Core i7-9700K vs Ryzen 5 5500GT

CPU

GPU

Core i7-9700K

8 Cores8 Thrd95 WWMax: 4.9 GHz2018

Popular choices:

•••••••••

Ryzen 5 5500GT

6 Cores12 Thrd65 WWMax: 4.4 GHz2024

Popular choices:

•••••••••

Performance Spectrum - CPU

Core i7-9700K

8 / 8

14,397

0.0%

18,846

+30.9%

Ryzen Threadripper PRO 5975WX

Ryzen Threadripper 9960X

About PassMark

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 i7-9700K

2018

Why buy it

Trade-offs

❌Worse for gaming: lower average FPS than Ryzen 5 5500GT across 3 shared CPU benchmark tests.
❌Lower PassMark (14,397 vs 18,846).
❌Smaller total L3 cache (12 MB vs 16 MB).
❌Lower PassMark per dollar, at 37.4 vs 150.8 PassMark/$ ($385 MSRP vs $125 MSRP).
❌46.2% higher power demand at 95W vs 65W.

Ryzen 5 5500GT

2024

Why buy it

✅Better for gaming: +9.5% higher average FPS across 3 shared CPU benchmark tests.
✅+33.3% larger total L3 cache (16 MB vs 12 MB).
✅Costs $260 less on MSRP ($125 MSRP vs $385 MSRP).
✅Delivers 303.2% more PassMark for each dollar spent, at 150.8 vs 37.4 PassMark/$ ($125 MSRP vs $385 MSRP).
✅Draws 65W instead of 95W, a 30W reduction.

Trade-offs

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

Core i7-9700K

2018

Ryzen 5 5500GT

2024

Why buy it

✅Better for gaming: +9.5% higher average FPS across 3 shared CPU benchmark tests.
✅+33.3% larger total L3 cache (16 MB vs 12 MB).
✅Costs $260 less on MSRP ($125 MSRP vs $385 MSRP).
✅Delivers 303.2% more PassMark for each dollar spent, at 150.8 vs 37.4 PassMark/$ ($125 MSRP vs $385 MSRP).
✅Draws 65W instead of 95W, a 30W reduction.

Trade-offs

❌Worse for gaming: lower average FPS than Ryzen 5 5500GT across 3 shared CPU benchmark tests.
❌Lower PassMark (14,397 vs 18,846).
❌Smaller total L3 cache (12 MB vs 16 MB).
❌Lower PassMark per dollar, at 37.4 vs 150.8 PassMark/$ ($385 MSRP vs $125 MSRP).
❌46.2% higher power demand at 95W vs 65W.

Trade-offs

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

Quick Answers

So, is Ryzen 5 5500GT better than Core i7-9700K?

Yes. Ryzen 5 5500GT is the better overall CPU here. You are getting a 9.5% average FPS lead across 3 shared CPU game tests in our data, 30.9% 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 5 5500GT is the better pick here. According to our tests, it delivers 9.5% more average FPS across 3 shared CPU game tests.

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

For streaming, content creation, and heavier multitasking, Ryzen 5 5500GT is the better fit. You are getting 30.9% better PassMark, backed by 6 cores and 12 threads. It also carries the larger cache pool with 33.3% larger total L3 cache (16 MB vs 12 MB).

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

Ryzen 5 5500GT is the smarter buy today. Ryzen 5 5500GT is $260 cheaper on MSRP at $125 MSRP versus $385 MSRP, and it gives you a 9.5% average FPS lead across 3 shared CPU game tests in our data. It is also 303.2% better value on MSRP (150.8 vs 37.4 PassMark/$), 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 5 5500GT is the more future-proof choice for 2026 and beyond. You are getting a newer CPU generation (2024 vs 2018), 33.3% larger total L3 cache (16 MB vs 12 MB), and more multi-core headroom with 6 cores / 12 threads instead of 8/8. 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.

