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.

Ryzen 5 5600X

2020

Why buy it

✅Better for gaming: +15.6% higher average FPS across 50 shared CPU benchmark tests.
✅+100% larger total L3 cache (32 MB vs 16 MB).
✅Costs $100 less on MSRP ($299 MSRP vs $399 MSRP).
✅Delivers 86.6% more PassMark for each dollar spent, at 73.1 vs 39.2 PassMark/$ ($299 MSRP vs $399 MSRP).
✅Draws 65W instead of 95W, a 30W reduction.

Trade-offs

❌Fewer obvious downsides in this matchup outside of normal market pricing swings.

Ryzen 7 1700X

2017

Why buy it

Trade-offs

❌Worse for gaming: lower average FPS than Ryzen 5 5600X across 50 shared CPU benchmark tests.
❌Lower PassMark (15,623 vs 21,845).
❌Smaller total L3 cache (16 MB vs 32 MB).
❌Lower PassMark per dollar, at 39.2 vs 73.1 PassMark/$ ($399 MSRP vs $299 MSRP).
❌46.2% higher power demand at 95W vs 65W.

Ryzen 5 5600X

2020

Ryzen 7 1700X

2017

Why buy it

✅Better for gaming: +15.6% higher average FPS across 50 shared CPU benchmark tests.
✅+100% larger total L3 cache (32 MB vs 16 MB).
✅Costs $100 less on MSRP ($299 MSRP vs $399 MSRP).
✅Delivers 86.6% more PassMark for each dollar spent, at 73.1 vs 39.2 PassMark/$ ($299 MSRP vs $399 MSRP).
✅Draws 65W instead of 95W, a 30W reduction.

Why buy it

Trade-offs

❌Fewer obvious downsides in this matchup outside of normal market pricing swings.

Trade-offs

❌Worse for gaming: lower average FPS than Ryzen 5 5600X across 50 shared CPU benchmark tests.
❌Lower PassMark (15,623 vs 21,845).
❌Smaller total L3 cache (16 MB vs 32 MB).
❌Lower PassMark per dollar, at 39.2 vs 73.1 PassMark/$ ($399 MSRP vs $299 MSRP).
❌46.2% higher power demand at 95W vs 65W.

Quick Answers

So, is Ryzen 5 5600X better than Ryzen 7 1700X?

Yes. Ryzen 5 5600X is the better overall CPU here. You are getting a 15.6% average FPS lead across 50 shared CPU game tests in our data, 39.8% better PassMark, and the stronger long-term platform, which makes it the stronger all-around choice.

Which one is better for gaming?

If gaming is the priority, Ryzen 5 5600X is the better pick here. According to our tests, it delivers 15.6% more average FPS across 50 shared CPU game tests.

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

For streaming, content creation, and heavier multitasking, Ryzen 5 5600X is the better fit. You are getting 39.8% better PassMark, backed by 6 cores and 12 threads. It also carries the larger cache pool with 100% larger total L3 cache (32 MB vs 16 MB).

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

Ryzen 5 5600X is the smarter buy today. Ryzen 5 5600X is $100 cheaper on MSRP at $299 MSRP versus $399 MSRP, and it gives you a 15.6% average FPS lead across 50 shared CPU game tests in our data. It is also 86.6% better value on MSRP (73.1 vs 39.2 PassMark/$), 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?

Ryzen 5 5600X is the more future-proof choice for 2026 and beyond. You are getting a newer CPU generation (2020 vs 2017), 100% larger total L3 cache (32 MB vs 16 MB), and more multi-core headroom with 6 cores / 12 threads instead of 8/16. 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.

Ryzen 5 5600X Benchmark Check

Ryzen 7 1700X Benchmark Check

Path of Exile 2

Preset	Ryzen 5 5600X	Ryzen 7 1700X
1080p
low	203 FPS	178 FPS
medium	174 FPS	150 FPS
high	140 FPS	121 FPS
ultra	107 FPS	97 FPS
1440p
low	169 FPS	149 FPS
medium	141 FPS	123 FPS
high	113 FPS	97 FPS
ultra	86 FPS	77 FPS
4K
low	85 FPS	66 FPS
medium	76 FPS	58 FPS
high	60 FPS	46 FPS
ultra	47 FPS	36 FPS

Open Ryzen 5 5600X Open Ryzen 7 1700X

Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2

Counter-Strike 2

Preset	Ryzen 5 5600X	Ryzen 7 1700X
1080p
low	464 FPS	280 FPS
medium	387 FPS	247 FPS
high	324 FPS	221 FPS
ultra	291 FPS	182 FPS
1440p
low	397 FPS	247 FPS
medium	334 FPS	224 FPS
high	290 FPS	199 FPS
ultra	253 FPS	164 FPS
4K
low	263 FPS	179 FPS
medium	226 FPS	166 FPS
high	205 FPS	153 FPS
ultra	171 FPS	122 FPS

