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

✅+12.6% higher Geekbench single-core performance for gaming and desktop responsiveness.
✅+93.9% larger total L3 cache (32 MB vs 17 MB).
✅Costs $1,120 less on MSRP ($199 MSRP vs $1,319 MSRP).
✅Delivers 542.3% more PassMark for each dollar spent, at 88.9 vs 13.8 PassMark/$ ($199 MSRP vs $1,319 MSRP).
✅Draws 65W instead of 160W, a 95W reduction.

Trade-offs

❌Lower Cinebench R23 multi-core (9,500 vs 11,500).
❌Less compelling for workstation-style loads than Xeon W-3225, which brings 8 cores / 16 threads and 64 PCIe lanes.
❌No AVX-512 support for niche heavy compute workloads where it can matter.

Xeon W-3225

2019

Why buy it

✅+21.1% higher Cinebench R23 multi-core.
✅Better for workstations and heavier parallel workloads: 8 cores / 16 threads, plus 64 PCIe lanes vs 24.
✅166.7% more PCIe lanes (64 vs 24) for storage and expansion-heavy builds.

Trade-offs

❌Lower Geekbench single-core performance for gaming (1,150 vs 1,295).
❌Smaller total L3 cache (17 MB vs 32 MB).
❌Lower PassMark per dollar, at 13.8 vs 88.9 PassMark/$ ($1,319 MSRP vs $199 MSRP).
❌146.2% higher power demand at 160W vs 65W.
❌No boxed cooler included, unlike Ryzen 5 3600.

Ryzen 5 3600

2019

Xeon W-3225

2019

Why buy it

✅+12.6% higher Geekbench single-core performance for gaming and desktop responsiveness.
✅+93.9% larger total L3 cache (32 MB vs 17 MB).
✅Costs $1,120 less on MSRP ($199 MSRP vs $1,319 MSRP).
✅Delivers 542.3% more PassMark for each dollar spent, at 88.9 vs 13.8 PassMark/$ ($199 MSRP vs $1,319 MSRP).
✅Draws 65W instead of 160W, a 95W reduction.

Why buy it

✅+21.1% higher Cinebench R23 multi-core.
✅Better for workstations and heavier parallel workloads: 8 cores / 16 threads, plus 64 PCIe lanes vs 24.
✅166.7% more PCIe lanes (64 vs 24) for storage and expansion-heavy builds.

Trade-offs

❌Lower Cinebench R23 multi-core (9,500 vs 11,500).
❌Less compelling for workstation-style loads than Xeon W-3225, which brings 8 cores / 16 threads and 64 PCIe lanes.
❌No AVX-512 support for niche heavy compute workloads where it can matter.

Trade-offs

❌Lower Geekbench single-core performance for gaming (1,150 vs 1,295).
❌Smaller total L3 cache (17 MB vs 32 MB).
❌Lower PassMark per dollar, at 13.8 vs 88.9 PassMark/$ ($1,319 MSRP vs $199 MSRP).
❌146.2% higher power demand at 160W vs 65W.
❌No boxed cooler included, unlike Ryzen 5 3600.

Quick Answers

So, is Ryzen 5 3600 better than Xeon W-3225?

Not in a simple one-size-fits-all way. Xeon W-3225 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 W-3225 is the better fit. You are getting 21.1% better Cinebench R23 multi-core, backed by 8 cores and 16 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 $1,120 cheaper on MSRP at $199 MSRP versus $1,319 MSRP, and it gives you a 1.9% average FPS lead across 4 shared CPU game tests in our data. The trade-off is that Xeon W-3225 is still stronger for heavier multi-core work with 21.1% better Cinebench R23 multi-core. It is also 542.3% better value on MSRP (88.9 vs 13.8 PassMark/$), 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 W-3225 is the more future-proof choice for 2026 and beyond. You are getting more multi-core headroom with 8 cores / 16 threads instead of 6/12 and AVX-512 support for heavier modern compute workloads. 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-3225 Benchmark Check

