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

✅+100% larger total L3 cache (32 MB vs 16 MB).
✅Costs $395 less on MSRP ($199 MSRP vs $594 MSRP).
✅Delivers 111.0% more PassMark for each dollar spent, at 88.9 vs 42.1 PassMark/$ ($199 MSRP vs $594 MSRP).
✅Draws 65W instead of 125W, a 60W reduction.
✅100+% more PCIe lanes (24 vs 0) for storage and expansion-heavy builds.

Trade-offs

❌Worse for gaming: lower average FPS than Xeon W-1390P across 4 shared CPU benchmark tests.
❌Lower PassMark (17,685 vs 25,016).
❌Less compelling for workstation-style loads than Xeon W-1390P, which brings 8 cores / 16 threads.

Xeon W-1390P

2021

Why buy it

✅Better for gaming: +15.1% higher average FPS across 4 shared CPU benchmark tests.
✅Better for workstations and heavier parallel workloads: 8 cores / 16 threads.

Trade-offs

❌Smaller total L3 cache (16 MB vs 32 MB).
❌Lower PassMark per dollar, at 42.1 vs 88.9 PassMark/$ ($594 MSRP vs $199 MSRP).
❌92.3% higher power demand at 125W vs 65W.
❌No boxed cooler included, unlike Ryzen 5 3600.

Ryzen 5 3600

2019

Xeon W-1390P

2021

Why buy it

✅+100% larger total L3 cache (32 MB vs 16 MB).
✅Costs $395 less on MSRP ($199 MSRP vs $594 MSRP).
✅Delivers 111.0% more PassMark for each dollar spent, at 88.9 vs 42.1 PassMark/$ ($199 MSRP vs $594 MSRP).
✅Draws 65W instead of 125W, a 60W reduction.
✅100+% more PCIe lanes (24 vs 0) for storage and expansion-heavy builds.

Why buy it

✅Better for gaming: +15.1% higher average FPS across 4 shared CPU benchmark tests.
✅Better for workstations and heavier parallel workloads: 8 cores / 16 threads.

Trade-offs

❌Worse for gaming: lower average FPS than Xeon W-1390P across 4 shared CPU benchmark tests.
❌Lower PassMark (17,685 vs 25,016).
❌Less compelling for workstation-style loads than Xeon W-1390P, which brings 8 cores / 16 threads.

Trade-offs

❌Smaller total L3 cache (16 MB vs 32 MB).
❌Lower PassMark per dollar, at 42.1 vs 88.9 PassMark/$ ($594 MSRP vs $199 MSRP).
❌92.3% higher power demand at 125W vs 65W.
❌No boxed cooler included, unlike Ryzen 5 3600.

Quick Answers

So, is Xeon W-1390P better than Ryzen 5 3600?

Not in a simple one-size-fits-all way. Xeon W-1390P 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 gaming?

If gaming is the priority, Xeon W-1390P is the better pick here. According to our tests, it delivers 15.1% more average FPS across 4 shared CPU game tests.

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

For streaming, content creation, and heavier multitasking, Xeon W-1390P is the better fit. You are getting 41.5% better PassMark, backed by 8 cores and 16 threads.

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

Xeon W-1390P is still the faster CPU overall, but Ryzen 5 3600 makes more sense if price matters more than absolute performance. Xeon W-1390P is 198.5% more expensive on MSRP at $594 MSRP versus $199 MSRP, and it gives you a 15.1% average FPS lead across 4 shared CPU game tests in our data. Ryzen 5 3600 is also 111.0% better value on MSRP (88.9 vs 42.1 PassMark/$), which is why it is easier to justify for price-conscious builds on paper.

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

Xeon W-1390P is the more future-proof choice for 2026 and beyond. You are getting a newer CPU generation (2021 vs 2019) and more multi-core headroom with 8 cores / 16 threads instead of 6/12. 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.

Ryzen 5 3600 Benchmark Check

Xeon W-1390P Benchmark Check

Path of Exile 2

Preset	Ryzen 5 3600	Xeon W-1390P
1080p
low	200 FPS	259 FPS
medium	161 FPS	240 FPS
high	135 FPS	201 FPS
ultra	106 FPS	173 FPS
1440p
low	154 FPS	225 FPS
medium	119 FPS	188 FPS
high	96 FPS	152 FPS
ultra	75 FPS	134 FPS
4K
low	70 FPS	154 FPS
medium	58 FPS	129 FPS
high	46 FPS	99 FPS
ultra	36 FPS	88 FPS

Open Ryzen 5 3600 Open Xeon W-1390P

Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2

Counter-Strike 2

Preset	Ryzen 5 3600	Xeon W-1390P
1080p
low	442 FPS	420 FPS
medium	404 FPS	353 FPS
high	332 FPS	314 FPS
ultra	295 FPS	283 FPS
1440p
low	420 FPS	373 FPS
medium	359 FPS	324 FPS
high	303 FPS	287 FPS
ultra	263 FPS	249 FPS
4K
low	297 FPS	249 FPS
medium	259 FPS	223 FPS
high	230 FPS	216 FPS
ultra	201 FPS	184 FPS

