Ryzen Z1 Extreme vs Xeon E5-2699 v4

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.

Ryzen Z1 Extreme

2023

Why buy it

✅Better for gaming: +17.8% higher average FPS across 50 shared CPU benchmark tests.
✅Draws 15W instead of 145W, a 130W reduction.
✅Newer platform on FP8 with DDR5 support instead of LGA2011 and DDR4.

Trade-offs

❌Lower PassMark (24,668 vs 24,711).
❌Smaller total L3 cache (16 MB vs 55 MB).
❌Less compelling for workstation-style loads than Xeon E5-2699 v4, which brings 22 cores / 44 threads and 40 PCIe lanes.

Xeon E5-2699 v4

2016

Why buy it

✅+0.2% higher PassMark.
✅+243.8% larger total L3 cache (55 MB vs 16 MB).
✅Better for workstations and heavier parallel workloads: 22 cores / 44 threads, plus 40 PCIe lanes vs 0.
✅100+% more PCIe lanes (40 vs 0) for storage and expansion-heavy builds.

Trade-offs

❌Worse for gaming: lower average FPS than Ryzen Z1 Extreme across 50 shared CPU benchmark tests.
❌Launch MSRP is still $4,115 MSRP, while Ryzen Z1 Extreme mostly shows up through inconsistent older-market listings.
❌866.7% higher power demand at 145W vs 15W.
❌Older platform position on LGA2011 with DDR4, while Ryzen Z1 Extreme moves to FP8 and DDR5.

Ryzen Z1 Extreme

2023

Xeon E5-2699 v4

2016

Why buy it

✅Better for gaming: +17.8% higher average FPS across 50 shared CPU benchmark tests.
✅Draws 15W instead of 145W, a 130W reduction.
✅Newer platform on FP8 with DDR5 support instead of LGA2011 and DDR4.

Why buy it

✅+0.2% higher PassMark.
✅+243.8% larger total L3 cache (55 MB vs 16 MB).
✅Better for workstations and heavier parallel workloads: 22 cores / 44 threads, plus 40 PCIe lanes vs 0.
✅100+% more PCIe lanes (40 vs 0) for storage and expansion-heavy builds.

Trade-offs

❌Lower PassMark (24,668 vs 24,711).
❌Smaller total L3 cache (16 MB vs 55 MB).
❌Less compelling for workstation-style loads than Xeon E5-2699 v4, which brings 22 cores / 44 threads and 40 PCIe lanes.

Trade-offs

❌Worse for gaming: lower average FPS than Ryzen Z1 Extreme across 50 shared CPU benchmark tests.
❌Launch MSRP is still $4,115 MSRP, while Ryzen Z1 Extreme mostly shows up through inconsistent older-market listings.
❌866.7% higher power demand at 145W vs 15W.
❌Older platform position on LGA2011 with DDR4, while Ryzen Z1 Extreme moves to FP8 and DDR5.

Quick Answers

So, is Ryzen Z1 Extreme better than Xeon E5-2699 v4?

Not in a simple one-size-fits-all way. Xeon E5-2699 v4 makes more sense for workstation-style multi-core throughput, while Ryzen Z1 Extreme is the better mainstream desktop choice for gaming, platform cost, and day-to-day practicality.

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

For streaming, content creation, and heavier multitasking, Xeon E5-2699 v4 is the better fit. You are getting 0.2% better PassMark, backed by 22 cores and 44 threads. It also carries the larger cache pool with 243.8% larger total L3 cache (55 MB vs 16 MB).

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

Ryzen Z1 Extreme is still the faster CPU overall, but Xeon E5-2699 v4 makes more sense if price matters more than absolute performance. Ryzen Z1 Extreme is at an unclear MSRP at unclear MSRP versus $4,115 MSRP, and it gives you a 17.8% average FPS lead across 50 shared CPU game tests in our data. The trade-off is that Xeon E5-2699 v4 is still stronger for heavier multi-core work with 0.2% better PassMark. Xeon E5-2699 v4 is also 100.0% better value on MSRP (6.0 vs 0.0 PassMark/$), which is why it is easier to justify for price-conscious builds on paper.

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

Ryzen Z1 Extreme is the more future-proof choice for 2026 and beyond. You are getting a newer CPU generation (2023 vs 2016) and a healthier platform with FP8 and DDR5 instead of LGA2011. 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.

Ryzen Z1 Extreme Benchmark Check

Xeon E5-2699 v4 Benchmark Check

Path of Exile 2

Preset	Ryzen Z1 Extreme	Xeon E5-2699 v4
1080p
low	256 FPS	187 FPS
medium	236 FPS	164 FPS
high	202 FPS	131 FPS
ultra	172 FPS	104 FPS
1440p
low	225 FPS	154 FPS
medium	188 FPS	130 FPS
high	155 FPS	100 FPS
ultra	135 FPS	81 FPS
4K
low	154 FPS	70 FPS
medium	129 FPS	62 FPS
high	100 FPS	48 FPS
ultra	87 FPS	39 FPS

Open Ryzen Z1 Extreme Open Xeon E5-2699 v4

Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2

Counter-Strike 2

Preset	Ryzen Z1 Extreme	Xeon E5-2699 v4
1080p
low	472 FPS	211 FPS
medium	396 FPS	192 FPS
high	345 FPS	164 FPS
ultra	308 FPS	132 FPS
1440p
low	413 FPS	182 FPS
medium	365 FPS	165 FPS
high	318 FPS	143 FPS
ultra	272 FPS	112 FPS
4K
low	274 FPS	115 FPS
medium	253 FPS	105 FPS
high	241 FPS	93 FPS
ultra	208 FPS	74 FPS

