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.

Core i7-12700

2022

Why buy it

✅+16.6% higher Cinebench R23 multi-core.
✅Costs $199 less on MSRP ($250 MSRP vs $449 MSRP).
✅Delivers 57.4% more PassMark for each dollar spent, at 120.2 vs 76.4 PassMark/$ ($250 MSRP vs $449 MSRP).
✅Draws 65W instead of 120W, a 55W reduction.
✅Includes a boxed cooler (Yes), unlike Ryzen 7 7800X3D.

Trade-offs

❌Worse for gaming: lower average FPS than Ryzen 7 7800X3D across 7 shared CPU benchmark tests.

Ryzen 7 7800X3D

2023

Why buy it

✅Better for gaming: +54.5% higher average FPS across 7 shared CPU benchmark tests.
✅40% more PCIe lanes (28 vs 20) for storage and expansion-heavy builds.

Trade-offs

❌Lower Cinebench R23 multi-core (18,500 vs 21,568).
❌Lower PassMark per dollar, at 76.4 vs 120.2 PassMark/$ ($449 MSRP vs $250 MSRP).
❌84.6% higher power demand at 120W vs 65W.
❌No boxed cooler included, unlike Core i7-12700.

Core i7-12700

2022

Ryzen 7 7800X3D

2023

Why buy it

✅+16.6% higher Cinebench R23 multi-core.
✅Costs $199 less on MSRP ($250 MSRP vs $449 MSRP).
✅Delivers 57.4% more PassMark for each dollar spent, at 120.2 vs 76.4 PassMark/$ ($250 MSRP vs $449 MSRP).
✅Draws 65W instead of 120W, a 55W reduction.
✅Includes a boxed cooler (Yes), unlike Ryzen 7 7800X3D.

Why buy it

✅Better for gaming: +54.5% higher average FPS across 7 shared CPU benchmark tests.
✅40% more PCIe lanes (28 vs 20) for storage and expansion-heavy builds.

Trade-offs

❌Worse for gaming: lower average FPS than Ryzen 7 7800X3D across 7 shared CPU benchmark tests.

Trade-offs

❌Lower Cinebench R23 multi-core (18,500 vs 21,568).
❌Lower PassMark per dollar, at 76.4 vs 120.2 PassMark/$ ($449 MSRP vs $250 MSRP).
❌84.6% higher power demand at 120W vs 65W.
❌No boxed cooler included, unlike Core i7-12700.

Quick Answers

So, is Core i7-12700 better than Ryzen 7 7800X3D?

It depends on what matters more to you. For gaming, Ryzen 7 7800X3D is ahead with a 54.5% average FPS lead across 7 shared CPU game tests in our data. For rendering, compiling, streaming, and heavier multitasking, Core i7-12700 pulls ahead with 16.6% better Cinebench R23 multi-core. Ryzen 7 7800X3D also has the bigger cache pool with 284% larger total L3 cache (96 MB vs 25 MB).

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

For streaming, content creation, and heavier multitasking, Core i7-12700 is the better fit. You are getting 16.6% better Cinebench R23 multi-core, backed by 12 cores and 20 threads.

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

Core i7-12700 is the smarter buy today. Core i7-12700 is $199 cheaper on MSRP at $250 MSRP versus $449 MSRP, and it gives you 16.6% better Cinebench R23 multi-core. The trade-off is that Ryzen 7 7800X3D is still the better pure gaming CPU with a 54.5% average FPS lead across 7 shared CPU game tests in our data. It is also 57.4% better value on MSRP (120.2 vs 76.4 PassMark/$), so the better CPU is not just faster, it is also the cleaner value play on paper. That said, if you already own a compatible AM5 + DDR5 setup, Ryzen 7 7800X3D is still an elite gaming CPU and a very strong platform-matched choice because it avoids a motherboard and RAM swap while remaining one of the strongest gaming chips you can buy.

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

Ryzen 7 7800X3D is the more future-proof choice for 2026 and beyond. You are getting a newer CPU generation (2023 vs 2022) and 3D V-Cache and a much larger 96 MB L3 cache instead of 25 MB. 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.

