that includes an Nvidia card will absolutely do Zwift at 4K with ease. Are you targeting iRacing and AC at 4K on a single monitor?
I really don’t understand half the article above(!!) but I can’t speak highly enough of Dave and his knowledge. Gaming PCs retail in the multiple thousands; using the know how from Dave and the ZPCMR community (and if you can source the parts) you can make a dedicated zwift rig for less than a quarter, with better performance.
I’ve got PC as specced out by Dave and I couldn’t be happier, runs 60fps on huge screen, great graphics (had never seen the Bear falling from tree before this), loads new versions quickly and had zero problems.
Highly recommend.
Nice Dave!
Just sharing my experience. I used to run Zwift on a Apple TV 4k or my work laptop hooked up to a flat screen TV. I am not a PC builder or gamer, but with the step by step advice in the guides posted in the ZPCMR (Zwift PC Master Riders) group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/zpcmr which were written by the author of this article (Dave Higgens), I was able to purchase parts off of eBay and repurpose a gently used Dell Inspiron 3847 i3-4170 desktop PC with a new power supply, GTX 960 graphics card, and an SSD. Total cost: ~$210… Read more »
If you want to run Zwift on your PC but want to cast it to a smart TV by using the inbuilt windows functionality to extend to a wireless monitor, is that a good option or will it just stretch what it sees on your smaller PC monitor?
Very Helpful article. Thanks. I’m shopping for a PC for wider use as well as Zwift and this has been useful to inform me on what to expect.
Interesting point that Zwift doesn’t utilise CPUs effectively. Does anyone know if they have any plans to address that issue? Surely that impacts on the experience of many users.
It’s been the same for years (probably day one), so I’m doubtful it’ll change. I’m not sure they could change it even if they wanted to, without a rewrite of how the entire game works including the network infrastructure in the background. Don’t forget that on most basic devices this is never an issue – because the frame rate is low to begin with.
Great article ! I’m not that computer
savvy….can I get a few examples of some
laptop’s that are already built, to handle
zwift in high resolution?
thanks!
I’d liked to see this article before mounting my Ryzen + Sapphire radeon PC…
Great kudos for making the effort of doing it!!!
Thanks!
iPad Pro has tons of power but is limited by ZWIFT making it look like an iphone. That pathetic. they need to update this and dethrottle zwift in ipad. the new ipad pros outperform most PC’s from last year…
I just want to add to the praise being sent in Dave Higgins’ direction. He’s on a one-man mission to help people navigate the labyrinth of contradictory information out there about PC set-ups for Zwift.
Yes, this article is densely packed and requires some serious study, but it’s worth it. It helped me go from zero PC experience to building a superbly performing rig based on the i3-12100F CPU. Thank you, Dave – may the pedals turn lightly beneath your cleats.
Dave is also actively hostile toward anything AppleTV and ridicules people who go that route for convenience and cost. If he’d ditch the chip on his shoulder, I’d think more highly of him.
Correction: I’m actively hostile towards the many myths surrounding Zwift on Apple TV, which its fanboys typically perpetuate with fingers in their ears. This article is solely about Zwift on PC, yet here you are. Fortunately, given that you are trolling anonymously on the internet, by definition I place approximately zero value on how highly you think of me.
muppet
Just want to check I’ve understood: I think that one optimum setup from what you say is to suggestion is to buy a second hand (8Gb ram) i3-41×0 machine, replace the cpu with a Xeon Haswell (any?) and add in an nvidia 1060 graphics card. That should allow good budget performance and streaming. Have I understood the article correctly?
You may be fine streaming with the i3 tbh and I’d try it out first, but something like a Xeon E3-1230 v3 or E3-1240 v3 (there are tons of Xeon models that are 4c/8t and essentially the same as an i7) is a cheap upgrade, yes. On the majority of motherboards it’s a straightforward drop in replacement, especially on boards from Gigabyte, Asrock, MSI and ASUS. With the proprietary brands such as HP, Lenovo, Acer etc you may run into compatibility issues depending on the exact combination of CPU model and BIOS version, but I’ve had many successes. Don’t worry… Read more »
Thank you, makes much sense.
Have an Asus RoG Core i5-12600K, 16GB ram and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti. Zwift running at ultra (4k) resolution.
My average frame rate is always 60fps, like if it was fixed somewhere, while I see others benchmarks on zwiftalizer pretty much above it.
I’m I missing something…? I’ve enabled triple buffering after reading this article, but no changes.
Thank you.
