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 5 3600

2019

Why buy it

✅Better for gaming: +6.9% higher average FPS across 50 shared CPU benchmark tests.
✅Costs $2,638 less on MSRP ($199 MSRP vs $2,837 MSRP).
✅Delivers 1017.6% more PassMark for each dollar spent, at 88.9 vs 8.0 PassMark/$ ($199 MSRP vs $2,837 MSRP).
✅Draws 65W instead of 105W, a 40W reduction.
✅Includes a boxed cooler (Yes), unlike Xeon E5-4640 v4.

Trade-offs

❌Lower PassMark (17,685 vs 22,559).
❌Less compelling for workstation-style loads than Xeon E5-4640 v4, which brings 12 cores / 24 threads and 40 PCIe lanes.

Xeon E5-4640 v4

2016

Why buy it

✅+27.6% higher PassMark.
✅Better for workstations and heavier parallel workloads: 12 cores / 24 threads, plus 40 PCIe lanes vs 24.
✅66.7% more PCIe lanes (40 vs 24) for storage and expansion-heavy builds.

Trade-offs

❌Worse for gaming: lower average FPS than Ryzen 5 3600 across 50 shared CPU benchmark tests.
❌Lower PassMark per dollar, at 8.0 vs 88.9 PassMark/$ ($2,837 MSRP vs $199 MSRP).
❌61.5% higher power demand at 105W vs 65W.
❌No boxed cooler included, unlike Ryzen 5 3600.

Ryzen 5 3600

2019

Xeon E5-4640 v4

2016

Why buy it

✅Better for gaming: +6.9% higher average FPS across 50 shared CPU benchmark tests.
✅Costs $2,638 less on MSRP ($199 MSRP vs $2,837 MSRP).
✅Delivers 1017.6% more PassMark for each dollar spent, at 88.9 vs 8.0 PassMark/$ ($199 MSRP vs $2,837 MSRP).
✅Draws 65W instead of 105W, a 40W reduction.
✅Includes a boxed cooler (Yes), unlike Xeon E5-4640 v4.

Why buy it

✅+27.6% higher PassMark.
✅Better for workstations and heavier parallel workloads: 12 cores / 24 threads, plus 40 PCIe lanes vs 24.
✅66.7% more PCIe lanes (40 vs 24) for storage and expansion-heavy builds.

Trade-offs

❌Lower PassMark (17,685 vs 22,559).
❌Less compelling for workstation-style loads than Xeon E5-4640 v4, which brings 12 cores / 24 threads and 40 PCIe lanes.

Trade-offs

❌Worse for gaming: lower average FPS than Ryzen 5 3600 across 50 shared CPU benchmark tests.
❌Lower PassMark per dollar, at 8.0 vs 88.9 PassMark/$ ($2,837 MSRP vs $199 MSRP).
❌61.5% higher power demand at 105W vs 65W.
❌No boxed cooler included, unlike Ryzen 5 3600.

Quick Answers

So, is Ryzen 5 3600 better than Xeon E5-4640 v4?

Not in a simple one-size-fits-all way. Xeon E5-4640 v4 makes more sense for workstation-style multi-core throughput, while Ryzen 5 3600 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 E5-4640 v4 is the better fit. You are getting 27.6% better PassMark, backed by 12 cores and 24 threads.

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

Ryzen 5 3600 is the smarter buy today. Ryzen 5 3600 is $2,638 cheaper on MSRP at $199 MSRP versus $2,837 MSRP, and it gives you a 6.9% average FPS lead across 50 shared CPU game tests in our data. The trade-off is that Xeon E5-4640 v4 is still stronger for heavier multi-core work with 27.6% better PassMark. It is also 1017.6% better value on MSRP (88.9 vs 8.0 PassMark/$), 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 5 3600 is the more future-proof choice for 2026 and beyond. You are getting a newer CPU generation (2019 vs 2016). That makes it the safer long-term pick.

