3DMark

3DMark is a GPU and CPU benchmarking tool from UL (formerly Futuremark). It runs a series of graphically intensive tests and produces a score you can compare against millions of other results in an online database. The free Basic edition includes the most popular tests. The paid Advanced and Professional editions unlock custom settings, stress tests, and additional benchmarks.

What it does

Time Spy is the go-to DirectX 12 benchmark. It renders two game-like scenes with heavy geometry and compute shaders, then produces separate GPU and CPU scores. Fire Strike does the same for DirectX 11 hardware and remains useful for comparing older or midrange cards. Port Royal tests ray tracing performance with a rendered underwater scene, so it only works on GPUs that support hardware ray tracing (NVIDIA RTX, AMD RX 6000 and newer).

Beyond the headline tests, 3DMark includes CPU Profile (measures single and multithreaded CPU performance across six thread counts), Storage Benchmark (tests SSD read and write speeds in game-loading scenarios), and several lighter tests for tablets and laptops. The stress test mode loops any benchmark 20 times to check for thermal throttling and instability.

After each run, you can upload your result and compare it filtered by GPU model, CPU, or full system configuration. This is the fastest way to check whether your hardware performs where it should or if something is holding it back.

Who it is for

I run 3DMark on every new build and after every GPU overclock. The online comparison database is what makes it genuinely useful, because a raw score means nothing without context. If your Time Spy result falls significantly below the average for your GPU model, you know something is wrong, whether it is thermal throttling, a driver issue, or a bottleneck elsewhere. For anyone building, upgrading, or troubleshooting a PC, 3DMark is the standard benchmark to start with.