Hi there. Short answer: your system has great specs, is working perfectly and you don’t need to (and shouldn’t) change anything. Long answer: I assume you’re using a TV to display the game. Aside from the newer generation of high end models, TVs typically have a fixed 60Hz refresh rate. The Nvidia driver is capping your frame rate at 60fps to match this refresh rate. This is the default behaviour and ensures the smoothest experience for a game like Zwift. You could disable vsync to obtain higher frame rates, but you can’t actually see them (since your TV will still… Read more »
Thank you Dave for your answer, makes all sense to me. Indeed, I forgot to mention I use a TV to display the game.
I want some thing portable like a laptop so I can take with me and also connect to my 4K TV when home. I have an old laptop asus Intel core i7-8550, 16gb ram, windows 10, nvida Gforce GTX 1050 3840×2160 60hz, 1TB SSD. It has worked great with Zwift but no 4K and is very old. I bought a replacement for my work ASUS x712EA windows 11, 11th generation i7-1165G7 2.80Ghz, Intel Iris Xe Graphics (my mistake), wifi6 but use thunderbolt network adapter for hardwire network connection, 1TB SSD. Works great for work. But Zwift during game free ride… Read more »
Unfortunately the 10th & 11th Gen Intel CPU integrated graphics really suck for Zwift. It’s the integrated Iris GPU that’s the issue. It’s well documented on the Zwift forums. I’m looking to move to an AMD Ryzen based laptop due to the issues I’ve had with my Intel i5 10th Gen CPU.
I’m not a tech-y person, but I really want to learn to build a PC and want to start with a Zwift use only machine. I’d like to run on a 4K 120Hz tv – can you tell me how much of a graphics card and processor I’ll need? I don’t mind spending enough, but don’t want to spend too much – isn’t that always the rub?
Thanks for this great article and the inspiration. I’m determined to add some skills, and appreciate you making this more accessible to noobs.
Hi there. It really depends whether you’re looking to drive Zwift at 4K120 constantly, or if the TV will be capable of adaptive sync/VRR over HDMI 2.1. If the former, you’ll need at least an overclocked i5-12600K, and a very high end GPU. It’ll be an expensive build. If the latter, then any 3000 series model will be fine because the TV will smooth out the frame rate changes if/when the system can’t hit 120fps. I’d probably recommend an RTX 3060 Ti if you can find one at anything like a reasonable cost. Pair it with an i3-12100F, which is… Read more »
Thanks so much for the reply. I’ll go the i3 and 3060ti route and try to keep my OCD in check. I do tend to let the perfect be the enemy of the good.
If you ever visit Houston, I owe you a beer.
Dave, just a follow up to thank you again; I completed your recommended build today (i3-12100F with a 3060Ti on adaptive sync HDMI 2.1). It’s simply stunning, and I wouldn’t have done it without your advice – thank you.
Great stuff! Remember to enable triple buffering in the Nvidia control panel. 😉
Great job.
Really dumb questions from a current Apple TV user. I have a kicker core and hr monitor connecting via Bluetooth, and use the companion app. Is it hard to set up Bluetooth on a pc? What about the apparent need to connect the companion app via the same Wi-Fi assuming the pc is connected via plug?
Hi there. Some people have issues using Bluetooth on Windows with Zwift, but many use it perfectly fine. I’d probably recommend an internal PCIe card with Intel chipset – these cost from £10-20 in the UK. Once installed they just work, there’s nothing to do. There’s also the option to use ANT+ (or both) of course, with a USB dongle for the same sort of cost. The Companion app functionality only relies on the devices being on the same network, you can have the PC hardwired and the app on wi-fi no problem; this is the setup I have.
Hij. Did you ever test linux as is. In very interested in the results. Great work. Thanks
Hi, sorry for the late reply. Linux isn’t a supported platform, though I know some people have got it going. Not something I’ve tried and I expect performance is poor because it’s a bodge.
I’ve switched from Windows 10 to Linux Debian, and find it’s much more stable.
See Zwiftalizer: https://zwiftalizer.com/public/77deb067-e55a-40bd-bc77-f722e4bc3bd2
Have written a how-to on the Zwift forums: https://forums.zwift.com/t/how-to-zwift-on-debian-linux/591025
Much more stable than what? Those results are what you’d get with a GT 1030.
Sorry if I missed this in the article or comments. However, I am wondering what is the best way to shorten delay between when I push harder on the pedals and when that registers on Zwift. My delay currently is about 2-3 seconds. I am currently using a wireless connection. Would improving my CPU, graphics card or going to an ethernet connection help this issue? Any suggestions would be great. Thanks
Hi, this issue isn’t typically related to the platform you’re using to run the game, no. With a PC you have the option to use any protocol (ANT+, Bluetooth or Wahoo Direct Connect) but the chances are it’s a problem with your trainer or the connection. Try one of the others if possible, and always use the FE-C options when using ANT+.
