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 9274F

2022

Why buy it

✅Better for gaming: +40.7% higher average FPS across 4 shared CPU benchmark tests.
✅Better for workstations and heavier parallel workloads: 24 cores / 48 threads, plus 128 PCIe lanes vs 24.
✅Newer platform on SP5 with DDR5 support instead of AM4 and DDR4.
✅433.3% more PCIe lanes (128 vs 24) for storage and expansion-heavy builds.

Trade-offs

❌Lower PassMark per dollar, at 24.2 vs 73.1 PassMark/$ ($3,060 MSRP vs $299 MSRP).
❌392.3% higher power demand at 320W vs 65W.

Ryzen 5 5600X

2020

Why buy it

✅Costs $2,761 less on MSRP ($299 MSRP vs $3,060 MSRP).
✅Delivers 202.2% more PassMark for each dollar spent, at 73.1 vs 24.2 PassMark/$ ($299 MSRP vs $3,060 MSRP).
✅Draws 65W instead of 320W, a 255W reduction.

Trade-offs

❌Worse for gaming: lower average FPS than EPYC 9274F across 4 shared CPU benchmark tests.
❌Lower PassMark (21,845 vs 73,982).
❌Less compelling for workstation-style loads than EPYC 9274F, which brings 24 cores / 48 threads and 128 PCIe lanes.
❌Older platform position on AM4 with DDR4, while EPYC 9274F moves to SP5 and DDR5.

EPYC 9274F

2022

Ryzen 5 5600X

2020

Why buy it

✅Better for gaming: +40.7% higher average FPS across 4 shared CPU benchmark tests.
✅Better for workstations and heavier parallel workloads: 24 cores / 48 threads, plus 128 PCIe lanes vs 24.
✅Newer platform on SP5 with DDR5 support instead of AM4 and DDR4.
✅433.3% more PCIe lanes (128 vs 24) for storage and expansion-heavy builds.

Why buy it

✅Costs $2,761 less on MSRP ($299 MSRP vs $3,060 MSRP).
✅Delivers 202.2% more PassMark for each dollar spent, at 73.1 vs 24.2 PassMark/$ ($299 MSRP vs $3,060 MSRP).
✅Draws 65W instead of 320W, a 255W reduction.

Trade-offs

❌Lower PassMark per dollar, at 24.2 vs 73.1 PassMark/$ ($3,060 MSRP vs $299 MSRP).
❌392.3% higher power demand at 320W vs 65W.

Trade-offs

❌Worse for gaming: lower average FPS than EPYC 9274F across 4 shared CPU benchmark tests.
❌Lower PassMark (21,845 vs 73,982).
❌Less compelling for workstation-style loads than EPYC 9274F, which brings 24 cores / 48 threads and 128 PCIe lanes.
❌Older platform position on AM4 with DDR4, while EPYC 9274F moves to SP5 and DDR5.

Quick Answers

So, is EPYC 9274F better than Ryzen 5 5600X?

Not in a simple one-size-fits-all way. EPYC 9274F makes more sense for workstation-style multi-core throughput, while Ryzen 5 5600X is the better mainstream desktop choice for gaming, platform cost, and day-to-day practicality.

Which one is better for gaming?

If gaming is the priority, EPYC 9274F is the better pick here. According to our tests, it delivers 40.7% more average FPS across 4 shared CPU game tests. It also has a big cache advantage at 256 MB vs 32 MB.

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

For streaming, content creation, and heavier multitasking, EPYC 9274F is the better fit. You are getting 238.7% better PassMark, backed by 24 cores and 48 threads. It also carries the larger cache pool with 700% larger total L3 cache (256 MB vs 32 MB).

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

EPYC 9274F is still the faster CPU overall, but Ryzen 5 5600X makes more sense if price matters more than absolute performance. EPYC 9274F is 923.4% more expensive on MSRP at $3,060 MSRP versus $299 MSRP, and it gives you a 40.7% average FPS lead across 4 shared CPU game tests in our data. Ryzen 5 5600X is also 202.2% better value on MSRP (73.1 vs 24.2 PassMark/$), which is why it is easier to justify for price-conscious builds on paper.

