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 i9-14900KS

2024

Why buy it

Trade-offs

❌Worse for gaming: lower average FPS than Ryzen 9 7950X3D across 42 shared CPU benchmark tests.
❌Lower PassMark (60,531 vs 62,323).
❌Lower PassMark per dollar, at 80.8 vs 89.2 PassMark/$ ($749 MSRP vs $699 MSRP).
❌25% higher power demand at 150W vs 120W.

Ryzen 9 7950X3D

2023

Why buy it

✅Better for gaming: +10.2% higher average FPS across 42 shared CPU benchmark tests.
✅Costs $50 less on MSRP ($699 MSRP vs $749 MSRP).
✅Delivers 10.3% more PassMark for each dollar spent, at 89.2 vs 80.8 PassMark/$ ($699 MSRP vs $749 MSRP).
✅Draws 120W instead of 150W, a 30W reduction.
✅40% more PCIe lanes (28 vs 20) for storage and expansion-heavy builds.

Trade-offs

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

Core i9-14900KS

2024

Ryzen 9 7950X3D

2023

Why buy it

✅Better for gaming: +10.2% higher average FPS across 42 shared CPU benchmark tests.
✅Costs $50 less on MSRP ($699 MSRP vs $749 MSRP).
✅Delivers 10.3% more PassMark for each dollar spent, at 89.2 vs 80.8 PassMark/$ ($699 MSRP vs $749 MSRP).
✅Draws 120W instead of 150W, a 30W reduction.
✅40% more PCIe lanes (28 vs 20) for storage and expansion-heavy builds.

Trade-offs

❌Worse for gaming: lower average FPS than Ryzen 9 7950X3D across 42 shared CPU benchmark tests.
❌Lower PassMark (60,531 vs 62,323).
❌Lower PassMark per dollar, at 80.8 vs 89.2 PassMark/$ ($749 MSRP vs $699 MSRP).
❌25% higher power demand at 150W vs 120W.

Trade-offs

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

Quick Answers

So, is Ryzen 9 7950X3D better than Core i9-14900KS?

Yes. Ryzen 9 7950X3D is the better overall CPU here. You are getting a 10.2% average FPS lead across 42 shared CPU game tests in our data, 3% 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 9 7950X3D is the better pick here. According to our tests, it delivers 10.2% more average FPS across 42 shared CPU game tests. It also has a big cache advantage at 128 MB vs 36 MB.

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

For streaming, content creation, and heavier multitasking, Ryzen 9 7950X3D is the better fit. You are getting 3% better PassMark, backed by 16 cores and 32 threads. It also carries the larger cache pool with 255.6% larger total L3 cache (128 MB vs 36 MB).

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

Ryzen 9 7950X3D is the smarter buy today. Ryzen 9 7950X3D is $50 cheaper on MSRP at $699 MSRP versus $749 MSRP, and it gives you a 10.2% average FPS lead across 42 shared CPU game tests in our data. It is also 10.3% better value on MSRP (89.2 vs 80.8 PassMark/$), 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 LGA1700 + DDR5 setup, Core i9-14900KS can still make sense as a platform-matched option because it avoids a motherboard and RAM swap.

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

Ryzen 9 7950X3D is the more future-proof choice for 2026 and beyond. You are getting 3D V-Cache and a much larger 128 MB L3 cache instead of 36 MB and more multi-core headroom with 16 cores / 32 threads instead of 24/32. 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 i9-14900KS Benchmark Check

Ryzen 9 7950X3D Benchmark Check

Path of Exile 2

Preset	Core i9-14900KS	Ryzen 9 7950X3D
1080p
low	325 FPS	291 FPS
medium	314 FPS	265 FPS
high	246 FPS	219 FPS
ultra	207 FPS	186 FPS
1440p
low	281 FPS	275 FPS
medium	241 FPS	227 FPS
high	177 FPS	177 FPS
ultra	156 FPS	156 FPS
4K
low	194 FPS	190 FPS
medium	165 FPS	156 FPS
high	122 FPS	120 FPS
ultra	110 FPS	107 FPS

