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 9 5980HX across 3 shared CPU benchmark tests.
❌Lower PassMark (14,397 vs 23,300).
❌Smaller total L3 cache (12 MB vs 16 MB).
❌Launch MSRP is still $385 MSRP, while Ryzen 9 5980HX mostly shows up through inconsistent older-market listings.
❌111.1% higher power demand at 95W vs 45W.

Ryzen 9 5980HX

2021

Why buy it

✅Better for gaming: +28.0% higher average FPS across 3 shared CPU benchmark tests.
✅+33.3% larger total L3 cache (16 MB vs 12 MB).
✅Draws 45W instead of 95W, a 50W reduction.

Trade-offs

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

Core i7-9700K

2018

Ryzen 9 5980HX

2021

Why buy it

✅Better for gaming: +28.0% higher average FPS across 3 shared CPU benchmark tests.
✅+33.3% larger total L3 cache (16 MB vs 12 MB).
✅Draws 45W instead of 95W, a 50W reduction.

Trade-offs

❌Worse for gaming: lower average FPS than Ryzen 9 5980HX across 3 shared CPU benchmark tests.
❌Lower PassMark (14,397 vs 23,300).
❌Smaller total L3 cache (12 MB vs 16 MB).
❌Launch MSRP is still $385 MSRP, while Ryzen 9 5980HX mostly shows up through inconsistent older-market listings.
❌111.1% higher power demand at 95W vs 45W.

Trade-offs

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

Quick Answers

So, is Ryzen 9 5980HX better than Core i7-9700K?

Yes. Ryzen 9 5980HX is the better overall CPU here. You are getting a 28.0% average FPS lead across 3 shared CPU game tests in our data, 61.8% 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 5980HX is the better pick here. According to our tests, it delivers 28.0% 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 9 5980HX is the better fit. You are getting 61.8% better PassMark, backed by 8 cores and 16 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 9 5980HX is the smarter buy by a wide margin for a fresh build. Ryzen 9 5980HX is at an unclear MSRP at unclear MSRP versus $385 MSRP, and it gives you a 28.0% average FPS lead across 3 shared CPU game tests in our data. Core i7-9700K only looks stronger on raw value math because it is extremely cheap, but that is mostly used-market pricing on an obsolete 2018 platform. Even with 100.0% better value on paper (37.4 vs 0.0 PassMark/$), it really only makes sense as a very cheap stopgap or a niche existing-platform option for someone already on LGA1151.

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

Ryzen 9 5980HX is the more future-proof choice for 2026 and beyond. You are getting a newer CPU generation (2021 vs 2018), 33.3% larger total L3 cache (16 MB vs 12 MB), and more multi-core headroom with 8 cores / 16 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 9 5980HX Benchmark Check

Path of Exile 2

Preset	Core i7-9700K	Ryzen 9 5980HX
1080p
low	308 FPS	260 FPS
medium	278 FPS	239 FPS
high	231 FPS	201 FPS
ultra	182 FPS	170 FPS
1440p
low	270 FPS	231 FPS
medium	221 FPS	192 FPS
high	178 FPS	156 FPS
ultra	143 FPS	136 FPS
4K
low	170 FPS	159 FPS
medium	140 FPS	134 FPS
high	108 FPS	103 FPS
ultra	95 FPS	91 FPS

Open Core i7-9700K Open Ryzen 9 5980HX

Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2

Counter-Strike 2

Preset	Core i7-9700K	Ryzen 9 5980HX
1080p
low	360 FPS	427 FPS
medium	321 FPS	356 FPS
high	291 FPS	308 FPS
ultra	259 FPS	273 FPS
1440p
low	324 FPS	357 FPS
medium	282 FPS	312 FPS
high	258 FPS	276 FPS
ultra	225 FPS	236 FPS
4K
low	249 FPS	245 FPS
medium	221 FPS	220 FPS
high	208 FPS	207 FPS
ultra	179 FPS	180 FPS

Open Core i7-9700K Open Ryzen 9 5980HX

Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

League of Legends

Preset	Core i7-9700K	Ryzen 9 5980HX
1080p
low	360 FPS	582 FPS
medium	360 FPS	582 FPS
high	360 FPS	576 FPS
ultra	360 FPS	472 FPS
1440p
low	360 FPS	582 FPS
medium	360 FPS	532 FPS
high	360 FPS	451 FPS
ultra	360 FPS	372 FPS
4K
low	360 FPS	456 FPS
medium	360 FPS	396 FPS
high	360 FPS	347 FPS
ultra	318 FPS	282 FPS

