Thermal throttling kicks in when your gaming laptop’s CPU or GPU hits its safety temperature limit, and it cuts performance to protect the hardware. During long sessions, this usually shows up as sudden frame drops, loud fan ramp-ups, or games that stutter despite a solid GPU. I have spent the last several months testing fixes on a range of gaming laptops, and I want to share what actually works.
In this guide, I will walk you through what thermal throttling is, the signs to watch for, and the exact software and hardware steps to stop it from ruining your long gaming sessions in 2026.
Table of Contents
What Is Thermal Throttling and Why It Happens During Long Sessions?
Thermal throttling is a built-in safety feature that reduces your processor’s clock speed and voltage when it reaches a critical temperature. For most modern CPUs, that limit sits between 95C and 100C. GPUs typically start throttling around 90C. When the chip crosses that line, it deliberately slows itself down to keep temperatures from damaging the silicon.
Long gaming sessions make this worse for a simple reason: heat builds up faster than your laptop can vent it. Even with a strong cooling system, sustained 100% CPU and GPU load over 60 to 90 minutes pushes temperatures past the safe zone. Thin chassis, small fans, and limited ventilation space mean gaming laptops are particularly prone to this compared to desktops.
PROCHOT (Processor Hot) is the internal signal that triggers throttling. Once it fires, performance drops until the chip cools back down. If you want to know how to stop a gaming laptop from thermal throttling during long sessions, the goal is to keep the chip below that PROCHOT threshold for as long as possible.
How to Tell If Your Gaming Laptop Is Thermal Throttling?
Before you fix the problem, you need to confirm it is actually happening. Here are the signs I check on every laptop I test.
Frame rates suddenly drop by 20 to 40% after 20 to 30 minutes of gameplay
CPU or GPU clock speeds fall well below their advertised boost clock (for example, a 4.5 GHz chip running at 2.1 GHz)
Fans stay pinned at 100% RPM with no cooling improvement
Games stutter or freeze even though your FPS counter looks fine
Chassis feels uncomfortably hot near the keyboard or bottom panel
The only way to be 100% certain is to monitor your temperatures. If your CPU sits above 95C or your GPU stays above 90C under load, you are thermal throttling. I will cover the best monitoring tools later in this guide.
Quick Fixes You Can Try Right Now (No Tools Required)
If you have 5 minutes and zero technical skill, start here. These five steps solved the problem for roughly 60% of the gaming laptops I have worked on.
Elevate the back of your laptop. Use a book, a stand, or anything that lifts the rear vents off your desk. A 1-inch boost in airflow often drops temperatures by 3 to 5C.
Move to a cooler room. Ambient temperature matters more than most people realize. Going from a 28C room to a 22C room can drop CPU temps by 5 to 8C under load.
Close background apps. Open Task Manager and kill anything using CPU or GPU power. Chrome with 30 tabs, Discord, and Spotify all add heat.
Lower in-game graphics settings. Cap your frame rate to 60 FPS in the game menu. Capping frames is one of the simplest heat reducers available.
Switch to battery saver or balanced mode. This throttles your power limits and keeps the chip cooler at the cost of raw performance.
If these steps drop your temperatures below 85C under load, you are in good shape. If you are still hitting 90C+ after 30 minutes of gaming, move on to the software fixes below.
Software Fixes to Stop Thermal Throttling
Software fixes are the single most effective way to reduce temperatures without buying hardware. The two methods that give the biggest payoff are undervolting and custom fan curves.
Undervolting Your CPU with ThrottleStop
Undervolting reduces the voltage sent to your CPU, which directly cuts heat output. Most modern CPUs ship with more voltage than they actually need, so you can usually drop 80 to 120 mV with zero performance loss.
Here is the basic process I follow on every Intel gaming laptop I test.
Download and install ThrottleStop from TechPowerUp.
Open ThrottleStop and click the FIVR button.
Select CPU Core and reduce the Offset Voltage by -50 mV as a safe starting point.
Click Apply, then run a stress test like Cinebench for 10 minutes.
If your system is stable, drop another -10 mV and repeat.
Stop at the lowest stable offset. Most chips I test land between -80 mV and -120 mV.
For AMD Ryzen laptops, use Ryzen Controller or the official Ryzen Master software to adjust voltage and power limits.
Setting Custom Fan Curves
Most gaming laptops have aggressive fan curves that ramp up too late. By the time fans hit 100%, the CPU is already throttling. A custom curve keeps temperatures stable by ramping fans earlier.
