Unreal Engine 5.6 Delivers Major CPU and GPU Performance Gains Over UE 5.4, According to New Tech Comparison
A new video benchmark comparison released by MxBenchmarkPC has revealed just how substantial the performance leap is between Unreal Engine 5.6 and Unreal Engine 5.4, signaling an important step forward for developers building next-generation games with Epic’s industry-defining engine. Using the Paris Tech Demo by Scans Factory running on an RTX 5080, the test puts both engine versions under identical default settings with Hardware Lumen enabled, showcasing measurable improvements in GPU and CPU utilization, frametimes, and image quality.
Performance Boosts: What the Data Shows
The performance gains seen in UE 5.6 are not marginal. The test video demonstrates:
Up to 25% GPU performance increase thanks to improved GPU utilization and rendering efficiency. This results in higher frame rates and more consistent power draw, especially in GPU-bound environments.
Up to 35% CPU performance uplift, with greatly improved frame pacing and reduced CPU bottlenecks in CPU-limited scenarios. The improved multithreading efficiency and better hardware-level optimization appear to be key drivers.
More accurate and visually refined Lumen lighting and reflections, indicating Epic Games is refining image fidelity alongside performance.
For developers, this means not only smoother gameplay in demanding scenes but also potentially fewer compromises needed when targeting high-end visual fidelity and real-time effects.
Unreal Engine 5.6: What’s New?
Officially launched earlier this month following Unreal Fest 2025, Unreal Engine 5.6 builds on Epic’s vision of cinematic-quality real-time rendering with several impactful updates:
Hardware Ray Tracing Enhancements: Improvements to Lumen Global Illumination and Reflections performance on supported GPUs.
Faster Geometry Streaming: Designed to support massive open worlds with faster streaming of static meshes, improving load times and world traversal.
Motion Trails Redesign: A cleaner and more intuitive animation workflow for artists and animators.
Stability and Scalability Improvements: Smoother frametimes, better multithreading on CPU, and overall runtime optimization across a broader range of hardware.
These updates were showcased during the first public tech demo for The Witcher IV, further amplifying the anticipation around both the game and the engine powering it.
For the full feature set and technical breakdown, visit the Unreal Engine official website.
The Future of Gaming Looks More Fluid Than Ever
With UE5.6's robust performance upgrades and fidelity improvements, developers working on ambitious open-world games or titles using high-end visual effects have a more powerful toolbox than ever before. Combined with the growing list of AAA games like The Witcher IV transitioning to UE5, this update reinforces the engine's dominance in shaping the future of real-time rendering and immersive storytelling.
Are you excited to see how future games will harness the power of Unreal Engine 5.6? Which upcoming UE5-powered title are you looking forward to the most?
