Intel Core i5-12600KF vs AMD Ryzen 9 3950X

Processor comparisons 11-01-2022

   Let's say there are difficulties with the choice of a CPU, you will solve them by reading the detailed tests Intel Core i5-12600KF vs AMD Ryzen 9 3950X and decide which is better for games or simple use for programming, streaming, video editing, machine learning, rendering. Here is useful information from different benchmarks or real video editing and streaming tests. A step-by-step analysis of all the specifications, so that it can be easier to understand, is made by the table.
   From the video comparison, you can get the results of joint testing in software tests such as PassMark, World of Tanks enCore Benchmark, SuperPi, PCMark 10, 3DMark, Prime95, Blender, DaVinci Resolve Studio, Dolphin Emulator, Cinebench 23 (20, 15), Blender, Furmark, MATLAB, VeraCrypt, Handbrake, RealBench, GeekBench 6, 5.2, 7zip, WPrime, UserBenchmark, AIDA64, Gears 5.
   Gaming performance of CPUs in:

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

After looking at the data of joint benchmarks and videos, you already be able to know which CPU is better to buy for gaming AMD Ryzen 9 3950X or Intel Core i5-12600KF.

Summary benchmark results

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

Core i5-12600KF

61%

Ryzen 9 3950X

61%

Gaming performance
Summary result of all game benchmarks.

Core i5-12600KF

58%

Ryzen 9 3950X

58%

The maximum result in this parameter is 100 percent, which is the performance of the most powerful processor at the moment. And of course, this is a server processor, on which no one will play games. Because this processor costs 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 processors were compared: Resident Evil 7 Biohazard, Battlefield V, Forza Horizon 4, PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG), Horizon Zero Dawn, Ghostrunner, Shadow of the Tomb Raider, League of Legends (LOL), The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, NBA 2K20, Metro Exodus, Control, Monster Hunter World, DOTA 2A, Microsoft Flight Simulator, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS GO), Half-Life: Alyx, Hitman 3.

Gaming benchmark

Fortnite	102.9	103.7
Valorant	117.0	117.9
Cyberpunk 2077	65.5	66.0
Apex Legends	110.0	110.8
Call of Duty Warzone	87.7	88.4
Overwatch	94.8	95.5
Red Dead Redemption 2	80.7	81.3
DOOM Eternal	58.5	58.9
Warzone	91.2	91.9
Assassin's Creed	98.3	99.0
Valheim	97.1	97.8

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 comparing not only were the equipped with different amounts of RAM and different video cards. But users also tested them at different screen resolutions: 2K, FullHD or 4K. So 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

Core i5-12600KF

57%

Ryzen 9 3950X

40%

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 i5-12600KF is more energy efficient than the Ryzen 9 3950X as it consumes less power: 125W vs. 105W. Power consumption is particularly important for laptops. And TDP should be taken into account when choosing a processor cooling system. 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

If you want to use the processor not only for gaming, but also for machine learning, streaming, video editing or video rendering, programming, then the main parameter for you is its performance in multi-threaded mode. In this mode, to achieve maximum performance, the processor uses all threads and cores 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 check whether the software you are going to use on your computer supports multi-threaded mode. Because there are still many programs that 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

	Intel Core i5-12600KF	AMD Ryzen 9 3950X
Cinbench 15 Single-core	485	217
Cinbench 15 Multi-core	3543	3897
Cinbench 20 Single-core	1161	531
Cinbench 20 Multi-core	8045	9148
Cinbench 23 Single-core	2715	1371
Cinbench 23 Multi-core	26517	24050

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

	Intel Core i5-12600KF	AMD Ryzen 9 3950X
Single-Core	6362	2718
Multi-Core	37124	39170

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

	Intel Core i5-12600KF	AMD Ryzen 9 3950X
Single-Core	2144	1286
Multi-Core	14653	15407

Comparison of specifications

In the specification comparison table, the processor release date and overclocking capability will be the most helpful. The newer the processor, the longer it will last in your computer. And the easier it will be to upgrade the system later. The same can be said about overclocking. When the processor can be overclocked, increasing its performance, then it will still be able to produce maximum FPS in new games. Accordingly, there is no longer a need to buy a new CPU to enjoy the games any longer. The economy are obvious!

	Intel Core i5-12600KF	AMD Ryzen 9 3950X
Announcement date	January 07, 2022	October 01, 2019
Type	Desktop	Desktop
Socket	FCLGA1700	AM4
Core name	Alder Lake	Matisse
Architecture	x86	Zen 2
Generation	12	3
Turbo Frequency	4.9 MHz	4.7 MHz
Frequency	3.6 MHz	3.5 MHz
Cores	10	16
Threads	16	32
Bus rate	8 GT/s
Bit	64	64
Lithography	7 nm	7 nm
Transistors count	10200 millions	7800 millions
Power consumption (TDP)	125 W	105 W
Memory type	Up to DDR5 4800 MT/s Up to DDR4 3200 MT/s	DDR4
Max. Memory	128 Gb
Memory Frequency		3200
Memory bandwidth	76.8 GB/s
L1 cache		1MB
L2 cache	9.5 MB	8MB
L3 cache	20 MB	64MB
Overclocking	No	Yes
Supports ECC	No	No
Part number		100-000000051 100-100000051WOF

In this comparison block, you should pay attention to the differences in clock speed and the number of cores. Here Core i5-12600KF is 2% better than Ryzen 9 3950X in terms of CPU frequency. Another difference is that Ryzen 9 3950X has 6 more core than Core i5-12600KF. Also keep in mind that high CPU frequency affects battery life through power consumption (relevant for laptops).

Result:
The number of parameters for which Intel Core i5-12600KF is better: 15
The number of parameters for which AMD Ryzen 9 3950X is better: 22
Although it should be realized that all the number that you have looked at here do not mean that taking them into account you should entirely trust a simple comparison of these figures. Better to watch benchmarks video and read the opinion of real owners of Intel Core i5-12600KF and AMD Ryzen 9 3950X before making a selection which CPU to buy for gaming and which not.

Intel Core i5-12600KF - all data

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

• Intel Core i5-12600KF specs and review.

• AMD Ryzen 9 3950X specs and review.