When changing CPU, or just annually renewing your thermal paste as you should, it’s important to know how to clean thermal paste off a CPU. Cleaning the CPU is easy if you have the right tools for the job, otherwise it can be a mess. There are a few reasons why you would need to remove the old thermal paste, and there are even different types of thermal paste, with some being better than others.

✓ CPU Expert Top Tip

Quick tips on thermal paste cleaning

Leave the CPU in the socket when cleaning, to protect the delicate parts.
Put something down if you’re working on a surface you don’t want to get dirty.
Don’t get the thermal paste on anything you want to keep clean – it’s hard to remove.
Don’t get the thermal paste in the motherboard socket (especially LGA motherboards).
Using a little bit of alcohol goes a long way (isopropyl).
Use a lint-free wipe if you can, it really helps with clean-up.

There you have it, with those tips in mind, let’s get into all the tools you will need to clean the thermal paste off the CPU.

Tools you will need

Technically, you can probably clean the CPU with just a bare cloth, or your bare hands if you’re a madman or madwoman, but there are certainly some tools that can make life a lot easier.

You can use the following to make the job a little bit easier:

Rubbing alcohol (isopropyl alcohol)
Thermal paste removal wipe
Lint-free cloth
Cotton buds (in case you get paste in a hard-to-reach area)
Hands, with opposable thumbs

Thermal paste is very viscous, it’s also sort of sticky which makes it a pain to clean up with a conventional paper towel (do not use toilet roll). That’s why we use alcohol to thin it and make it less sticky.

How to clean thermal paste off a CPU

It’s true wat we said, once you have the right tools, cleaning thermal paste off a CPU can be easy, but there are also so many ways that it can quickly become a pain. Especially with the latest AM5 CPUs having small cavities for the thermal paste to accumulate. Intel CPUs are somewhat easier to clean.

Here’s the secret to easily cleaning a CPU, and it’s probably not what you were expecting.

Apply the correct amount of thermal paste in the first place

nine times out of 10, difficult thermal paste removal is the result of initial overapplication, which can be prevented if you apply the correct amount in the first place.

Thermal paste should be applied in a pea-sized blob right in the center if the CPU is square, like the Ryzen AM5 CPUs, or older 11th gen Intel CPUs.

If the CPU is rectangular, like the newer Intel 12th-generation CPUs, it might be more appropriate to apply thermal paste in a small line in the center of the CPU. Use roughly the same amount as a pea-sized blob, just spread it out so it more evenly distributes, instead of just spilling over the sides.

Now that you know how to properly apply thermal paste, it’ll be far easier to take off the next time you need to. The idea is to get a thin even layer of coverage over the entire IHS, not have it pouring down the sides. But that doesn’t help you right now, does it?

Apply a small amount of rubbing alcohol

As we mentioned before, a little bit of alcohol goes a long way. Appling alcohol makes the thermal paste far softer and less sticky, allowing it to wipe off more easily. You can apply the alcohol directly to the wipe you are using, that’s much easier than pouring it all over your CPU. Rubbing alcohol is non-conductive and it evaporates fast, so it’s not an issue in small quantities.

Alternatively, you can use a CPU thermal paste removal wipe, these are available from many manufacturers such as Noctua, these are basically alcohol wipes that are fiberless meaning they won’t leave a mess behind.

Wipe in small circular motions

Rather than scooping it off the edge of the CPU, which ends up coating the hard-to-clean sides, more often than not, start at the perimeter and wipe inward, with small circular motions, rotating around the CPU as you go.

It’s best to leave it in the socket for this, then you’re not in danger of scratching the bottom contact pads or damaging the pins if you’re using an older AMD CPU.

Wait for the CPU to fully dry before applying the new thermal paste

Wait for the alcohol to fully evaporate before applying a new paste. This is because the alcohol will mess with the thermal conductivity of the compound. With that being said, if you only use a little bit of alcohol, it’ll evaporate seconds after you are finished cleaning.

Why do you need to change the thermal paste on your CPU?

Old thermal paste can degrade over time and dry out, don’t get us wrong, it takes a long time, but it can happen. That then causes a decrease in thermal conductivity, making for a less effective paste. Your CPU could face overheating issues, especially if it’s an overclocked CPU.

If you’ve had random thermal shutdowns or are experiencing throttling when the CPU is under load, then it might be time to change your thermal paste or investigate your cooler.

How to get the thermal paste off the CPU sides?

What if your CPU is more paste than your CPU? Well, the port of call there is to wipe off as much as you can from the rest of the CPU, then use an alcohol-dipped cotton swab to get the thermal paste off the side. Or just mash a wipe into the cracks, it does work. If you don’t have a cotton swab, you can use tweezers wrapped in a cloth for example.

This is an intricate and time-consuming process that needs your full attention, you’re probably going to want to take the CPU out of the socket for this, to allow you better access to the sides. Just make sure you’re not working over your socket, especially with an LGA socket, because if the CPU slips and you drop it, it’s bye-bye pins and bye-bye motherboard.

How to get the thermal paste out of a CPU socket?

This is a pretty worst-case scenario, but say you have a bit of thermal paste in an LGA socket, your best bet is to use something small and sharp like tweezers to carefully lift out as much as possible. Thermal paste is non-conductive most of the time, so it’s probably not going to do much to your system if there’s a little bit in there, but we don’t want to test that.

Final word

Getting the thermal paste off a CPU is easy when you have the right tools and method to do so, as is anything. When removing paste or doing anything that can potentially be messy, it’s important to take the proper precautions. Place a mat down on your desk if you don’t want to get it messy, it’s hard to remove thermal compounds from certain surfaces.

How to clean thermal paste off a CPU: the easy hastle free way

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