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We measure real-world power consumption using Powenetics testing hardware and software. We capture in-line GPU power consumption by collecting data while looping Metro Exodus (the original, not the enhanced version) and while running the FurMark stress test. Our test PC remains the same old Core i9-9900K as we've used previously, to keep results consistent.
For the RTX 4080 Founders Edition, we ran Metro at 3840x2160 using the Extreme preset (no ray tracing or DLSS), and we ran FurMark at 2560x1440. The following charts are intended to represent something of a worst-case scenario for power consumption, temps, etc.
The RTX 4080 Founders Edition used quite a bit less power than the rated 320W TBP. We could only break that limit with overclocking and FurMark, where we hit 332W — still less than the previous generation RTX 3080 running at stock settings. That's a nice change of pace, and the result is a card that's far more efficient than the specifications might lead you to believe.
Clock speeds were also quite impressive, averaging 2.78 GHz in Metro, though the GPU did drop to 2.3 GHz with FurMark. Meanwhile, our manual overclock pushed the GPU beyond 3.0 GHz — the first time we've ever managed that using a card's stock cooler! FurMark clocks also increased to 2.62 GHz with our overclock.
Temperatures, fan speeds, and noise levels all go hand-in-hand. Given the rather massive cooler, it's not too surprising that the RTX 4080 Founders Edition stayed in the low 60C range at stock. Our overclock includes higher fan speeds, resulting in even lower temperatures of 55C–58C. The fans only hit around 1300 RPMs at stock, but our more aggressive fan curve pushed that closer to 2000 RPM when overclocked.
Finally, we have our noise levels, which we gather using an SPL (sound pressure level) meter placed 10cm from the card, with the mic aimed right at the GPU fan(s). This helps minimize the impact of other noise sources, like the fans on the CPU cooler. The noise floor of our test environment and equipment is around 32 dB(A).
After running a demanding game (Metro, at appropriate settings that tax the GPU), the RTX 4080 settled in at a fan speed of 38% and a noise level of 42.6 dB(A). While it's not shown in the chart, our overclocked settings resulted in a 70% fan speed and 55.5 dB(A). Finally, with a static fan speed of 75%, the 4080 Founders Edition generated 57.4 dB(A) of noise.
RTX 4080 Additional Power, Clock, and Temperature Testing
| Game | Setting | Avg FPS | Avg Clock | Avg Power | Avg Temp | Avg Utilization |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13-Game Geomean | 1080p 'Ultra' | 132.2 | 2795.9 | 221.4 | 53.5 | 79.5% |
| 13-Game Geomean | 1440p 'Ultra' | 104.9 | 2786.9 | 252.8 | 56.3 | 87.2% |
| 13-Game Geomean | 4k 'Ultra' | 62.7 | 2764.1 | 289 | 59.9 | 97.0% |
| 6-Game DXR Geomean | 1080p 'Ultra' | 131.5 | 2789.5 | 265.6 | 58.4 | 88.6% |
| 6-Game DXR Geomean | 1440p 'Ultra' | 91.2 | 2775.9 | 289.8 | 59.8 | 93.1% |
| 6-Game DXR Geomean | 4k 'Ultra' | 47.1 | 2744 | 300.2 | 61.2 | 95.6% |
| Borderlands 3 | 1080p Badass | 99.4 | 2789.8 | 280.8 | 60.7 | 99.0% |
| Borderlands 3 | 1440p Badass | 59.6 | 2782.2 | 295.9 | 62.3 | 99.0% |
| Borderlands 3 | 4k Badass | 27.3 | 2766.1 | 300.5 | 62.6 | 99.0% |
| Bright Memory Infinite | 1080p Very High | 217.4 | 2790 | 275.2 | 60.3 | 92.8% |
| Bright Memory Infinite | 1440p Very High | 165.7 | 2781.4 | 304.4 | 62.5 | 98.6% |
| Bright Memory Infinite | 4k Very High | 89.1 | 2761.5 | 308.8 | 63.2 | 99.0% |
| Control | 1080p High | 152.1 | 2805 | 284.6 | 55.3 | 99.0% |
