Intel Core i7-9700 vs AMD Ryzen 5 3500X

Processor comparisons   17-03-2021
   Let's say you are thinking about choosing a processor, you will be able to make a decision after reading the comprehensive tests Intel Core i7-9700 vs AMD Ryzen 5 3500X and understand which is better for games or normal use for rendering, programming, streaming, video editing, machine learning. Here is all information from real streaming and video editing tests or many benchmarks. A careful analysis of all the technical characteristics, so that it can be easier to read, is presented in the form of the table.
   From the video comparison, you can get the results of joint testing in special testing software like RealBench, PCMark 10, Gears 5, Furmark, VeraCrypt, AIDA64, Dolphin Emulator, SuperPi, Handbrake, Cinebench 23 (20, 15), WPrime, GeekBench 6, 5.2, 3DMark, Blender, MATLAB, UserBenchmark, PassMark, 7zip, Prime95, Blender, DaVinci Resolve Studio, World of Tanks enCore Benchmark.
   Gaming performance of processors in:

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

After reading the results these benchmarks and videos, you already be able to know which processor is better to buy for gaming AMD Ryzen 5 3500X or Intel Core i7-9700.

Summary benchmark results

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

Core i7-9700

54%

Ryzen 5 3500X

54%

Gaming performance
Summary result of all game benchmarks.

Core i7-9700

54%

Ryzen 5 3500X

53%

For the maximum in this test, the results of the most powerful processor in the site database are taken. 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. And if it seems to you that the selected CPU has a small 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, PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG), Monster Hunter World, Forza Horizon 4, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS GO), DOTA 2A, Metro Exodus, Microsoft Flight Simulator, Battlefield V, NBA 2K20, Resident Evil 7 Biohazard, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, Shadow of the Tomb Raider, Ghostrunner, League of Legends (LOL), Half-Life: Alyx, Hitman 3, Horizon Zero Dawn.

Gaming benchmark

Fortnite	95.8	94.1
Valorant	108.9	106.9
Cyberpunk 2077	61.0	59.9
Apex Legends	102.3	100.5
Call of Duty Warzone	81.6	80.2
Overwatch	88.2	86.6
Red Dead Redemption 2	75.1	73.8
DOOM Eternal	54.4	53.5
Warzone	84.9	83.4
Assassin's Creed	91.4	89.8
Valheim	90.3	88.7

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, 4K or FullHD. 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 compare it in one assembly with the video card that is installed in your computer.

Power consumption

Core i7-9700

61%

Ryzen 5 3500X

65%

To make a final decision 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 3500X is more energy efficient than the Core i7-9700 since it has less power consumption: 65W vs. 65W. Power consumption is especially important for laptops. Also, when choosing a processor cooling system, it will be useful to 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

For example you plan to use the processor not only for gaming, but also for programming, video rendering or video editing, streaming, machine learning, then the main parameter for you is its performance in multi-threaded mode. In this mode, the processor includes 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 make sure that the software that you are going to use on your computer can work in multi-threaded mode. Because there are still many programs that can use only one core to work, and all the advantages 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

	Intel Core i7-9700	AMD Ryzen 5 3500X
Cinbench 15 Single-core	209	188
Cinbench 15 Multi-core	1491	1129
Cinbench 20 Single-core	465	464
Cinbench 20 Multi-core	3644	2652
Cinbench 23 Single-core	1181	1126
Cinbench 23 Multi-core	8540	7797

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

	Intel Core i7-9700	AMD Ryzen 5 3500X
Single-Core	2835	2562
Multi-Core	13511	13476

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

	Intel Core i7-9700	AMD Ryzen 5 3500X
Single-Core	1195	1272
Multi-Core	7637	5963

Comparison of specifications

In the specification comparison table, the most useful will be the the possibility of overclocking it and release date of the processor. The later the processor is released, the longer it will last you. And the easier it will be to upgrade the system in the future. The same can be said about overclocking. When the processor can be overclocked, thereby increasing its performance, then it will continue to maintain maximum FPS even in the newest games. The economy are obvious! Accordingly, you do not need to buy a new CPU to enjoy the games any longer.

	Intel Core i7-9700	AMD Ryzen 5 3500X
Announcement date	April 01, 2019	September 24, 2019
Type	Desktop	Desktop
Socket	FCLGA1151-2	AM4
Core name	Coffee Lake	Matisse
Architecture	x86	Zen 2
Generation	9	3
Turbo Frequency	4.7 MHz	4.1 MHz
Frequency	3 MHz	3.6 MHz
Cores	8	6
Threads	8	6
Bus rate	8 GT/s
Bit	64	64
Lithography	14 nm	7 nm
Transistors count	5600 millions	4200 millions
Power consumption (TDP)	65 W	65 W
Memory type	DDR4-2666	DDR4
Max. Memory	128 Gb
Memory Frequency		3200
Memory bandwidth	41.6 GB/s
L1 cache		384KB
L2 cache		3MB
L3 cache	12 MB	32MB
Overclocking	Yes	Yes
Supports ECC	No	No
Part number		100-000000158 100-100000158CBX 100-100000158MPK

In this comparison block, you should pay attention to the differences in clock speed and the number of cores. Here Ryzen 5 3500X is 16% better than Core i7-9700 in terms of CPU frequency. Another difference is that Core i7-9700 has 2 more core than Ryzen 5 3500X. 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 i7-9700 is better: 28
The number of parameters for which AMD Ryzen 5 3500X is better: 8
Although it should be realized that all the data in the article above do not mean that you should be guided entirely by them and trust a simple comparison of these numbers. Better to watch the testing video and read the opinion of of people who bought Intel Core i7-9700 and AMD Ryzen 5 3500X before making a choice which processor to buy for gaming and which not.

• Intel Core i7-9700 specs and review.

• AMD Ryzen 5 3500X specs and review.