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

EPYC 9274F is the more future-proof choice for 2026 and beyond. You are getting a newer CPU generation (2022 vs 2020), a healthier platform with SP5 and DDR5 instead of AM4, 3D V-Cache and a much larger 256 MB L3 cache instead of 32 MB, more multi-core headroom with 24 cores / 48 threads instead of 6/12, and AVX-512 support for heavier modern compute workloads. That should give you a better long-term upgrade path for motherboard, RAM, and future CPU swaps.

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 9274F Benchmark Check

Ryzen 5 5600X Benchmark Check

Path of Exile 2

Preset	EPYC 9274F	Ryzen 5 5600X
1080p
low	218 FPS	203 FPS
medium	180 FPS	174 FPS
high	154 FPS	140 FPS
ultra	111 FPS	107 FPS
1440p
low	191 FPS	169 FPS
medium	152 FPS	141 FPS
high	125 FPS	113 FPS
ultra	92 FPS	86 FPS
4K
low	88 FPS	85 FPS
medium	75 FPS	76 FPS
high	59 FPS	60 FPS
ultra	48 FPS	47 FPS

Open EPYC 9274F Open Ryzen 5 5600X

Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2

Counter-Strike 2

Preset	EPYC 9274F	Ryzen 5 5600X
1080p
low	637 FPS	464 FPS
medium	556 FPS	387 FPS
high	449 FPS	324 FPS
ultra	392 FPS	291 FPS
1440p
low	538 FPS	397 FPS
medium	478 FPS	334 FPS
high	397 FPS	290 FPS
ultra	327 FPS	253 FPS
4K
low	334 FPS	263 FPS
medium	300 FPS	226 FPS
high	269 FPS	205 FPS
ultra	240 FPS	171 FPS

Open EPYC 9274F Open Ryzen 5 5600X

Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

League of Legends

Preset	EPYC 9274F	Ryzen 5 5600X
1080p
low	817 FPS	546 FPS
medium	690 FPS	473 FPS
high	624 FPS	432 FPS
ultra	545 FPS	358 FPS
1440p
low	616 FPS	508 FPS
medium	518 FPS	413 FPS
high	461 FPS	375 FPS
ultra	395 FPS	312 FPS
4K
low	441 FPS	348 FPS
medium	352 FPS	292 FPS
high	310 FPS	255 FPS
ultra	247 FPS	199 FPS

Open EPYC 9274F Open Ryzen 5 5600X

League of Legends

League of Legends

Valorant

Preset	EPYC 9274F	Ryzen 5 5600X
1080p
low	1138 FPS	546 FPS
medium	1015 FPS	546 FPS
high	875 FPS	546 FPS
ultra	784 FPS	546 FPS
1440p
low	881 FPS	546 FPS
medium	775 FPS	546 FPS
high	655 FPS	546 FPS
ultra	571 FPS	524 FPS
4K
low	624 FPS	529 FPS
medium	564 FPS	484 FPS
high	488 FPS	435 FPS
ultra	426 FPS	379 FPS

Open EPYC 9274F Open Ryzen 5 5600X

Valorant

Valorant

Check FPS for your specific build

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of EPYC 9274F and Ryzen 5 5600X

EPYC 9274F

The EPYC 9274F is manufactured by AMD. It was released in 10 November 2022 (3 years ago). It is based on the Genoa (2022−2023) architecture. It features 24 cores and 48 threads. Base frequency is 4.05 GHz, with boost up to 4.3 GHz. L3 cache: 256 MB (total). L2 cache: 1 MB (per core). Built on 5 nm, 6 nm process technology. Socket: SP5. Thermal design power (TDP): 320 Watt. Memory support: DDR5-4800. Passmark benchmark score: 73,982 points. Launch price was $3,060.

Ryzen 5 5600X

The Ryzen 5 5600X is manufactured by AMD. It was released in 5 November 2020 (5 years ago). It is based on the Vermeer (Zen 3) (2020−2022) architecture. It features 6 cores and 12 threads. Base frequency is 3.7 GHz, with boost up to 4.6 GHz. L3 cache: 32 MB. L2 cache: 512K (per core). Built on 7 nm, 12 nm process technology. Socket: AM4. Thermal design power (TDP): 65 Watt. Memory support: DDR4. Passmark benchmark score: 21,845 points. Launch price was $299.