Open Ryzen Z1 Extreme Open Xeon E5-2699 v4

Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

League of Legends

Preset	Ryzen Z1 Extreme	Xeon E5-2699 v4
1080p
low	617 FPS	618 FPS
medium	617 FPS	618 FPS
high	617 FPS	618 FPS
ultra	617 FPS	618 FPS
1440p
low	617 FPS	618 FPS
medium	617 FPS	618 FPS
high	533 FPS	590 FPS
ultra	452 FPS	532 FPS
4K
low	518 FPS	469 FPS
medium	448 FPS	382 FPS
high	398 FPS	347 FPS
ultra	336 FPS	289 FPS

Open Ryzen Z1 Extreme Open Xeon E5-2699 v4

League of Legends

League of Legends

Valorant

Preset	Ryzen Z1 Extreme	Xeon E5-2699 v4
1080p
low	617 FPS	618 FPS
medium	617 FPS	618 FPS
high	617 FPS	618 FPS
ultra	617 FPS	614 FPS
1440p
low	617 FPS	618 FPS
medium	617 FPS	618 FPS
high	617 FPS	572 FPS
ultra	597 FPS	484 FPS
4K
low	595 FPS	551 FPS
medium	535 FPS	493 FPS
high	480 FPS	436 FPS
ultra	418 FPS	373 FPS

Open Ryzen Z1 Extreme Open Xeon E5-2699 v4

Valorant

Valorant

Check FPS for your specific build

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of Ryzen Z1 Extreme and Xeon E5-2699 v4

Ryzen Z1 Extreme

The Ryzen Z1 Extreme is manufactured by AMD. It was released in Maio 2023 (2 years ago). It is based on the Phoenix (Zen 4) (2023) architecture. It features 8 cores and 16 threads. Base frequency is 3.3 GHz, with boost up to 5.1 GHz. L3 cache: 16 MB (total). L2 cache: 1 MB (per core). Built on 4 nm process technology. Socket: FP8. Thermal design power (TDP): 15 Watt. Memory support: DDR5. Passmark benchmark score: 24,668 points. Launch price was $299.

Xeon E5-2699 v4

The Xeon E5-2699 v4 is manufactured by Intel. It was released in 20 June 2016 (9 years ago). It is based on the Broadwell (2015−2019) architecture. It features 22 cores and 44 threads. Base frequency is 2.2 GHz, with boost up to 3.6 GHz. L3 cache: 55 MB. L2 cache: 5.5 MB. Built on 14 nm process technology. Socket: LGA2011. Thermal design power (TDP): 145 Watt. Memory support: DDR4-1600, DDR4-1866, DDR4-2133, DDR4-2400. Passmark benchmark score: 24,711 points. Launch price was $4,115.

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Processing Power

The Ryzen Z1 Extreme packs 8 cores / 16 threads, while the Xeon E5-2699 v4 offers 22 cores / 44 threads — the Xeon E5-2699 v4 has 14 more cores. Boost clocks reach 5.1 GHz on the Ryzen Z1 Extreme versus 3.6 GHz on the Xeon E5-2699 v4 — a 34.5% clock advantage for the Ryzen Z1 Extreme (base: 3.3 GHz vs 2.2 GHz). The Ryzen Z1 Extreme uses the Phoenix (Zen 4) (2023) architecture (4 nm), while the Xeon E5-2699 v4 uses Broadwell (2015−2019) (14 nm). In PassMark, the Ryzen Z1 Extreme scores 24,668 against the Xeon E5-2699 v4's 24,711 — a 0.2% lead for the Xeon E5-2699 v4. L3 cache: 16 MB (total) on the Ryzen Z1 Extreme vs 55 MB on the Xeon E5-2699 v4.

Feature	Ryzen Z1 Extreme	Xeon E5-2699 v4
Cores / Threads	8 / 16	22 / 44+175%
Boost Clock	5.1 GHz+42%	3.6 GHz
Base Clock	3.3 GHz+50%	2.2 GHz
L3 Cache	16 MB (total)	55 MB+244%
L2 Cache	1 MB (per core)	5.5 MB+450%
Process	4 nm-71%	14 nm
Architecture	Phoenix (Zen 4) (2023)	Broadwell (2015−2019)
PassMark	24,668	24,711

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Memory & Platform

The Ryzen Z1 Extreme uses the FP8 socket (PCIe 4.0), while the Xeon E5-2699 v4 uses LGA2011 (PCIe 3.0) — making them incompatible on the same motherboard.

Feature	Ryzen Z1 Extreme	Xeon E5-2699 v4
Socket	FP8	LGA2011
PCIe Generation	PCIe 4.0+33%	PCIe 3.0
Max RAM Speed	—	2400
Max RAM Capacity	—	1536
RAM Channels	—	4
ECC Support	—	Yes
PCIe Lanes	—	40

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Advanced Features

Virtualization: not specified (Ryzen Z1 Extreme) / VT-x, VT-d (Xeon E5-2699 v4). Direct competitor: Xeon E5-2699 v4 rivals Xeon Silver 4114.