# How to Check CPU Temperature on Windows 11 (and What It Means)

Windows 11 has no built-in CPU temperature readout: Task Manager shows CPU usage and speed, and only a dedicated GPU with a recent enough driver gets a temperature next to its name. To check CPU temperature on Windows you read it from the PC's firmware setup, from the app your PC maker ships, or from your CPU vendor's own tool, then judge the number against that processor's published limit rather than a figure from a forum.

The number on its own says little. A CPU near its limit during a long export can be working as designed, while a much lower reading at idle that keeps climbing can point to blocked vents. The useful habit is to read the temperature under a repeatable task, compare it with the chip's specification, and change one condition at a time.

## What Task Manager shows, and what it does not

Press `Ctrl + Shift + Esc` and open Performance. The CPU page shows utilization, speed and core counts, but no temperature.

The GPU page is different. When Microsoft added the feature in [Windows 10 Insider Preview Build 18963](https://blogs.windows.com/windows-insider/2019/08/16/announcing-windows-10-insider-preview-build-18963/), it said that if you have a dedicated GPU card, Task Manager shows the current temperature next to its listing in the Performance tab, and that this needs a graphics driver supporting WDDM 2.4 or higher. The same post explains how to check: press `Win + R`, run `dxdiag`, and on the Display tab look at Driver Model.

```cmd
dxdiag
```

The value comes from the driver. Microsoft's driver documentation for [D3DKMT_ADAPTER_PERFDATA](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-hardware/drivers/ddi/d3dkmthk/ns-d3dkmthk-_d3dkmt_adapter_perfdata) lists a `Temperature` field described as the main temperature sensor's reading in tenths of a degree Celsius. If the driver leaves it empty, Task Manager has nothing to show. Integrated graphics usually show no temperature at all, so a missing GPU reading is common and does not mean anything is broken.

A GPU temperature also does not stand in for the CPU. On a laptop the two often share a heat pipe and a fan, so they tend to rise together, but each has its own limit and its own sensor.

## Firmware setup and your PC maker's app

Most desktop motherboards and many laptops expose the CPU sensor somewhere in their firmware setup, often on a page named something like hardware monitor or PC health. To get there from Windows, Microsoft's [Windows 11 and Secure Boot](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/topic/a8ff1202-c0d9-42f5-940f-843abef64fad) page gives the path: Settings › System › Recovery, select Restart now next to Advanced startup, then Troubleshoot › Advanced options › UEFI Firmware Settings.

Treat this as a reading, not a monitor. The PC is sitting in firmware with Windows not running, so you see something close to an idle temperature and nothing about how the chip behaves under your real work. Look, write the number down, and leave without changing settings you do not recognize.

Laptop and prebuilt desktop makers often ship their own app that reports temperatures, fan state and thermal or performance profiles. Names and features differ by brand and model, and some models expose nothing at all. Check the support page for your exact model rather than a generic article, and get the app from the maker's own site or the Microsoft Store listing it links to. These apps are worth knowing about even if you never read a number in them, because their performance profiles change how hot the CPU runs.

## CPU vendor tools: AMD Ryzen Master and Intel XTU

AMD describes [AMD Ryzen Master](https://www.amd.com/en/products/software/ryzen-master.html) as offering real-time monitoring of per-core clock rates, temperature and voltages, including average and peak readings. The same page offers separate downloads for Ryzen 5000 Series and later, and for older generations, so pick the build that matches your processor. Most of Ryzen Master is about tuning. AMD's footnotes say its warranty does not cover damage caused by overclocking, and that Precision Boost Overdrive operates the processor outside specification. For checking temperature you only need the monitoring view; leave tuning controls alone.

Intel's [Extreme Tuning Utility guide](https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/gaming/resources/overclocking-xtu-guide.html) says XTU has built-in temperature monitoring and alerts you when critical levels are reached or safeguards activate, such as thermal throttling. It also says XTU requires a supported unlocked processor and a motherboard that supports overclocking. Many Intel laptops and locked desktop chips do not qualify, so on those PCs the maker's app or firmware is the practical source.

Intel's own [temperature article](https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/support/articles/000005597/processors.html) adds that many third-party utilities can read the digital thermal sensor on the processor die. If you use one, download it from its developer's site and treat it as a reader only.

## What the numbers mean

Every CPU has a maximum junction temperature, often written Tjmax or Tjunction max. Intel says this is the [maximum temperature the processor allows](https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/support/articles/000005597/processors.html) before internal controls reduce power to limit it, that the limit varies per product and is usually between 100°C and 110°C, and that the throttle point can also vary with processor and BIOS settings. If throttling cannot keep the processor safe, it shuts down to prevent permanent damage. Find your exact value on the processor's page at ark.intel.com under Package Specifications.

AMD publishes the same figure as Max. Operating Temperature (Tjmax) on each product page. The [Ryzen 7 9700X page](https://www.amd.com/en/products/processors/desktops/ryzen/9000-series/amd-ryzen-7-9700x.html), for example, lists 95°C. Other models list different values, so look up yours by its full name, which Task Manager shows at the top right of the CPU page.

