CPUs are extremely durable.Most CPUs last for 10+ yearsand are the last component to die in a system. In terms of physical lifespan, once you purchase a CPU, you’re set for the next decade.

But the thing about technology is that obsolescence is always a major concern, and this is especially true for CPUs.

How soon a CPU becomes obsolete depends on the person’s needs and workload. On average,most people upgrade their CPUs every 5 years or so.

Factors that Affect CPU Lifespan

First of all, keep in mind thatDead on Arrival(DOA) CPUs are normal and even common to an extent. Barring such cases, let’s talk about what factors affect a CPU’sphysical lifespan.

Operating Temperature

CPUs don’t have any moving parts to cause mechanical wear and tear. Instead, they degrade over time due to material migration, or more specifically,electromigration.

This is where the current flowing through the CPU’s channels causes ions to drift away and slowly erode the connections (kind of like bank erosion by flowing water). This eventually leads to the failure of the circuits.

Heat is bad for electronics for numerous reasons. With CPUs, the main reason is thatheat exacerbates electromigration. It makes the failure of ICs due to electromigration more likely.

What does all of this mean practically, though?

Manufacturers take electromigration into account when designing CPUs, and official temperature limits exist for a reason. I’d say100°C is the average max tempfor modern processors.

As long as you don’t frequently hit temps like these wherethermal throttling has to kick in, you’re fine. And this should be achievable even withminimal cooling and maintenance.

Overclocking

Overclocking enableshigher clock speeds via higher voltages, and this canpotentiallybe bad for two reasons.

Higher voltage results in higher current, which results in more heat being produced. As we’ve already established, heat aggravates electromigration.

So, if overclocking results inhigh temperatures over long periods, that’s not good for your CPU’s lifespan. But if you’ve used a reasonable overclock witha good cooling setup, this won’t be a problem.

Now, let’s get into extreme overclocking.

This happens due toGate Oxide Breakdown(the extreme voltage wears down the oxide layer in the transistor gates until the transistor fails).

This is enthusiast territory, though. 99% of people canachieve a satisfactory overclockwhile staying well within the recommended voltage and temp limits. Practically, you don’t need to worry about this, but it’s still good to know.

Handling & Physical Damage

Peopleinstall CPUs incorrectlyand bend the pins, spill thermal paste onto the contacts, or simply drop the CPU whencleaning it. It happens.

It’s usually possible to repair a few bent pins. And you may usuallyclean spilled thermal pastewith isopropyl alcohol. In this case, the CPU will probably work with no significant impact on its lifespan.

But sometimes, a lot of pins might get bent, or some of them might break off. Or, you might spill liquid metal onto the pins/contacts. In this case, the CPU is likely not recoverable.

Misc Factors

The other major threat for CPUs is a power surge. When acheap PSU goes bad, it cantake other components to the gravewith it.

For external power spikes, it’s good to use a surge protector. Additionally,a reliable PSUwill provide an extra layer of protection for your components.

Besides this, the silicon lottery plays a part. If you take multiple units from the same production line, you’ll find that some perform better than others, and some die quicker than others. The build quality isn’t something you may control, but it’s still good to know.

How Long Do CPUs Last On Average?

Ok, we know what factors affect the CPU’s lifespan now. But what does all of that mean in terms of stats? How long will your CPU actually last?

For the average user, you canexpect it to last 10-15 years. This is assuming you don’t physically damage the CPU, you don’t mess around with extreme overclocking, and your CPU temps are reasonable.

Even CPUs that run 24/7 (like server systems) tend to last a decade or more. If thetemps are on the higher side, that can take a few years off the CPU’s total lifespan. But you may usually remedy this bycleaning the PCandreplacing the thermal pasteon time.

Essentially, a CPU’s physical lifespan is not something you need to worry about. A much more valid concern would be obsolescence.

To put things into perspective, my first PC thatI built over 15 years agohad a Pentium 4 processor from Intel. And it’s still going strong! I’ve had to replace some components like theRAMandstorage drives. But themotherboardand CPU are still working fine!

That PC isn’t good for much other thanstorageand web browsing, though. Thespecs are simply outdatedfor most of my current needs.

CPUs become obsolete much sooner than they die. So, let’s talk about that now.

Do You Need to Upgrade Your CPU?

Ibuilt my current PC last year(paired aRyzen 5600with anRX 6800XT). I mainly use it for 1440p gaming and content creation.

With maxed-out settings onCyberpunk 2077 2.0, theCPU usage stays around 50%. The 6 cores and 12 threads are satisfactory forvirtualizationand video editing as well. This build is serving me well and I don’t think I’ll need to upgrade for the next 4-5 years.

My point here is thatobsolescence just depends on the user and their needs.

A lot of fancy marketing is shoved in our faces these days, but don’t let that give you FOMO. Instead, ask yourself from time to time –does my CPU do what I need it to do at a satisfactory speed?

On average, peopleupgrade their CPUsevery 5 years or so. But different people have different needs, so you do you!