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 5 3600 Benchmark Check

Xeon E5-4640 v4 Benchmark Check

Path of Exile 2

Preset	Ryzen 5 3600	Xeon E5-4640 v4
1080p
low	200 FPS	159 FPS
medium	161 FPS	138 FPS
high	135 FPS	111 FPS
ultra	106 FPS	91 FPS
1440p
low	154 FPS	134 FPS
medium	119 FPS	113 FPS
high	96 FPS	88 FPS
ultra	75 FPS	72 FPS
4K
low	70 FPS	62 FPS
medium	58 FPS	56 FPS
high	46 FPS	44 FPS
ultra	36 FPS	34 FPS

Open Ryzen 5 3600 Open Xeon E5-4640 v4

Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2

Counter-Strike 2

Preset	Ryzen 5 3600	Xeon E5-4640 v4
1080p
low	442 FPS	190 FPS
medium	404 FPS	172 FPS
high	332 FPS	149 FPS
ultra	295 FPS	123 FPS
1440p
low	420 FPS	165 FPS
medium	359 FPS	151 FPS
high	303 FPS	132 FPS
ultra	263 FPS	107 FPS
4K
low	297 FPS	108 FPS
medium	259 FPS	99 FPS
high	230 FPS	88 FPS
ultra	201 FPS	70 FPS

Open Ryzen 5 3600 Open Xeon E5-4640 v4

Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

League of Legends

Preset	Ryzen 5 3600	Xeon E5-4640 v4
1080p
low	442 FPS	564 FPS
medium	442 FPS	564 FPS
high	442 FPS	564 FPS
ultra	442 FPS	564 FPS
1440p
low	442 FPS	564 FPS
medium	442 FPS	564 FPS
high	442 FPS	564 FPS
ultra	432 FPS	521 FPS
4K
low	442 FPS	462 FPS
medium	361 FPS	374 FPS
high	305 FPS	341 FPS
ultra	242 FPS	283 FPS

Open Ryzen 5 3600 Open Xeon E5-4640 v4

League of Legends

League of Legends

Valorant

Preset	Ryzen 5 3600	Xeon E5-4640 v4
1080p
low	442 FPS	564 FPS
medium	442 FPS	564 FPS
high	442 FPS	564 FPS
ultra	442 FPS	529 FPS
1440p
low	442 FPS	564 FPS
medium	442 FPS	564 FPS
high	442 FPS	512 FPS
ultra	442 FPS	431 FPS
4K
low	442 FPS	473 FPS
medium	442 FPS	427 FPS
high	413 FPS	382 FPS
ultra	357 FPS	327 FPS

Open Ryzen 5 3600 Open Xeon E5-4640 v4

Valorant

Valorant

Check FPS for your specific build

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of Ryzen 5 3600 and Xeon E5-4640 v4

Ryzen 5 3600

The Ryzen 5 3600 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in 7 July 2019 (6 years ago). It is based on the Matisse (2019−2020) architecture. It features 6 cores and 12 threads. Base frequency is 3.6 GHz, with boost up to 4.2 GHz. L3 cache: 32 MB (total). L2 cache: 512K (per core). Built on 7 nm, 12 nm process technology. Socket: AM4. Thermal design power (TDP): 65 Watt. Memory support: DDR4 Dual-channel. Passmark benchmark score: 17,685 points. Launch price was $199.

Xeon E5-4640 v4

The Xeon E5-4640 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 12 cores and 24 threads. Base frequency is 2.1 GHz, with boost up to 2.6 GHz. L3 cache: 30 MB. L2 cache: 3 MB. Built on 14 nm process technology. Socket: LGA2011. Thermal design power (TDP): 105 Watt. Memory support: DDR4. Passmark benchmark score: 22,559 points. Launch price was $2,837.