Open Ryzen 5 5600X Open Ryzen 7 1700X

Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

League of Legends

Preset	Ryzen 5 5600X	Ryzen 7 1700X
1080p
low	546 FPS	391 FPS
medium	473 FPS	391 FPS
high	432 FPS	391 FPS
ultra	358 FPS	391 FPS
1440p
low	508 FPS	391 FPS
medium	413 FPS	391 FPS
high	375 FPS	368 FPS
ultra	312 FPS	311 FPS
4K
low	348 FPS	351 FPS
medium	292 FPS	285 FPS
high	255 FPS	259 FPS
ultra	199 FPS	209 FPS

Open Ryzen 5 5600X Open Ryzen 7 1700X

League of Legends

League of Legends

Valorant

Preset	Ryzen 5 5600X	Ryzen 7 1700X
1080p
low	546 FPS	391 FPS
medium	546 FPS	391 FPS
high	546 FPS	391 FPS
ultra	546 FPS	391 FPS
1440p
low	546 FPS	391 FPS
medium	546 FPS	391 FPS
high	546 FPS	391 FPS
ultra	524 FPS	391 FPS
4K
low	529 FPS	391 FPS
medium	484 FPS	391 FPS
high	435 FPS	370 FPS
ultra	379 FPS	321 FPS

Open Ryzen 5 5600X Open Ryzen 7 1700X

Valorant

Valorant

Check FPS for your specific build

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of Ryzen 5 5600X and Ryzen 7 1700X

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.

Ryzen 7 1700X

The Ryzen 7 1700X is manufactured by AMD. It was released in 2 March 2017 (8 years ago). It is based on the Zen (2017−2020) architecture. It features 8 cores and 16 threads. Base frequency is 3.4 GHz, with boost up to 3.8 GHz. L3 cache: 16384 kB. L2 cache: 4096 kB. Built on 14 nm process technology. Socket: AM4. Thermal design power (TDP): 95 Watt. Memory support: DDR4. Passmark benchmark score: 15,623 points. Launch price was $399.

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Processing Power

The Ryzen 5 5600X packs 6 cores / 12 threads, while the Ryzen 7 1700X offers 8 cores / 16 threads — the Ryzen 7 1700X has 2 more cores. Boost clocks reach 4.6 GHz on the Ryzen 5 5600X versus 3.8 GHz on the Ryzen 7 1700X — a 19% clock advantage for the Ryzen 5 5600X (base: 3.7 GHz vs 3.4 GHz). The Ryzen 5 5600X uses the Vermeer (Zen 3) (2020−2022) architecture (7 nm, 12 nm), while the Ryzen 7 1700X uses Zen (2017−2020) (14 nm). In PassMark, the Ryzen 5 5600X scores 21,845 against the Ryzen 7 1700X's 15,623 — a 33.2% lead for the Ryzen 5 5600X. L3 cache: 32 MB on the Ryzen 5 5600X vs 16384 kB on the Ryzen 7 1700X.

Feature	Ryzen 5 5600X	Ryzen 7 1700X
Cores / Threads	6 / 12	8 / 16+33%
Boost Clock	4.6 GHz+21%	3.8 GHz
Base Clock	3.7 GHz+9%	3.4 GHz
L3 Cache	32 MB+100%	16384 kB
L2 Cache	512K (per core)	4096 kB+700%
Process	7 nm, 12 nm-50%	14 nm
Architecture	Vermeer (Zen 3) (2020−2022)	Zen (2017−2020)
PassMark	21,845+40%	15,623

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Memory & Platform

Both processors use the AM4 socket with PCIe 4.0. Both support up to DDR4-3200 memory speed. Both support up to 128 GB of RAM. Both feature 2-channel memory with ECC support. Both provide 24 PCIe lanes. Chipset compatibility: AMD 500 series,AMD 400 series,AMD 300 series (Ryzen 5 5600X) and AMD 400 series,AMD 300 series (Ryzen 7 1700X).

Feature	Ryzen 5 5600X	Ryzen 7 1700X
Socket	AM4	AM4
PCIe Generation	PCIe 4.0+33%	PCIe 3.0
Max RAM Speed	DDR4-3200	DDR4-2666
Max RAM Capacity	128 GB	128 GB
RAM Channels	2	2
ECC Support	Yes	Yes
PCIe Lanes	24	24

🔧

Advanced Features

Virtualization: AMD-V (Ryzen 5 5600X) / not specified (Ryzen 7 1700X). Primary use case: Ryzen 5 5600X targets Desktop.

Feature	Ryzen 5 5600X	Ryzen 7 1700X
Integrated GPU	No	No
Unlocked	Yes	—
AVX-512	No	—
Virtualization	AMD-V	—
Target Use	Desktop	—

💰

Value Analysis

The Ryzen 5 5600X launched at $299 MSRP, while the Ryzen 7 1700X debuted at $399. On MSRP ($299 vs $399), the Ryzen 5 5600X is $100 cheaper. In terms of value on MSRP (PassMark points per dollar), the Ryzen 5 5600X delivers 73.1 pts/$ vs 39.2 pts/$ for the Ryzen 7 1700X — making the Ryzen 5 5600X the 60.4% better value option.