Open Core i9-14900KS Open Ryzen 9 7950X3D

Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2

Counter-Strike 2

Preset	Core i9-14900KS	Ryzen 9 7950X3D
1080p
low	792 FPS	734 FPS
medium	688 FPS	627 FPS
high	550 FPS	465 FPS
ultra	488 FPS	393 FPS
1440p
low	664 FPS	602 FPS
medium	597 FPS	536 FPS
high	490 FPS	413 FPS
ultra	400 FPS	326 FPS
4K
low	369 FPS	338 FPS
medium	336 FPS	305 FPS
high	312 FPS	268 FPS
ultra	275 FPS	229 FPS

Open Core i9-14900KS Open Ryzen 9 7950X3D

Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

League of Legends

Preset	Core i9-14900KS	Ryzen 9 7950X3D
1080p
low	794 FPS	1025 FPS
medium	660 FPS	1122 FPS
high	572 FPS	1062 FPS
ultra	493 FPS	875 FPS
1440p
low	711 FPS	936 FPS
medium	599 FPS	845 FPS
high	512 FPS	775 FPS
ultra	450 FPS	656 FPS
4K
low	522 FPS	574 FPS
medium	463 FPS	498 FPS
high	412 FPS	447 FPS
ultra	352 FPS	378 FPS

Open Core i9-14900KS Open Ryzen 9 7950X3D

League of Legends

League of Legends

Valorant

Preset	Core i9-14900KS	Ryzen 9 7950X3D
1080p
low	1091 FPS	1082 FPS
medium	975 FPS	973 FPS
high	853 FPS	854 FPS
ultra	760 FPS	766 FPS
1440p
low	900 FPS	853 FPS
medium	791 FPS	751 FPS
high	690 FPS	659 FPS
ultra	607 FPS	569 FPS
4K
low	662 FPS	623 FPS
medium	592 FPS	555 FPS
high	523 FPS	493 FPS
ultra	437 FPS	426 FPS

Open Core i9-14900KS Open Ryzen 9 7950X3D

Valorant

Valorant

Check FPS for your specific build

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of Core i9-14900KS and Ryzen 9 7950X3D

Core i9-14900KS

The Core i9-14900KS is manufactured by Intel. It was released in Marchar 2024 (1 year ago). It is based on the Raptor Lake-R (2023−2025) architecture. It features 24 cores and 32 threads. Base frequency is 3.2 GHz, with boost up to 5.9 GHz. L3 cache: 36 MB (total). L2 cache: 2 MB (per core). Built on Intel 7 nm process technology. Socket: LGA1700. Thermal design power (TDP): 150 Watt. Memory support: DDR5-5600, DDR4-3200. Passmark benchmark score: 60,531 points. Launch price was $689.

Ryzen 9 7950X3D

The Ryzen 9 7950X3D 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 16 cores and 32 threads. Base frequency is 4.2 GHz, with boost up to 5.7 GHz. L3 cache: 128 MB (total). L2 cache: 1 MB (per core). Built on 5 nm, 6 nm process technology. Socket: AM5. Thermal design power (TDP): 120 Watt. Memory support: DDR5-5200. Passmark benchmark score: 62,323 points. Launch price was $699.

⚡

Processing Power

The Core i9-14900KS packs 24 cores / 32 threads, while the Ryzen 9 7950X3D offers 16 cores / 32 threads — the Core i9-14900KS has 8 more cores. Boost clocks reach 5.9 GHz on the Core i9-14900KS versus 5.7 GHz on the Ryzen 9 7950X3D — a 3.4% clock advantage for the Core i9-14900KS (base: 3.2 GHz vs 4.2 GHz). The Core i9-14900KS uses the Raptor Lake-R (2023−2025) architecture (Intel 7 nm), while the Ryzen 9 7950X3D uses Raphael (Zen4) (2022−2023) (5 nm, 6 nm). In PassMark, the Core i9-14900KS scores 60,531 against the Ryzen 9 7950X3D's 62,323 — a 2.9% lead for the Ryzen 9 7950X3D. L3 cache: 36 MB (total) on the Core i9-14900KS vs 128 MB (total) on the Ryzen 9 7950X3D.

