So far I’ve found no useful data on electricity consumption for MSFS on either platform. Given the way power prices have shot up in much of the world, this is something to consider. Where I live prices are very near A$0.50 per kWh so if a PC was burning 1000W then that’s 50c per hour and could add up fast.
Trying to guess actual power usage from component ratings is a waste of time because it really depends on what is running.
Having access to both PC and Xbox I decided to make some measurements to get some useful data. Therefore these numbers are actual power drawn from the wall socket on a 240V mains supply.
The systems tested are:
- Xbox series X
- PC: 7800X3D with X670E, 64GB RAM, NVIDIA 3060 12GB VRAM, Samsung 2TB NVME, 2 fan AIO cooler, 80plus gold PSU, 3 fan case. This is all running at stock voltages and clocks, no automatic or manual overclocking applied.
Both were tested with a 1080p 60Hz TV (which is not counted in the measurements) but note that frame rate will have a significant difference on power consumption.
MSFS configuration was everything standard ultra configuration on PC with TAA and frame rate locked to 30fps except where noted.
Test results
Shutdown (power off from menu)
- PC 0W
- XB 20-45W for a few minutes then 0W
Sleep from menu
- PC 4W
Idle at desktop, no apps running
- PC 75-83W
- XB 75W drops to 50W after 10s of inactivity
MSFS main menu
- PC 255W by default with no frame limit. With low power selected in MSFS settings mode and no frame limit (220fps) 135W. With low power mode and 30fps locked 90W.
- XB 140W
World map
- PC 150-200W
- XB 125-145W
Vision jet, cruise
- PC 210W. (250W with unlocked frame rate at 55fps)
- XB 175W
A310, cruise
- PC 195W. (215W unlocked 35-40 fps)
- XB 155W
PC only measurements
- NXCub 195W in low VFR cruise
- C152 195W in low VFR cruise
- Fenix v1 200W
- Drone cam watching over WSSS with FSLTL traffic 215W. (255W unlocked at 40 fps)
It’s definitely worth enabling low power mode for the menus. If anyone else can get accurate power measurements please post.