AMD Ryzen 9 5900 vs Intel Core i3-12100

Processor comparisons 04-02-2023

   If you are thinking about choosing a processor, you will be able to make a choice after reading the detailed tests AMD Ryzen 9 5900 vs Intel Core i3-12100 and see which is better for games or simple use for video editing, streaming, rendering, machine learning, programming. Here is all information from several benchmarks or real streaming and video editing tests. A step-by-step analysis of all the specifications, so that it can be easier to read, is made by the table.
   From the video comparison, you can get the results of joint testing in special test applications such as WPrime, 7zip, DaVinci Resolve Studio, Handbrake, VeraCrypt, Furmark, 3DMark, Cinebench 23 (20, 15), Dolphin Emulator, World of Tanks enCore Benchmark, MATLAB, Prime95, UserBenchmark, Gears 5, GeekBench 6, 5.2, AIDA64, PassMark, SuperPi, Blender, Blender, PCMark 10, RealBench.
   Gaming performance of CPUs in:

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

After reading the results these benchmarks and videos, you already be able to figure out which CPU is better to buy for gaming Intel Core i3-12100 or AMD Ryzen 9 5900.

Summary benchmark results

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

Ryzen 9 5900

62%

Core i3-12100

56%

This parameter shows the performance of the processors in single-threaded and multi-threaded mode. In this comparison, Ryzen 9 5900 is 9% better than Core i3-12100. The data source is several popular tests. Detailed information can be found below.

Gaming performance
Summary result of all game benchmarks.

Ryzen 9 5900

59%

Core i3-12100

54%

The maximum result in this parameter is 100 percent, which is the performance of the most powerful processor at the moment. 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 low game result, just look at the FPS that it produces in real games in the final table below.
List of other games in which processors were compared: Metro Exodus, NBA 2K20, Microsoft Flight Simulator, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, Control, Monster Hunter World, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS GO), League of Legends (LOL), Hitman 3, DOTA 2A, Ghostrunner, Resident Evil 7 Biohazard, Shadow of the Tomb Raider, Battlefield V, Forza Horizon 4, Horizon Zero Dawn, Half-Life: Alyx, PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG).

Gaming benchmark

Fortnite	103.8	96.0
Valorant	118.0	109.1
Cyberpunk 2077	66.1	61.1
Apex Legends	110.9	102.6
Call of Duty Warzone	88.5	81.8
Overwatch	95.6	88.4
Red Dead Redemption 2	81.4	75.3
DOOM Eternal	59.0	54.6
Warzone	92.0	85.1
Assassin's Creed	99.1	91.7
Valheim	97.9	90.6

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 participating in the comparisons not only were the equipped with different video cards and different amounts of RAM. But users also tested them at different screen resolutions: 2K, FullHD or 4K. Therefore, the game benchmark data is approximate. But all video cards met the average system requirements of games. To be sure exactly how much performance 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 9 5900

89%

Core i3-12100

96%

To make a finishing choice 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 Core i3-12100 is more energy efficient than the Ryzen 9 5900 since it has less power consumption: 65W vs. 60W. Power consumption is especially important for laptops. And TDP should be taken into account when choosing a processor cooling system. It is necessary to calculate 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 want to use the processor not only for gaming, but also for programming, streaming, video rendering or video editing, machine learning, then the main parameter for you is its performance in multi-threaded mode. In this mode, to reach maximum performance, the CPU turns on all cores and threads that it has. You will learn this data from the benchmark tables below. Before you take into account 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 work, 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 9 5900	Intel Core i3-12100
Cinbench 15 Single-core	285	267
Cinbench 15 Multi-core	3789	1958
Cinbench 20 Single-core	668	642
Cinbench 20 Multi-core	8653	4447
Cinbench 23 Single-core	1815	1503
Cinbench 23 Multi-core	23790	14658

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

	AMD Ryzen 9 5900	Intel Core i3-12100
Single-Core	3487	3516
Multi-Core	39560	20521

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

	AMD Ryzen 9 5900	Intel Core i3-12100
Single-Core	1743	1740
Multi-Core	15530	7859

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 in your computer. And the easier it will be to upgrade the system in the future. The same can be said about 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 9 5900	Intel Core i3-12100
Announcement date	January 12, 2021	January 07, 2022
Type	Desktop	Desktop
Socket	AM4	FCBGA1744
Core name	Vermeer	Alder Lake-U
Architecture	Zen 3	x86
Generation	4	12
Turbo Frequency	4.7 MHz	4.3 MHz
Frequency	3 MHz	1 MHz
Cores	12	4
Threads	24	8
Bus rate		8 GT/s
Bit	64	64
Lithography	7 nm	7 nm
Transistors count	9400 millions	9800 millions
Power consumption (TDP)	65 W	60 W
Memory type	DDR4	Up to DDR5 4800 MT/s Up to DDR4 3200 MT/s
Max. Memory		128 Gb
Memory Frequency	3200
Memory bandwidth		76.8 GB/s
L1 cache
L2 cache	6MB	5 MB
L3 cache	64MB	12 MB
Overclocking	Yes	No
Supports ECC	No	No
Part number	100-000000062

In this comparison block, you should pay attention to the differences in clock speed and the number of cores. Here Ryzen 9 5900 is 66% better than Core i3-12100 in terms of CPU frequency. Another difference is that Ryzen 9 5900 has 8 more core than Core i3-12100. 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 9 5900 is better: 28
The number of parameters for which Intel Core i3-12100 is better: 8
Although it should be understood that the summary data in the table above do not mean that taking them into account you should totally trust a simple comparison of these figures. Be sure to watch benchmarks video and read the opinion of of people who bought AMD Ryzen 9 5900 and Intel Core i3-12100 before making a choice which of the CPUs to buy for gaming.

• AMD Ryzen 9 5900 specs and review.

Intel Core i3-12100 - all data

• Cinebench r15 score
• Cinebench r20 score
• Cinebench r23 score
• GeekBench 6, 5.2 score

• Intel Core i3-12100 specs and review.