Thanks Dave,
I am using a Computrainer. Based on what you wrote, the legacy factor there may be keeping things slow.
Quick question, since I have to decided today.
I have the option to get a system with:
Intel Core i3 8100T Quad-core @John.10GHz
Geforce GTX 1060 6GT OCV1
SSD disc
I’m using a HD 1080 32″ monitor.
Would I get the best results, or is the CPU too weak (I know GPU is more important, but not sure if the energy efficient 8100T is strong enough.
Thnx in advance
8100T @ 3.10 Ghz that shoud be 🙂
Hi, that’s a fairly weak CPU so your frame rate will drop well below 60fps when it’s busy with other riders around you, but that’s normal without using modern parts anyway. What I would say though is that the GTX 1060 is typically good enough for 4K and therefore overkill for the 1080p display you’re planning to use. So don’t overpay for this system, because you’d be fine running the game in 1440p with a much cheaper GPU like a GTX 960. Hope this helps.
Thnx for your fast reply. Since I’m willing to buy a new 12th CPU I’m stuck to the 2nd hand market. Every week there will be a system that is more or less suitable.
A 1050 ti or 1060 GTX will be good enough. Would you than prefer a i3 8100T or would a i5 8400 be better?
*not willing
The i5-8400 is the much better of the two, but only because the i3-8100T is a low power model. Neither will keep you at 60fps when there are a lot of other people around anyway, but the i5 won’t drop as far.
Thnx again! Given your reply, and the fact that 2nd gaming rigs are offered quite frequently, I’ll wait for a 2nd hand i5 (8th gen or newer) with a 1050ti or 1060 GTX. Should be able to get one soonish for around 300-400 Euro.
That’s a high budget! 400eur (£350) is enough to build a 12th gen system with something like a GTX 970 or 980. A system like that will do 1440p60 almost permanently, irrespective of how busy it is.
I don’t see how that would add up. A i3 is 130, mobo maybe 50, gtx maybe 75, ram 50, power 50, ssd 50 and I would still need a case, a win10/11 licence and a wifi card (since there is no cat. cable to my paincave but there is stable wifi (and time/skill to get it working). But will give it a look.
8GB RAM, 120GB SSD and a Win10 license (not that you even require one) is more like 50eur total. That’s all you need for a Zwift only system.
I see, but I do need the other components that I listed…?
Proc: i3 is 130
Mobo maybe 50
Gtx maybe 75 (2nd hand) – or can I skipp this with i3 12th gen?
Power 50
And I would still need a case
Still don’t really see it turning out far below the amount I mentioned: € 300,00 to € 400,00.
You’ll need a GPU with either but my point was that you shouldn’t spend 400eur on a 2nd hand complete system with older CPU (as per your original comment) when you could spend 400eur building up something with a new 12th gen CPU. It’s roughly the same cost, but the latter will perform far better in Zwift.
I understand, but my original comment said € 300,00 to € 400,00. I still don’t think, that a system wil and i3 from the 12th gen + GPU is possible for € 300,00 Buying the CPU and Mobo new will be not less than € 200,00 The rest: ram + SSD 50, GPU 75 (think even more), case and power 100 That is € 425,00 and I’m not sure I would find a case + power for 100 and a GPU for € 75,00. Thanks again for your input. If I find a cheap case + power (maybe even with… Read more »
It depends on deals and the availability/pricing of parts where you are. Using eBay and Amazon I recently built a couple of i3-12100F/GTX 970 & 980 systems with brand new PSU, case and NVMe SSD which cost around £350 (400eur). The 12th gen CPUs are outstandingly good at Zwift. Anyway I hope this gives you some ideas.
So a question for anyone on this thread. I’m running Zwift on a laptop and Samsung 55″ TV that is 4k with HDMI 2.1 and FreeSync support. Lots of good deals starting up and was thinking about an upgrade to the laptop. Would a laptop with a 12th Gen i7 and RTX 3060 be overkill or would a 12th Gen i5 with RTX 3050 be sufficient? The goal is to run Zwift at it’s best on the 4k TV, but not be paying extra for no real improvement. Cost isn’t much of an issue. A huge thank you for any… Read more »
I’d strongly recommend not buying a laptop for Zwift (or any gaming to be honest) unless absolutely necessary – which isn’t the case if you’re just going to be plugging it into a TV. Build a desktop with the specs mentioned. You’ll save money, get better results and not be wasting features you don’t need.
