In today’s world, where gaming and graphics-intensive applications have become an essential part of our digital lives, the performance of our GPUs is more important than ever. In our previous article, we talked about the normal temp for GTX 1650.
Today, we will be taking a closer look at the GTX 1060, a popular and widely-used GPU among gamers and professionals (it is actually the 3rd most popular GPU on the planet, according to Steam).
Specifically, we will be examining the average temperature among users across various scenarios such as idle, gaming, and more. As a computer geek, my aim is to simplify complex concepts and provide you with an easy-to-understand analysis of the GTX 1060’s thermal performance.
Here is our summary:
| GTX 1060 | Average Temperature |
| Idle Temperature | 40-45°C |
| Gaming Temperature | 64-68°C |
| Throttle Temperature | 82-83°C |
| Maximum Temperature | 92°C |
Do not go anywhere; we covered more than just writing the average temps. Reading the whole article will enable you to make more informed decisions regarding optimizing your system for maximum performance and longevity.
Here is what you can expect for idle temp
As we wrote a long series of articles about GPU temps, we noticed that people are worried about their idle temps. Are they right, or do they not have to monitor it (like some “experts” say)?
Well, they are right in that they should monitor and keep an eye on what their GPU does while idling. However, numbers you see online about other people’s temps won’t say much.
Why?
Well, because each system is a different story. For instance, people have different airflows in their case, different software and apps, and maybe someone has a different GPU manufacturer. Heck, maybe they have the same model as you; however, there is something called silicon lottery, which says that each GPU has a slightly different microstructure.
Another very common reason why people with the same GPU can vary even 10-15C while idle is due to different fan curves. For instance, some people make a custom fan curve that enables fans at a certain temp while others leave it on default zero-fan mode.
The first guy will have a lower idle temp since his GPU fans are already working, while the latter will have higher temps since fans do not start spinning until 60C on this GPU (by default).
Thanks to the TechPowerUp review, we could extract some official numbers. Here are the results:
| GPU | Average Idle Temp (°C) |
| ZOTAC GTX 1060 Mini | 33 |
| Gigabyte GTX 1060 XtremeGaming | 40 |
| ASUS GTX 1060 STRIX OC | 42 |
| MSI GTX 1060 Gaming X 3 GB | 50 |
| MSI GTX 1060 OC | 32 |
| Palit GTX 1060 Super JetStream | 42 |
| MSI GTX 1060 Gaming X | 50 |
| NVIDIA GTX 1060 FE | 35 |
Total Average Temperature: 39.5°C
As I was reading through various forums, I noticed that 1060 owners mostly report 40-45°C as their idle temperature.
Sure, some report having 60C or even more, but in most cases, it was the power management problem. Namely, most users who experience this problem have their GPU power mode set to Maximum Performance instead of Adaptive.
GTX 1650 temperature while gaming
If I had to guess, I would say this is what you truly came for, to see how 1060 performs under load. Luckily for you, we did some solid research on this. First, we wanted to find out how different GTX 1060 models perform in gaming. For that, we went again to TechPowerUp and checked what they said.
Various GTX 1060 Models’ Gaming Temperatures
| GPU | Average Gaming Temp (°C) |
| ZOTAC GTX 1060 Mini | 80 |
| Gigabyte GTX 1060 XtremeGaming | 62 |
| ASUS GTX 1060 STRIX OC | 63 |
| MSI GTX 1060 Gaming X 3 GB | 67 |
| MSI GTX 1060 OC | 71 |
| Palit GTX 1060 Super JetStream | 74 |
| MSI GTX 1060 Gaming X | 67 |
| NVIDIA GTX 1060 FE | 77 |
Average Temp: 70°C
Benchmark 2)
Specs:
CPU: Intel Core i3-12100F 3.3-4.3 GHz 12MB
MB: MSI PRO H-610M-B DDR4 mATX
RAM: Crucial Ballistix 16GB (2×8) 3200Mhz
GPU: ASUS GTX 1060 6GB STRIX OC GDDR5
SSD: MSI Spatium m390 500GB Nvme
HDD: 2TB Seagate Barracuda + 2TB WD Blue 7200RPM
PSU: MSI MAG A550BN 550W 80 bronze
ASUS GTX 1060 6GB STRIX OC Gaming Temps
| Game | Settings | Average Temperature (°C) |
| GTA 5 | 1080p, Very High | 57 |
| CS:GO | 1080p, Very High | 58 |
| The Forest | 1080p, Very High | 60 |
| Metro Redux | 1080p, Very High | 60 |
| COD MW Remastered | 1080p, Ultra | 59 |
| Far Cry Primal | 1080p, Ultra | 58 |
| Sniper Elite | 1080p, Ultra | 59 |
| PUBG | 1080p, Insane | 56 |
| Just Cause 4 | 1080p, Very High | 59 |
| Battlefield V | 1080p, Ultra | 59 |
| Far Cry New Dawn | 1080, Ultra | 59 |
| Watch Dogs Legion | 1080p, High | 58 |
Average Temperature: 57.8°C
From the data, we can observe that the GPU maintains a relatively consistent temperature across different games and settings, with an overall average temperature of approximately 57.83°C.