Core i7-12700 Benchmark Check

Ryzen 7 7800X3D Benchmark Check

Path of Exile 2

Preset	Core i7-12700	Ryzen 7 7800X3D
1080p
low	257 FPS	266 FPS
medium	248 FPS	247 FPS
high	207 FPS	211 FPS
ultra	177 FPS	186 FPS
1440p
low	226 FPS	258 FPS
medium	194 FPS	215 FPS
high	156 FPS	171 FPS
ultra	137 FPS	154 FPS
4K
low	157 FPS	179 FPS
medium	134 FPS	149 FPS
high	103 FPS	112 FPS
ultra	91 FPS	100 FPS

Open Core i7-12700 Open Ryzen 7 7800X3D

Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2

Counter-Strike 2

Preset	Core i7-12700	Ryzen 7 7800X3D
1080p
low	312 FPS	857 FPS
medium	265 FPS	737 FPS
high	224 FPS	580 FPS
ultra	204 FPS	493 FPS
1440p
low	257 FPS	722 FPS
medium	228 FPS	611 FPS
high	198 FPS	500 FPS
ultra	172 FPS	398 FPS
4K
low	157 FPS	396 FPS
medium	141 FPS	339 FPS
high	133 FPS	315 FPS
ultra	118 FPS	273 FPS

Open Core i7-12700 Open Ryzen 7 7800X3D

Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

League of Legends

Preset	Core i7-12700	Ryzen 7 7800X3D
1080p
low	751 FPS	857 FPS
medium	610 FPS	857 FPS
high	540 FPS	857 FPS
ultra	458 FPS	857 FPS
1440p
low	683 FPS	857 FPS
medium	547 FPS	851 FPS
high	479 FPS	786 FPS
ultra	411 FPS	656 FPS
4K
low	493 FPS	558 FPS
medium	412 FPS	479 FPS
high	369 FPS	427 FPS
ultra	311 FPS	362 FPS

Open Core i7-12700 Open Ryzen 7 7800X3D

League of Legends

League of Legends

Valorant

Preset	Core i7-12700	Ryzen 7 7800X3D
1080p
low	751 FPS	857 FPS
medium	751 FPS	857 FPS
high	664 FPS	857 FPS
ultra	590 FPS	782 FPS
1440p
low	730 FPS	857 FPS
medium	651 FPS	760 FPS
high	560 FPS	669 FPS
ultra	487 FPS	576 FPS
4K
low	513 FPS	618 FPS
medium	468 FPS	556 FPS
high	414 FPS	495 FPS
ultra	360 FPS	428 FPS

Open Core i7-12700 Open Ryzen 7 7800X3D

Valorant

Valorant

Check FPS for your specific build

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of Core i7-12700 and Ryzen 7 7800X3D

Core i7-12700

The Core i7-12700 is manufactured by Intel. It was released in Janeiro 2022 (3 years ago). It is based on the Alder Lake-S (2022) architecture. It features 12 cores and 20 threads. Base frequency is 2.1 GHz, with boost up to 4.9 GHz. L3 cache: 25 MB (total). L2 cache: 1.25 MB (per core). Built on Intel 7 nm process technology. Socket: LGA1700. Thermal design power (TDP): 65 Watt. Memory support: DDR5-4800, DDR4-3200. Passmark benchmark score: 30,055 points. Launch price was $349.

Ryzen 7 7800X3D

The Ryzen 7 7800X3D is manufactured by AMD. It was released in 4 January 2023 (2 years ago). It is based on the Raphael (Zen4) (2022−2023) architecture. It features 8 cores and 16 threads. Base frequency is 4.4 GHz, with boost up to 5 GHz. L3 cache: 96 MB (total). L2 cache: 1 MB (per core). Built on 5 nm process technology. Socket: AM5. Thermal design power (TDP): 120 Watt. Memory support: DDR5-5200. Passmark benchmark score: 34,293 points. Launch price was $449.