Thanks Dave! Much appreciate your expertise
Thank you so very much for your gift of sharing your expertise. I am so sorry if this has already been asked and answered, but, here goes. Whenever I turn my discord video on while racing with my coalition team on zwift, it almost always crashes discord within about 10-30 seconds. I have a high-speed business connection in my home and ethernet cable for my Optiplex 7060 (a 2018 business microcomputer model). I am trying to understand what computer to buy next to help solve this problem….or what components should solve it??? Grateful!!!
Hi there, I don’t use Discord so I can’t comment on that program specifically but there’s nothing about your PC specs that should be of concern. If this PC is solely used for Zwift, I’d recommend reinstalling Windows 10 from scratch, which is free and easy (search Media Creation Tool – you just need a USB stick). You’d be surprised how many issues this can resolve, especially if you’ve had the PC from new and never done it before. If nothing else, it will let you determine if there’s a hardware issue to worry about. Hope this helps.
All this is pretty much in line with what I was thinking and my experiences. I would say though if anyone must go 4th Gen Intel, just go i7. I recently swapped an i5 4670K for an i7 4790K and the improvement was huge with pace partners at 1080p native. I no longer drop into the 30 frames per second range when groups pass by or when riding in one. I can’t imagine an i3 41XX would do well at all, though I do have one on hand to test just for giggles. I also don’t think I would bother… Read more »
Real quad cores do slightly better than dual cores with hyperthreading these days (this changed earlier in the year), but there’s no extra benefit from there upwards. Certainly not to justify an i7, given that it’s miles below 60fps either way. I’ve built and tested well over 100 systems now; the i3 is still perfectly capable even in big groups assuming threaded optimisation and triple buffering are enabled. Likewise VRAM capacity, it just doesn’t help anything in Zwift when it comes to frame rates. The 1060 6GB is stronger than the 3GB model because it has more compute units, it’s… Read more »
Right, I do remember the GTX 1060 3GB being slightly cut down compared to the 6GB version. I’m not sure about a 4th Gen i7 being miles below 60fps. I can certainly achieve 60fps in groups at native 1080p and mid 50s rendering at 1440 on a 1080p monitor.
The game resolution isn’t relevant when the pack around you gets big enough. That’s when the CPU bottleneck kicks in and a 4090 wouldn’t make any difference. Join a very busy group event or Pace Partner with tons of people packed together and even an i9-9900K isn’t fast enough to hold 60fps. An i3-12100F is. You’re getting better results with a 4790K because it boosts far higher than a 4670K so the bottleneck is reduced by comparison. If you don’t have triple buffering enabled, I would wager the i7 is holding a higher average because the i5 was dropping all… Read more »
Great discussion and all good points.
I do want to clarify that when I say i3, I’m specifically talking about a 4th Gen i3 41XX, not a DDR4/DDR5 based i3 12000F. I would take that in a heartbeat over the 4th Gen i7, but I wasn’t going to swap Motherboards and RAM when gains could be had with a core swap; I only use the rig for Zwift.
I’ve been building machines since 1999 and I have way too much PC stuff cluttering my home. Anyways, great article, great contribution.
Yeah I know, I was just making the the point that the i3-12100F smashes even 9th and 10th gen i9s in Zwift because of the rate at which it can crunch the position data. At 4th gen the i7 isn’t anywhere near fast enough to keep the frame rate above 60fps in a big group event (try one of the current Tour of Makuri events with hundreds of people in the pen) so my view is that you might as well just accept the frame rate will dip, save the money and buy an i3-4xxx. You get about 90% of… Read more »
LOL…Now you got me thinking I should sell off some of my old legacy stuff and build an i3-12100F based rig.
Some of the i3-12100F raw benchmarks are pretty impressive when I look at them again. Beating my i7 9600K in most benchmarks.
In single thread ratings on Passmark (most relevant benchmark element for CPU bound circumstances in Zwift) it easily beats an i9-10900K and is within 0.5% of an i9-11900K at stock clocks. 😉 For under a sixth of the price.
Thx Dave for super article!
My current setup: i7-4770 + GTX 1650 Super + 16GB DD3 + Dell U2717D 27 ” 2560x1440px, 60 Hz.
Do you think should I change of my old legacy stuff and build an i3-12100F and GTX 1650 Super based rig ? Will I feel a big increase in performance?
Hi there. It’s important to note that you’re already on Ultra profile so the actual graphics you see won’t change at all, and your 1650 Super won’t be able to do any more than it can at present – so you’ll still lose FPS in 4K in some areas. Where you’d benefit from moving to an i3-12100F is a massive improvement in CPU-bound scenarios, such as big group events or riding with a busy Pace Partner. Instead of the frame rate dropping down to 30-40fps lows in those circumstances, it will stay at 60fps. Whether that difference is worth the… Read more »
Sorry,
With this new small foot print computer
Will zwift run at its very best ? 4k ?
