AMD Ryzen 7 3800X vs AMD Ryzen 5 2600

Processor comparisons 17-03-2021

   If you are thinking about choosing a processor, you will be able to make a choice after reading the full tests AMD Ryzen 7 3800X vs AMD Ryzen 5 2600 and understand which is better for games or normal use for rendering, programming, machine learning, streaming, video editing. Here is all information from real video editing and streaming tests or many benchmarks. A step-by-step analysis of all the specifications, so that it can be easier to understand, is summarized in the table.
   From the video comparison, you can get the results of joint testing in software tests such as WPrime, Cinebench 23 (20, 15), MATLAB, PCMark 10, 3DMark, VeraCrypt, SuperPi, AIDA64, DaVinci Resolve Studio, GeekBench 6, 5.2, World of Tanks enCore Benchmark, PassMark, Furmark, 7zip, RealBench, Blender, Blender, Prime95, Handbrake, Gears 5, UserBenchmark, Dolphin Emulator.
   And how good the CPUs are in games:

World of Warcraft: Shadowlands
Valheim
Apex Legends
Rainbow Six Siege
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare and Warzone
Fortnite
Red Dead Redemption 2
Valorant
Watch Dogs Legion
Last Man Standing
Borderlands 3
Cyberpunk 2077
Assassin's Creed Valhalla
Halo Infinite
Grand Theft Auto V
Fallout 76
Death Stranding
DOOM: Eternal
Overwatch

After looking at the data of joint benchmarks and videos, you can already make an informed decision about which CPU is better to buy for gaming AMD Ryzen 5 2600 or AMD Ryzen 7 3800X.

Summary benchmark results

As a percentage of the maximum value based on a sample from the entire base of all processors
Processor Benchmark

Ryzen 7 3800X

57%

Ryzen 5 2600

54%

This parameter shows the performance of the processors in single-threaded and multi-threaded mode. In this comparison, Ryzen 7 3800X is 5% better than Ryzen 5 2600. The data source is several popular tests. More detailed information of the benchmarks is below.

Gaming performance
Summary result of all game benchmarks.

Ryzen 7 3800X

56%

Ryzen 5 2600

53%

The maximum result in this parameter is 100 percent, which is the performance of the most powerful processor currently available. And it is clear that this is a server processor, on which no one will play games. Because the cost of this processor reaches several tens of thousands of dollars. Therefore, if you think that the selected CPU has a low game result, look at the FPS that it produces in real games in the final table below.
List of less popular games in which CPU comparisons were performed: Control, Half-Life: Alyx, PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG), DOTA 2A, Battlefield V, Microsoft Flight Simulator, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS GO), Horizon Zero Dawn, Forza Horizon 4, Monster Hunter World, Ghostrunner, NBA 2K20, Shadow of the Tomb Raider, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, Resident Evil 7 Biohazard, League of Legends (LOL), Hitman 3, Metro Exodus.

Gaming benchmark

Fortnite	98.9	94.8
Valorant	112.4	107.8
Cyberpunk 2077	62.9	60.4
Apex Legends	105.6	101.3
Call of Duty Warzone	84.3	80.8
Overwatch	91.0	87.3
Red Dead Redemption 2	77.5	74.4
DOOM Eternal	56.2	53.9
Warzone	87.7	84.1
Assassin's Creed	94.4	90.5
Valheim	93.3	89.5

The numbers in this table indicate the maximum FPS that was received on the device with the corresponding processor. Depending on the configuration of the computer (RAM size and Video Card) and graphics quality settings (Ultra, Medium, Normal), the results may differ quite significantly. We recommend that you better study the results of the Cinebench, GeekBench and Passmark becnmarks.
The computers that were in the comparisons not only did they have different amounts of RAM and different video cards. But users also tested them at different screen resolutions: 4K, 2K or FullHD. So the game benchmark data is approximate. But all video cards met the average system requirements of games. You will get more accurate information about how powerful the processor will be in games, if you get acquainted with the benchmarks that are made with the same video card that is installed in your computer.

