AMD Ryzen 5 3550H vs Intel Core i5-6500

Processor comparisons 17-03-2021

   If you are thinking about choosing a processor, you will be able to make a decision after reading the comprehensive tests AMD Ryzen 5 3550H vs Intel Core i5-6500 and see which is better for games or simple use for video editing, programming, machine learning, rendering, streaming. Here you can find all information from various benchmarks or real video editing and streaming tests. A thorough analysis of all the specifications, to make it easier to understand, is summarized in the table.
   From the comparison video, you can get the results of parallel examination in software tests like Gears 5, 3DMark, AIDA64, RealBench, 7zip, GeekBench 6, 5.2, Handbrake, Dolphin Emulator, Prime95, PCMark 10, Furmark, Blender, Blender, World of Tanks enCore Benchmark, SuperPi, VeraCrypt, PassMark, UserBenchmark, WPrime, Cinebench 23 (20, 15), DaVinci Resolve Studio, MATLAB.
   And how good the CPUs are in games:

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

After reading the results of joint benchmarks and videos, you already be able to know which processor is better to buy for gaming Intel Core i5-6500 or AMD Ryzen 5 3550H.

Summary benchmark results

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

Ryzen 5 3550H

52%

Core i5-6500

51%

This parameter shows the performance of the processors in single-threaded and multi-threaded mode. In this comparison, Ryzen 5 3550H is 1% better than Core i5-6500. The data source is several popular tests. Detailed information can be found below.

Gaming performance
Summary result of all game benchmarks.

Ryzen 5 3550H

51%

Core i5-6500

51%

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 run games. Because the cost of this processor reaches several tens of thousands of dollars. Therefore, if you think that the selected CPU has a small game result, just look at the FPS that it produces in real games in the summary table below.
List of other games in which CPU comparisons were performed: The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, Control, Monster Hunter World, Half-Life: Alyx, PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG), League of Legends (LOL), Metro Exodus, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS GO), Microsoft Flight Simulator, Horizon Zero Dawn, Shadow of the Tomb Raider, Ghostrunner, Resident Evil 7 Biohazard, DOTA 2A, Battlefield V, NBA 2K20, Hitman 3, Forza Horizon 4.

Gaming benchmark

Fortnite	91.4	91.4
Valorant	103.9	103.9
Cyberpunk 2077	58.2	58.2
Apex Legends	97.7	97.6
Call of Duty Warzone	77.9	77.9
Overwatch	84.2	84.1
Red Dead Redemption 2	71.7	71.7
DOOM Eternal	51.9	51.9
Warzone	81.0	81.0
Assassin's Creed	87.3	87.3
Valheim	86.2	86.2

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 video cards and different amounts of RAM. But users also tested them at different screen resolutions: 2K, 4K or FullHD. Therefore, 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 5 3550H

84%

Core i5-6500

51%

To make a final choice on which processor is better, you should also consider the generation of its core. It is clear that the newer the generation, the better the performance of the processor in games and benchmarks, as well as its energy efficiency. In this case the Ryzen 5 3550H is more energy efficient than the Core i5-6500 as it consumes less power: 35W vs. 65W. Power consumption is particularly important for laptops. Also, when choosing a processor cooling system, you must know its TDP. You need to buy a cooler that has the TDP data specified in the specification was 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 streaming, programming, machine learning, video editing or video rendering, then the main parameter for you is its performance in multi-threaded mode. In this mode, the processor uses all threads and cores that it has to the maximum to reach maximum performance. You will find out this data from the benchmark tables below. Before using the data from these tests, be sure to find out whether the program that you are going to use on your computer can work in multi-threaded mode. Since there are still many programs that use only one core to run, and all the benefit of multi-core mode turns out to be unnecessary.

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

	AMD Ryzen 5 3550H	Intel Core i5-6500
Cinbench 15 Single-core	141	153
Cinbench 15 Multi-core	742	565
Cinbench 20 Single-core	360	354
Cinbench 20 Multi-core	1660	1299
Cinbench 23 Single-core	945	842
Cinbench 23 Multi-core	4442	2928

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

	AMD Ryzen 5 3550H	Intel Core i5-6500
Single-Core	2129	2149
Multi-Core	8087	5644

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

	AMD Ryzen 5 3550H	Intel Core i5-6500
Single-Core	890	1004
Multi-Core	3362	3346

Comparison of specifications

In the specification comparison table, the processor release date and overclocking capability will be the most helpful. The later the processor is released, the longer it will last you. And the easier it will be to upgrade the system later. The same can be said about overclocking. If the processor can be overclocked, increasing its performance, then it will still be able to produce maximum FPS in new games. It turns out that you do not need to buy a new CPU to enjoy the games any longer. The economy are obvious!

	AMD Ryzen 5 3550H	Intel Core i5-6500
Announcement date	February 07, 2019	April 01, 2015
Type	Laptop	Desktop
Socket	FP5	LGA 1151
Core name	Picasso	Skylake
Architecture	Zen+	x86
Generation	3	6
Turbo Frequency	3.7 MHz	3.6 MHz
Frequency	2.1 MHz	3.2 MHz
Cores	4	4
Threads	8	4
Bus rate		8 GT/s
Bit	64	64
Lithography	12 nm	14 nm
Transistors count	4200 millions	1760 millions
Power consumption (TDP)	35 W	65 W
Memory type		DDR4-1866/2133, DDR3L-1333/1600 @ 1.35V
Max. Memory		64 Gb
Memory Frequency	2400
Memory bandwidth		34.1 GB/s
L1 cache	384KB
L2 cache	2MB
L3 cache	4MB	6 MB
Overclocking	No	Yes
Supports ECC	No	No
Part number	YM3500C4T4MFG n/a

In this comparison block, you should pay attention to the differences in clock speed and the number of cores. Here Core i5-6500 is 34% better than Ryzen 5 3550H in terms of CPU frequency. 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 5 3550H is better: 18
The number of parameters for which Intel Core i5-6500 is better: 10
Although it should be understood that all the data in the text above do not mean that taking them into account you should fully trust a simple comparison of these numbers. Better to watch the testing video and read the reviews of real owners of AMD Ryzen 5 3550H and Intel Core i5-6500 before making a choice which processor to buy for gaming and which not.

• AMD Ryzen 5 3550H specs and review.

• Intel Core i5-6500 specs and review.