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 i9-9920X

2018

Why buy it

Trade-offs

❌Worse for gaming: lower average FPS than Ryzen 9 7950X3D across 50 shared CPU benchmark tests.
❌Lower PassMark (24,974 vs 62,323).
❌Lower PassMark per dollar, at 21.0 vs 89.2 PassMark/$ ($1,189 MSRP vs $699 MSRP).
❌37.5% higher power demand at 165W vs 120W.
❌Older platform position on LGA2066 with DDR4, while Ryzen 9 7950X3D moves to AM5 and DDR5.

Ryzen 9 7950X3D

2023

Why buy it

✅Better for gaming: +47.7% higher average FPS across 50 shared CPU benchmark tests.
✅Costs $490 less on MSRP ($699 MSRP vs $1,189 MSRP).
✅Delivers 324.5% more PassMark for each dollar spent, at 89.2 vs 21.0 PassMark/$ ($699 MSRP vs $1,189 MSRP).
✅Draws 120W instead of 165W, a 45W reduction.
✅Newer platform on AM5 with DDR5 support instead of LGA2066 and DDR4.

Trade-offs

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

Core i9-9920X

2018

Ryzen 9 7950X3D

2023

Why buy it

✅Better for gaming: +47.7% higher average FPS across 50 shared CPU benchmark tests.
✅Costs $490 less on MSRP ($699 MSRP vs $1,189 MSRP).
✅Delivers 324.5% more PassMark for each dollar spent, at 89.2 vs 21.0 PassMark/$ ($699 MSRP vs $1,189 MSRP).
✅Draws 120W instead of 165W, a 45W reduction.
✅Newer platform on AM5 with DDR5 support instead of LGA2066 and DDR4.

Trade-offs

❌Worse for gaming: lower average FPS than Ryzen 9 7950X3D across 50 shared CPU benchmark tests.
❌Lower PassMark (24,974 vs 62,323).
❌Lower PassMark per dollar, at 21.0 vs 89.2 PassMark/$ ($1,189 MSRP vs $699 MSRP).
❌37.5% higher power demand at 165W vs 120W.
❌Older platform position on LGA2066 with DDR4, while Ryzen 9 7950X3D moves to AM5 and DDR5.

Trade-offs

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

Quick Answers

So, is Ryzen 9 7950X3D better than Core i9-9920X?

Yes. Ryzen 9 7950X3D is the better overall CPU here. You are getting a 47.7% average FPS lead across 50 shared CPU game tests in our data, 149.6% 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 47.7% more average FPS across 50 shared CPU game tests. It also has a big cache advantage at 128 MB vs 19 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 149.6% better PassMark, backed by 16 cores and 32 threads. It also carries the larger cache pool with 564.9% larger total L3 cache (128 MB vs 19 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 $490 cheaper on MSRP at $699 MSRP versus $1,189 MSRP, and it gives you a 47.7% average FPS lead across 50 shared CPU game tests in our data. It is also 324.5% better value on MSRP (89.2 vs 21.0 PassMark/$), 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 9 7950X3D is the more future-proof choice for 2026 and beyond. You are getting a newer CPU generation (2023 vs 2018), a healthier platform with AM5 and DDR5 instead of LGA2066, 3D V-Cache and a much larger 128 MB L3 cache instead of 19 MB, and more multi-core headroom with 16 cores / 32 threads instead of 12/24. 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 i9-9920X Benchmark Check

Ryzen 9 7950X3D Benchmark Check

Path of Exile 2

Preset	Core i9-9920X	Ryzen 9 7950X3D
1080p
low	173 FPS	291 FPS
medium	150 FPS	265 FPS
high	121 FPS	219 FPS
ultra	102 FPS	186 FPS
1440p
low	145 FPS	275 FPS
medium	122 FPS	227 FPS
high	98 FPS	177 FPS
ultra	83 FPS	156 FPS
4K
low	77 FPS	190 FPS
medium	70 FPS	156 FPS
high	55 FPS	120 FPS
ultra	43 FPS	107 FPS

Open Core i9-9920X Open Ryzen 9 7950X3D

Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2

Counter-Strike 2

Preset	Core i9-9920X	Ryzen 9 7950X3D
1080p
low	508 FPS	734 FPS
medium	437 FPS	627 FPS
high	374 FPS	465 FPS
ultra	339 FPS	393 FPS
1440p
low	438 FPS	602 FPS
medium	385 FPS	536 FPS
high	332 FPS	413 FPS
ultra	288 FPS	326 FPS
4K
low	271 FPS	338 FPS
medium	237 FPS	305 FPS
high	223 FPS	268 FPS
ultra	193 FPS	229 FPS

