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What CPU do you need for Intel Arc A380

CPU picks for Intel Arc A380 based on the FPSHQ unified FPS model: how many frames the CPU costs in demanding games, where overpaying starts, and expected FPS in popular games.

Short answer

Core i3-3240 is enough for Intel Arc A380: the CPU costs about 7% of frames in demanding games (1080p). The balanced pick is Ryzen 3 1200 (2% loss). From Core i7-2600 on it is overkill — Intel Arc A380 won't deliver more FPS.

Key numbers
Intel Arc A380 FPS without a CPU limit (1080p, demanding games)35 FPS
“Unlocks” threshold — CPU gaming score1,600 / 10 000
Overkill threshold — CPU gaming score2,300 / 10 000
TDP Intel Arc A38075 W
PSU for Intel Arc A380 + Ryzen 3 1200from 400 W
data updated · Sources: methodology, bottleneck calculation, FPS model, PSU calculation

Three options: minimum, balanced, headroom

minimum Optimal
33FPS · 1080p
7%FPS loss
GPU utilisation: 93%
Price: —
balanced Overkill
35FPS · 1080p
2%FPS loss
GPU utilisation: 98%
Price: —
headroom Overkill
35FPS · 1080p
2%FPS loss
GPU utilisation: 98%
Price: —

CPU scale for Intel Arc A380

Axis — FPSHQ CPU gaming score (0–10,000). Red — the CPU costs 10% of frames or more, green — optimal, yellow — CPU headroom Intel Arc A380 can no longer use (1080p).

BottleneckOverkillCore i3-3240Ryzen 3 1200Ryzen 5 5600Core i5-12400FRyzen 7 7800X3D010,000

CPU ranking for Intel Arc A380

From “almost unlocks” to “overkill”: average FPS in demanding games (1080p, high) and the share of frames lost to the CPU.

CPU Year Socket FPS FPS loss Verdict Price
Xeon E5-2650 2012 LGA2011 30
15%
 Bottleneck —
Xeon E5-2620 v2 2013 LGA2011 30
14%
 Bottleneck —
Xeon E5-2640 v2 2013 LGA2011 31
12%
 Bottleneck —
Core i3-2100 2011 LGA1155 31
11%
 Bottleneck —
Xeon E5-2640 2012 LGA2011 31
11%
 Bottleneck —
Pentium G4400 2015 LGA1151 32
9%
 Optimal —
Core i3-3220 2012 LGA1155 32
8%
 Optimal —
FX-8320 2012 AM3+ 33
6%
 Optimal —
Xeon E5-2620 v3 2014 LGA2011-3 33
6%
 Optimal —
FX-8350 2012 AM3+ 34
5%
 Optimal —
Core i3-4160 2014 LGA1150 34
5%
 Optimal —
Xeon E5-1650 2012 LGA2011 34
4%
 Optimal —
Core i3-4170 2015 LGA1150 34
4%
 Optimal —
Pentium G4560 2017 LGA1151 34
4%
 Optimal —
Core i3-6100 2015 LGA1151 34
4%
 Optimal —
Xeon E5-2670 v2 2013 LGA2011 34
4%
 Optimal —
Xeon E5-1620 v2 2013 LGA2011 34
3%
 Optimal —
Xeon E5-2630 v4 2016 LGA2011-3 34
2%
 Optimal —
Xeon E5-2695 v2 2013 LGA2011 34
2%
 Optimal —
Core i3-7100 2017 LGA1151 34
2%
 Overkill —
Core i5-2500K 2011 LGA1155 34
2%
 Overkill —
Core i5-3330 2012 LGA1155 34
2%
 Overkill —
Xeon E5-2680 v2 2013 LGA2011 35
2%
 Overkill —
Core i5-4430 2013 LGA1150 35
2%
 Overkill —

FPS is the average across demanding games, high settings, 1080p; loss is the share of GPU frames taken away by the CPU (up to 144 FPS). No fresh store prices (last 30 days) in our database yet — prices are not shown.

Will a popular CPU unlock Intel Arc A380?

CPUs most often searched together with graphics cards (Yandex queries) — average FPS in demanding games with Intel Arc A380.

