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 i9-9980HK

2019

Why buy it

✅Draws 45W instead of 120W, a 75W reduction.

Trade-offs

❌Worse for gaming: lower average FPS than Ryzen 7 7800X3D across 8 shared CPU benchmark tests.
❌Lower PassMark (13,966 vs 34,293).
❌Older platform position on BGA1440 with DDR4, while Ryzen 7 7800X3D moves to AM5 and DDR5.
❌No integrated graphics, while Ryzen 7 7800X3D can still boot and troubleshoot without a discrete GPU.

Ryzen 7 7800X3D

2023

Why buy it

✅Better for gaming: +41.9% higher average FPS across 8 shared CPU benchmark tests.
✅Newer platform on AM5 with DDR5 support instead of BGA1440 and DDR4.
✅100+% more PCIe lanes (28 vs 0) for storage and expansion-heavy builds.
✅Integrated graphics onboard with AMD Radeon Graphics (2-core), while Core i9-9980HK needs a discrete GPU.

Trade-offs

❌Launch MSRP is still $449 MSRP, while Core i9-9980HK mostly shows up through inconsistent older-market listings.
❌166.7% higher power demand at 120W vs 45W.

Core i9-9980HK

2019

Ryzen 7 7800X3D

2023

Why buy it

✅Draws 45W instead of 120W, a 75W reduction.

Why buy it

✅Better for gaming: +41.9% higher average FPS across 8 shared CPU benchmark tests.
✅Newer platform on AM5 with DDR5 support instead of BGA1440 and DDR4.
✅100+% more PCIe lanes (28 vs 0) for storage and expansion-heavy builds.
✅Integrated graphics onboard with AMD Radeon Graphics (2-core), while Core i9-9980HK needs a discrete GPU.

Trade-offs

❌Worse for gaming: lower average FPS than Ryzen 7 7800X3D across 8 shared CPU benchmark tests.
❌Lower PassMark (13,966 vs 34,293).
❌Older platform position on BGA1440 with DDR4, while Ryzen 7 7800X3D moves to AM5 and DDR5.
❌No integrated graphics, while Ryzen 7 7800X3D can still boot and troubleshoot without a discrete GPU.

Trade-offs

❌Launch MSRP is still $449 MSRP, while Core i9-9980HK mostly shows up through inconsistent older-market listings.
❌166.7% higher power demand at 120W vs 45W.

Quick Answers

So, is Ryzen 7 7800X3D better than Core i9-9980HK?

Yes. Ryzen 7 7800X3D is the better overall CPU here. You are getting a 41.9% average FPS lead across 8 shared CPU game tests in our data, 145.5% 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 7 7800X3D is the better pick here. According to our tests, it delivers 41.9% more average FPS across 8 shared CPU game tests. It also has a big cache advantage at 96 MB vs 16 MB.

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

For streaming, content creation, and heavier multitasking, Ryzen 7 7800X3D is the better fit. You are getting 145.5% better PassMark, backed by 8 cores and 16 threads. It also carries the larger cache pool with 500% larger total L3 cache (96 MB vs 16 MB).

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

Ryzen 7 7800X3D is the smarter buy today. Ryzen 7 7800X3D is at an unclear MSRP at $449 MSRP versus unclear MSRP, and it gives you a 41.9% average FPS lead across 8 shared CPU game tests in our data. It is also 100.0% better value on MSRP (76.4 vs 0.0 PassMark/$), 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 7 7800X3D is the more future-proof choice for 2026 and beyond. You are getting a newer CPU generation (2023 vs 2019), a healthier platform with AM5 and DDR5 instead of BGA1440, 3D V-Cache and a much larger 96 MB L3 cache instead of 16 MB, and more multi-core headroom with 8 cores / 16 threads instead of 8/16. 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 i9-9980HK Benchmark Check

Ryzen 7 7800X3D Benchmark Check

Path of Exile 2

Preset	Core i9-9980HK	Ryzen 7 7800X3D
1080p
low	271 FPS	266 FPS
medium	246 FPS	247 FPS
high	207 FPS	211 FPS
ultra	179 FPS	186 FPS
1440p
low	235 FPS	258 FPS
medium	193 FPS	215 FPS
high	158 FPS	171 FPS
ultra	139 FPS	154 FPS
4K
low	165 FPS	179 FPS
medium	137 FPS	149 FPS
high	106 FPS	112 FPS
ultra	93 FPS	100 FPS

Open Core i9-9980HK Open Ryzen 7 7800X3D

Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2

Counter-Strike 2

Preset	Core i9-9980HK	Ryzen 7 7800X3D
1080p
low	349 FPS	857 FPS
medium	349 FPS	737 FPS
high	349 FPS	580 FPS
ultra	349 FPS	493 FPS
1440p
low	349 FPS	722 FPS
medium	349 FPS	611 FPS
high	349 FPS	500 FPS
ultra	323 FPS	398 FPS
4K
low	349 FPS	396 FPS
medium	310 FPS	339 FPS
high	291 FPS	315 FPS
ultra	245 FPS	273 FPS

