The Best Thermal Pastes for CPU or GPU – Full Guide & Reviews for 2020

Protect Your System from the Heat Within

When building a PC or refurbishing an older one, you may want to keep some of the heat at bay. This is where thermal paste/grease or thermal compound comes in. Most tube applicators come with a small shovel to make spreading it out easier.

The purpose of this stuff is simple. You apply it between the processor and heatsink. Once applied, it transfers heat away from the CPU and into the heat sink more effectively. The heatsink can then more easily expel the heat away from your hardware. When using the CPU for gaming or other situations, this can prevent the fan from having to run as hard.

To help you discover the best thermal paste for your CPU, we have come up with our list of the 10 best thermal pastes for CPU or GPU in 2020. We hope that it helps you to make a good choice for your system.

List of the Best Thermal Pastes for CPU or GPU

1. CORSAIR TM30 Performance Thermal Paste

This CPU thermal compound is made of premium zinc oxide based thermal compound. This is designed to give you optimal performance so that it can cool your CPU and GPU. It can improve heat transfer and lower temperatures.

To use it is easy. It has an included application stencil and spreader to take the guesswork out of applying it to your CPU cooler. It can even fill microscopic abrasions and channels for peak thermal transfer. A bonus to you is it also has a long service life and is safe for you to use.

Conclusion: This easy to apply thermal paste is non-conductive and contains zero volatile compounds. It simply cools the important stuff. For that, we think it is a great option for most people. Our hope is that it works for you as well.

2. ARCTIC MX-4 – Thermal Compound Paste for Coolers

This thermal compound paste guarantees that the heat generated from a CPU or GPU is dissipated efficiently. It promises to work more effectively over time, much more effectively than metal or silicone. It is also an ideal consistency that promises to be very easy to use, even if you have never used it before.

The ARCTIC MX-4 is composed of carbon micro-particles which lead to an extremely high thermal conductivity. With this much heat dissipation, your system can be pushed to the max.

Conclusion: This thermal compound comes in an easy to use tube. You also get a spreader for it. It promises to effectively help heat leave sensitive areas of your CPU or GPU. We feel it is worth considering for most people, especially since even those who haven’t used it before, can with ease. Check out our complete guide about the best 2.1 computer speakers.

3. ARCTIC MX-2 (4 Grams) – Thermal Compound Paste

If you want a thermal compound paste that is carbon-based, this could be a good option. It works for all coolers and is a name brand that many people trust. Some say that MX paste stands for high quality, high performance, whether you are using it for CPUs or GPUs.

This stuff is safe to apply. It is metal-free and non-conductive. This eliminates the risk of a short circuit. It also has high durability because it will not compromise over time, at least not for 8-years under normal circumstances. It is also easy to apply with good consistency.

Conclusion: We feel that this should be a good option for most. We like that it can last and protect for up to 8-years. This stuff promises to be easy to use, even if you are not someone who has done it before. We feel it is worth looking at, even if it isn’t great, it is an option that should last. It deserves a place in our best thermal pastes for the CPU list.

4. Thermal Grizzly Conductonaut Liquid Metal Thermal Paste

When you want a thermal paste that can optimize thermal conductivity, this seems like a good option. It has a thermal conductivity of 73W/mk and a viscosity of 0.0021. This stuff has a temperature range of 10-C/+140-C.

The reason this works so well is that Thermal Grizzly Conductonaut is a liquid metal compound that is based on a eutectic alloy. It is all thanks to a special mix of tin, gallium, indium, and more. It is recommended that you apply it to nickel-plated copper, which will provide the most long-term stability.

Conclusion: Grizzly is a name that a lot of people trust for their CPU and GPU. For this reason, we do feel that it is worth looking at to see if it is one that you can trust as well. In our opinion, it seems like a solid choice.

5. Nabob Deals Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Cooling Compound Paste

Arctic Silver 5 contains more than 88% of thermally conductive filler by weight. This is in addition to micronized silver. It also contains zinc oxide, aluminum oxide, and boron nitride particles. With all that is in it, this stuff promises to reach a whole new level of performance and stability.

One 3.5-gram syringe contains enough compound to cover 15-25 small CPU cores. This is also enough to cover 6-10 large CPU cores or 2-5 heat plates. All you have to do is apply a layer that is 0.003-inches thick and it will cover roughly 16-square inches.

Conclusion: This stuff promises to keep CPUs 3-12-degrees centigrade lower than full load core temperatures. We feel that it is a good option for you to consider. Especially since they make it easy with a spreading tool. Our hope is that it works as well for you as Arctic Silver 5 promises.

