Does overclocking harm a CPU?

[lerodemmy]

I’m going to be selling my old i7 6700K and I want to know if the fact that it has been overclocked is bad for its lifespan.  I’ve seen others selling used CPUs making sure to point out if the CPU has been overclocked or not.  Are they doing that because overclocking a CPU affects its performance long term?

[Fasauceome]

Overclocks with mild voltage and reasonable temperatures are not going to measurably affect lifespan. Higher voltage (1.4 or greater generally speaking) will degrade the CPU, and higher temps (excess of 85 Celsius) will also degrade the CPU.

[Dedayog]

Short answer: Yes, it decreases lifespan.

 

Long answer:  They last so long that even a decreased lifespan may actually be longer than anyone would use the CPU, even  decades.

 

OC that bad boy.

[Lurick]

3 minutes ago, lerodemmy said:

I’m going to be selling my old i7 6700K and I want to know if the fact that it has been overclocked is bad for its lifespan.  I’ve seen others selling used CPUs making sure to point out if the CPU has been overclocked or not.  Are they doing that because overclocking a CPU affects its performance long term?

I just want to point out that there is basically ZERO way to know if a CPU has been overclocked or not. People stating that could just as easily have beaten the crap out of it with like 1.5+V overclocks under LN2 or something. Nothing to stop them from saying it's not been since there isn't a way to prove otherwise.

[DailyProcrastinator]

Yes, long term overclocking will degrade the max frequency performance at which it can run. On my old 6700k I had to reduce clock-speeds as after 2 years it became unstable at 4.9Ghz and I did not want to increase voltage. And with my 8700k now I had to increase voltage a bit in order to sustain 5.1Ghz, but this is after 1.5 years of constant use so nothing really to concern about, consider it normal 'wear and tear', that said there is no way to really tell if a CPU has been OC'd. It is worth mentioning that under 'normal' (safe operating temps and voltages) overclocking circumstances it would have to take a substantially long time to affect the standard stock and boost clocks of the CPU, at least in the case of the 6700k unless it is a defective chip, since you were able to use it clearly that is not the issue here. 

 

3rd gen Ryzen is a different story...

[Mister Woof]

Perspective:

 

My 8700k has been at 5ghz with a delid and at 1.375v for like two years now with no issues