Core i3-12100E vs Ryzen 9 5900H

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 i3-12100E

2022

Why buy it

✅+0.2% higher PassMark.
✅Newer platform on LGA1700 with DDR5 support instead of FP6 and older memory support.
✅100+% more PCIe lanes (20 vs 0) for storage and expansion-heavy builds.
✅Integrated graphics onboard with UHD Graphics 730, while Ryzen 9 5900H needs a discrete GPU.

Trade-offs

❌Worse for gaming: lower average FPS than Ryzen 9 5900H across 50 shared CPU benchmark tests.
❌Smaller total L3 cache (12 MB vs 16 MB).
❌33.3% higher power demand at 60W vs 45W.

Ryzen 9 5900H

2021

Why buy it

✅Better for gaming: +12.0% higher average FPS across 50 shared CPU benchmark tests.
✅+33.3% larger total L3 cache (16 MB vs 12 MB).
✅Draws 45W instead of 60W, a 15W reduction.

Trade-offs

❌Lower PassMark (13,510 vs 13,535).
❌Older platform position on FP6, while Core i3-12100E moves to LGA1700 and DDR5.
❌No integrated graphics, while Core i3-12100E can still boot and troubleshoot without a discrete GPU.

Core i3-12100E

2022

Ryzen 9 5900H

2021

Why buy it

✅+0.2% higher PassMark.
✅Newer platform on LGA1700 with DDR5 support instead of FP6 and older memory support.
✅100+% more PCIe lanes (20 vs 0) for storage and expansion-heavy builds.
✅Integrated graphics onboard with UHD Graphics 730, while Ryzen 9 5900H needs a discrete GPU.

Why buy it

✅Better for gaming: +12.0% higher average FPS across 50 shared CPU benchmark tests.
✅+33.3% larger total L3 cache (16 MB vs 12 MB).
✅Draws 45W instead of 60W, a 15W reduction.

Trade-offs

❌Worse for gaming: lower average FPS than Ryzen 9 5900H across 50 shared CPU benchmark tests.
❌Smaller total L3 cache (12 MB vs 16 MB).
❌33.3% higher power demand at 60W vs 45W.

Trade-offs

❌Lower PassMark (13,510 vs 13,535).
❌Older platform position on FP6, while Core i3-12100E moves to LGA1700 and DDR5.
❌No integrated graphics, while Core i3-12100E can still boot and troubleshoot without a discrete GPU.

Quick Answers

So, is Core i3-12100E better than Ryzen 9 5900H?

It depends on what matters more to you. For gaming, Ryzen 9 5900H is ahead with a 12.0% average FPS lead across 50 shared CPU game tests in our data. For rendering, compiling, streaming, and heavier multitasking, Core i3-12100E pulls ahead with 0.2% better PassMark. Ryzen 9 5900H also has the bigger cache pool with 33.3% larger total L3 cache (16 MB vs 12 MB).

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

For streaming, content creation, and heavier multitasking, Core i3-12100E is the better fit. You are getting 0.2% better PassMark, backed by 4 cores and 8 threads.

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

Core i3-12100E still looks like the safer overall buy. Core i3-12100E is at an unclear MSRP at unclear MSRP versus unclear MSRP, and it gives you 0.2% better PassMark.

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

Core i3-12100E is the more future-proof choice for 2026 and beyond. You are getting a newer CPU generation (2022 vs 2021), a healthier platform with LGA1700 and DDR5 instead of FP6, and more multi-core headroom with 4 cores / 8 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 i3-12100E Benchmark Check

Ryzen 9 5900H Benchmark Check

Path of Exile 2

Preset	Core i3-12100E	Ryzen 9 5900H
1080p
low	175 FPS	181 FPS
medium	151 FPS	147 FPS
high	123 FPS	122 FPS
ultra	99 FPS	99 FPS
1440p
low	147 FPS	147 FPS
medium	122 FPS	116 FPS
high	96 FPS	95 FPS
ultra	76 FPS	78 FPS
4K
low	67 FPS	81 FPS
medium	59 FPS	69 FPS
high	46 FPS	55 FPS
ultra	37 FPS	43 FPS

Open Core i3-12100E Open Ryzen 9 5900H

Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2

Counter-Strike 2

Preset	Core i3-12100E	Ryzen 9 5900H
1080p
low	269 FPS	338 FPS
medium	235 FPS	338 FPS
high	215 FPS	327 FPS
ultra	184 FPS	288 FPS
1440p
low	241 FPS	338 FPS
medium	213 FPS	338 FPS
high	197 FPS	300 FPS
ultra	168 FPS	256 FPS
4K
low	190 FPS	278 FPS
medium	171 FPS	246 FPS
high	145 FPS	227 FPS
ultra	120 FPS	197 FPS