Power consumption

Ryzen 7 3800X

44%

Ryzen 5 2600

56%

To make a final resolution on which processor is better, you should also consider the generation of its core. The newer the processor generation, the better its performance in games and benchmarks, as well as its energy efficiency. In this case the Ryzen 5 2600 is more energy efficient than the Ryzen 7 3800X as it consumes less power: 105W vs. 65W. Power consumption is especially important for laptops. Also, when choosing a processor cooling system, you need to know its TDP. It is necessary to count so that the TDP data specified in the cooler specification is greater than the TDP of the compared processor.

Software benchmarks

Let's say you plan to use the processor not only for gaming, but also for programming, streaming, machine learning, video editing or video rendering, then first of all you need to pay attention to the performance in multi-threaded mode. In this mode, the CPU turns on all threads and cores that it has to the maximum to achieve maximum efficiency. You will find out this data from the benchmark tables below. Before using the data from these tests, be sure to check whether the software you are going to use on your computer supports multi-threaded mode. Because there are still many programs that can use only one core to work, and all the benefit of multi-core mode are unused.

Cinebench 23, 20 an 15
The results of this benchmark show Single-threaded and Multi-threaded CPU performance

	AMD Ryzen 7 3800X	AMD Ryzen 5 2600
Cinbench 15 Single-core	209	164
Cinbench 15 Multi-core	2165	1310
Cinbench 20 Single-core	509	374
Cinbench 20 Multi-core	4960	2736
Cinbench 23 Single-core	1325	1024
Cinbench 23 Multi-core	12874	7220

Passmark
This popular benchmark displays Multi-threaded and Single-threaded processor performance

	AMD Ryzen 7 3800X	AMD Ryzen 5 2600
Single-Core	2773	2280
Multi-Core	23436	13255

GeekBench 6, 5.2
This benchmark shows Multi-threaded and Single-threaded processor performance

	AMD Ryzen 7 3800X	AMD Ryzen 5 2600
Single-Core	1393	1104
Multi-Core	10679	6712

Comparison of specifications

In the specification comparison table, the most helpful will be the the possibility of overclocking it and release date of the processor. The newer the processor, the longer it will last you. And the easier it will be to upgrade the system later. The same benefits from the presence of overclocking. If the processor can be overclocked, thereby increasing its performance, then it will continue to maintain maximum FPS in new games. The economy are obvious! It turns out that there is no longer a need to buy a new CPU to enjoy the games any longer.

	AMD Ryzen 7 3800X	AMD Ryzen 5 2600
Announcement date	July 07, 2019	April 19, 2018
Type	Desktop	Desktop
Socket	AM4	AM4
Core name	Matisse	Pinnacle Ridge
Architecture	Zen 2	Zen+
Generation	3	2
Turbo Frequency	4.5 MHz	3.9 MHz
Frequency	3.9 MHz	3.4 MHz
Cores	8	6
Threads	16	12
Bus rate		4 Ã— 8 GT/s
Bit	64	64
Lithography	7 nm	12 nm
Transistors count	4600 millions	3600 millions
Power consumption (TDP)	105 W	65 W
Memory type	DDR4	DDR4
Max. Memory
Memory Frequency	3200	2933
Memory bandwidth
L1 cache	512KB	576KB
L2 cache	4MB	3MB
L3 cache	32MB	16MB
Overclocking	Yes	Yes
Supports ECC	No	No
Part number	100-000000025 100-100000025BOX 100-100000025MPK	YD2600BBM6IAF YD2600BBAFBOX YD2600BBAFMPK

In this comparison block, you should pay attention to the differences in clock speed and the number of cores. Here Ryzen 7 3800X is 12% better than Ryzen 5 2600 in terms of CPU frequency. Another difference is that Ryzen 7 3800X has 2 more core than Ryzen 5 2600. Also keep in mind that high CPU frequency affects battery life through power consumption (relevant for laptops).

Result:
The number of parameters for which AMD Ryzen 7 3800X is better: 32
The number of parameters for which AMD Ryzen 5 2600 is better: 3
Although it should be realized that the summary data that you have looked at here do not mean that taking them into account you should completely trust a simple comparison of these numbers. Be sure to watch the testing video and read the opinion of real owners of AMD Ryzen 7 3800X and AMD Ryzen 5 2600 before making a selection which of the CPUs to buy for gaming.

• AMD Ryzen 7 3800X specs and review.

• AMD Ryzen 5 2600 specs and review.