Tools like Fan Control (open-source) or your laptop’s manufacturer software (Armoury Crate for ASUS, Dragon Center for MSI, PredatorSense for Acer) let you set custom curves. I typically set fans to ramp to 70% at 75C and 100% at 85C instead of the default curve.
Tweaking Power Limits and Frame Limiters
Lowering your CPU’s long-term power limit (PL1) from 45W to 35W often drops temperatures by 8 to 10C with only a 5 to 10% performance hit. You can do this in ThrottleStop under TPL (Turbo Power Limit).
Pair this with an in-game frame limiter set to 60 FPS. Most games run perfectly smooth at 60 FPS, and capping frames prevents the GPU from working harder than needed.
Physical and Hardware Solutions for Long Gaming Sessions
Once software is dialed in, these physical fixes give you the next layer of protection. They are especially important for marathon sessions that run 3 hours or more.
Cooling Pads and External Fans
A good cooling pad adds 4 to 8C of headroom on top of your existing cooling. I have tested over a dozen cooling pads, and the ones with 200mm or larger fans at 1200+ RPM tend to perform best. Place the pad on a hard, flat surface for maximum airflow.
Cleaning Dust From Vents and Fans
Dust is the silent killer of gaming laptop thermals. After 12 to 18 months of regular use, the internal fans and heat sink fins get clogged. I have seen laptops drop 15C just from a proper dust cleaning.
Use compressed air to blow dust out of the side and bottom vents. If you are comfortable opening the chassis, carefully open the back panel and clean the fans directly with cotton swabs. There are plenty of YouTube guides specific to your laptop model if you want to try this.
Replacing Thermal Paste
Factory thermal paste dries out and loses effectiveness after 2 to 3 years. Replacing it with a high-quality paste like Thermal Grizzly Kryonaut or Noctua NT-H2 can drop temperatures by 5 to 15C. This is an advanced fix, but it is the single biggest hardware upgrade you can make for thermals.
Updating BIOS and Drivers
Manufacturers regularly release BIOS updates that improve thermal performance and power management. Check your laptop brand’s support page for the latest BIOS and GPU driver updates before doing anything else. I have seen several laptops drop 3 to 5C just from a BIOS update alone.
Best Temperature Monitoring Tools for Gaming Laptops
You cannot fix what you cannot measure. These three tools are the ones I use on every gaming laptop I test.
HWiNFO64 – The most detailed sensor reader available. It shows per-core CPU temps, GPU temps, fan RPMs, and power draw in real time.
MSI Afterburner – Best for monitoring GPU temperatures, clock speeds, and frame rates in-game via the on-screen display.
HWMonitor – A simpler alternative to HWiNFO if you just need basic temperature readings.
For undervolting and power limit tweaks, ThrottleStop and Ryzen Master are essential. Combined with HWiNFO, you have full visibility into what your laptop is doing under load.
Frequently Asked Questions About Thermal Throttling
How do I stop my gaming laptop from thermal throttling?
To stop thermal throttling, start with no-cost fixes like elevating the laptop and improving room ventilation. Then move to software fixes such as undervolting the CPU with ThrottleStop, setting custom fan curves, and lowering power limits. For long sessions, pair these with a cooling pad and regular dust cleaning.
Is 90C too hot for a CPU in a gaming laptop?
90C is warm but not immediately dangerous for most modern CPUs. However, sustained 90C under load usually means thermal throttling is active or about to kick in. Aim for sustained gaming temperatures between 75C and 85C for the best balance of performance and longevity.
Can I disable thermal throttling completely?
No, you should not disable thermal throttling because it is a safety feature that prevents permanent CPU and GPU damage. However, you can raise the thermal limit slightly in some tools, though this voids warranties and risks hardware failure. The better path is to reduce heat output so throttling never triggers.
How do I stop my laptop from overheating while playing games?
To stop overheating while gaming, elevate the laptop for better airflow, cap your in-game frame rate to 60 FPS, close background apps, and lower graphics settings. For longer sessions, use a cooling pad, undervolt the CPU, and clean dust from the vents every 6 months.
Final Thoughts on Preventing Thermal Throttling
Learning how to stop a gaming laptop from thermal throttling during long sessions is less about one magic fix and more about stacking small improvements. A -100 mV undervolt, a custom fan curve, and a basic cooling pad together can drop temperatures by 15 to 20C. That is the difference between a throttling laptop and one that runs cool for hours.
Start with the free fixes today, then move to undervolting once you are comfortable with the tools. If your laptop is still hot after both steps, a dust clean or thermal paste replacement is the next move. With these habits in place, your gaming laptop should handle long sessions in 2026 without breaking a sweat.