3DMark

It’s likely that 3DMark needs little introduction if you’re even remotely familiar with computer hardware. Known mainly for its demanding 3D benchmarks, the tool is very much a gauntlet for all manner of modern hardware: graphics, CPU, and storage assessments are available, making the software a reliable, verifiable way to test out relative computer performance.

Among its suite of tests, Time Spy is perhaps instantly recognizable by the overclocking crowd. DirectX 12 is the norm now, and 3DMark has adapted to provide updated benchmarks that aren’t any less difficult on modern hardware.

Even if the Demo version only provides a predefined run that prohibits changing any settings, it should be enough to at least give some users an idea of their system’s performance ballpark. You can expect to wait about 10 minutes for the benchmark to finish, after which you’ll be greeted by a series of scores and monitoring graphs.

These scores quantify your hardware performance in a way that is easy to memorize and place within a hierarchy. To further this, the supplied graphs can help you determine system bottlenecks and gauge overall stability, overclocked or otherwise.

Performance across systems may vary, even when the same hardware is involved, hence it’s entirely possible for someone with the same hardware as yours to get higher scores. In any case, the 3DMark benchmark database is a place where performance is relative: your budget laptop may be slightly better than a 2023 office laptop, yet undeniably worse than a 2023 budget gaming rig.

While one can argue that the Demo version is a touch restrictive, it nevertheless provides access to a benchmark that is all but an industry standard. Other tests are of course available for paying users, including access to a suite of stress tests.

3DMark is a recognizable name in many computer hardware spaces. Its tests being of a very particular complexity that can stress even the most demanding components of today is noteworthy in itself, yet there's also the apparent simplicity of its scoring system that makes it stand out.