Feature	Core i9-14900KS	Ryzen 9 7950X3D
Cores / Threads	24 / 32+50%	16 / 32
Boost Clock	5.9 GHz+4%	5.7 GHz
Base Clock	3.2 GHz	4.2 GHz+31%
L3 Cache	36 MB (total)	128 MB (total)+256%
L2 Cache	2 MB (per core)+100%	1 MB (per core)
Process	Intel 7 nm	5 nm, 6 nm-29%
Architecture	Raptor Lake-R (2023−2025)	Raphael (Zen4) (2022−2023)
PassMark	60,531	62,323+3%
Cinebench R23 Multi	—	38,581
Geekbench 6 Single	—	2,926
Geekbench 6 Multi	—	19,643

🧠

Memory & Platform

The Core i9-14900KS uses the LGA1700 socket (PCIe 5.0), while the Ryzen 9 7950X3D uses AM5 (PCIe 5.0) — making them incompatible on the same motherboard. Maximum memory speed reaches 5600 on the Core i9-14900KS versus DDR5-5200 on the Ryzen 9 7950X3D — the Core i9-14900KS supports 199.6% faster memory, which can translate to measurable gains in memory-sensitive workloads. The Core i9-14900KS supports up to 192 of RAM compared to 128 GB — 40% more capacity for professional workloads. Both feature 2-channel memory with ECC support. PCIe lanes: 20 (Core i9-14900KS) vs 28 (Ryzen 9 7950X3D) — the Ryzen 9 7950X3D offers 8 more lanes for additional GPUs or NVMe drives. Chipset compatibility: Z790,Z690 (Core i9-14900KS) and AMD X670E,AMD X670,AMD B650E,AMD B650 (Ryzen 9 7950X3D).

Feature	Core i9-14900KS	Ryzen 9 7950X3D
Socket	LGA1700	AM5
PCIe Generation	PCIe 5.0	PCIe 5.0
Max RAM Speed	5600+111900%	DDR5-5200
Max RAM Capacity	192	128 GB+69904967%
RAM Channels	2	2
ECC Support	Yes	Yes
PCIe Lanes	20	28+40%

🔧

Advanced Features

Both processors feature an unlocked multiplier for overclocking. Only the Ryzen 9 7950X3D supports AVX-512 instructions — important for machine learning and scientific applications. Virtualization support: VT-x, VT-d (Core i9-14900KS) vs true (Ryzen 9 7950X3D). Both include integrated graphics — Intel UHD Graphics 770 (Core i9-14900KS) and Radeon Graphics (Ryzen 9 7950X3D) — useful as a fallback for troubleshooting or display output without a dedicated GPU. Direct competitor: Core i9-14900KS rivals Ryzen 9 7950X; Ryzen 9 7950X3D rivals Core i9-13900K.

Feature	Core i9-14900KS	Ryzen 9 7950X3D
Integrated GPU	Yes	Yes
IGPU Model	Intel UHD Graphics 770	Radeon Graphics
Unlocked	Yes	Yes
AVX-512	No	Yes
Virtualization	VT-x, VT-d	true

💰

Value Analysis

The Core i9-14900KS launched at $749 MSRP, while the Ryzen 9 7950X3D debuted at $699. On MSRP ($749 vs $699), the Ryzen 9 7950X3D is $50 cheaper. In terms of value on MSRP (PassMark points per dollar), the Core i9-14900KS delivers 80.8 pts/$ vs 89.2 pts/$ for the Ryzen 9 7950X3D — making the Ryzen 9 7950X3D the 9.8% better value option.