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1734421-REG/intel_rnuc13rngi90001_nuc_13_extreme_kit.html
Intel 2.2 GHz Intel Core i9 24-Core (13th Gen)
Thanks
No, despite being staggeringly expensive it does not have a dedicated graphics card so will get the lowest graphics profile.
oh jeez I’m overwhelmed. I appreciate the enthusiasm and I sense you want people to enjoy the best Zwift experience they can but reading this I just want to throw my hands up and buy an AppleTV
Can I just give a price range and someone send links to exactly what to buy, and a video with instructions on how to put it together? I actually already bought the Apple TV but was hoping to return it.
Really great info here. I’m afraid I’m just not up to the task of translating that into my own build. Can you recommend a specific mini-PC (current as of Dec 2022) that would fit the bill?
It depends what you mean by ‘mini-PC’. If you mean an affordable prebuilt tiny box that runs Zwift at highest detail, resolution and frame rate, I’m afraid there simply isn’t one. If such a thing existed, I wouldn’t have written this article. The Overview section explains the parts needed; what to choose depends on your budget and expectations.
if you are not a techie or want to spend the time to put everything together as you described, are there any ready-built options out there right now that you would recommend achieve a good mix of performance and value?
I currently run Zwift on an iPad Pro and cannot complain but having watched 2 videos with Zwift on a gaming PC I am drawn to the better graphics and smoother performance. TV for setup is a Sony LED 4K HDR. Any recommendations are appreciated. Thanks
There are plenty of new PCs that can run Zwift very well, but value isn’t great with any prebuilt system. This is particularly the case for Zwift because you’ll almost certainly be paying for things you don’t benefit from such as extra storage and RAM. Furthermore, the components tend to go up in tiers together, so finding a new system with the right combination of parts from a value to performance perspective is difficult. Ultimately though, just look for a PC consisting of the parts mentioned in the Overview section. The same principles apply whether you’re building for yourself or… Read more »
Any updates regarding newer low-budget graphics card solutions? AMD released a new openGL driver that should increase zwift performance a lot and the RX6400 and RX6500 and also the GTX 1630 are cheap and efficient cards and (except for the 6500) don’t need an external power cable. Do these get ultra profile in Zwift?
I’d like to buy new and these cards are cheaper than an old GTX 1650.
I’m doubtful that any of those cards (including the GTX 1630) get Ultra profile, due to them being relatively new. Zwift HQ won’t have added them to the list. The 1630 is weaker than even a 1050 non-Ti so I see no reason to go for that. Despite the improvements to OpenGL on newer Radeon drivers it’s still far easier to recommend Nvidia for Zwift. Buying any of these cards brand new is really poor value anyway, the prices are much too high considering none of them are strong enough to hold 60fps consistently in 4K. As such you’re better… Read more »
Hi! I hope this discussion is still active as I am in the need for help (not a computer guy). I just acquired a new work/Zwift set up in the form of a Lenovo IdeaCentre Gaming 5 12400F with GeForce GTX 1650 Super and a monitor from Samsung: Samsung Smart Monitor M7 43″ with 60Hz refresh rate. The latest does not come with a display port however and I fear that the lag in the image I am experiencing now is due to the use of a HDMI cable. Coming from a gaming set up with display port and 144Hz,… Read more »
Apparently, HDMI 2.0 should allow for 4K at 60Hz so the HDMI cable is not the limiting factor then. I thought I went through all the indications above and that more than 60Hz was not necessary but I must have gotten something wrong then.
I was hoping that a HDMI to display port adapter would do the trick but if I already get 60Hz through the HDMI, then it is pointless.
It would be nice though to get a confirmation on that before I try to return the monitor!
Still replying to myself in the hope that somebody qualified gets back with any tips…
I could notice this week end that I am getting rather constant 60FPS as long as I am not using a crowded Pace Partner ride. Something which I tend to do rather often…
So, when I have now a GTX 1650 Super with Intel Core I5 connected from the display port to the HDMI 2.0 of a 4K monitor with 60Hz, when on earth do I need to do to keep the experience smooth when riding in a group!?
With a 12400F you shouldn’t ever be CPU limited, so something else is wrong for the frame rate to dip specifically when you’re with a Pace Partner – unless you’re running the game in 4K and it’s when you’re also in a place where you are GPU limited instead (Watopia jungle, parts of Yumezi etc). Check the CPU cooler is properly mounted, in case it’s overheating and throttling. Unfortunately there are far too many things it could be, to try and diagnose it blind on here.
