EPYC 73F3 vs Xeon Gold 6342

CPU

GPU

EPYC 73F3

16 Cores32 Thrd240 WWMax: 4 GHz2021

Popular choices:

•••••••••

Xeon Gold 6342

24 Cores48 Thrd230 WWMax: 3.5 GHz2021

Popular choices:

•••••••••

Performance Spectrum - CPU

EPYC 73F3

16 / 32

46,103

0.0%

Ryzen 7 5800

Ryzen 9 PRO 8945HS

Ryzen 7 7700X

Ryzen Threadripper PRO 5945WX

Ryzen 9 9955HX3D

Ryzen Threadripper PRO 5975WX

Ryzen Threadripper 9960X

Ryzen Threadripper PRO 9975WX

Xeon Gold 6342

24 / 48

47,076

+2.1%

About PassMark

PassMark CPU Mark evaluates processor speed through complex mathematical computations. It provides a reliable metric to compare multi-core performance, where higher scores indicate faster processing for multitasking, gaming, and heavy workloads.

Head-to-Head Verdict, Benchmarks, Value & Long-Term Outlook

This comparison brings together gaming FPS, productivity performance, platform differences, power efficiency, pricing context, and upgrade path so you can see which CPU actually makes more sense.

EPYC 73F3

2021

Why buy it

✅Better for gaming: +9.5% higher average FPS across 4 shared CPU benchmark tests.
✅100% more PCIe lanes (128 vs 64) for storage and expansion-heavy builds.

Trade-offs

❌Lower PassMark (46,103 vs 47,076).
❌Lower PassMark per dollar, at 13.1 vs 15.8 PassMark/$ ($3,521 MSRP vs $2,977 MSRP).

Xeon Gold 6342

2021

Why buy it

✅+2.1% higher PassMark.
✅Costs $544 less on MSRP ($2,977 MSRP vs $3,521 MSRP).
✅Delivers 20.8% more PassMark for each dollar spent, at 15.8 vs 13.1 PassMark/$ ($2,977 MSRP vs $3,521 MSRP).
✅Draws 230W instead of 240W, a 10W reduction.

Trade-offs

❌Worse for gaming: lower average FPS than EPYC 73F3 across 4 shared CPU benchmark tests.

EPYC 73F3

2021

Xeon Gold 6342

2021

Why buy it

✅Better for gaming: +9.5% higher average FPS across 4 shared CPU benchmark tests.
✅100% more PCIe lanes (128 vs 64) for storage and expansion-heavy builds.

Why buy it

✅+2.1% higher PassMark.
✅Costs $544 less on MSRP ($2,977 MSRP vs $3,521 MSRP).
✅Delivers 20.8% more PassMark for each dollar spent, at 15.8 vs 13.1 PassMark/$ ($2,977 MSRP vs $3,521 MSRP).
✅Draws 230W instead of 240W, a 10W reduction.

Trade-offs

❌Lower PassMark (46,103 vs 47,076).
❌Lower PassMark per dollar, at 13.1 vs 15.8 PassMark/$ ($3,521 MSRP vs $2,977 MSRP).

Trade-offs

❌Worse for gaming: lower average FPS than EPYC 73F3 across 4 shared CPU benchmark tests.

Quick Answers

So, is Xeon Gold 6342 better than EPYC 73F3?

It depends on what matters more to you. For gaming, EPYC 73F3 is ahead with a 9.5% average FPS lead across 4 shared CPU game tests in our data. For rendering, compiling, streaming, and heavier multitasking, Xeon Gold 6342 pulls ahead with 2.1% better PassMark. EPYC 73F3 also has the bigger cache pool with 611.1% larger total L3 cache (256 MB vs 36 MB).

Which one is better for streaming, content creation, and heavy multitasking?

For streaming, content creation, and heavier multitasking, Xeon Gold 6342 is the better fit. You are getting 2.1% better PassMark, backed by 24 cores and 48 threads.

Which one is the smarter buy today, not just the cheaper CPU?

