The thermal design power (TDP), sometimes called thermal design point, is the maximum amount of heat generated by a computer chip or component (often a CPU, GPU or system on a chip) that the cooling system in a computer is designed to dissipate under any workload.

TDP stands for thermal design power or, depending who you ask, thermal design profile. The TDP number tells you the maximum heat a computer chip, such as a CPU or GPU, can use in watts. It also is often used as a basic indicator of power consumption. More watts equals better performance, but also higher temperatures and more power consumption.

Thermal Design Power (TDP) is a metric that is expressed in watts. It refers to the amount of power/heat a cooling system (i.e. heatsink, fan) is expected to dissipate to prevent overheating. The TDP does not typically indicate the most power the chip could ever draw, but how much it draws under real load.

CPU TDP, or Thermal Design Power, is a term that describes the maximum amount of heat generated by a CPU under normal operating conditions. It is an essential characteristic of a processor that provides valuable information for system builders, overclockers, and anyone looking to optimize the performance and longevity of their CPU.

For a CPU, TDP is a measure of the maximum amount of heat that a CPU can generate and still perform within its specified temperature range. The TDP for a given CPU model is the maximum heat the processor can generate while running any workload under any conditions.