Core i7-9700K Benchmark Check

Ryzen 5 5500GT Benchmark Check

Path of Exile 2

Preset	Core i7-9700K	Ryzen 5 5500GT
1080p
low	308 FPS	178 FPS
medium	278 FPS	148 FPS
high	231 FPS	117 FPS
ultra	182 FPS	99 FPS
1440p
low	270 FPS	152 FPS
medium	221 FPS	124 FPS
high	178 FPS	99 FPS
ultra	143 FPS	83 FPS
4K
low	170 FPS	83 FPS
medium	140 FPS	74 FPS
high	108 FPS	59 FPS
ultra	95 FPS	46 FPS

Open Core i7-9700K Open Ryzen 5 5500GT

Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2

Counter-Strike 2

Preset	Core i7-9700K	Ryzen 5 5500GT
1080p
low	360 FPS	340 FPS
medium	321 FPS	287 FPS
high	291 FPS	256 FPS
ultra	259 FPS	222 FPS
1440p
low	324 FPS	301 FPS
medium	282 FPS	261 FPS
high	258 FPS	238 FPS
ultra	225 FPS	202 FPS
4K
low	249 FPS	234 FPS
medium	221 FPS	207 FPS
high	208 FPS	191 FPS
ultra	179 FPS	161 FPS

Open Core i7-9700K Open Ryzen 5 5500GT

Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

League of Legends

Preset	Core i7-9700K	Ryzen 5 5500GT
1080p
low	360 FPS	471 FPS
medium	360 FPS	471 FPS
high	360 FPS	471 FPS
ultra	360 FPS	418 FPS
1440p
low	360 FPS	471 FPS
medium	360 FPS	409 FPS
high	360 FPS	369 FPS
ultra	360 FPS	308 FPS
4K
low	360 FPS	339 FPS
medium	360 FPS	287 FPS
high	360 FPS	249 FPS
ultra	318 FPS	192 FPS

Open Core i7-9700K Open Ryzen 5 5500GT

League of Legends

League of Legends

Valorant

Preset	Core i7-9700K	Ryzen 5 5500GT
1080p
low	360 FPS	471 FPS
medium	360 FPS	471 FPS
high	360 FPS	471 FPS
ultra	360 FPS	471 FPS
1440p
low	360 FPS	471 FPS
medium	360 FPS	471 FPS
high	360 FPS	471 FPS
ultra	360 FPS	461 FPS
4K
low	360 FPS	471 FPS
medium	360 FPS	428 FPS
high	360 FPS	377 FPS
ultra	360 FPS	327 FPS

Open Core i7-9700K Open Ryzen 5 5500GT

Valorant

Valorant

Check FPS for your specific build

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of Core i7-9700K and Ryzen 5 5500GT

Core i7-9700K

The Core i7-9700K is manufactured by Intel. It was released in 19 October 2018 (7 years ago). It is based on the Coffee Lake-R (2018−2019) architecture. It features 8 cores and 8 threads. Base frequency is 3.6 GHz, with boost up to 4.9 GHz. L3 cache: 12 MB (total). L2 cache: 256K (per core). Built on 14 nm process technology. Socket: LGA1151. Thermal design power (TDP): 95 Watt. Memory support: DDR4. Passmark benchmark score: 14,397 points. Launch price was $374.

Ryzen 5 5500GT

The Ryzen 5 5500GT is manufactured by AMD. It was released in 8 January 2024 (1 year ago). It is based on the Cezanne (2021−2025) architecture. It features 6 cores and 12 threads. Base frequency is 3.6 GHz, with boost up to 4.4 GHz. L3 cache: 16 MB. L2 cache: 512 kB (per core). Built on 7 nm process technology. Socket: AM4. Thermal design power (TDP): 65 Watt. Memory support: DDR4. Passmark benchmark score: 18,846 points. Launch price was $125.