Open Core i9-9920X Open Ryzen 9 7950X3D

Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

League of Legends

Preset	Core i9-9920X	Ryzen 9 7950X3D
1080p
low	624 FPS	1025 FPS
medium	547 FPS	1122 FPS
high	499 FPS	1062 FPS
ultra	435 FPS	875 FPS
1440p
low	577 FPS	936 FPS
medium	487 FPS	845 FPS
high	442 FPS	775 FPS
ultra	386 FPS	656 FPS
4K
low	444 FPS	574 FPS
medium	364 FPS	498 FPS
high	327 FPS	447 FPS
ultra	268 FPS	378 FPS

Open Core i9-9920X Open Ryzen 9 7950X3D

League of Legends

League of Legends

Valorant

Preset	Core i9-9920X	Ryzen 9 7950X3D
1080p
low	624 FPS	1082 FPS
medium	624 FPS	973 FPS
high	624 FPS	854 FPS
ultra	624 FPS	766 FPS
1440p
low	624 FPS	853 FPS
medium	624 FPS	751 FPS
high	624 FPS	659 FPS
ultra	620 FPS	569 FPS
4K
low	624 FPS	623 FPS
medium	582 FPS	555 FPS
high	521 FPS	493 FPS
ultra	437 FPS	426 FPS

Open Core i9-9920X Open Ryzen 9 7950X3D

Valorant

Valorant

Check FPS for your specific build

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of Core i9-9920X and Ryzen 9 7950X3D

Core i9-9920X

The Core i9-9920X is manufactured by Intel. It was released in 19 October 2018 (7 years ago). It is based on the Skylake (server) (2017−2018) architecture. It features 12 cores and 24 threads. Base frequency is 3.5 GHz, with boost up to 4.5 GHz. L3 cache: 19.25 MB (total). L2 cache: 1 MB (per core). Built on 14 nm process technology. Socket: LGA2066. Thermal design power (TDP): 165 Watt. Memory support: DDR4-2666. Passmark benchmark score: 24,974 points. Launch price was $1,189.

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 i9-9920X packs 12 cores / 24 threads, while the Ryzen 9 7950X3D offers 16 cores / 32 threads — the Ryzen 9 7950X3D has 4 more cores. Boost clocks reach 4.5 GHz on the Core i9-9920X versus 5.7 GHz on the Ryzen 9 7950X3D — a 23.5% clock advantage for the Ryzen 9 7950X3D (base: 3.5 GHz vs 4.2 GHz). The Core i9-9920X uses the Skylake (server) (2017−2018) architecture (14 nm), while the Ryzen 9 7950X3D uses Raphael (Zen4) (2022−2023) (5 nm, 6 nm). In PassMark, the Core i9-9920X scores 24,974 against the Ryzen 9 7950X3D's 62,323 — a 85.6% lead for the Ryzen 9 7950X3D. L3 cache: 19.25 MB (total) on the Core i9-9920X vs 128 MB (total) on the Ryzen 9 7950X3D.

Feature	Core i9-9920X	Ryzen 9 7950X3D
Cores / Threads	12 / 24	16 / 32+33%
Boost Clock	4.5 GHz	5.7 GHz+27%
Base Clock	3.5 GHz	4.2 GHz+20%
L3 Cache	19.25 MB (total)	128 MB (total)+565%
L2 Cache	1 MB (per core)	1 MB (per core)
Process	14 nm	5 nm, 6 nm-64%
Architecture	Skylake (server) (2017−2018)	Raphael (Zen4) (2022−2023)
PassMark	24,974	62,323+150%
Cinebench R23 Multi	—	38,581
Geekbench 6 Single	—	2,926
Geekbench 6 Multi	—	19,643

🧠

Memory & Platform

The Core i9-9920X uses the LGA2066 socket (PCIe 3.0), while the Ryzen 9 7950X3D uses AM5 (PCIe 5.0) — making them incompatible on the same motherboard.

Feature	Core i9-9920X	Ryzen 9 7950X3D
Socket	LGA2066	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 i9-9920X) / true (Ryzen 9 7950X3D). The Ryzen 9 7950X3D includes integrated graphics (Radeon Graphics), while the Core i9-9920X requires a dedicated GPU. Direct competitor: Ryzen 9 7950X3D rivals Core i9-13900K.

Feature	Core i9-9920X	Ryzen 9 7950X3D
Integrated GPU	—	Yes
IGPU Model	—	Radeon Graphics
Unlocked	—	Yes
AVX-512	—	Yes
Virtualization	—	true

💰

Value Analysis

The Core i9-9920X launched at $1189 MSRP, while the Ryzen 9 7950X3D debuted at $699. On MSRP ($1189 vs $699), the Ryzen 9 7950X3D is $490 cheaper. In terms of value on MSRP (PassMark points per dollar), the Core i9-9920X delivers 21.0 pts/$ vs 89.2 pts/$ for the Ryzen 9 7950X3D — making the Ryzen 9 7950X3D the 123.7% better value option.