⚡

Processing Power

The Ryzen 5 3600 packs 6 cores / 12 threads, while the Xeon E5-4640 v4 offers 12 cores / 24 threads — the Xeon E5-4640 v4 has 6 more cores. Boost clocks reach 4.2 GHz on the Ryzen 5 3600 versus 2.6 GHz on the Xeon E5-4640 v4 — a 47.1% clock advantage for the Ryzen 5 3600 (base: 3.6 GHz vs 2.1 GHz). The Ryzen 5 3600 uses the Matisse (2019−2020) architecture (7 nm, 12 nm), while the Xeon E5-4640 v4 uses Broadwell (2015−2019) (14 nm). In PassMark, the Ryzen 5 3600 scores 17,685 against the Xeon E5-4640 v4's 22,559 — a 24.2% lead for the Xeon E5-4640 v4. L3 cache: 32 MB (total) on the Ryzen 5 3600 vs 30 MB on the Xeon E5-4640 v4.

Feature	Ryzen 5 3600	Xeon E5-4640 v4
Cores / Threads	6 / 12	12 / 24+100%
Boost Clock	4.2 GHz+62%	2.6 GHz
Base Clock	3.6 GHz+71%	2.1 GHz
L3 Cache	32 MB (total)+7%	30 MB
L2 Cache	512K (per core)	3 MB+500%
Process	7 nm, 12 nm-50%	14 nm
Architecture	Matisse (2019−2020)	Broadwell (2015−2019)
PassMark	17,685	22,559+28%
Cinebench R23 Multi	9,500	—
Geekbench 6 Single	1,295	—
Geekbench 6 Multi	1,898	—

🧠

Memory & Platform

The Ryzen 5 3600 uses the AM4 socket (PCIe 4.0), while the Xeon E5-4640 v4 uses LGA2011 (PCIe 5.0) — making them incompatible on the same motherboard. Maximum memory speed reaches DDR4-3200 on the Ryzen 5 3600 versus DDR4 2133 MHz on the Xeon E5-4640 v4 — the Xeon E5-4640 v4 supports 200% faster memory, which can translate to measurable gains in memory-sensitive workloads. The Ryzen 5 3600 supports up to 128 GB of RAM compared to 1.5 TB — 195.4% more capacity for professional workloads. Memory channels: 2 (Ryzen 5 3600) vs 4 (Xeon E5-4640 v4). PCIe lanes: 24 (Ryzen 5 3600) vs 40 (Xeon E5-4640 v4) — the Xeon E5-4640 v4 offers 16 more lanes for additional GPUs or NVMe drives. Chipset compatibility: AMD B550,AMD X570,AMD B450,AMD X470 (Ryzen 5 3600) and Intel C612 (Xeon E5-4640 v4).

Feature	Ryzen 5 3600	Xeon E5-4640 v4
Socket	AM4	LGA2011
PCIe Generation	PCIe 4.0	PCIe 5.0+25%
Max RAM Speed	DDR4-3200	DDR4 2133 MHz
Max RAM Capacity	128 GB	1.5 TB+1100%
RAM Channels	2	4+100%
ECC Support	No	Yes
PCIe Lanes	24	40+67%

🔧

Advanced Features

Only the Ryzen 5 3600 has an unlocked multiplier for overclocking — a significant advantage for enthusiasts seeking extra performance. Virtualization support: Yes (Ryzen 5 3600) vs true (Xeon E5-4640 v4). Primary use case: Ryzen 5 3600 targets Gaming/Budget Workstation, Xeon E5-4640 v4 targets Server. Direct competitor: Ryzen 5 3600 rivals Core i5-10400.

Feature	Ryzen 5 3600	Xeon E5-4640 v4
Integrated GPU	No	No
Unlocked	Yes	No
AVX-512	No	No
Virtualization	Yes	true
Target Use	Gaming/Budget Workstation	Server

💰

Value Analysis

The Ryzen 5 3600 launched at $199 MSRP, while the Xeon E5-4640 v4 debuted at $2837. On MSRP ($199 vs $2837), the Ryzen 5 3600 is $2638 cheaper. In terms of value on MSRP (PassMark points per dollar), the Ryzen 5 3600 delivers 88.9 pts/$ vs 8.0 pts/$ for the Xeon E5-4640 v4 — making the Ryzen 5 3600 the 167.1% better value option.