Essentials

Boosting CPU and GPU levels

Updated: Apr 8, 2026

Quest 2, Pro, 3, and 3S headsets can access additional CPU and GPU levels beyond the default range. These higher levels are available as long as ambient environmental conditions allow for sufficient cooling.

	CPU increase	GPU increase
Quest 2	25% (45% in dual-core mode)	18%
Quest 3, Quest 3S	7%	10%
Quest Pro	25% (45% in dual-core mode)	10%

CPU boost hint

Starting in v77, apps can request a short maximum-frequency CPU boost. The boost is intended for short bursts — loading screens, scene transitions, and rare CPU-intensive actions.

Constraints:

Maximum 45 seconds at a time

Available for up to 20% of your app’s total runtime

Disabled when the device is thermal throttling or battery saver mode is active

Quest devices are automatically boosted for 45 seconds at app launch, so applying a boost during that window has no effect

Dual-core mode (Quest 2 and Quest Pro only)

Dual-core mode provides higher clock speeds by reducing the app from three CPU cores to two. The thermal budget of the unused core is redistributed to the remaining cores, enabling the fastest clock speeds available.

Only enable dual-core mode if your app is bounded by single-core performance — typically when most per-frame time is spent in one long sequential update. Use Perfetto to visualize CPU core utilization and determine whether your app is a good candidate.

Requirements:

Quest 2 or Quest Pro only (Quest 3 does not support dual-core mode)

Apps must use the OpenXR backend

To enable, add the following to your app manifest:

<meta-data
    android:name="com.oculus.dualcorecpuset"
    android:value="true" />

Trading between CPU and GPU levels (Quest 3 only)

On Quest 3, you can indicate whether your app prefers to preserve CPU speed or GPU speed when the thermal governor needs to downclock processors. This is useful when your app is clearly bottlenecked by one processor type.

To configure, add the following to your app manifest:

<meta-data
    android:name="com.oculus.trade_cpu_for_gpu_amount"
    android:value="1" />

Where value is: 1 = +1 GPU level / -1 CPU level, 0 = no change, -1 = -1 GPU level / +1 CPU level.

GPU level 5

GPU level 5 requires dynamic resolution to be enabled. Dynamic resolution scales your eye buffer up or down based on available GPU headroom, preventing frame drops if the headset throttles back to GPU level 4.

Design your app to target GPU level 4 as its maximum budget. Treat GPU level 5 as a quality bonus available only when thermal conditions permit.