Thanks a lot for your reply. I did some more testing with Pace Partner. Activating triple buffering does help to keep the average frame rate higher. But, after spending 1,5 hours with 2 different Pace Partners (100 and 200+ riders) on Tick Tock and Volcano Flat (Are these GPU limited?), it was very clear that the FPS would systematically drop on the dusty roads. Sometimes even right below 30. Changing the in game resolution to Ultra, I could see that the FPS never really dropped under 50 but I did get this set up based on “Ultra profile, 2160p (4K)… Read more »
Dusty roads in 4K following a big pack of riders cause even the highest end graphics cards to struggle. I have an RTX 3060 Ti and it can drop right down towards 30fps when it’s dusty – GPU limited, which is absolutely ridiculous. There are only so many things you can do, ultimately the game is poorly optimised and very inconsistent. The recommendations in this article are about getting best value whilst maintaining good performance. Your display cable has zero impact on this.
Thank you again for the reply. Would you say that I am already experiencing the game at its best then? Or would I see any valuable improvements with a 144Hz monitor despite being without HDMI 2.1 and without G-Sync? My understanding is that the HDMI 2.0 of the computer will be the limiting factor (with 4k at 60Hz max)
I’m not really sure what you’re asking, sorry. With a 12400F you should never be CPU bound, so any drops below 60fps are when your GPU is maxed out and cannot give any more. This will always happen in big dust clouds and in some areas of very dense foliage, as mentioned in the article. If you’re wanting to use the 4K resolution setting then you would need a far stronger GPU than a 1650 Super to completely avoid it, at all times. With an adaptive sync monitor you can smooth out any drops in frame rate, for that you… Read more »
Big thanks for the article!
Just wanted to add that I am running a GTX 1050Ti and made the change to the “Enable Triple Buffering” in the Nvidia control panel. In a quick test in a busy area of Watopia ,y frame rates (using Zwiftalizer.com) were:
Triple Buffering Off: 34 – 54 -75
Triple Buffering On: 63 – 70 -75
I recently built a Zwift-dedicated PC per this article with a 12100F and a RTX 2020 OC and 16GB 3200 ram. The FPS in graphics test apps blows away my main PC with an older RX 570, however I’m only seeing 30FPS consistently in Zwift regardless of solo or groups rides and in a variety of courses: Tempus Fugit, Jungle, Markuri, etc. on ulta. However, the image and details look great with no stuttering or jerkiness as I usually see in things running at 30FPS (like Heaven Benchmark or Novabench). But shouldn’t I be seeing 60FPS or better? I am… Read more »
You should be at 60fps almost constantly with that setup, and never CPU limited. A few things to check:
1. The refresh rate is set to 60Hz in the Nvidia control panel.
2. You’re using an Premium High Speed HDMI cable. These aren’t expensive.
3. You’re using a suitable HDMI port on the TV – many cheaper TVs only have one or two ports capable of higher bandwidth.
You may also need to check for PC or Game modes on the TV that may be enabled to allow for 60fps.
Don’t forget to check your VSync options. Don’t have any nVidia with me right now but remember that there’s other options beside from Vertical Sync On and Off. There’s an option that will limit your framerate to half of the display refresh rate.
Now I’m on the machine with nVidia and the Vertical sync in nVidia Control Panel has the following explanation; Off – Allows a GPU to render unconstrained by refresh rate and will scan out from multiple rendered frames in a single refresh interval. Causes screen artifacts like tearing, but has very low latency and high performance. On – Limits the GPU render rate to the maximum refresh rate of your display and avoids tearing. However can have longer latency and lower performance due to render rate limits. Also can stutter if GPU render rate falls below the refresh rate. Fast… Read more »
Write this on 14 December 2022
There’s good news for AMD users. The recent Radeon Adrenaline driver 22.11.2 has obvious boost the OpenGL performance.
Just update mine Ryzen5 3400GE APU with Vega11 iGPU and found around 18% performance increasing. AVG framerate from 44fps (Adrenaline 22.3.1) increase to 52fps (Adrenaline 22.11.2). 👍
🤪🤪🤪 Forgot to mention someting and can’t find how to edit my post.
The Vega11 is running with Basic profile by default. But I did the Ultra Override (https://zwiftinsider.com/config-file-tweaks/) and have the above mentioned FPS.
Yeah the article needs an update regarding the AMD driver improvements in OpenGL performance, I just haven’t got around to it yet. It’s still much easier to recommend Nvidia though. PS: you’re still on Basic profile, it can’t be overridden with the config file. Some elements can be turned on/off and enhanced, but it’s not the same thing.
Not the same thing? Then the profile manipulation from this article https://zwiftinsider.com/config-file-tweaks/ has no point at all?
See the third bullet point on that page. It’s not pointless, but you cannot override the profile using those tweaks.
