AMD Ryzen 9 5900X vs Intel Core i7 12700K: Which One and Why?

The AMD Ryzen 9 5900X is a 12-core, 24-thread processor based on the Zen 3 architecture. It has a base clock speed of 3.7 GHz and a boost clock speed of up to 4.8 GHz. It also has 64 MB of L3 cache and supports DDR4 memory.

The Intel Core i7-12700K is a 10-core, 20-thread processor based on the Rocket Lake architecture. It has a base clock speed of 3.8 GHz and a boost clock speed of up to 5.0 GHz. It also has 16 MB of Intel Smart Cache and supports DDR4 memory.

In terms of performance, the Ryzen 9 5900X is generally considered to be significantly faster than the Core i7-12700K, especially in multi-threaded workloads. The Ryzen 9 5900X has a higher core count and thread count, which allows it to handle more tasks concurrently and provides a significant performance boost in heavily multi-threaded tasks such as video editing, 3D rendering, and content creation. The Core i7-12700K may still be a good choice for gaming and some other single-threaded tasks, but it is generally not as well-suited to heavily multi-threaded workloads.

Overall, the Ryzen 9 5900X is a more powerful processor that is better suited to demanding workloads, while the Core i7-12700K is a more budget-friendly option that may be suitable for some lighter workloads.

We are going to compare benchmarks and all. So, keep reading until the end.

Theoretical Specifications (Comparison)

Specification	Intel Core i7 12700K	AMD Ryzen 9 5900X
CPU Generation	12th generation Core	5th Generation core
Cores/Threads	8(P-Core)+4(E-Core) 20 Threads	12 Cores 24 Threads
Base/Boost Frequency	5 GHz	3.7 GHz/4.8 GHz
P-Core Frequency	Base: 3.60GHz Boost: 4.90 GHz	–
E-Core Frequency	Base: 2.70 GHz Boost: 3.80 GHz	–
L1/L2/L3 Cache	12 MB/- 25 MB Intel Smart Cache	-/6MB/64MB
Overclocking	Available	Available
PCIe Version	PCIe 5.0 and 4.0	PCIe 4.0
Memory Support	DDR4 (up to 3200 MT/s) DDR5 (up to 4800 MT/s)	DDR4 3200MHz
Boxed Cooling Solution	No	No
Integrated Graphics Card	Intel® UHD Graphics 770	No
Maximum Temperature	100°C	90°C

You can see that there is a difference in the operating frequency and all other things are almost similar. So, how much performance difference could these give when it comes to the real-world applications? Let’s see all that below.

Benchmark Scores (Comparison)

The single-core performance is almost similar in both CPUs. But, in multi-core benchmark tests, 12700K is the winner. You can see the multi-core GeekBench score is too high for 12700K as compared to 12700. From here, we can say that the 12700K is going to perform very well when it comes to productivity and other multi-core tasks.

Cinebench Scores (Comparison)

There is no huge difference in the Cinebench R23 performance. But,

Which one is good for gaming?

The 12700K has good single-threaded performance, which is important for many games, and it can handle demanding workloads well.

On the other hand, the AMD Ryzen 5 5900X has strong multi-threaded performance, which can be beneficial for games that can take advantage of multiple cores and threads, and it also has good single-threaded performance. So, if you want to stream along with gaming, 5900X is going to offer better results.

Overall, both processors are good options for gaming, and the best choice will depend on the specific games that you want to play and the rest of your system configuration. If you are playing games that can take advantage of multiple cores and threads, the AMD Ryzen 5 5900X may offer slightly better performance. If you are playing games that are more sensitive to single-threaded performance, the Intel Core i9-12700K may offer slightly better performance.

It’s worth noting that there are other factors that can affect gaming performance, such as the graphics card, memory, and storage, so it’s important to consider the overall system configuration when choosing a processor for gaming.

From the gaming benchmark comparison below, you can clearly see that both of the CPUs were offering almost similar performance.

Which one is good for productivity?

The Intel Core i9-12700K has good single-threaded performance, which can be beneficial for tasks that are heavily dependent on a single core, such as video editing and 3D rendering.

On the other hand, the AMD Ryzen 5 5900X has strong multi-threaded performance, which can be beneficial for tasks that can take advantage of multiple cores and threads, such as rendering and encoding.

Overall, both are going to use your system just for running heavy software, I would suggest going for the 5900X because of its great overall performance. However, 12700K is equally effective with its great P-Core/E-Core refinements. So, the latest software might be able to work efficiently with the 12700K.

Cache Difference

The Intel Core i9-12700K is a 14nm processor. It has 16 MB of Intel Smart Cache, which is a type of last-level cache (LLC) that is shared among the cores on the processor.

On the other hand, the AMD Ryzen 5 5900X is a 7nm processor. It has a total of 72 MB of cache, which is divided into four levels: 64 KB of L1 cache per core, 512 KB of L2 cache per core, and 64 MB of L3 cache shared among all cores.

Overall, the Intel Core i9-12700K has less cache than the AMD Ryzen 5 5900X, with a total of 16 MB compared to 72 MB. However, the cache size is just one factor to consider when comparing processors, and the performance of a processor also depends on other factors such as the architecture, clock speed, and the number of cores and threads.

Memory Configurations Comparison

The Intel Core i7 12700K supports both DDR4 and DDR5 memory specifications. The memory types supported by 12700K are Up to DDR5 (Up to 4800 MT/s) and DDR4 (Up to 3200 MT/s). The maximum memory bandwidth is 76.8 MB/s and the maximum memory size is 128GB.

The Ryzen 9 5900X, on the other hand, supports just up to 3200 MHz i.e. DDR4. You can again use up to 128GB of memory with the 5900X.

So, the 12700K is capable of working with a faster memory for sure. A faster memory surely leads to better performance and snappy system response. So, 12700K is coming with an advantage for high-end users with DDR5 support.

Price Difference

Which one to buy? 12700K vs 5900X

Both of the CPUs are great in terms of gaming or productivity performance. But, the price can make an impact on your purchase. By the time I am writing this article, the 5900X is around 120$ more expensive than the 12700K.

You will generally find the 12700K available at a cheaper price which completely justifies itself when we look at the performance. There is no substantial difference in the performance of both. But, I think the 12700K is providing a good value for money. So, you should go for it.

However, if you depend heavily on multi-tasking, there you can think of 5900X because of its great multi-thread performance.