Thinking about upgrading your Windows PC, or simply curious how it measures up? Benchmarking is a great way to take a snapshot of your PC’s performance. Here are some of the best benchmarking tools that are free to use.

General Performance

Benchmarking software typically allows for overclocking or fan speed setting changes. These options allow users to configure hardware changes through software. Keep in mind that benchmarking your PC is a bit more complex than simply running software.

1. CPU-Z

CPU-Z is free benchmark software that gives you a complete rundown of your PC’s hardware specifications, particularly your CPU.

It also provides specifications for your motherboard, RAM, and graphics card, making it a great program for visualizing hardware makes and models. The Tools option allows you to save this information in a TXT file.

Download: CPU-Z (Free)

2. HWMonitor

HWMonitor is PC benchmarking software that visualizes the make and model of your hardware components and displays various parameters in real time. These include power consumption, fan speeds, utilization percentage, clock speeds, and temperature. Monitoring these can be crucial, as issues like an overheating component can lead to frequent PC crashes.

HWMonitor’s simple interface also makes all values easy to view and understand. The File option allows you to save this information for further troubleshooting.

Download: HWMonitor (Free)

3. SiSoftware Sandra Lite

SiSoftware Sandra Lite is a comprehensive benchmarking suite designed for users who are knowledgeable about the inner workings of their computers and for businesses that need to conduct detailed analyses on multiple systems.

Want to test your computer’s memory bandwidth? No problem. Want to benchmark network performance? Sure. Want to benchmark your computer’s power efficiency? Yes, Sandra does that as well.

Another useful feature of SiSoftware Sandra Lite is its online reference database. SiSoft Sandra will benchmark your component or online connection and then compare your performance with other similar processors, helping you determine whether an upgrade might be beneficial.

Download: SiSoftware Sandra Lite (Free, pro version available)

4. Speccy

From the creators of CCleaner, Piriform’s Speccy is a favorite among the gaming community for its simple layout of a PC’s hardware configuration. Speccy will provide a thorough rundown of every component and most drivers currently available on your PC.

If you click on the individual parameters on the left-hand side of the window, you’ll get more detailed information about your specific hardware, including temperature, voltage, fan speeds, and more.

Download: Speccy (Free, pro version available)

5. CineBench

CineBench offers one of the most comprehensive and trusted CPU benchmarks available. It renders an image—a task primarily handled by the CPU—and compares the result to other real-world tests to evaluate your CPU’s performance.

It’s as real-world as it gets. While other benchmarks test overall PC performance or a combination of CPU and GPU, CineBench specifically tests all available CPU processor cores. After the test is completed, your processor will be graded in points: the higher the points, the stronger your CPU’s performance.

Download: CineBench (Free)

GPU Benchmarking

GPU benchmarks are similar to CPU benchmarks in that they provide users with updates on their GPU’s clock speeds, bus speeds, temperatures, and fan speeds.

6. MSI Afterburner

Not exclusive to MSI graphics cards, MSI Afterburner is the best live monitoring GPU tool around. Afterburner enables users to overclock and monitor their hardware within a single program.

It tracks all parameters necessary to monitor graphics card performance: clock speed, temperature, RAM usage, fan speed, and CPU usage (by core). Additionally, you can save and activate overclock profiles at startup, ensuring your system is always overclocked.

Download:MSI Afterburner (Free)

7. Unigine Suite

The Unigine Suite has been the preferred benchmarking software for graphics cards for years. For instance, if an aggressive overclock has the potential to harm your GPU over time, Unigine engines will benchmark and stress-test the GPU to guarantee maximum performance and stability. Additionally, it enables users to test varying levels of detail, ensuring that any GPU, whether budget or high-end, is effectively assessed using the software.

Download: Unigine (Free, paid version available)

8. Catzilla

Catzilla is one of the most popular free GPU benchmarking applications for gamers. It features impressive animations and a recommendation system that assigns a score and badge (ranging from one to 12). After running, it offers hardware and software recommendations, enabling users to make immediate adjustments to their PC or laptop for enhanced performance.

From a GPU standpoint, it will provide information on whether your machine can handle the latest games and stream HD movies, among other insights.

Download: Catzilla (Free)

9. Novabench

Novabench is a free benchmarking software designed to evaluate your PC’s performance. Remarkably, it is cross-platform, available for Windows, Linux, and Mac. What sets this tool apart is its ability to compare your results against a vast online dataset from Novabench, providing insights into your PC’s standing. Additionally, you can optimize and repair your PC by tuning, repairing, and upgrading your tool.

The app is available in free and paid versions. The free version packs an impressive set of features, such as full-system tests for CPU single and multi-core, GPU graphics, Memory, and more.

If you find the tool useful, you can upgrade to the paid version, which offers scheduled and automatic tests, temperature and battery history tracking, and a portable USB version of the app, among other features. This makes the app a fitting candidate for our list of the best and free benchmark tools for Windows.

Downloads:Novabench (Free, pro version available)

10. CrystalDiskMark

CrystalDiskMark is open-source, free benchmark software that specializes in conducting disk benchmark tests. It measures the performance and transfer speed of storage devices such as HD, USB memory, SD cards, and SSDs. In addition to the usual tests, it comes packed with other quirky features like Measure Sequential and Random Performance and measure modes like Peak, Real World, and Demo.

The app comes in many themes and supports multiple versions of Windows.

Download:CrystalDiskMark (Free, paid version available)

That wraps up our list of trustworthy Windows benchmarking programs. These tools are designed for IT professionals and casual users and provide valuable insights into a PC’s hardware configuration.