6. Noctua NT-H1 3.5g, Pro-Grade Thermal Compound Paste

This premium-grade thermal compound is designed for optimal heat transfer from the CPU or GPU to the heatsink. They have received more than 150 awards and recommendations for this product over the years. It has 3-20 applications, depending on what you are working on.

The Noctura thermal compound is easy to apply. You do not need to spread it before the heatsink installation. You can clean it with a dry paper towel or tissue. No alcohol needed. This stuff is not electrically conductive and non-corroding. This means there is no risk of a short-circuit and it is safe to use with all heat shrinks.

Conclusion: With Noctura, you get long-term stability. It has a shelf life of up to 3-years and it can be safely on a CPU for up to 5-years. For this reason, we do believe that this is a solid choice for most people’s needs when it comes to a thermal compound. And we found it adorable enough to be on the best thermal pastes list.

7. Thermal Paste ThermalCoolFlux

You get five tubes of ThermalCoolFlux. It has a high thermal conductivity of less than 3.2 W/mk. The tubes hold 1.5-grams each and promise to be easy to use.

One thing that makes this paste stand out is that it is a silver polysynthetic thermal paste grease. It is great for CPU and GPU. It is designed to give you the cooling performance that you need.

Conclusion: ThermalCoolFlux seems like a good choice. It does all that you need it to do for your CPU and your GPUs. It provides a cooling performance that you can depend on according to most people, but as with all things: it really depends on what you need from it.

8. Thermalright TF4 Thermal Compound Paste

Thermalright thermal compound claims to be better than liquid metal. It is composed of carbon micro-particles that can lead to a very high thermal conductivity. It guarantees that any heat generated by your CPU or GPU is dissipated efficiently. This paste is also safe to use. It is metal free and non-electrically conductive. This means that there is no risk of short circuits, which protects the CPU and VGA cards.

The TF4 promises to not compromise over time. After you have applied it, you can expect it to protect your system for at least 8-years. It is easy to use, easy to apply, and lasts.

Conclusion: If you want exceptional heat dissipation, this seems like a great option. It supports the stability that you need if you want to push your system to the limit. It comes with a spatula that can spread it out easily and a tube that can be used to store what you don’t need. Definitely worth considering.

9. Silver Thermal Grease CPU Heatsink Compound Paste

With this thermal grease by JacobsParts, you get five one-ounce tubes in a single package. It has an operational temperature of -50/180-c. Their thermal conductivity is less than 3.17 W/m.k and it has a thermal resistance of more than 0.067-c-in2/w.

To use it is simple. You simply apply a generous layer of the paste over the GPU and CPU. Reattach the heatsink. Once the stuff is fully set in place, your PC fans should run less, and it should feel noticeably cooler to the touch. So we pick them up to our best thermal pastes list.

Conclusion: We like that this can cool your system down which makes it possible for you to hear less of the fan’s whine. Since most households today typically have several devices, we are also happy to see that there are multiple tubes available. It seems like a good option, reviews show that it is worth looking at, although may not work well for everyone.

10. Cooler Master High Performance Thermal Paste

This high-performance thermal compound is suitable for a variety of areas within your device. It can be used on chipsets that are on the mainboard, your VGA card, and more. It promises to be easy to use in these areas because it does produce an even layer when you use the applicator. There is a Zif Socket Template that further ensures you apply it correctly using various CPU socket types.

Cooler Master’s thermal paste uses a grease-like silicone that is filled with heat conductive metal oxides. This gives it a low bleed and high-temperature stability, even if the CPU runs up to 350-F. It has a shelf life of 24-months.

Conclusion: When you look at this product, it seems to offer a variety of benefits that make it ideal to use. Some people may not like that it is greasier than others. To know if it will work for you or not, you must decide which one you feel is going to work best for your situation. And it is also convinced us to put on the best thermal pastes list.

Final Thoughts of the Best Thermal Pastes

All CPUs can get very hot. This can damage your system and make key components work harder than they should. You have to find a way to remove that heat as quickly as possible. The purpose of thermal paste is to seal out air and make it easier for the heat sink to dissipate that heat.

Any of the options on our list of the 10 best thermal pastes for CPU or GPU in 2020 can be effective in the right situation and for the right person. They are all highly rated and promise quality. However, we urge you to choose carefully. Read the reviews from others and make sure that the one you choose has a consistency that you feel is workable for your situation. If you do this, we feel that you will enjoy the end results and how much better your system will work.