How to use a Linux CPU benchmark tool

Do you want to benchmark your CPU from the comfort of your Linux desktop? Unsure about what benchmarking tools to use or how to go about benchmarking a CPU? We can help! Follow along as we go over how to use CPU benchmarking tools on Linux!

Linux CPU benchmark tool – Geekbench

If you’re trying to benchmark your CPU on Linux, Geekbench is one CPU benchmark tool that is worth checking out. It’s a beautiful app, easy to use, and simple to get working.

To get the Geekbench application set up on your Linux system, you will need to download it from the internet. Sadly, Geekbench isn’t distributed via official software sources on mainstream Linux operating systems.

Open up a terminal window on the Linux desktop by pressing Ctrl + Alt + T on the keyboard. Or, search for “Terminal” in your app menu. After opening up a terminal window, make use of the wget command and download the latest release of Geekbench to your computer.

wget https://cdn.geekbench.com/Geekbench-5.3.1-Linux.tar.gz

After downloading the Geekbench app to your computer, you will need to extract it from it’s “TarGZ” archive. To extract Geekbench, you must make use of the tar xvf command below in the terminal window.

tar xvf Geekbench-5.3.1-Linux.tar.gz

Following the extraction, you will see a new folder with the name “Geekbench-5.3.1-Linux.” Enter this folder by making use of the CD command below.

cd Geekbench-5.3.1-Linux/

Execute the ls command to take a look at the contents of the Geekbench-5.3.1-Linux folder.

ls

Look for the “geekbench5” binary in the terminal and start it up with the command below.

./geekbench5

Once you’ve executed the command above, the Geekbench application will immediately start benchmarking your Linux PC. Sit back and allow the testing to complete. It may take a bit of time to finish.

When the Geekbench application finishes testing your Linux PC’s CPU using benchmarking tools, it will generate a report. This report is a URL link. Click on the URL link to read the report.

Want to save your report? Press Ctrl + S in your favorite web browser to save the page to your computer.

Linux CPU benchmark tool – Sysbench

Another benchmarking tool that Linux users can use on their Linux PC to benchmark their CPU is Sysbench. It’s a scriptable, multi-threaded benchmarking tool that can be used on both databases and computer systems.

Like Geekbench, the Sysbench application does not come pre-installed on any Linux operating system in the mainstream. Therefore, we must demonstrate how to install this application before showing you how to use it to benchmark your CPU.

To start installing Sysbench on Linux, open up a terminal window by pressing Ctrl + Alt + T or searching for “Terminal” in the application menu on your Linux PC.

Once you’ve got a terminal window open, follow along with the installation instructions for Sysbench that correspond with the Linux operating system that you currently use on your computer.

Ubuntu

sudo apt install sysbench

Debian

sudo apt-get install sysbench

Arch Linux

sudo pacman -S sysbench

Fedora

sudo dnf install sysbench

OpenSUSE

sudo zypper install sysbench

Once the Sysbench application is installed onto your computer, you can start benchmarking. Using the sysbench cpu command, benchmark your system. Keep in mind that in this example, we will be running the tool on 2 threads. Feel free to change this number to whatever suits your needs.

sysbench cpu --threads=2 run

The benchmarking process shouldn’t take too long. When the process is complete, Sysbench will show the results on the screen.

Linux CPU benchmark tool – Hardinfo

If you want to benchmark your CPU on Linux and don’t like the terminal, Hardinfo is for you. It’s a GUI tool with tons of different tools, including benchmarking ones.

To get started, you will need to install the Hardinfo tool on your computer. To install Hardinfo, open up a terminal window, and follow the installation instructions outlined below.

Ubuntu

sudo apt install hardinfo

Debian

sudo apt-get install hardinfo

Arch Linux

sudo pacman -S hardinfo

Fedora

sudo dnf install hardinfo

OpenSUSE

sudo zypper install hardinfo

Once Hardinfo is installed, launch it by searching for “System Profiler and Benchmark” in the app menu. Then, with the app open, locate the “Benchmarks” item in the list of choices to choose from on the left.

Underneath the “Benchmarks” area, there are several different CPU benchmarks to choose from, from CPU Blowfish, CPU CryptoHash, CPU Fibonacci, CPU N-Queens, etc.

Select a CPU benchmark tool with the mouse. As soon as you select the option, Hardinfo will begin the benchmark. When the CPU benchmark is complete, Hardinfo will display it in the window. It’s that easy!