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Processing Power

The EPYC 9274F packs 24 cores / 48 threads, while the Ryzen 5 5600X offers 6 cores / 12 threads — the EPYC 9274F has 18 more cores. Boost clocks reach 4.3 GHz on the EPYC 9274F versus 4.6 GHz on the Ryzen 5 5600X — a 6.7% clock advantage for the Ryzen 5 5600X (base: 4.05 GHz vs 3.7 GHz). The EPYC 9274F uses the Genoa (2022−2023) architecture (5 nm, 6 nm), while the Ryzen 5 5600X uses Vermeer (Zen 3) (2020−2022) (7 nm, 12 nm). In PassMark, the EPYC 9274F scores 73,982 against the Ryzen 5 5600X's 21,845 — a 108.8% lead for the EPYC 9274F. L3 cache: 256 MB (total) on the EPYC 9274F vs 32 MB on the Ryzen 5 5600X.

Feature	EPYC 9274F	Ryzen 5 5600X
Cores / Threads	24 / 48+300%	6 / 12
Boost Clock	4.3 GHz	4.6 GHz+7%
Base Clock	4.05 GHz+9%	3.7 GHz
L3 Cache	256 MB (total)+700%	32 MB
L2 Cache	1 MB (per core)+100%	512K (per core)
Process	5 nm, 6 nm-29%	7 nm, 12 nm
Architecture	Genoa (2022−2023)	Vermeer (Zen 3) (2020−2022)
PassMark	73,982+239%	21,845

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Memory & Platform

The EPYC 9274F uses the SP5 socket (PCIe 5.0), while the Ryzen 5 5600X uses AM4 (PCIe 4.0) — making them incompatible on the same motherboard. Maximum memory speed reaches 4800 on the EPYC 9274F versus DDR4-3200 on the Ryzen 5 5600X — the EPYC 9274F supports 199.7% faster memory, which can translate to measurable gains in memory-sensitive workloads. The EPYC 9274F supports up to 6144 of RAM compared to 128 GB — 191.8% more capacity for professional workloads. Memory channels: 12 (EPYC 9274F) vs 2 (Ryzen 5 5600X). PCIe lanes: 128 (EPYC 9274F) vs 24 (Ryzen 5 5600X) — the EPYC 9274F offers 104 more lanes for additional GPUs or NVMe drives. Chipset compatibility: SP5 (EPYC 9274F) and AMD 500 series,AMD 400 series,AMD 300 series (Ryzen 5 5600X).

Feature	EPYC 9274F	Ryzen 5 5600X
Socket	SP5	AM4
PCIe Generation	PCIe 5.0+25%	PCIe 4.0
Max RAM Speed	4800+119900%	DDR4-3200
Max RAM Capacity	6144	128 GB+2184433%
RAM Channels	12+500%	2
ECC Support	Yes	Yes
PCIe Lanes	128+433%	24

🔧

Advanced Features

Only the Ryzen 5 5600X has an unlocked multiplier for overclocking — a significant advantage for enthusiasts seeking extra performance. Only the EPYC 9274F supports AVX-512 instructions — important for machine learning and scientific applications. Virtualization support: VT-x, VT-d, SEV-SNP (EPYC 9274F) vs AMD-V (Ryzen 5 5600X). Primary use case: Ryzen 5 5600X targets Desktop. Direct competitor: EPYC 9274F rivals Xeon Platinum 8468.

Feature	EPYC 9274F	Ryzen 5 5600X
Integrated GPU	No	No
IGPU Model	None	—
Unlocked	No	Yes
AVX-512	Yes	No
Virtualization	VT-x, VT-d, SEV-SNP	AMD-V
Target Use	—	Desktop

💰

Value Analysis

The EPYC 9274F launched at $3060 MSRP, while the Ryzen 5 5600X debuted at $299. On MSRP ($3060 vs $299), the Ryzen 5 5600X is $2761 cheaper. In terms of value on MSRP (PassMark points per dollar), the EPYC 9274F delivers 24.2 pts/$ vs 73.1 pts/$ for the Ryzen 5 5600X — making the Ryzen 5 5600X the 100.5% better value option.