Open Core i9-9980HK Open Ryzen 7 7800X3D

Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

League of Legends

Preset	Core i9-9980HK	Ryzen 7 7800X3D
1080p
low	349 FPS	857 FPS
medium	349 FPS	857 FPS
high	349 FPS	857 FPS
ultra	349 FPS	857 FPS
1440p
low	349 FPS	857 FPS
medium	349 FPS	851 FPS
high	349 FPS	786 FPS
ultra	349 FPS	656 FPS
4K
low	349 FPS	558 FPS
medium	349 FPS	479 FPS
high	349 FPS	427 FPS
ultra	322 FPS	362 FPS

Open Core i9-9980HK Open Ryzen 7 7800X3D

League of Legends

League of Legends

Valorant

Preset	Core i9-9980HK	Ryzen 7 7800X3D
1080p
low	349 FPS	857 FPS
medium	349 FPS	857 FPS
high	349 FPS	857 FPS
ultra	349 FPS	782 FPS
1440p
low	349 FPS	857 FPS
medium	349 FPS	760 FPS
high	349 FPS	669 FPS
ultra	349 FPS	576 FPS
4K
low	349 FPS	618 FPS
medium	349 FPS	556 FPS
high	349 FPS	495 FPS
ultra	349 FPS	428 FPS

Open Core i9-9980HK Open Ryzen 7 7800X3D

Valorant

Valorant

Check FPS for your specific build

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of Core i9-9980HK and Ryzen 7 7800X3D

Core i9-9980HK

The Core i9-9980HK is manufactured by Intel. It was released in 23 April 2019 (6 years ago). It is based on the Coffee Lake-HR (2019) architecture. It features 8 cores and 16 threads. Base frequency is 2.4 GHz, with boost up to 5 GHz. L3 cache: 16 MB (total). L2 cache: 256K (per core). Built on 14 nm process technology. Socket: BGA1440. Thermal design power (TDP): 45 Watt. Memory support: DDR4. Passmark benchmark score: 13,966 points. Launch price was $583.

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

Both the Core i9-9980HK and Ryzen 7 7800X3D share an identical 8-core/16-thread configuration. Boost clocks reach 5 GHz on the Core i9-9980HK versus 5 GHz on the Ryzen 7 7800X3D — identical boost frequencies (base: 2.4 GHz vs 4.4 GHz). The Core i9-9980HK uses the Coffee Lake-HR (2019) architecture (14 nm), while the Ryzen 7 7800X3D uses Raphael (Zen4) (2022−2023) (5 nm). In PassMark, the Core i9-9980HK scores 13,966 against the Ryzen 7 7800X3D's 34,293 — a 84.2% lead for the Ryzen 7 7800X3D. L3 cache: 16 MB (total) on the Core i9-9980HK vs 96 MB (total) on the Ryzen 7 7800X3D.

Feature	Core i9-9980HK	Ryzen 7 7800X3D
Cores / Threads	8 / 16	8 / 16
Boost Clock	5 GHz	5 GHz
Base Clock	2.4 GHz	4.4 GHz+83%
L3 Cache	16 MB (total)	96 MB (total)+500%
L2 Cache	256K (per core)	1 MB (per core)+300%
Process	14 nm	5 nm-64%
Architecture	Coffee Lake-HR (2019)	Raphael (Zen4) (2022−2023)
PassMark	13,966	34,293+146%
Cinebench R23 Multi	—	18,500
Geekbench 6 Single	—	2,700
Geekbench 6 Multi	—	15,000

🧠

Memory & Platform

The Core i9-9980HK uses the BGA1440 socket (PCIe 3.0), while the Ryzen 7 7800X3D uses AM5 (PCIe 5.0) — making them incompatible on the same motherboard.

Feature	Core i9-9980HK	Ryzen 7 7800X3D
Socket	BGA1440	AM5
PCIe Generation	PCIe 3.0	PCIe 5.0+67%
Max RAM Speed	—	DDR5-5200
Max RAM Capacity	—	128 GB
RAM Channels	—	2
ECC Support	—	Yes
PCIe Lanes	—	28

🔧

Advanced Features

Virtualization: not specified (Core i9-9980HK) / AMD-V (Ryzen 7 7800X3D). The Ryzen 7 7800X3D includes integrated graphics (AMD Radeon Graphics (2-core)), while the Core i9-9980HK requires a dedicated GPU. Primary use case: Ryzen 7 7800X3D targets Gaming. Direct competitor: Ryzen 7 7800X3D rivals Intel Core i7-14700K.