| Control | 1440p High | 93.7 | 2787.6 | 301.9 | 59.1 | 99.0% |
| Control | 4k High | 45.6 | 2778.7 | 306.8 | 59 | 99.0% |
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 1080p RT-Ultra | 98.5 | 2790 | 277.4 | 58.4 | 97.9% |
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 1440p RT-Ultra | 62.8 | 2777.2 | 296 | 55.5 | 98.3% |
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 4k RT-Ultra | 30.3 | 2691.2 | 291.9 | 58.1 | 99.0% |
| Far Cry 6 | 1080p Ultra | 152.6 | 2805.1 | 141 | 42 | 61.4% |
| Far Cry 6 | 1440p Ultra | 150.5 | 2805 | 193.4 | 46.5 | 78.5% |
| Far Cry 6 | 4k Ultra | 109 | 2803.9 | 258.4 | 50.6 | 98.8% |
| Flight Simulator | 1080p Ultra | 77.9 | 2805 | 188.6 | 50 | 56.0% |
| Flight Simulator | 1440p Ultra | 77.5 | 2805 | 191 | 50.8 | 56.3% |
| Flight Simulator | 4k Ultra | 76.1 | 2739.1 | 305.8 | 62.8 | 97.8% |
| Fortnite | 1080p Epic | 119.2 | 2790 | 256.4 | 60.5 | 90.8% |
| Fortnite | 1440p Epic | 77.7 | 2784.5 | 283.8 | 62.5 | 94.5% |
| Fortnite | 4k Epic | 38.2 | 2747.1 | 294.9 | 63.2 | 96.3% |
| Forza Horizon 5 | 1080p Extreme | 159.8 | 2805 | 152.9 | 45.3 | 79.7% |
| Forza Horizon 5 | 1440p Extreme | 151.2 | 2805 | 179.1 | 49.4 | 84.0% |
| Forza Horizon 5 | 4k Extreme | 126.5 | 2801.9 | 227.9 | 55.7 | 95.5% |
| Horizon Zero Dawn | 1080p Ultimate | 183.8 | 2804.8 | 174.9 | 48.4 | 65.9% |
| Horizon Zero Dawn | 1440p Ultimate | 176 | 2795.1 | 219.1 | 53.6 | 83.6% |
| Horizon Zero Dawn | 4k Ultimate | 114.4 | 2790.4 | 277.6 | 58.6 | 99.0% |
| Metro Exodus Enhanced | 1080p Extreme | 114.8 | 2771.9 | 290.7 | 61 | 94.5% |
| Metro Exodus Enhanced | 1440p Extreme | 91 | 2735.2 | 304.8 | 62.1 | 98.0% |
| Metro Exodus Enhanced | 4k Extreme | 52 | 2702 | 307.9 | 63.1 | 99.0% |
| Minecraft | 1080p RT 24-Blocks | 116.2 | 2790 | 216.7 | 55.1 | 62.7% |
| Minecraft | 1440p RT 24-Blocks | 83.2 | 2790 | 251.5 | 57.3 | 73.2% |
| Minecraft | 4k RT 24-Blocks | 44.4 | 2785.2 | 291.5 | 61.1 | 82.5% |
| Total War Warhammer 3 | 1440p Ultra | 160.9 | 2789.9 | 255.8 | 57.8 | 85.2% |
| Total War Warhammer 3 | 1080p Ultra | 139.6 | 2787.6 | 294.9 | 60.7 | 97.5% |
| Total War Warhammer 3 | 4k Ultra | 74.6 | 2780.4 | 302.5 | 61.8 | 98.9% |
| Watch Dogs Legion | 1080p Ultra | 129.8 | 2810 | 171 | 46.4 | 68.2% |
| Watch Dogs Legion | 1440p Ultra | 125 | 2795.1 | 229.9 | 53.4 | 86.1% |
| Watch Dogs Legion | 4k Ultra | 87.8 | 2789 | 294.4 | 60 | 99.0% |
Besides our Powenetics testing, we collect all of our frametime data using Nvidia's FrameView, which also logs clock speeds, temperatures, power, and GPU utilization (and plenty of other data as well). We've verified with our Powenetics equipment that Nvidia's GPUs report power draw that's within a few percent of the actual power use, so the above results give a wider perspective on how the card runs.
As we've mentioned already, Nvidia's RTX 4090 and 4080 tend to come in below their maximum rated TBP in a lot of gaming workloads. That's especially true of our 1080p results, where the average power use for the card was just 221W. With a faster CPU like a Core i9-13900K or Ryzen 9 7950X, we'd likely see higher power use from the 4080, though it's likely even an overclocked 13900K wouldn't max out its power limit at 1080p.
In terms of efficiency, you can see the overall power, performance, etc., for thirteen of the games in our test suite. Overclocking increased performance at 4K by 7%, while power use went up by 7.7%. Normally, overclocking can really drop efficiency, but at least with the 4080 Founders Edition the card seems to handle a modest OC fairly well.
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