Games such as The Forest and Metro Redux seem to push the GPU a bit more, reaching 60°C. On the other hand, PUBG, with its demanding Insane settings, surprisingly yields the lowest average temperature at 56°C.
In conclusion, the ASUS GTX 1060 6GB STRIX OC Gaming graphics card demonstrates stable temperature performance across various games and settings.
Benchmark 3)
Specs:
Core i5 13400F
ASUS ROG Strix Z790-E Gaming
32Gb RAM DDR5 6000MHz
CPU Cooler – be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 4
ASUS GeForce GTX 1060 6GB
SSD – 2xSAMSUNG 970 EVO M.2 2280 1TB
Power Supply CORSAIR RM850i 850W
ASUS GeForce GTX 1060 Gaming Temperatures, 1080p
| Game | Average Temperature (°C) |
| Warzone 2.0 | 63 |
| Uncharted LoTC | 61 |
| Forza Horizon 5 | 61 |
| Fortnite | 62 |
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 63 |
| Microsoft Flight Simulator | 64 |
| PUBG | 67 |
| Red Dead Redemption 2 | 59 |
| Need For Speed Unbound | 61 |
Average Temp: 62°C
GTX 1060 demonstrates fairly consistent temperature results across different games, with an overall average temperature of approximately 62°C.
PUBG appears to be the most demanding among the games tested, reaching a peak average temperature of 67°C. Conversely, Red Dead Redemption 2 exhibits the lowest average temperature at 59°C, suggesting that the GPU handles this game more efficiently in terms of thermal performance.
Laptop Benchmark)
Laptop Specs:
MSI GP 63 LEOPARD RE
CPU: I7-8750
RAM: 16 GB
FULL POWER GTX 1060 6GB
Laptop GTX 1060 Gaming Temperatures
| Game | Average Temperature (°C) |
| AC: Odyssey | 73 |
| Alan Awake Remastered | 75 |
| World War Z | 67 |
| Medium | 66 |
| No Man Sky | 72 |
| Shadow of War | 75 |
| Horizon Zero Dawn | 64 |
| Red Dead Redemption 2 | 64 |
| Control | 62 |
Average Temperature: 68.6°C
The temperatures show a certain degree of variation across different games, with an overall average temperature of approximately 68.67°C.
Among the games tested, Alan Wake Remastered and Shadow of War appear to be the most demanding, both reaching an average temperature of 75°C. On the other end of the spectrum, Control exhibits the lowest average temperature at 62°C, indicating that the GPU handles this game more efficiently in terms of thermal performance.
In conclusion, the laptop GTX 1060 graphics card demonstrates a range of temperature performance across an array of games. While some games push the GPU harder and result in higher temperatures, the overall average temperature of 68.67°C is still within an acceptable range for laptop gaming.
If we compare it to desktop benchmarks, we see that the GTX 1060 in laptops will be hotter simply because it is in laptops.
Here is when it starts to throttle
While not all, some people are interested in knowing exactly when their GPU will start dropping clock speed to lower its temps.
After some research, we concluded that GTX 1060 usually starts to throttle at 82-83°C. After that, it will slowly drop its performance. The maximum performance for GTX 1060 is 92°C.
Please note that the actual throttle temp will be slightly different as every GPU is a unique story. This is why we always recommend checking the official documentation on the manufacturer’s site.
Undervolting is something we strongly recommend doing, especially if you have a gaming laptop. For instance, my friend has undervolted his GTX 1060 on his laptop and it benefited him quite a bit. Here are the steps:
1- Launch MSI Afterburner,
2- Press CTRL + F
3- Level your curve to the frequency at 0.825V by manually adjusting each point
4- Confirm that every point is at the exact same frequency, and click apply.
5- Double-check that the curve remains level between 0.825 and 0.850V, as it may try to auto-correct itself; simply level it again if needed.
6- Press and hold shift, and starting from an empty space before 0.825V, hold the left click until the end of the curve on the right. This will enable you to change the frequency of the leveled curve. 1700 MHz is a suitable starting point.
7- Test for power limitations; if 1700 MHz causes power throttling, attempt 25 MHz lower. If there is still available power, you can try increasing the frequency, but be cautious that around 1750 MHz, crashes can occur. To go beyond this, you must exclude 0.825V from the leveled curve.
To find out more about GPU undervolting, you have to read our in-depth guide, Does Undervolting GPU Decrease Performance? Is It Safe? , which covers all you need to know to lift your GPU to the next level.