Xeon Gold 6342 is the smarter buy today. Xeon Gold 6342 is $544 cheaper on MSRP at $2,977 MSRP versus $3,521 MSRP, and it gives you 2.1% better PassMark. The trade-off is that EPYC 73F3 is still the better pure gaming CPU with a 9.5% average FPS lead across 4 shared CPU game tests in our data. It is also 20.8% better value on MSRP (15.8 vs 13.1 PassMark/$), so the better CPU is not just faster, it is also the cleaner value play on paper.

Which one is more future-proof for 2026 and beyond?

Xeon Gold 6342 is the more future-proof choice for 2026 and beyond. You are getting more multi-core headroom with 24 cores / 48 threads instead of 16/32. That extra compute headroom should age better as games, background tasks, and creator workloads get heavier.

Games Benchmarks

Paired with RTX 4090

To accurately isolate CPU performance, all benchmarks below use an NVIDIA RTX 4090 as the reference GPU. This eliminates GPU-side bottlenecks and highlights pure processing throughput differences between the CPUs.

Note: Real-world results may vary based on your actual GPU. CPU performance impact is more visible in processing-intensive titles and high-refresh-rate gaming scenarios.

EPYC 73F3 Benchmark Check

Xeon Gold 6342 Benchmark Check

Path of Exile 2

Preset	EPYC 73F3	Xeon Gold 6342
1080p
low	200 FPS	187 FPS
medium	159 FPS	150 FPS
high	128 FPS	121 FPS
ultra	98 FPS	94 FPS
1440p
low	166 FPS	155 FPS
medium	128 FPS	121 FPS
high	99 FPS	93 FPS
ultra	78 FPS	74 FPS
4K
low	74 FPS	73 FPS
medium	61 FPS	60 FPS
high	48 FPS	46 FPS
ultra	39 FPS	38 FPS

Open EPYC 73F3 Open Xeon Gold 6342

Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2

Counter-Strike 2

Preset	EPYC 73F3	Xeon Gold 6342
1080p
low	510 FPS	416 FPS
medium	446 FPS	364 FPS
high	357 FPS	297 FPS
ultra	290 FPS	237 FPS
1440p
low	418 FPS	357 FPS
medium	375 FPS	317 FPS
high	309 FPS	265 FPS
ultra	244 FPS	204 FPS
4K
low	257 FPS	221 FPS
medium	235 FPS	200 FPS
high	206 FPS	169 FPS
ultra	171 FPS	136 FPS

Open EPYC 73F3 Open Xeon Gold 6342

Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

League of Legends

Preset	EPYC 73F3	Xeon Gold 6342
1080p
low	979 FPS	986 FPS
medium	819 FPS	859 FPS
high	760 FPS	812 FPS
ultra	678 FPS	720 FPS
1440p
low	675 FPS	787 FPS
medium	564 FPS	676 FPS
high	515 FPS	639 FPS
ultra	453 FPS	567 FPS
4K
low	482 FPS	504 FPS
medium	382 FPS	397 FPS
high	338 FPS	353 FPS
ultra	274 FPS	288 FPS

Open EPYC 73F3 Open Xeon Gold 6342

League of Legends

League of Legends

Valorant

Preset	EPYC 73F3	Xeon Gold 6342
1080p
low	1146 FPS	911 FPS
medium	1015 FPS	828 FPS
high	873 FPS	714 FPS
ultra	758 FPS	615 FPS
1440p
low	842 FPS	712 FPS
medium	733 FPS	625 FPS
high	620 FPS	537 FPS
ultra	539 FPS	460 FPS
4K
low	608 FPS	514 FPS
medium	542 FPS	459 FPS
high	471 FPS	403 FPS
ultra	407 FPS	351 FPS

Open EPYC 73F3 Open Xeon Gold 6342

Valorant

Valorant

Check FPS for your specific build

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of EPYC 73F3 and Xeon Gold 6342

EPYC 73F3

The EPYC 73F3 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in 15 March 2021 (4 years ago). It is based on the Milan (2021−2023) architecture. It features 16 cores and 32 threads. Base frequency is 3.5 GHz, with boost up to 4 GHz. L3 cache: 256 MB (total). L2 cache: 512 kB (per core). Built on 7 nm+ process technology. Socket: SP3. Thermal design power (TDP): 240 Watt. Memory support: DDR4-3200. Passmark benchmark score: 46,103 points. Launch price was $3,521.