Open Core i3-12100E Open Ryzen 9 5900H

Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

League of Legends

Preset	Core i3-12100E	Ryzen 9 5900H
1080p
low	338 FPS	338 FPS
medium	338 FPS	338 FPS
high	338 FPS	338 FPS
ultra	338 FPS	338 FPS
1440p
low	338 FPS	338 FPS
medium	338 FPS	338 FPS
high	338 FPS	338 FPS
ultra	338 FPS	338 FPS
4K
low	338 FPS	338 FPS
medium	338 FPS	338 FPS
high	295 FPS	326 FPS
ultra	242 FPS	259 FPS

Open Core i3-12100E Open Ryzen 9 5900H

League of Legends

League of Legends

Valorant

Preset	Core i3-12100E	Ryzen 9 5900H
1080p
low	338 FPS	338 FPS
medium	338 FPS	338 FPS
high	338 FPS	338 FPS
ultra	338 FPS	338 FPS
1440p
low	338 FPS	338 FPS
medium	338 FPS	338 FPS
high	338 FPS	338 FPS
ultra	338 FPS	338 FPS
4K
low	338 FPS	338 FPS
medium	338 FPS	338 FPS
high	338 FPS	338 FPS
ultra	330 FPS	338 FPS

Open Core i3-12100E Open Ryzen 9 5900H

Valorant

Valorant

Check FPS for your specific build

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of Core i3-12100E and Ryzen 9 5900H

Core i3-12100E

The Core i3-12100E is manufactured by Intel. It was released in 4 January 2022 (3 years ago). It is based on the Alder Lake-S (2022) architecture. It features 4 cores and 8 threads. Base frequency is 3.2 GHz, with boost up to 4.2 GHz. L3 cache: 12 MB (total). L2 cache: 1.25 MB (per core). Built on 10 nm process technology. Socket: LGA1700. Thermal design power (TDP): 60 Watt. Memory support: DDR4, DDR5 Dual-channel. Passmark benchmark score: 13,535 points. Launch price was $149.

Ryzen 9 5900H

The Ryzen 9 5900H is manufactured by AMD. It was released in 7 January 2021 (4 years ago). It is based on the Cezanne U (Zen 3) (2021−2022) architecture. It features 8 cores and 16 threads. Base frequency is 3.3 GHz, with boost up to 4.6 GHz. L3 cache: 16 MB. L2 cache: 4 MB. Built on 7 nm process technology. Socket: FP6. Thermal design power (TDP): 45 Watt. Passmark benchmark score: 13,510 points. Launch price was $149.

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Processing Power

The Core i3-12100E packs 4 cores / 8 threads, while the Ryzen 9 5900H offers 8 cores / 16 threads — the Ryzen 9 5900H has 4 more cores. Boost clocks reach 4.2 GHz on the Core i3-12100E versus 4.6 GHz on the Ryzen 9 5900H — a 9.1% clock advantage for the Ryzen 9 5900H (base: 3.2 GHz vs 3.3 GHz). The Core i3-12100E uses the Alder Lake-S (2022) architecture (10 nm), while the Ryzen 9 5900H uses Cezanne U (Zen 3) (2021−2022) (7 nm). In PassMark, the Core i3-12100E scores 13,535 against the Ryzen 9 5900H's 13,510 — a 0.2% lead for the Core i3-12100E. L3 cache: 12 MB (total) on the Core i3-12100E vs 16 MB on the Ryzen 9 5900H.

Feature	Core i3-12100E	Ryzen 9 5900H
Cores / Threads	4 / 8	8 / 16+100%
Boost Clock	4.2 GHz	4.6 GHz+10%
Base Clock	3.2 GHz	3.3 GHz+3%
L3 Cache	12 MB (total)	16 MB+33%
L2 Cache	1.25 MB (per core)	4 MB+220%
Process	10 nm	7 nm-30%
Architecture	Alder Lake-S (2022)	Cezanne U (Zen 3) (2021−2022)
PassMark	13,535	13,510
Geekbench 6 Single	1,594	—

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Memory & Platform

The Core i3-12100E uses the LGA1700 socket (PCIe 5.0), while the Ryzen 9 5900H uses FP6 (PCIe 4.0) — making them incompatible on the same motherboard.

Feature	Core i3-12100E	Ryzen 9 5900H
Socket	LGA1700	FP6
PCIe Generation	PCIe 5.0+25%	PCIe 4.0
Max RAM Speed	DDR5-4800	—
Max RAM Capacity	128 GB	—
RAM Channels	2	—
ECC Support	Yes	—
PCIe Lanes	20	—

🔧

Advanced Features

Virtualization: VT-x, VT-d, EPT (Core i3-12100E) / not specified (Ryzen 9 5900H). The Core i3-12100E includes integrated graphics (UHD Graphics 730), while the Ryzen 9 5900H requires a dedicated GPU. Primary use case: Core i3-12100E targets Embedded. Direct competitor: Core i3-12100E rivals Ryzen Embedded V3000 Series.