⚡

Processing Power

The Core i7-12700 packs 12 cores / 20 threads, while the Ryzen 7 7800X3D offers 8 cores / 16 threads — the Core i7-12700 has 4 more cores. Boost clocks reach 4.9 GHz on the Core i7-12700 versus 5 GHz on the Ryzen 7 7800X3D — a 2% clock advantage for the Ryzen 7 7800X3D (base: 2.1 GHz vs 4.4 GHz). The Core i7-12700 uses the Alder Lake-S (2022) architecture (Intel 7 nm), while the Ryzen 7 7800X3D uses Raphael (Zen4) (2022−2023) (5 nm). In PassMark, the Core i7-12700 scores 30,055 against the Ryzen 7 7800X3D's 34,293 — a 13.2% lead for the Ryzen 7 7800X3D. Cinebench R23 multi-core: 21,568 vs 18,500 (15.3% advantage for the Core i7-12700). Geekbench 6 single-core — the metric most relevant to gaming — records 2,497 vs 2,700, a 7.8% lead for the Ryzen 7 7800X3D that directly translates to higher frame rates. Multi-core Geekbench: 12,448 vs 15,000 (18.6% advantage for the Ryzen 7 7800X3D). L3 cache: 25 MB (total) on the Core i7-12700 vs 96 MB (total) on the Ryzen 7 7800X3D.

Feature	Core i7-12700	Ryzen 7 7800X3D
Cores / Threads	12 / 20+50%	8 / 16
Boost Clock	4.9 GHz	5 GHz+2%
Base Clock	2.1 GHz	4.4 GHz+110%
L3 Cache	25 MB (total)	96 MB (total)+284%
L2 Cache	1.25 MB (per core)+25%	1 MB (per core)
Process	Intel 7 nm	5 nm-29%
Architecture	Alder Lake-S (2022)	Raphael (Zen4) (2022−2023)
PassMark	30,055	34,293+14%
Cinebench R23 Multi	21,568+17%	18,500
Geekbench 6 Single	2,497	2,700+8%
Geekbench 6 Multi	12,448	15,000+21%

🧠

Memory & Platform

The Core i7-12700 uses the LGA1700 socket (PCIe 5.0), while the Ryzen 7 7800X3D uses AM5 (PCIe 5.0) — making them incompatible on the same motherboard. Both support up to DDR5-4800 / DDR4-3200 memory speed. Both support up to 128 GB of RAM. Both feature 2-channel memory with ECC support. PCIe lanes: 20 (Core i7-12700) vs 28 (Ryzen 7 7800X3D) — the Ryzen 7 7800X3D offers 8 more lanes for additional GPUs or NVMe drives. Chipset compatibility: H610,B660,H670,Z690,B760,Z790 (Core i7-12700) and X670E,X670,B650E,B650,A620 (Ryzen 7 7800X3D).

Feature	Core i7-12700	Ryzen 7 7800X3D
Socket	LGA1700	AM5
PCIe Generation	PCIe 5.0	PCIe 5.0
Max RAM Speed	DDR5-4800 / DDR4-3200	DDR5-5200
Max RAM Capacity	128 GB	128 GB
RAM Channels	2	2
ECC Support	Yes	Yes
PCIe Lanes	20	28+40%

🔧

Advanced Features

Only the Ryzen 7 7800X3D has an unlocked multiplier for overclocking — a significant advantage for enthusiasts seeking extra performance. Only the Ryzen 7 7800X3D supports AVX-512 instructions — important for machine learning and scientific applications. Virtualization support: VT-x / VT-d / EPT (Core i7-12700) vs AMD-V (Ryzen 7 7800X3D). Both include integrated graphics — Intel UHD Graphics 770 (Core i7-12700) and AMD Radeon Graphics (2-core) (Ryzen 7 7800X3D) — useful as a fallback for troubleshooting or display output without a dedicated GPU. Primary use case: Core i7-12700 targets Gaming, Ryzen 7 7800X3D targets Gaming. Direct competitor: Core i7-12700 rivals Ryzen 7 5700X; Ryzen 7 7800X3D rivals Intel Core i7-14700K.

Feature	Core i7-12700	Ryzen 7 7800X3D
Integrated GPU	Yes	Yes
IGPU Model	Intel UHD Graphics 770	AMD Radeon Graphics (2-core)
Unlocked	No	Yes
AVX-512	No	Yes
Virtualization	VT-x / VT-d / EPT	AMD-V
Target Use	Gaming	Gaming

💰

Value Analysis

The Core i7-12700 launched at $250 MSRP, while the Ryzen 7 7800X3D debuted at $449. On MSRP ($250 vs $449), the Core i7-12700 is $199 cheaper. In terms of value on MSRP (PassMark points per dollar), the Core i7-12700 delivers 120.2 pts/$ vs 76.4 pts/$ for the Ryzen 7 7800X3D — making the Core i7-12700 the 44.6% better value option.