Cannot be overridden as stated in the third bullet point but the same article call one tweak a “Ultra override for medium to high-end Radeon and Nvidia cards that don’t get Ultra by default.“
Then, whatever it is, I’m fine with the results and performance increasing of the current AMD Radeon driver (22.11.2)
I wrote that back in 2016 and I was wrong. Generated scenery density like foliage can be increased (don’t do this, it will will crash France), headlights turned on, but that’s about all, and that’s not the same as Ultra.
Dave, i was wondering if you would be open to building me a Zwift specific computer? I am having issues with my current set-up and would love to find something new.
Hi Alex, I’d be able to help out but I’m in the UK.
Ah bummer – I am in Colorado. Do you know anyone near me who might be able to help out?
I do have a friend in the US who has some systems available if you’d like me to ask him to make contact. Your email address is visible to me as this article’s author, so let me know. I won’t do anything without your permission.
Hi Dave, thanks for the great article. So far I’m using a 9 year old i5-3350-12MB-AMD Radeon 8570-2GB. I have found the graphics to be rather basic. Probably I have the basic profile. Now I have treated myself to an update. I followed your recommendation and ordered a PC with i3-12100F and RTX 3060TI. I currently have a 5-year-old ASUS PB277 monitor (27”, WQHD, no sync, 75 Hz), but I want to go 4K with the new PC. I use the PC/monitor in the home office and for Zwift, but not for gaming. I am now wondering whether a 32” 144 Hz… Read more »
Hi there. I’d suggest you just stick Zwift on the 4K game resolution setting with your existing monitor. It’ll look lovely and sharp and your system will be able to hold 75fps no bother – aside from when it’s busy on Makuri Islands at present, because it’s running unexpectedly poorly.
Currently running on an Apple TV. Anyone recommend a small format PC. Something like this:
https://a.co/d/gRccusi
Can someone please make a TLDR version of this article for non-tech riders? I’m sure there are many who would appreciated it.
There already is one.
How do you know which detail profile is running? I want to make sure I am indeed getting the Ultra profile with my GTX 1050 Ti
Upload a log file to Zwiftalizer.com, it’s a great tool that provides all sorts of analysis on any session including the profile and resolution used, frame rate performance and device/internet connection reliability.
Can anyone tell me if … these mini Pc’s like the Beelink Mini PC with 12th Gen Alder Intel 12th Gen Alder Lake- N95(up to 3.4GHz), 8GB DDR4 RAM 256GB PCIe 1X SSD, Mini S12 Desktop Computer Support 4K Dual Display/USB3.2/WiFi 5/BT4.2/Gigabit Ethernet for Home/Office… Seen on Amazon …I see it does not have a dedicated graphics card ..but it seems to check all the boxes in every other way ….Would this be a good system
for Zwift? If I add a keyboard,. screen , and mouse ??? Please advise
No, it would not be a good system for Zwift in the context of this article. The graphics profile would be Basic (the lowest) with no upgrade path, and Zwift has a longstanding issue with the game crashing when running on 10th/11th/12th generation integrated graphics. This crashing issue is the source of many complaints around the various Zwift communities online, and there’s no sign of it being resolved.
Thank you very much for the S(Z)wift reply !.So I need to Stay away from integrated graphics and look for a dedicated graphics card with requirements/models you outlined ..? is this what I need to check all the boxes ?
Essentially yes. See the overview for what you should look for depending on your expectations and budget. Availability of suitable parts varies based on where you are in the world, but typically for the price of that Beelink mini PC you could put together a system with older/used parts that runs Zwift in Ultra profile and 60fps most of the time. It’s incomparable as an experience. It just won’t be as small, physically.
I’m doing a 2 fold attack on this. My old computer was a dedicated slave but as a i7 3770 only running Intel onboard 4000 graphics and being quite old in a SFF box with a painfully slow boot-up time (like 15 mins some days), I’ve decided to go for an old Veriton running the 4130 i3 and slap a cheap ssd and graphics card in as a stopgap measure (it can be retired as a spare later)…all up it’ll be VERY cheap (base comp was bought for less than I’d spend on a few Hazy IPAs 😉 ) This… Read more »
and I’ve found an older viera TV that is big enough and seems to run up to 200Hz???….it woun’t have that Sync thing (I suspect….it an older semi-quality screen
LED TV VIERA TH-60A430Z…$100 will buy this and I could give the 55inch to my step son for his room…he’ll like that….or flog it off to offset the cost
TV VIERA TH-60A430ZPicture QualityDisplayPanelIPS LED (Super Bright Panel)Aspect Ratio16:9Panel Drive200 Hz BLBPicture ModeDynamic/Normal/Cinema/True Cinema/CustomViewing Angle178 degree.