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Processing Power

The Core i7-9700K packs 8 cores / 8 threads, while the Ryzen 5 5500GT offers 6 cores / 12 threads — the Core i7-9700K has 2 more cores. Boost clocks reach 4.9 GHz on the Core i7-9700K versus 4.4 GHz on the Ryzen 5 5500GT — a 10.8% clock advantage for the Core i7-9700K (base: 3.6 GHz vs 3.6 GHz). The Core i7-9700K uses the Coffee Lake-R (2018−2019) architecture (14 nm), while the Ryzen 5 5500GT uses Cezanne (2021−2025) (7 nm). In PassMark, the Core i7-9700K scores 14,397 against the Ryzen 5 5500GT's 18,846 — a 26.8% lead for the Ryzen 5 5500GT. L3 cache: 12 MB (total) on the Core i7-9700K vs 16 MB on the Ryzen 5 5500GT.

Feature	Core i7-9700K	Ryzen 5 5500GT
Cores / Threads	8 / 8+33%	6 / 12
Boost Clock	4.9 GHz+11%	4.4 GHz
Base Clock	3.6 GHz	3.6 GHz
L3 Cache	12 MB (total)	16 MB+33%
L2 Cache	256K (per core)	512 kB (per core)+100%
Process	14 nm	7 nm-50%
Architecture	Coffee Lake-R (2018−2019)	Cezanne (2021−2025)
PassMark	14,397	18,846+31%
Cinebench R23 Multi	—	10,500
Geekbench 6 Single	—	1,412
Geekbench 6 Multi	—	8,514

🧠

Memory & Platform

The Core i7-9700K uses the LGA1151 socket (PCIe 3.0), while the Ryzen 5 5500GT uses AM4 (PCIe 3.0) — making them incompatible on the same motherboard. Both support up to DDR4-2666 memory speed. Both support up to 128 GB of RAM. Both feature 2-channel memory with ECC support. PCIe lanes: 16 (Core i7-9700K) vs 24 (Ryzen 5 5500GT) — the Ryzen 5 5500GT offers 8 more lanes for additional GPUs or NVMe drives. Chipset compatibility: Intel 300 series (Core i7-9700K) and A520,B450,B550,X470,X570 (Ryzen 5 5500GT).

Feature	Core i7-9700K	Ryzen 5 5500GT
Socket	LGA1151	AM4
PCIe Generation	PCIe 3.0	PCIe 3.0
Max RAM Speed	DDR4-2666	DDR4-3200
Max RAM Capacity	128 GB	128 GB
RAM Channels	2	2
ECC Support	No	No
PCIe Lanes	16	24+50%

🔧

Advanced Features

Both processors feature an unlocked multiplier for overclocking. Virtualization support: VT-x, VT-d (Core i7-9700K) vs AMD-V (Ryzen 5 5500GT). Both include integrated graphics — UHD Graphics 630 (Core i7-9700K) and Radeon Vega 7 (Ryzen 5 5500GT) — useful as a fallback for troubleshooting or display output without a dedicated GPU. Primary use case: Core i7-9700K targets Desktop, Ryzen 5 5500GT targets Budget. Direct competitor: Ryzen 5 5500GT rivals Core i5-12400.

Feature	Core i7-9700K	Ryzen 5 5500GT
Integrated GPU	Yes	Yes
IGPU Model	UHD Graphics 630	Radeon Vega 7
Unlocked	Yes	Yes
AVX-512	No	No
Virtualization	VT-x, VT-d	AMD-V
Target Use	Desktop	Budget

💰

Value Analysis

The Core i7-9700K launched at $385 MSRP, while the Ryzen 5 5500GT debuted at $125. On MSRP ($385 vs $125), the Ryzen 5 5500GT is $260 cheaper. In terms of value on MSRP (PassMark points per dollar), the Core i7-9700K delivers 37.4 pts/$ vs 150.8 pts/$ for the Ryzen 5 5500GT — making the Ryzen 5 5500GT the 120.5% better value option.