Hearts of Iron IV
Known to slow down in the late game due to the exponential number of unit calculations. Single-core CPU speed is the most important factor for performance.
Actual FPS may vary based on RAM speed, background processes, and other system factors
Performance Report
At 1080p, frame rates range from 45 to 79 FPS depending on quality settings. At 1440p, frame rates range from 39 to 70 FPS. At 4K, frame rates range from 27 to 54 FPS.
The GeForce RTX 4090 is 870% above the recommended GPU (GeForce GTX 570) for Hearts of Iron IV. The Core i3-6100TE is 24% above the recommended CPU (Core i5-750).
The Core i3-6100TE sets the FPS ceiling at all 1080p settings, all 1440p settings, all 4k settings, while the GeForce RTX 4090 still has headroom.
Approximated average price on current market:
Combo price: $1739. At 1080p Ultra, this combo delivers 45 FPS, equivalent to 0.03 FPS per dollar.
| Resolution | Low | Medium | High | Ultra |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1080p | 0.045 fps/$ | 0.041 fps/$ | 0.036 fps/$ | 0.026 fps/$ |
| 1440p | 0.040 fps/$ | 0.033 fps/$ | 0.029 fps/$ | 0.022 fps/$ |
| 4k | 0.031 fps/$ | 0.026 fps/$ | 0.024 fps/$ | 0.016 fps/$ |
* Table values represent FPS per Dollar (higher is better)
Affiliate Disclosure
ChipVERSUS is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. We may earn a commission on qualifying purchases made through our links. This comes at no additional cost to you and helps support our work in providing comprehensive PC building guides and tools.
Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates.
This chart answers a simple question: which upgrade is more likely to increase FPS first? In this case, the answer is clearly the CPU.
The largest gap appears at 1080p Low, where the Core i3-6100TE reaches about 79 FPS, while the GeForce RTX 4090 still has headroom up to roughly 116 FPS.
That means the Core i3-6100TE is hitting its performance ceiling first, leaving a 32% gap versus the GeForce RTX 4090's available headroom in the most unbalanced scenario. Across all tested settings, this pairing is CPU-limited in 12 out of 12 cases, with 0 GPU-limited and 0 balanced results.
Overall, this is a clearly CPU-bound combination in this game.
The Core i3-6100TE is consistently the limiting part in this game, so upgrading the CPU is more likely to deliver a larger FPS gain than upgrading the GPU.
This chart shows which upgrade is more likely to unlock more FPS in each tested setting. The lower line represents the part that reaches its limit first. When the CPU and GPU lines stay close together, the system is more balanced. When the gap widens, one component is more clearly holding the other back. Hover any setting to inspect it.
The lower line is the current limiter. The closer the two lines are, the more balanced the CPU and GPU are for this game.
Each line represents an estimated FPS ceiling for one component, rather than live usage alone.
To estimate the CPU ceiling, we pair the Core i3-6100TE with GeForce RTX 5090, our current GPU anchor. To estimate the GPU ceiling, we pair the GeForce RTX 4090 with Ryzen 9 9950X3D, our current CPU anchor.
The lower line indicates the current limiter, since that component reaches its FPS ceiling first. In most scenarios, that is also the part most likely to deliver the bigger performance uplift if upgraded first.
The percentage shown represents the gap between the two ceilings. In practical terms, it shows how much of the stronger component's potential is left unused because the weaker one becomes the bottleneck first.
See how your processor and graphics card compare against the game official minimum and recommended system specs. The placement of your hardware is calculated using relative synthetic performance scores to help you gauge overall playability.
Your CPU is 24% above and your GPU is 870% above the recommended specs. High/Ultra at 1080p. Lower settings for higher resolutions.
+24%vsrecommended
+870%vsrecommended
-12%vsminimum
+1112%vsminimum
The Core i3-6100TE and GeForce RTX 4090 will struggle to run Hearts of Iron IV at smooth framerates. At 1080p Ultra, you can expect around 45 FPS which is classified as "playable". Consider lowering settings or upgrading your hardware.
This CPU + GPU combo costs approximately $1,739 ($90 CPU + $1,649 GPU). Since the CPU is the main limiting factor, investing in a stronger processor will improve your framerates and overall value. For example, the Ryzen 9 9950X is a great upgrade option for around $649 (Rank #4 for value).
For Hearts of Iron IV, upgrading the CPU would usually improve performance first. In the Performance Limiter Analysis, the Core i3-6100TE is the side that most often caps the frame rate, while the GeForce RTX 4090 still has additional headroom in the tested presets. The main bottleneck appears on the CPU side. The largest gap shows up at 1080p Low, where the CPU reaches about 79 FPS while the GPU still has headroom up to roughly 116 FPS. Across all tested settings, the distribution is 0/12 GPU-limited, 12/12 CPU-limited, and 0/12 balanced.
Hearts of Iron IV does not currently support Frame Generation technologies like DLSS 3 or FSR 3. Your performance is based entirely on native rendering. If the game adds support in a future update, newer GPUs will benefit the most.
Hearts of Iron IV requires at minimum a Core 2 Quad Q9400 (CPU) and GeForce GTX 470 (GPU) with 4 GB RAM and 2 GB storage. For the recommended experience, you need a Core i5-750 and GeForce GTX 570 with 4 GB RAM. Your Core i3-6100TE and GeForce RTX 4090 both exceed the recommended specs, so you're well-positioned for a great experience.
These Hearts of Iron IV FPS results are not arbitrary numbers. They come from calculations informed by thousands of real gaming benchmarks, and the typical accuracy range is around 10% to 15%. That makes them far more useful than generic FPS calculators that simply invent values without a benchmark foundation. Actual in-game performance can still vary with drivers, updates, RAM configuration, cooling, and the exact scene being rendered.
Performance estimates are based on synthetic benchmarks and hardware capabilities.
Results may vary based on drivers, OS, and background processes.