Waste of time????or get it to work in refresh rate with a decent GPU card?
Not sure where you’re seeing that i3+H610+16GB+SSD deal for ~$200 but if legit it’s superb value and I would snap it up. With the exception of very busy, tightly-packed group events on Makuri, the 12100F is easily fast enough to hold 60fps+ in all circumstances in Zwift. For the graphics card, don’t bother with a GTX 1050 if you’re buying a 12100F but for running the game in 1440p (looks great on a 1080p FHD TV) then a GTX 970, 1060 or 1650 Super is all you need. Pair any of those with the 12100F and 1440p resolution, and you… Read more »
Yep, that helps HEAPS thanks, Dave.I just picked up a GTX 980 for $120NZD (which I assume is about $60USD*…haven’t looked at the exchange rate for a while!)…so I think I’m on my way to happiness graphically speaking. It’s a bit of a shame that the motor on the other end of the NEO is in such sad shape 😉
Wow…I just went and looked up the NZD to USD rate….the Kiwi $ is doing ok atm, so it’s actually $275USD at today’s exchange rate, for that
Intel i3 12100F + MSI PRO H610M-G DDR4 MB + Team 16GB Ram + Team 512GB NVME M.2 SSD
$569.00 incl GST $449.00 incl GST
Save: $120.00 incl GST off
…Thanks for the help re the old TV. I looked up what you meant. That makes sense to me. A BOOOOOO-moment is that all our TVs here are only 50Hz as opposed to 60Hz…something to do with the power supply in NZ, apparently.
(*turns out to be $75USD)
That bundle (converted to GBP) is about the normal price then, so not bad but not special. That said, I know prices in other parts of the world than US/UK can be very different. The TV will still be capable of 60Hz by the way, 50Hz is just a compatibility mode for PAL TV broadcasts.
PS: the GTX 980 is a great choice. It gets Ultra profile and is capable of 4K60 in most places, or constant 1440p60 even in the most graphically demanding spots. Paired with a 12100F, just set the game on 1440p and enjoy 60fps at all times. Zwift in 4K is typically overrated because despite being far harder to run than 1440p it just looks a bit sharper, that’s literally it. The level of detail, features and polygon count is still Ultra and therefore exactly the same.
Thanks, Dave. My revised plan is to continue using my 1080 55inch TV (nothing flash at all) and run the 1440 option. It’ll be waaaaaay better and much more enjoyable than the 1+ hours it took to update Windows and Zwift today.
🙂
This was a great article. I bought a new Dell Laptop running Windows 11 with a NAVIDIA geForce RTX 3050 4GB Graphics card. I turned on triple buffering as was suggested but it keeps crashing out of ZWIFT. I have an older Dell laptop that is very good and this never happens. I tried to get something very good so this is a little frustrating. Any help would be appreciated.
That isn’t normal behaviour, and isn’t related to your driver settings. You’ll need to contact Zwift Support.
Thanks for the advice, folks….built a good one (the 12Gen i3 GTX 980)….got it running today. Uber-fast boot, update and so much extra detail and smoothness. I’m stoked 🙂
Good stuff. As mentioned before, the 980 is strong for Zwift but don’t be tempted by the in-game 4K resolution setting. With those specs you can set it to 1440p (it’s still Ultra profile/detail either way) and you should be at 60fps everywhere on the game at all times. On a new install the game resolution setting defaults to 1080p, so ensure you up it to 1440p. Enable triple buffering in the Nvidia control panel and you’re done. Enjoy.
Any updates for this article? I’m looking at potentially a new Surface Pro 9 but I’m concerned with its graphic card.
The Surface Pro 9 doesn’t have a dedicated graphics card, it has integrated graphics and as a result will run Zwift in Basic profile. I’d strongly recommend not using one to run a 3D video game.
Thanks, Dave
Great information, thank you. Im currently looking at a new pc and have no idea whats about….mainly due to being an old goat!! This article really helps though.
After a big Open GL update on it’s drivers last year AMD is also a good choice for graphic cards nowdays! Zwift does have to catch up with releasing ultraprofile for some cards. But most AMD cards from 5000/6000/7000 series will run 1440P at ultra nicely!
Yeah the OpenGL performance concerns don’t really apply these days, but as you mention Zwift HQ don’t always keep on top of assigning the correct profile for new models (any of those Radeon cards you’ve listed will be fine for 4K), whereas every RTX GPU gets Ultra profile by default. Furthermore there are regular reports of issues in the game with AMD GPUs that simply don’t occur on Nvidia. As a result it’s still much easier to recommend Nvidia for Zwift.