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.

Xeon Gold 6238R

2020

Why buy it

✅Costs $3,690 less on MSRP ($2,612 MSRP vs $6,302 MSRP).
✅Delivers 139.0% more PassMark for each dollar spent, at 13.3 vs 5.6 PassMark/$ ($2,612 MSRP vs $6,302 MSRP).
✅Draws 165W instead of 205W, a 40W reduction.

Trade-offs

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

Xeon Platinum 8268

2019

Why buy it

Trade-offs

❌Lower Geekbench multi-core (12,046 vs 21,433).
❌Lower PassMark per dollar, at 5.6 vs 13.3 PassMark/$ ($6,302 MSRP vs $2,612 MSRP).
❌24.2% higher power demand at 205W vs 165W.

Xeon Gold 6238R

2020

Xeon Platinum 8268

2019

Why buy it

✅Costs $3,690 less on MSRP ($2,612 MSRP vs $6,302 MSRP).
✅Delivers 139.0% more PassMark for each dollar spent, at 13.3 vs 5.6 PassMark/$ ($2,612 MSRP vs $6,302 MSRP).
✅Draws 165W instead of 205W, a 40W reduction.

Why buy it

Trade-offs

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

Trade-offs

❌Lower Geekbench multi-core (12,046 vs 21,433).
❌Lower PassMark per dollar, at 5.6 vs 13.3 PassMark/$ ($6,302 MSRP vs $2,612 MSRP).
❌24.2% higher power demand at 205W vs 165W.

Quick Answers

So, is Xeon Gold 6238R better than Xeon Platinum 8268?

Yes. Xeon Gold 6238R is the better overall CPU here. You are getting a 2.2% average FPS lead across 50 shared CPU game tests in our data, 77.9% better Geekbench multi-core, 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, Xeon Gold 6238R is the better pick here. According to our tests, it delivers 2.2% more average FPS across 50 shared CPU game tests.

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

For streaming, content creation, and heavier multitasking, Xeon Gold 6238R is the better fit. You are getting 77.9% better Geekbench multi-core, backed by 28 cores and 56 threads.

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

Xeon Gold 6238R is the smarter buy today. Xeon Gold 6238R is $3,690 cheaper on MSRP at $2,612 MSRP versus $6,302 MSRP, and it gives you a 2.2% average FPS lead across 50 shared CPU game tests in our data. It is also 139.0% better value on MSRP (13.3 vs 5.6 PassMark/$), 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?

Xeon Gold 6238R is the more future-proof choice for 2026 and beyond. You are getting a newer CPU generation (2020 vs 2019) and more multi-core headroom with 28 cores / 56 threads instead of 24/48. That extra compute headroom should age better as games, background tasks, and creator workloads get heavier.

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.

Xeon Gold 6238R Benchmark Check

Xeon Platinum 8268 Benchmark Check

Path of Exile 2

Preset	Xeon Gold 6238R	Xeon Platinum 8268
1080p
low	196 FPS	194 FPS
medium	158 FPS	157 FPS
high	128 FPS	126 FPS
ultra	100 FPS	98 FPS
1440p
low	157 FPS	159 FPS
medium	123 FPS	124 FPS
high	96 FPS	96 FPS
ultra	76 FPS	76 FPS
4K
low	72 FPS	72 FPS
medium	60 FPS	60 FPS
high	47 FPS	47 FPS
ultra	38 FPS	38 FPS

Open Xeon Gold 6238R Open Xeon Platinum 8268

Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2

Counter-Strike 2

Preset	Xeon Gold 6238R	Xeon Platinum 8268
1080p
low	233 FPS	424 FPS
medium	207 FPS	370 FPS
high	174 FPS	303 FPS
ultra	145 FPS	249 FPS
1440p
low	200 FPS	366 FPS
medium	180 FPS	322 FPS
high	153 FPS	266 FPS
ultra	123 FPS	212 FPS
4K
low	125 FPS	228 FPS
medium	114 FPS	203 FPS
high	104 FPS	180 FPS
ultra	86 FPS	148 FPS

Open Xeon Gold 6238R Open Xeon Platinum 8268

Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

League of Legends

Preset	Xeon Gold 6238R	Xeon Platinum 8268
1080p
low	869 FPS	877 FPS
medium	869 FPS	877 FPS
high	833 FPS	872 FPS
ultra	753 FPS	787 FPS
1440p
low	761 FPS	731 FPS
medium	676 FPS	632 FPS
high	635 FPS	600 FPS
ultra	569 FPS	537 FPS
4K
low	492 FPS	468 FPS
medium	406 FPS	368 FPS
high	357 FPS	328 FPS
ultra	292 FPS	269 FPS

Open Xeon Gold 6238R Open Xeon Platinum 8268

League of Legends

League of Legends

Valorant

Preset	Xeon Gold 6238R	Xeon Platinum 8268
1080p
low	869 FPS	877 FPS
medium	816 FPS	848 FPS
high	703 FPS	733 FPS
ultra	613 FPS	637 FPS
1440p
low	716 FPS	736 FPS
medium	628 FPS	646 FPS
high	539 FPS	555 FPS
ultra	466 FPS	476 FPS
4K
low	521 FPS	531 FPS
medium	465 FPS	473 FPS
high	408 FPS	416 FPS
ultra	351 FPS	361 FPS

