The computational cost of simulating one neuron depends on the level of detail that one includes in the simulation. Extremely simple neuron models use about 1,000 floating-point operations per second (FLOPS) to simulate one neuron (in real-time). The electrophysiologically realistic Hodgkin–Huxley model uses 1,200,000 FLOPS. A more detailed multi-compartmental model would add another three to four orders of magnitude, while higher-level models that abstract systems of neurons could subtract two to three orders of magnitude from the simple models.
