AMD Ryzen 5 9600X vs AMD Ryzen 7 9700X
AMD Ryzen 5 9600X
AMD Ryzen 7 9700X
AMD Ryzen 5 9600X and AMD Ryzen 7 9700X are effectively tied for gaming, separated by 4.9%. That gap is smaller than the run-to-run variation you would see between two identical PCs, so buy whichever is cheaper or fits the platform you already own.
AMD Ryzen 5 9600X vs AMD Ryzen 7 9700X at a glance
Each axis is scored against the better of the two, so the outer edge is always the stronger part on that measure, not an absolute scale.
- Gaming
- Single-core
- Cores
- Efficiency
- Value
AMD Ryzen 5 9600X vs AMD Ryzen 7 9700X benchmark scores
What is the difference between the AMD Ryzen 5 9600X and AMD Ryzen 7 9700X?
2 specifications separate the two processors:
- Cores 6 8
- Boost clock 5.4 GHz 5.5 GHz
Which one should you buy?
Choose the AMD Ryzen 5 9600X if
- Cheaper at launch ($279)
Choose the AMD Ryzen 7 9700X if
- More cores (8) for rendering and streaming
How many FPS do the AMD Ryzen 5 9600X and AMD Ryzen 7 9700X get?
Estimated framerates with both parts measured against the same reference graphics card (a GeForce RTX 4090), so the processor is the only thing changing. Figures are ranges, not exact numbers.
AMD Ryzen 5 9600X vs AMD Ryzen 7 9700X: full specifications and benchmarks
| Measure | AMD Ryzen 5 9600X | AMD Ryzen 7 9700X |
|---|---|---|
| Headline | ||
| Gaming score ours | 30,160 | 32,713 |
| CPU Mark | 30,016 | 34,600 |
| Faster than | 93% of 1,255 | 95% of 1,255 |
| Performance | ||
| Geekbench 6 single | 4,571 | 4,647 |
| Cores and clocks | ||
| Cores / threads | 6 / 12 | 8 / 16 |
| Base clock | 3.9 GHz | 3.8 GHz |
| Boost clock | 5.4 GHz | 5.5 GHz |
| L3 cache | 32 MB | 32 MB |
| Platform | ||
| TDP | 65 W | 65 W |
| Socket | AM5 | AM5 |
| Architecture | Zen 5 | Zen 5 |
| Process | 4 nm | 4 nm |
| Memory support | DDR5 | DDR5 |
| Integrated graphics | Radeon Graphics (2 CUs RDNA 2) | Radeon Graphics (2 CUs RDNA 2) |
| Price and release | ||
| Launch price | $279 | $359 |
| Released | 2024-08-08 | 2024-08-08 |
Which is better value?
At launch pricing, the AMD Ryzen 5 9600X delivers more benchmark performance per dollar, by about 12%. Street prices move, so check current cost before deciding: a 12% value gap disappears quickly on discount.
Will the AMD Ryzen 7 9700X bottleneck your build?
These figures hold one component constant. Your own build decides the answer: a faster processor buys nothing if the graphics card is already the limit.
How we compare processors
Benchmark scores come from PassMark, 3DMark, Geekbench and Cinebench. Our own gaming score adjusts those figures for how games actually behave: high core counts are damped, because they win productivity benchmarks without delivering proportional framerate, and AMD's 3D V-Cache is credited a premium measured against a controlled 14-CPU test set, because no PassMark figure can see stacked cache. Framerates come from our own model, built from measured GPU baselines and processor ceilings, and it declines to produce a number for hardware it does not cover rather than estimating one.