# ARCTIC MX-4

- Source: https://stierproducts.com/products/arctic-mx-4
- Category board: https://stierproducts.com/categories/thermal-paste
- Placement: #7 of 15 in Thermal Paste, C tier
- Brand: ARCTIC
- LP on this board: 428
- Last researched: 2026-09-23T15:48:30.930Z
- Method: https://stierproducts.com/methodology
- Dataset: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.22062813 - every board at once, one dated snapshot per release, same licence, prices and photographs left out
- Reuse: Text, rankings, tier assignments, LP values and verdicts are free to quote and reuse with attribution to stierproducts and a link to the source URL (CC BY 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Product photographs are not covered: they belong to their respective owners and are reproduced to illustrate the product being reviewed. Do not redistribute them under this licence.

## Verdict

The proven, reliable go-to that everything else gets measured against, sitting below MX-6 only because MX-6 is the newer, slightly better formula from the same stable.

## For

- Named a reliable go-to and top recommendation by a system builder
- Used as the reference point other pastes get measured against
- Bulletproof as a long-term ownership bet
- Famously long-lasting
- Even cheaper than MX-6

## Against

- Slightly behind MX-6 on raw temperatures
- Superseded formula that measures meaningfully worse than Arctic's own MX-6 and MX-7
- Superseded on paper by MX-6 and MX-7
- Counterfeit tubes are a real risk when buying from disreputable sellers
- Counterfeit Arctic pastes circulate, requiring purchase from reputable sellers

## Flagged as one to avoid

This product entered 2 of 12 runs as one buyers cross-shop but should not buy, rather than as a pick. It is published here rather than dropped.

## Evidence

Consolidated from 6 independent outlets

| Outlet | Said by | Stance | Link | Link status |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Empower Gaming Computers | - | - | https://www.facebook.com/EmpowerGamingComputers/videos/arctic-mx4-thermal-paste-my-top-recommendation/4129219134045796/ | fetched and confirmed |
| Quora | - | - | https://www.quora.com/Is-there-a-big-difference-in-performance-between-high-end-thermal-pastes-and-cheaper-options-for-everyday-gaming-use | outlet blocks automated checks |
| Prime Tech Support | - | - | https://primetechsupport.com/blogs/gaming-pc-repairs/importance-of-changing-thermal-paste?srsltid=AU7gw4WwgFpUt7LvzJRRWi6qbU-HAW29k90MSKvHf7fsklKDfp7P05rC | fetched and confirmed |
| Facebook PC Builders Community | - | - | https://www.facebook.com/groups/PcBuildersCommunity/posts/4365545347062146/ | outlet blocks automated checks |
| Reddit r/pcmasterrace | - | - | https://www.reddit.com/r/pcmasterrace/comments/1u15wj6/thermal_paste_suggestions/ | outlet blocks automated checks |
| r/PcBuild | - | - | https://www.reddit.com/r/PcBuild/comments/1tzftdt/is_there_a_difference_in_thermal_paste/ | outlet blocks automated checks |

## Nearest alternatives on this board

| Rank | Product | Tier | Page |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 2 | ID-Cooling Frost X45 | S | https://stierproducts.com/products/id-cooling-frost-x45 |
| 3 | ARCTIC MX-7 | A | https://stierproducts.com/products/arctic-mx-7 |
| 4 | Thermal Grizzly Duronaut | A | https://stierproducts.com/products/thermal-grizzly-duronaut |
| 5 | Noctua NT-H2 | B | https://stierproducts.com/products/noctua-nt-h2 |
| 6 | Thermal Grizzly Phasesheet | C | https://stierproducts.com/products/thermal-grizzly-phasesheet |
| 8 | ID-Cooling Frost X55 | C | https://stierproducts.com/products/id-cooling-frost-x55 |
| 9 | Thermal Grizzly Hydronaut | C | https://stierproducts.com/products/thermal-grizzly-hydronaut |
| 10 | Thermal Grizzly Kryosheet | C | https://stierproducts.com/products/thermal-grizzly-kryosheet |
| 11 | AG eXtreme | F | https://stierproducts.com/products/ag-extreme |
| 12 | Thermal Grizzly Kryonaut | F | https://stierproducts.com/products/thermal-grizzly-kryonaut |

The full board is at https://stierproducts.com/categories/thermal-paste.

## What this tier means

- C: Fair. Acceptable in the right situation, outclassed at its price.

## How to read this

- Each category is researched in four independent runs, one per lens (expert consensus, value, reliability, community pulse). Every run ranks a board of candidates that deliberately includes products buyers cross-shop but should avoid. Placements score on a ranked ladder (LP), and tiers are derived from LP, so no tier is ever assigned by hand.
- LP is this product's points on its own category ladder. It is comparable within a category and not across categories.
- Link status reports what our pre-publication link check found when it fetched the cited URL. It says nothing about the quality of the review.
- A citation with no usable link is listed rather than dropped, and is excluded from the counted total above.

## Image

https://stspimgdevmfyk46r5vwkay.blob.core.windows.net/images/products/arctic-mx-4.webp

Product photographs are not covered: they belong to their respective owners and are reproduced to illustrate the product being reviewed. Do not redistribute them under this licence.