Open Xeon Gold 6238R Open Xeon Platinum 8268

Valorant

Valorant

Check FPS for your specific build

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of Xeon Gold 6238R and Xeon Platinum 8268

Xeon Gold 6238R

The Xeon Gold 6238R is manufactured by Intel. It was released in 24 February 2020 (5 years ago). It is based on the Cascade Lake (2019−2020) architecture. It features 28 cores and 56 threads. Base frequency is 2.2 GHz, with boost up to 4 GHz. L3 cache: 38.5 MB. L2 cache: 28 MB. Built on 14 nm process technology. Socket: LGA3647. Thermal design power (TDP): 165 Watt. Memory support: DDR4-2933. Passmark benchmark score: 34,751 points. Launch price was $2,612.

Xeon Platinum 8268

The Xeon Platinum 8268 is manufactured by Intel. It was released in 11 December 2018 (6 years ago). It is based on the Cascade Lake-SP (2018) architecture. It features 24 cores and 48 threads. Base frequency is 2.9 GHz, with boost up to 3.9 GHz. L3 cache: 35.75 MB (total). L2 cache: 1 MB (per core). Built on 14 nm process technology. Socket: LGA3647. Thermal design power (TDP): 205 Watt. Memory support: DDR4-2933. Passmark benchmark score: 35,081 points. Launch price was $6,302.

⚡

Processing Power

The Xeon Gold 6238R packs 28 cores / 56 threads, while the Xeon Platinum 8268 offers 24 cores / 48 threads — the Xeon Gold 6238R has 4 more cores. Boost clocks reach 4 GHz on the Xeon Gold 6238R versus 3.9 GHz on the Xeon Platinum 8268 — a 2.5% clock advantage for the Xeon Gold 6238R (base: 2.2 GHz vs 2.9 GHz). The Xeon Gold 6238R uses the Cascade Lake (2019−2020) architecture (14 nm), while the Xeon Platinum 8268 uses Cascade Lake-SP (2018) (14 nm). In PassMark, the Xeon Gold 6238R scores 34,751 against the Xeon Platinum 8268's 35,081 — a 0.9% lead for the Xeon Platinum 8268. Multi-core Geekbench: 21,433 vs 12,046 (56.1% advantage for the Xeon Gold 6238R). L3 cache: 38.5 MB on the Xeon Gold 6238R vs 35.75 MB (total) on the Xeon Platinum 8268.

Feature	Xeon Gold 6238R	Xeon Platinum 8268
Cores / Threads	28 / 56+17%	24 / 48
Boost Clock	4 GHz+3%	3.9 GHz
Base Clock	2.2 GHz	2.9 GHz+32%
L3 Cache	38.5 MB+8%	35.75 MB (total)
L2 Cache	28 MB+2700%	1 MB (per core)
Process	14 nm	14 nm
Architecture	Cascade Lake (2019−2020)	Cascade Lake-SP (2018)
PassMark	34,751	35,081
Cinebench R23 Multi	—	24,500
Geekbench 6 Single	—	1,394
Geekbench 6 Multi	21,433+78%	12,046

🧠

Memory & Platform

Both processors use the LGA3647 socket with PCIe 3.0. Both support up to DDR4-2933 memory speed. The Xeon Platinum 8268 supports up to 1024 GB of RAM compared to 1 TB — 199.6% more capacity for professional workloads. Both feature 6-channel memory with ECC support. Both provide 48 PCIe lanes. Chipset compatibility: C621,C622,C624,C627,C628 (Xeon Gold 6238R) and C621,Lewisburg (Xeon Platinum 8268).

Feature	Xeon Gold 6238R	Xeon Platinum 8268
Socket	LGA3647	LGA3647
PCIe Generation	PCIe 3.0	PCIe 3.0
Max RAM Speed	DDR4-2933	DDR4-2933
Max RAM Capacity	1 TB	1024 GB
RAM Channels	6	6
ECC Support	Yes	Yes
PCIe Lanes	48	48

🔧

Advanced Features

Neither processor supports overclocking. Both support AVX-512 instructions, benefiting scientific computing, AI inference, and encryption workloads. Both support VT-x, VT-d, EPT virtualization. Primary use case: Xeon Gold 6238R targets Server, Xeon Platinum 8268 targets High-end Server. Direct competitor: Xeon Gold 6238R rivals Xeon Gold 6248R; Xeon Platinum 8268 rivals EPYC 7452.

Feature	Xeon Gold 6238R	Xeon Platinum 8268
Integrated GPU	No	No
Unlocked	No	No
AVX-512	Yes	Yes
Virtualization	VT-x, VT-d, EPT	VT-x, VT-d, EPT
Target Use	Server	High-end Server

💰

Value Analysis

The Xeon Gold 6238R launched at $2612 MSRP, while the Xeon Platinum 8268 debuted at $6302. On MSRP ($2612 vs $6302), the Xeon Gold 6238R is $3690 cheaper. In terms of value on MSRP (PassMark points per dollar), the Xeon Gold 6238R delivers 13.3 pts/$ vs 5.6 pts/$ for the Xeon Platinum 8268 — making the Xeon Gold 6238R the 82% better value option.