Open Core i7-9700K Open Ryzen 9 5980HX

League of Legends

League of Legends

Valorant

Preset	Core i7-9700K	Ryzen 9 5980HX
1080p
low	360 FPS	582 FPS
medium	360 FPS	582 FPS
high	360 FPS	582 FPS
ultra	360 FPS	582 FPS
1440p
low	360 FPS	582 FPS
medium	360 FPS	582 FPS
high	360 FPS	554 FPS
ultra	360 FPS	475 FPS
4K
low	360 FPS	511 FPS
medium	360 FPS	460 FPS
high	360 FPS	405 FPS
ultra	360 FPS	348 FPS

Open Core i7-9700K Open Ryzen 9 5980HX

Valorant

Valorant

Check FPS for your specific build

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of Core i7-9700K and Ryzen 9 5980HX

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 9 5980HX

The Ryzen 9 5980HX is manufactured by AMD. It was released in 12 January 2021 (4 years ago). It is based on the Cezanne-HX (Zen 3) (2021) architecture. It features 8 cores and 16 threads. Base frequency is 3.3 GHz, with boost up to 4.8 GHz. L3 cache: 16 MB (total). L2 cache: 512 kB (per core). Built on 7 nm process technology. Socket: FP6. Thermal design power (TDP): 45 Watt. Memory support: DDR4. Passmark benchmark score: 23,300 points. Launch price was $299.

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Processing Power

The Core i7-9700K packs 8 cores / 8 threads, matching the Ryzen 9 5980HX's 8 cores. Boost clocks reach 4.9 GHz on the Core i7-9700K versus 4.8 GHz on the Ryzen 9 5980HX — a 2.1% clock advantage for the Core i7-9700K (base: 3.6 GHz vs 3.3 GHz). The Core i7-9700K uses the Coffee Lake-R (2018−2019) architecture (14 nm), while the Ryzen 9 5980HX uses Cezanne-HX (Zen 3) (2021) (7 nm). In PassMark, the Core i7-9700K scores 14,397 against the Ryzen 9 5980HX's 23,300 — a 47.2% lead for the Ryzen 9 5980HX. L3 cache: 12 MB (total) on the Core i7-9700K vs 16 MB (total) on the Ryzen 9 5980HX.

Feature	Core i7-9700K	Ryzen 9 5980HX
Cores / Threads	8 / 8	8 / 16
Boost Clock	4.9 GHz+2%	4.8 GHz
Base Clock	3.6 GHz+9%	3.3 GHz
L3 Cache	12 MB (total)	16 MB (total)+33%
L2 Cache	256K (per core)	512 kB (per core)+100%
Process	14 nm	7 nm-50%
Architecture	Coffee Lake-R (2018−2019)	Cezanne-HX (Zen 3) (2021)
PassMark	14,397	23,300+62%

🧠

Memory & Platform

The Core i7-9700K uses the LGA1151 socket (PCIe 3.0), while the Ryzen 9 5980HX uses FP6 (PCIe 3.0) — making them incompatible on the same motherboard. Both support up to DDR4-2666 memory speed. The Core i7-9700K supports up to 128 GB of RAM compared to 64 GB — 66.7% more capacity for professional workloads. Both feature 2-channel memory with ECC support. Both provide 16 PCIe lanes.

Feature	Core i7-9700K	Ryzen 9 5980HX
Socket	LGA1151	FP6
PCIe Generation	PCIe 3.0	PCIe 3.0
Max RAM Speed	DDR4-2666	LPDDR4-4266
Max RAM Capacity	128 GB+100%	64 GB
RAM Channels	2	2
ECC Support	No	No
PCIe Lanes	16	16

🔧

Advanced Features

Both processors feature an unlocked multiplier for overclocking. Virtualization support: VT-x, VT-d (Core i7-9700K) vs AMD-V (Ryzen 9 5980HX). Both include integrated graphics — UHD Graphics 630 (Core i7-9700K) and Radeon Graphics (8CU) (Ryzen 9 5980HX) — useful as a fallback for troubleshooting or display output without a dedicated GPU. Primary use case: Core i7-9700K targets Desktop, Ryzen 9 5980HX targets Mobile High-End.

Feature	Core i7-9700K	Ryzen 9 5980HX
Integrated GPU	Yes	Yes
IGPU Model	UHD Graphics 630	Radeon Graphics (8CU)
Unlocked	Yes	Yes
AVX-512	No	No
Virtualization	VT-x, VT-d	AMD-V
Target Use	Desktop	Mobile High-End