The CPU is the brain of your computer, and keeping it cool is essential for stable performance. While Windows 10 and 11 don’t include a built-in CPU temperature monitor, you can still check your system’s thermals easily using a few reliable methods. This guide explains how to check your CPU temperature without installing any software, using tools already available on your PC.
Why Monitoring CPU Temperature Matters:
- Prevents overheating, system lag, and unexpected shutdowns
- Helps avoid long-term hardware damage
- Ensures optimal performance during gaming and heavy workloads
Note: CPUs operate best between 40°C to 70°C. Exceeding this range may lead to performance issues or long-term damage.
Method 1: Check CPU Temperature Using BIOS/UEFI (Without Software)
This method shows your CPU temperature before Windows boots, giving you a reliable hardware-level reading.
(Before Windows Loads): This method offers a one-time reading of the CPU temperature before your computer boots into Windows.
Step 1:
- Open Settings by pressing Win + I and navigate to System > Recovery.
Step 2:
- Under Advanced Startup, select Restart now.
Step 3:
- After restarting your computer, choose "Troubleshoot" from the startup options screen.
Step 4:
- Choose Advanced options > UEFI Firmware Settings.
Step 5:
- Choose Restart.
Method 2: How To Check CPU Temperature Using Core Temp
To check your CPU Temperature Using Core Temp on Windows 11, you can follow these steps:
Step 1:
- Download Core Temp from this link.
Step 2:
- Install the app from the downloaded EXE file, but uncheck the box to prevent bloatware installation on your Windows 11 computer.
Step 3:
- Open the application. The current CPU temperature for each core will be displayed on the main screen.
Step 4:
- Core Temp adds icons to the Windows 11 taskbar system tray, allowing you to quickly check the current temperature of all CPU cores.
Method 3: How To Check CPU Temperature Using Speccy
To check your CPU Temperature Using Speccy on Windows 11, you can follow these steps:
Step 1:
- Download Speccy from this link.
Step 2:
- Install and Launch Speccy.
Step 3:
- Open the program, choose "CPU" on the left sidebar, and check the Temperature column for individual CPU core temperatures.
Method 4: How To Check CPU Temperature Using CMD
To check your CPU Temperature Using CMD on Windows 11, you can follow these steps:
Step 1:
- Click the Start button and type "cmd".
Step 2:
- Right-click on "Command Prompt" and select "Run as administrator".
Step 3:
- Type this following command on cmd window and press enter button
wmic /namespace:\\root\wmi PATH MSAcpi_ThermalZoneTemperature get CurrentTemperature
Method 5: How To Check CPU Temperature Using Intel Extreme Tuning Utility
To check your CPU Temperature Using Intel Extreme Tuning Utility on Windows 11, you can follow these steps:
Step 1:
- Go to this link and download the software
Step 2:
- Install the application
Step 3:
- After installing the application open the Extreme Tuning Utility
Step 4:
- On the left sidebar click on "System Information"
Step 5:
- On the bottom Under the CPU Temperature, You can see the temperature of your computer
