How To Undervolt Your Steam Deck (And Why You Might Want To)

Overclocking has, for decades, been something of a rite of passage for computer geeks everywhere. Overclocking your gaming PC can push the CPU and GPU to a new level of performance beyond what the manufacturer designed it for, giving you every last drop of "bang" for your buck. Overclocking used to involve a lot of BIOS tinkering and major modifications to your cooling system, but these days, it can be done safely and conveniently through your GPU's settings and third-party apps. Steam Deck users, unfortunately, don't have that luxury; you'll have to boot from a USB to overclock your device. But what if we told you there was an easier alternative to overclocking on the Steam Deck that doesn't risk turning your beloved handheld gaming rig into a hot potato just to squeeze a few more frames out? That alternative is called undervolting.

Undervolting can be done by anyone, requires no extra software or tools, and despite what the name seems to imply, it can improve Steam Deck performance in a number of metrics. Today we're going to discuss what undervolting is, what benefits it brings, what potential risks there are, and — if you're sold on the idea — how to do it yourself. We extend a special thanks to CryoByte33, who originally introduced this concept to the Steam Deck community. We'll reference his expertise frequently throughout this article so you have a tech professional's assurance.

Unlike laptops and desktops with a separate CPU and GPU, your Steam deck has an APU. An APU is an "accelerated processing unit," a CPU with integrated graphics on a single die; APUs are common in mobile devices like smartphones where the addition of a dedicated GPU would increase the size, power requirements, and cost. Undervolting, judging by the name, is pretty self-explanatory. It's the process of providing less voltage to the APU. Pulling off the undervolting process once required booting the Steam Deck from a USB, but in the recent 3.5 update, you can do so directly from the stock BIOS.

All you're doing when undervolting is stepping the Steam Deck's various APU components down by 10-millivolt (mV) increments — feeding these components less power — then testing the Deck's performance at those new settings. If you won big in the silicon lottery, you may be able to step your Steam Deck down by as much as 50 mV. If you didn't win the lottery, you may only be able to go down to -10 mV, or you may be unable to undervolt at all. The process could take a couple of hours. Eventually, you'll reach a sweet spot where you can go no further, and then your Steam Deck will be successfully undervolted. 

Note: Undervolting is not synonymous with underclocking. Rather than slowing down your Deck, undervolting may actually make your chip perform better while using less power. 

Overclocking always carries an inherent risk since, even if done correctly, the increased stress on your processor will reduce its lifespan. Undervolting, on the other hand, is virtually risk-free, and the risk it does carry is reversible. Follow the steps carefully and methodically, of course, but rest assured that making a mistake won't brick your device. Undervolting too far could cause your Deck to experience serious performance degradation, or prevent it from booting at all. If that happens, a simple CMOS reset will restore your BIOS settings to default and your Deck will be back to the way it was before.

Using this method won't risk you needing a physical hardware repair of any sort for your Deck. That said, CryoByte33 says he is aware of one case where an undervolted Steam Deck needed an RMA from Valve — but to be clear, the user who did the RMA was "pushing the Deck way too hard." Plus, anyone with the know-how could fix it with the right tools at home, no RMA necessary.  Long story short, don't drive your Deck to its absolute limits and you will be fine. And even if you do push it too far, there will probably always be a fix available. 

DISCLAIMER: SlashGear takes no responsibility for anything that happens to your Steam Deck by following this guide.

Hit the Steam button, then Power > Shut Down . Your Deck will be fully off when the fan stops blowing. Now, hold down the Volume + button and press the power button at the same time. Let go once you see the Steak Deck logo. In the BIOS menu, head to the Setup Utility on the bottom right (use the arrow keys, not the thumbsticks) and drop down to Advanced. At the bottom, you'll see the following three options: CPU voltage offset, GPU voltage offset, and SOC voltage offset. These are your undervolting controls. They're set by default to 0 mV and allow you to decrease in -10 mV increments down to -50 mV.

Decrease one setting by -10 mV and reboot — never decrease more than that, and never for more than one setting at a time. So, for example, you'll first decrease the CPU offset by -10 mV, reboot, then decrease the GPU offset, reboot, and then SOC offset, reboot, and so on. You'll repeat this process until you get as low as your Deck can go on all settings. For now, having made the first -10 mV reduction, hit Save & Exit to reboot your Deck. It should start up just fine, but if it doesn't, you unfortunately lost the silicon lottery. Do a CMOS reset by holding Volume -, the three-dot button, and the power button all together until you see the logo.

This is the part where you hit play on that YouTube video or TV show and repeat the above steps: drop one APU component by -10 mV, reboot your system, perform a stress test, and repeat. Don't just play mindlessly; really pay attention to how stability changes after each increment. It's a good idea to keep the test consistent each time, too. For example, you could re-play the same side-mission in Cyberpunk 2077 so you're putting your Steam Deck under a uniform performance load. Inconsistent testing could possibly mislead you into thinking your Steam Deck is getting better — or worse — performance after the most recent undervolt setting change.

Testing one setting at a time isn't just to avoid bricking your system, it's so you know exactly what to revert if things go awry. It might be worth taking a picture of your Steam Deck's BIOS screen after changing each setting so you don't forget which one it was. If you're really dedicated to precision, you could even record a video of yourself playing so you can compare performance at that setting with performance during the next round of testing. Again, don't freak out if your Steam Deck crashes after an offset decrease. Calmly revert that setting or — if it doesn't boot at all — perform a CMOS reset, and you'll be back to normal.

Undervolting is worth doing for virtually any Steam Deck user, but for those who want to keep making modifications, your undervolt won't stand in the way. CryoByte33 himself says that undervolting actually makes overclocking more effective since it "saves you some power and heat, then you use that overhead to push your overclock further." If you'd rather not take the hit to your battery and your device's longevity, though, there are other settings ruining your Steam Deck experience. For AAA gamers, we highly recommend installing CryoByte33's CryoUtilities, which makes some changes to VRAM and memory swap and results in framerate improvements sometimes up to 43%. This process is easy and won't take longer than 10 minutes.

To keep your Deck nice and frosty, disable the "Updated Fan Curve" setting, which lets your fan run at higher RPMs — provided you don't mind the noise. Consider putting a frame limit on demanding games for better FPS stability. Make sure to only enable a particular setting via in-game settings or the Quick Access Menu (the three-dot button) to avoid unnecessary performance hits — so for example, disable FSR in Quick Access if it's already enabled in-game. Consider dropping the TDP for games that have minimal requirements, such as those with retro pixel graphics, to improve battery life. We've only scratched the surface, but small changes like these can add further improvements to your Steam Deck's undervolt.