The Windows Experience Index was a handy benchmark score that users of Windows Vista through Windows 7 could use to gauge the performance of their PC. While more comprehensive
benchmarks for Windows PC performance exist, the Windows Experience
Index score could help users quickly identify if any particular
components or capabilities of their PC were acting as a performance
bottleneck.
The user-facing side of the Windows Experience Index score went away
with the launch of Windows 8, but the core tool that measured the WEI
score, the Windows System Assessment Tool (WinSAT),
remains to this day, even in Windows 10. This tool can still generate a
Windows Experience Index score for a user’s processor, memory,
graphics, and disk performance, and these scores can be read by certain
applications to ensure compatibility with a user’s PC. The original Windows Experience Score in Windows Vista
For Windows 10 users who still want to easily see their PC’s Windows
Experience Index score, this data can be accessed in several different
ways.
Manually Run WinSAT to Generate XML Files
The first way to see your Windows Experience Index score in Windows
10 is to manually run the WinSAT command. Launch the Command Prompt (or PowerShell) and enter the following command:
winsat formal
This will execute the Windows System Assessment Tool and benchmark
your system’s CPU, memory, 2D and 3D graphics, and storage speed. Just
sit back and let the test finish; the time it takes to complete will
depend on the speed of your PC’s components.
When it’s done, you can find the results in
C:\Windows\Performance\WinSAT\DataStore. Find the XML file containing
the name “Formal.Assessment.” If you’ve never run the WinSAT command,
the file will be designated “Initial.” If it has been run before, however, the results of the current test will be in the file labeled “Recent.”
You can open the Formal.Assessment XML file in a web browser or your
favorite XML viewer. The results aren’t formatted nicely like the old
Windows Experience Index score, but you can still get the relevant
scores. Just scroll down a little bit at the beginning of the XML file
and find the section labeled WinSPR.
There, you’ll see the total score for each category, with
“SystemScore” representing your overall Windows Experience Index score.
Use a Third Party Windows Experience Index Replacement
Instead of manually generating WinSAT’s XML files and having to comb
through them, you can turn to a number of third party replacements that
replicate the original functionality of the Windows Experience Index.
These tools still run the WinSAT command, but they then format the
results in a simple and easy to use interface.
As mentioned, there are a number of tools that offer this
functionality, some of questionable quality. One of our favorites is the
WEI Tool from Winaero.
It’s free, portable (i.e., doesn’t require installation), and it’s from
the same group that makes lots of other safe and useful Windows
utilities.
Just download the tool from the Winaero website, extract the ZIP
file, and run WEI.exe. Run (or re-run, if you’ve already performed the
WinSAT method) the system assessment, which again will take some time
depending on the speed of your PC. When it’s done, you’ll see your
results listed by category, along with your overall system score, just
like how the original Windows Experience Index score appeared in earlier
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