Do CPUs wear out? How many years does a CPU last?

The CPU is the most important part of any device, not just computers, it determines how good or fast this computer will run or process stuff, no wonder it’s the most expensive part of all parts along with the GPU, in this article we are going to answer this question: Do CPUs wear out?

How many years does a CPU last?

A lot of people will say different answers but the most acceptable answer is at least 10 years if not longer, of course, there are a lot of factors that determine the lifespan of your CPU such as usage and heat, but as long as you keep it cool and under good conditions you should have no problem. 

Do CPUs wear out?

The answer is pretty easy and logical too, all electronic components wear out when used excessively or for a long time, same thing applies to CPUs, you can find them anywhere, not just inside computers, but phones or any device that needs calculations or logical comparisons in order to work properly. 

Factors that determine the lifespan of a CPU

Overclocking (OC)

Most gamers like to overclock their CPUs, which means their CPU will draw more current and voltage in order to increase the speed, unfortunately, that comes with a price, heat, more heat shortens the lifespan of a CPU but they’re also aware of that point and ready to sacrifice it to get more FPS. 

Heat

Heat, in general, affects the lifespan of any component, not just the CPU, bad airflow or running high-end games or software for a long time heat up the CPU, the exact opposite which is running light software that doesn’t use the CPU’s full power will make it cool and last longer. 

Thermal Paste

There are a lot of types of thermal pastes, its job is to conduct the heat from the CPU to the heat-sink, after some time you need to replace it with a really good one to keep your CPU running smoothly. 

CPU Fan

Some CPU fans stop working because of lack of lubrication or because they don’t get enough power to run quickly, if your fan stops frequently or runs slowly that could affect your CPU greatly. 

Motherboard and Power Supply

If your motherboard is bad or failing it might destroy your CPU, additionally, if your power starts to fail the CPU might experience surges in voltage which can destroy it. 

How to Monitor your CPU’s temperature

In order to keep your CPU cool, you need to monitor its temperature first during running both low-end and high-end games or programs, one software that I could recommend is Open Hardware Monitor, it doesn’t only monitor the CPU’s temperature but also the hard disk, GPU, fan speed and more.

Conclusion

You shouldn’t think too much about if your CPU will wear out soon or not, it’s very unlikely to happen because most people or gamers tend to upgrade their computers every few years to keep up with the new games being released every year.