Three points help when you read your own number:

- **Near the limit under heavy load is not automatically a fault.** Intel explains that a processor near its limit throttles, lowering its frequency and power to protect itself, so the usual cost of running hot is lower clock speed, not damage.
- **Intel does not publish typical ranges.** Its article says it does not provide typical operating ranges per processor or core. A "normal idle temperature" quoted online depends on the cooler, the case, the room and the power profile, so compare with your own baseline instead.
- **Short spikes are expected.** Opening an app, a browser tab loading, or a background update can push one core hot for a second or two. What matters is the sustained value during a task, and whether CPU speed in Task Manager falls well below its usual level at the same time.

## Test under a steady load and compare

A single reading at a random moment cannot tell you much. Build a small, repeatable comparison:

1. Pick a task you actually do and can repeat: the same video export, the same project build, the same scene in a game. Note how long it takes.
2. Keep conditions fixed: same power source (plugged in or battery), same power mode, same surface, similar room temperature.
3. Open your temperature reader and Task Manager's Performance › CPU page side by side. Note the idle temperature after a few quiet minutes, then the steady value once the task has been running for a while, and the CPU speed at that point.
4. Let the PC cool, change exactly one thing, and run the task again.

If the second run reaches the same temperature but finishes faster, or runs cooler at the same duration, the change helped. If the temperature sits at the chip's limit while the speed drops and the task takes noticeably longer than it used to, the cooling is the bottleneck. If temperature is high while CPU usage is low, find what is busy first; the [high CPU usage guide](/windows/blog/windows-high-cpu-usage) covers that, including a single busy thread hiding behind a low total.

## When to act

Act when the steady temperature under your usual task is at the processor's limit and performance falls with it, when idle readings climb compared with your earlier baseline, or when the PC shuts down under load. Start with the things you can check without tools:

- **Vents and surface.** Use the PC on a hard, flat surface and keep intake and exhaust clear. Dust in vents and fans builds up slowly, which is why comparing against your own earlier numbers is useful. Follow your maker's cleaning instructions for your model.
- **Power mode.** Windows 11 sets this under Settings › System › Power & battery › Power mode, with separate choices when plugged in and on battery: Best power efficiency, Balanced and Best performance. Microsoft's [power mode guide](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/change-the-power-mode-for-your-windows-pc-c2aff038-22c9-f46d-5ca0-78696fdf2de8) notes that if you cannot change it, a custom power plan may be selected, and switching to Balanced in Control Panel › System and Security › Power Options restores the control. Best performance usually runs hotter and louder in exchange for speed.
- **Maker profiles.** If the maker's app has its own cooling or performance profile, note the current setting before changing it, and change it separately from Windows power mode so you know which one made the difference.
- **Background work.** Updates, sync and indexing after setup or a big update can keep the CPU warm for a while. [Startup apps](/windows/blog/manage-windows-startup) that run all day are worth a look if the PC is warm even when you are not using it.

For fan noise, charging heat and when to contact the manufacturer, see [Windows laptop overheating](/windows/blog/windows-laptop-overheating). That guide covers the fix side; this one is about getting a number you can trust.

## Where Mole fits

Mole for Windows does not show CPU temperature. Windows gives a normal app no CPU sensor without installing a kernel driver, and Mole does not install one, so its CPU tile shows usage, the live clock speed and per-core activity instead.

The Status page does have a Thermal tile for the two temperatures Windows reports without extra drivers: the GPU temperature from a driver that provides one, and the system drive's own temperature. The tile shows both side by side with a five-minute line and peak, and turns to Hot only when the drive passes its own warning threshold. On a PC that reports neither, the slot shows Disk Activity instead. Use the CPU tile and the process list to see what is keeping the processor busy while you run the comparison above; the [Status section of Help](/windows/help) explains the process list.

## FAQ

### Why does Task Manager show GPU temperature but not CPU temperature?

The GPU reading comes from the graphics driver, which Microsoft added to Task Manager for dedicated GPUs with WDDM 2.4 or later drivers. There is no equivalent CPU readout in Task Manager, so CPU temperature comes from firmware setup, the PC maker's app or the CPU vendor's tool.

### What CPU temperature is too high?

Compare with your processor's own limit: Intel lists Tjunction on ark.intel.com, and AMD lists Max. Operating Temperature (Tjmax) on each product page. Reaching it under heavy load leads to throttling rather than damage, but reaching it during light work, or a steady rise from your usual baseline, is worth investigating.

### Is a reading that jumps up for a second a problem?

No. Launching apps and loading pages briefly push cores hot. Judge the sustained temperature during a repeatable task, together with CPU speed.

### Can Mole for Windows show my CPU temperature?

No. Mole for Windows shows CPU usage and speed, and its Thermal tile shows GPU and system drive temperatures only on PCs that report them.


Canonical: https://mole.fit/windows/blog/check-cpu-temperature-windows