Xeon Gold 6342

The Xeon Gold 6342 is manufactured by Intel. It was released in 2015-01-01. It is based on the Ice Lake-SP (2021) architecture. It features 24 cores and 48 threads. Base frequency is 2.8 GHz, with boost up to 3.5 GHz. L3 cache: 36 MB (total). L2 cache: 1 MB (per core). Built on 10 nm process technology. Socket: LGA4189. Thermal design power (TDP): 230 Watt. Memory support: DDR4-3200. Passmark benchmark score: 47,076 points. Launch price was $800.

⚡

Processing Power

The EPYC 73F3 packs 16 cores / 32 threads, while the Xeon Gold 6342 offers 24 cores / 48 threads — the Xeon Gold 6342 has 8 more cores. Boost clocks reach 4 GHz on the EPYC 73F3 versus 3.5 GHz on the Xeon Gold 6342 — a 13.3% clock advantage for the EPYC 73F3 (base: 3.5 GHz vs 2.8 GHz). The EPYC 73F3 uses the Milan (2021−2023) architecture (7 nm+), while the Xeon Gold 6342 uses Ice Lake-SP (2021) (10 nm). In PassMark, the EPYC 73F3 scores 46,103 against the Xeon Gold 6342's 47,076 — a 2.1% lead for the Xeon Gold 6342. L3 cache: 256 MB (total) on the EPYC 73F3 vs 36 MB (total) on the Xeon Gold 6342.

Feature	EPYC 73F3	Xeon Gold 6342
Cores / Threads	16 / 32	24 / 48+50%
Boost Clock	4 GHz+14%	3.5 GHz
Base Clock	3.5 GHz+25%	2.8 GHz
L3 Cache	256 MB (total)+611%	36 MB (total)
L2 Cache	512 kB (per core)	1 MB (per core)+100%
Process	7 nm+-30%	10 nm
Architecture	Milan (2021−2023)	Ice Lake-SP (2021)
PassMark	46,103	47,076+2%

🧠

Memory & Platform

The EPYC 73F3 uses the SP3 socket (PCIe 4.0), while the Xeon Gold 6342 uses LGA4189 (PCIe 4.0) — making them incompatible on the same motherboard. Both support up to 3200 memory speed. The Xeon Gold 6342 supports up to 6144 of RAM compared to 4096 — 40% more capacity for professional workloads. Both feature 8-channel memory with ECC support. PCIe lanes: 128 (EPYC 73F3) vs 64 (Xeon Gold 6342) — the EPYC 73F3 offers 64 more lanes for additional GPUs or NVMe drives. Chipset compatibility: SP3,C621A (EPYC 73F3) and C621A (Xeon Gold 6342).

Feature	EPYC 73F3	Xeon Gold 6342
Socket	SP3	LGA4189
PCIe Generation	PCIe 4.0	PCIe 4.0
Max RAM Speed	3200	3200
Max RAM Capacity	4096	6144+50%
RAM Channels	8	8
ECC Support	Yes	Yes
PCIe Lanes	128+100%	64

🔧

Advanced Features

Neither processor supports overclocking. Both support AVX-512 instructions, benefiting scientific computing, AI inference, and encryption workloads. Both support VT-x, VT-d virtualization. Direct competitor: EPYC 73F3 rivals Xeon Platinum 8362; Xeon Gold 6342 rivals EPYC 7443.

Feature	EPYC 73F3	Xeon Gold 6342
Integrated GPU	No	No
IGPU Model	None	None
Unlocked	No	No
AVX-512	Yes	Yes
Virtualization	VT-x, VT-d	VT-x, VT-d

💰

Value Analysis

The EPYC 73F3 launched at $3521 MSRP, while the Xeon Gold 6342 debuted at $2977. On MSRP ($3521 vs $2977), the Xeon Gold 6342 is $544 cheaper. In terms of value on MSRP (PassMark points per dollar), the EPYC 73F3 delivers 13.1 pts/$ vs 15.8 pts/$ for the Xeon Gold 6342 — making the Xeon Gold 6342 the 18.8% better value option.