Ryzen 7 5700X35 FPSCore i5-12400F35 FPSRyzen 7 7800X3D35 FPSRyzen 5 560035 FPSRyzen 5 7500F35 FPSRyzen 5 5600X35 FPSRyzen 5 360035 FPSRyzen 5 550035 FPSRyzen 7 9800X3D35 FPSCore i5-14400F35 FPSCore i5-10400F35 FPSCore i3-12100F35 FPS
Intel Arc A380 + Ryzen 7 5700X Overkill Intel Arc A380 + Core i5-12400F Overkill Intel Arc A380 + Ryzen 7 7800X3D Overkill Intel Arc A380 + Ryzen 5 5600 Overkill Intel Arc A380 + Ryzen 5 7500F Overkill Intel Arc A380 + Ryzen 5 5600X Overkill Intel Arc A380 + Ryzen 5 3600 Overkill Intel Arc A380 + Ryzen 5 5500 Overkill Intel Arc A380 + Ryzen 7 9800X3D Overkill Intel Arc A380 + Core i5-14400F Overkill Intel Arc A380 + Core i5-10400F Overkill Intel Arc A380 + Core i3-12100F Overkill

Intel Arc A380 FPS with different CPUs in popular games

FPSHQ unified model forecast, high settings; ● — real measurement, “CPU” — CPU-bound.

GameCore i3-3240 · minimum
1080p		Ryzen 3 1200 · balanced
1080p		Core i7-2600 · headroom
1080p
Cyberpunk 2077252525
Counter-Strike 2112 CPU132 CPU133 CPU
Dota 2118 CPU149 CPU151 CPU
Minecraft89 CPU9999
Grand Theft Auto V53 CPU5959
League of Legends53 CPU62 CPU62 CPU
Elden Ring293030
Grand Theft Auto IV283030

Average FPS, High preset. ● — real measurement (0 of 24 cells), the rest is the unified FPSHQ model; "CPU" — CPU-limited. How FPS is calculated

How resolution shifts the load: Intel Arc A380 + Ryzen 3 1200

The higher the resolution, the more work for the GPU and the smaller the CPU’s impact (average FPS in demanding games).

35FPS
1080p
CPU loss: 2%
24FPS
1440p
CPU loss: 1%
12FPS
4K
CPU loss: 0%

Popular CPU upgrades

⬆
Core i5-12400F → Ryzen 7 7800X3D
⬆
Ryzen 5 5600 → Core i7-14700K
⬆
Ryzen 7 5700X → Ryzen 7 7700X
⬆
Core i5-12400F → Core i5-13400F
⬆
Core i3-12100F → Core i5-12400F
⬆
Ryzen 7 7800X3D → Ryzen 7 9800X3D
⇢
All CPU upgrades

Key figures

Unique FPSHQ metrics from this page's data

35 FPS
Intel Arc A380 FPS without a CPU limit (1080p, demanding games)
1,600 / 10 000
“Unlocks” threshold — CPU gaming score
2,300 / 10 000
Overkill threshold — CPU gaming score
75 W
TDP Intel Arc A380
from 400 W
PSU for Intel Arc A380 + Ryzen 3 1200
In short

What CPU do you need for Intel Arc A380

The minimum that is enough is Core i3-3240 (about 7% loss), the balanced pick is Ryzen 3 1200 (2% loss). Core i7-2600 and faster is overkill: less than 3% more FPS.

Intel Arc A380 FPS without a CPU limit (1080p, demanding games)
35 FPS
“Unlocks” threshold — CPU gaming score
1,600 / 10 000
Overkill threshold — CPU gaming score
2,300 / 10 000
TDP Intel Arc A380
75 W
updated · source: FPSHQ model estimate

Frequently asked questions

What CPU do I need for Intel Arc A380?
The minimum that is enough is Core i3-3240 (about 7% loss), the balanced pick is Ryzen 3 1200 (2% loss). Core i7-2600 and faster is overkill: less than 3% more FPS.
Will Ryzen 7 5700X bottleneck Intel Arc A380?
No, with plenty of headroom: Ryzen 7 5700X is faster than Intel Arc A380 needs (0% loss, 35 FPS at 1080p).
What power supply do I need for Intel Arc A380 and Ryzen 3 1200?
400 W or more: about 230 W load, short spikes up to 260 W (FPSHQ unified PSU formula).
Why is the bottleneck judged on demanding games?
In esports titles running at 300+ FPS any CPU becomes the limit, so we judge GPU utilisation on popular demanding games (Cyberpunk 2077, Elden Ring, Grand Theft Auto IV, Max Payne 3) at 1080p, up to 144 FPS — a typical gaming monitor refresh rate.

Related calculations

Method: FPS — FPSHQ unified model (real measurements + regression), CPU limit — by CPU gaming score, resolution — by GPU class. methodology