How to Safely Undervolt Your CPU to Reduce Temperature

Whenoverclocking a CPU, the idea is to increase the voltage to achieve a higher clock speed. But that leads to overheating and can affect the overalllifespan of the CPU.

That said, the safest choice toreduce the temperaturewithout affecting the performanceis undervolting the CPU. The steps are almost similar to overclocking:

That’s one strategy. you may even tweak other voltage options to see how it works out for you.

Here, I’ll guide you with the easiest ways to undervolt a CPU and even share my experiences on different systems.

From BIOS

Trust me, this is the most reliable option. The only hassle isgetting to BIOS each timeto tweak the voltage setting.

Also, note that the exact steps depend onwhat motherboard you haveas the UEFI interface varies by manufacturer.

Without further ado, let’s get into the steps:

Note:While you may configure the‘Override’option, this will make the voltage stable at all times (even when theCPU is at low load). Only go for this if yourBIOS doesn’t support the Offset mode.

My Test Results:

On myASUS PRIME B450-PLUSwithRyzen 5 5600G APU, the 4200 MHz overclockoverheated the processorto more than 95 degrees (max. voltage recorded = 1.44 V).

I’ve posted the highlights of my test in the table below. I wasn’t just able to decrease the temperature but evengot a slightperformance improvement, thanks to undervolting.

That’s because my Ryzen processor was thermal throttling in the previous OC setting, and couldn’t run at the clock speed it was meant to reach.

After the reduction in the temperature,there was no thermal throttling, so it was able to reach a slightly higher speed.

After testing out a few games, the sweet spot for me was the-0.275 offset.

Similarly, on myMSI MAG B550M MORTAR, I undervolted theRyzen 7 5700G APUby -0.09 V.

Here, the temperature used to hit more than 100 degrees (quite concerning!) at 1.438 V. With my new settings, the temperature doesn’t go beyond 88°C at 1.344 V.

Using CPU Utility

If yourBIOS ismissing the Offset option or is greyed out, you may opt for an OS utility. Choose the appropriate application depending onwhat processor you have.

Both theIntel Extreme Tuning UtilityandAMD Ryzen Masteroffer enhanced user interfaces. Without getting to the UEFI/BIOS utility, you may easily overclock and undervolt yourCPU or APU.

In fact, these are extremely helpful utilities forlaptop users to reduce the temperaturewithout making any physical changes. But keep in mind that yourprocessor should be unlocked.

There’s no need to worry as you’re just going to lower the voltage. Even if you’ve undervolted too much, it just means the CPU is not getting enough power (which is pretty normal).

Restart your PC and the utility automatically sets the voltage to default.

Intel Extreme Tuning Utility (XTU)

Team Blue users can make use of theperformance-tuningXTUsoftware. Before downloading, ensure you check whether your CPU is listed under the‘Supported products’list.

Launch the tool after successfully installing it. you may utilize either theCompactorAdvancedView to configure theCore Voltage Offset.

For undervolting, select theleft arrow. It should decrease the offset valueby 0.01. Hit theApplybutton to save changes and useRevertto set the value to default.

This utility even lets you stress test the processor andmonitor the CPU utilization, frequency, TDP, and temperature. However, I’ve always preferredCinebenchandHWMonitor.

In fact, I’ve utilized the same for my test on theGigabyte X299 UD4 Promotherboard equipped with ani9-7900XCPU. However, I was only able to reduce the temperatureby around 8 degreeson this build with very little impact on the performance.

AMD Ryzen Master

Unlike Intel XTU, Team Red users will have to manually override the voltage setting using theRyzen Master utility. Here are the general steps if you’re in theBasic View:

Tip:For advanced overclocking and undervolting, useAdvanced View. Along with tweakingadditional voltage-related settings, you get toset multiple profilesand load them as per your needs.

While Ryzen Mater is an excellent software for hardware monitoring and quick configuration, many users have complained that itconflicted with their BIOS settings. That’s the reason I always prefer doing this from UEFI.

However, myGigabyte B450 AORUS ELITEBIOS doesn’t offer much on voltage configuration. Even on the stock setting, I was getting too high temperature when playing FPS games (more than 85 degrees).

After undervoltingRyzen 5 5600Gfrom 1.375 V to 1.344 V, I was able toreduce at least 10°C. At 3900 MHz,my multi-core Cinebench scorewas 8974 with the maximum temperature recorded at 74.2°C.

Through OEM & Third-Party Apps

Besides Intel XTU and AMD Ryzen Master, you may evenutilize your motherboard’s utilityto undervolt your CPU.

Visit yourboard’s support or download section. Check the description and download the appropriate tool for overclocking purposes.

For example, ASUS offers theAI Suiteapplication. To undervolt, navigate toTurboV EVOand here, you need to decrease theVDDCR CPU Voltage.

Similarly, ASRock users can go for the dedicated motherboard utility, which varies depending on thesystem model.

For myZ370 Gaming-ITX/AC, I useF-Stream. Yours might beA-Tuning. Look forCPU Core/Cache Voltage (Offset)in theOC Tweakertab to do the needful.

Theidea is the same for all motherboardsand you may use the strategies that I’ve been emphasizing throughout this article. Some of these apps even come with built-in stress testing and hardware monitoring features.

However, I’ve had unfortunate experiences when using such apps myself. When trying to undervolt usingAI Suite 3on myPRIME B450-PLUS, it kept crashing. And when I usedF-Stream, thesystem frozeand I had to force shut it off.

If you’re in the same boat, you may go for some third-party applications as well.ThrottleStop is a popular choiceamong most enthusiasts so I’ve used the same,

The downside is that this tool isonly applicable to Intel users. AMD users may go for anothersoftware called Clock Tuner. But do note that it is only supported on afew Zen 2 Ryzen processors.

A Few More Things To Consider

I’ve covered the basics of how to undervolt a CPU and this should suffice for general users. But if you’re an enthusiast who wants to go for more, I advise tweakingsome more voltage optionsto achieve better stability andhigher FPS.

These settings vary on every motherboard. So, you’ll have todo some groundwork yourself. I’ll be bringing more undervolting content soon (specialized for the most popular brands – ASUS, Gigabyte, MSI, and ASRock).

ExploreAdaptive + OffsetandAdvanced Offsetmodes. Try configuring the voltage to see if you get even better stability.

Also, tweak advanced voltage settings, likeMESH,VCCIO,VRIN,System Agent,SOC,NB, etc. These are available on both BIOS and software-based utilities.

Some of the voltage options are related to memory. So, my tip is to read the on-screen description or check the respective user guide beforehand.

In case you’re facing instability issues even when tweaking voltage in a smaller range, there might be some issues with your system. Tryupdating your BIOSto fix this.

If the CPU temperature remains high, trysetting an aggressivefan speed curve.Upgrade your cooling,change the thermal paste, andunderclock (if it’s not working).

But if nothing helps, check our guide on delidding the CPU – this has helped a lot of users reduce temperature to some extent.

For avid gamers, I even recommend undervolting your GPU. This is extremely helpful as it helps reduce power consumption and fix the overheating problem with the component.