Open Ryzen 5 3600 Open Xeon W-1390P

Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

League of Legends

Preset	Ryzen 5 3600	Xeon W-1390P
1080p
low	442 FPS	625 FPS
medium	442 FPS	536 FPS
high	442 FPS	460 FPS
ultra	442 FPS	398 FPS
1440p
low	442 FPS	598 FPS
medium	442 FPS	497 FPS
high	442 FPS	421 FPS
ultra	432 FPS	366 FPS
4K
low	442 FPS	427 FPS
medium	361 FPS	370 FPS
high	305 FPS	330 FPS
ultra	242 FPS	280 FPS

Open Ryzen 5 3600 Open Xeon W-1390P

League of Legends

League of Legends

Valorant

Preset	Ryzen 5 3600	Xeon W-1390P
1080p
low	442 FPS	625 FPS
medium	442 FPS	625 FPS
high	442 FPS	625 FPS
ultra	442 FPS	625 FPS
1440p
low	442 FPS	625 FPS
medium	442 FPS	625 FPS
high	442 FPS	625 FPS
ultra	442 FPS	625 FPS
4K
low	442 FPS	625 FPS
medium	442 FPS	576 FPS
high	413 FPS	515 FPS
ultra	357 FPS	437 FPS

Open Ryzen 5 3600 Open Xeon W-1390P

Valorant

Valorant

Check FPS for your specific build

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of Ryzen 5 3600 and Xeon W-1390P

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 W-1390P

The Xeon W-1390P is manufactured by Intel. It was released in 6 May 2021 (4 years ago). It is based on the Rocket Lake-S (2021) architecture. It features 8 cores and 16 threads. Base frequency is 3.5 GHz, with boost up to 5.2 GHz. L3 cache: 16 MB (total). L2 cache: 512 kB (per core). Built on 14 nm process technology. Socket: LGA1200. Thermal design power (TDP): 125 Watt. Memory support: DDR4-3200. Passmark benchmark score: 25,016 points. Launch price was $539.

⚡

Processing Power

The Ryzen 5 3600 packs 6 cores / 12 threads, while the Xeon W-1390P offers 8 cores / 16 threads — the Xeon W-1390P has 2 more cores. Boost clocks reach 4.2 GHz on the Ryzen 5 3600 versus 5.2 GHz on the Xeon W-1390P — a 21.3% clock advantage for the Xeon W-1390P (base: 3.6 GHz vs 3.5 GHz). The Ryzen 5 3600 uses the Matisse (2019−2020) architecture (7 nm, 12 nm), while the Xeon W-1390P uses Rocket Lake-S (2021) (14 nm). In PassMark, the Ryzen 5 3600 scores 17,685 against the Xeon W-1390P's 25,016 — a 34.3% lead for the Xeon W-1390P. L3 cache: 32 MB (total) on the Ryzen 5 3600 vs 16 MB (total) on the Xeon W-1390P.

Feature	Ryzen 5 3600	Xeon W-1390P
Cores / Threads	6 / 12	8 / 16+33%
Boost Clock	4.2 GHz	5.2 GHz+24%
Base Clock	3.6 GHz+3%	3.5 GHz
L3 Cache	32 MB (total)+100%	16 MB (total)
L2 Cache	512K (per core)	512 kB (per core)
Process	7 nm, 12 nm-50%	14 nm
Architecture	Matisse (2019−2020)	Rocket Lake-S (2021)
PassMark	17,685	25,016+41%
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 W-1390P uses LGA1200 (PCIe 4.0) — making them incompatible on the same motherboard.

Feature	Ryzen 5 3600	Xeon W-1390P
Socket	AM4	LGA1200
PCIe Generation	PCIe 4.0	PCIe 4.0
Max RAM Speed	DDR4-3200	—
Max RAM Capacity	128 GB	—
RAM Channels	2	—
ECC Support	No	—
PCIe Lanes	24	—

🔧

Advanced Features

Virtualization: Yes (Ryzen 5 3600) / not specified (Xeon W-1390P). Primary use case: Ryzen 5 3600 targets Gaming/Budget Workstation. Direct competitor: Ryzen 5 3600 rivals Core i5-10400.

Feature	Ryzen 5 3600	Xeon W-1390P
Integrated GPU	No	—
Unlocked	Yes	—
AVX-512	No	—
Virtualization	Yes	—
Target Use	Gaming/Budget Workstation	—

💰

Value Analysis

The Ryzen 5 3600 launched at $199 MSRP, while the Xeon W-1390P debuted at $594. On MSRP ($199 vs $594), the Ryzen 5 3600 is $395 cheaper. In terms of value on MSRP (PassMark points per dollar), the Ryzen 5 3600 delivers 88.9 pts/$ vs 42.1 pts/$ for the Xeon W-1390P — making the Ryzen 5 3600 the 71.4% better value option.