Path of Exile 2

Preset	Ryzen 5 3600	Xeon W-3225
1080p
low	200 FPS	211 FPS
medium	161 FPS	166 FPS
high	135 FPS	135 FPS
ultra	106 FPS	102 FPS
1440p
low	154 FPS	173 FPS
medium	119 FPS	134 FPS
high	96 FPS	109 FPS
ultra	75 FPS	82 FPS
4K
low	70 FPS	85 FPS
medium	58 FPS	71 FPS
high	46 FPS	56 FPS
ultra	36 FPS	44 FPS

Open Ryzen 5 3600 Open Xeon W-3225

Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2

Counter-Strike 2

Preset	Ryzen 5 3600	Xeon W-3225
1080p
low	442 FPS	380 FPS
medium	404 FPS	314 FPS
high	332 FPS	279 FPS
ultra	295 FPS	247 FPS
1440p
low	420 FPS	342 FPS
medium	359 FPS	292 FPS
high	303 FPS	258 FPS
ultra	263 FPS	222 FPS
4K
low	297 FPS	248 FPS
medium	259 FPS	216 FPS
high	230 FPS	201 FPS
ultra	201 FPS	173 FPS

Open Ryzen 5 3600 Open Xeon W-3225

Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

League of Legends

Preset	Ryzen 5 3600	Xeon W-3225
1080p
low	442 FPS	456 FPS
medium	442 FPS	456 FPS
high	442 FPS	456 FPS
ultra	442 FPS	456 FPS
1440p
low	442 FPS	456 FPS
medium	442 FPS	456 FPS
high	442 FPS	456 FPS
ultra	432 FPS	456 FPS
4K
low	442 FPS	456 FPS
medium	361 FPS	429 FPS
high	305 FPS	375 FPS
ultra	242 FPS	302 FPS

Open Ryzen 5 3600 Open Xeon W-3225

League of Legends

League of Legends

Valorant

Preset	Ryzen 5 3600	Xeon W-3225
1080p
low	442 FPS	456 FPS
medium	442 FPS	456 FPS
high	442 FPS	456 FPS
ultra	442 FPS	456 FPS
1440p
low	442 FPS	456 FPS
medium	442 FPS	456 FPS
high	442 FPS	456 FPS
ultra	442 FPS	456 FPS
4K
low	442 FPS	456 FPS
medium	442 FPS	456 FPS
high	413 FPS	456 FPS
ultra	357 FPS	437 FPS

Open Ryzen 5 3600 Open Xeon W-3225

Valorant

Valorant

Check FPS for your specific build

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of Ryzen 5 3600 and Xeon W-3225

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-3225

The Xeon W-3225 is manufactured by Intel. It was released in 3 June 2019 (6 years ago). It is based on the Cascade Lake (2019−2020) architecture. It features 8 cores and 16 threads. Base frequency is 3.7 GHz, with boost up to 4.4 GHz. L3 cache: 16.5 MB. L2 cache: 8 MB. Built on 14 nm process technology. Socket: LGA3647. Thermal design power (TDP): 160 Watt. Memory support: DDR4-2666. Passmark benchmark score: 18,251 points. Launch price was $1,199.

⚡

Processing Power

The Ryzen 5 3600 packs 6 cores / 12 threads, while the Xeon W-3225 offers 8 cores / 16 threads — the Xeon W-3225 has 2 more cores. Boost clocks reach 4.2 GHz on the Ryzen 5 3600 versus 4.4 GHz on the Xeon W-3225 — a 4.7% clock advantage for the Xeon W-3225 (base: 3.6 GHz vs 3.7 GHz). The Ryzen 5 3600 uses the Matisse (2019−2020) architecture (7 nm, 12 nm), while the Xeon W-3225 uses Cascade Lake (2019−2020) (14 nm). In PassMark, the Ryzen 5 3600 scores 17,685 against the Xeon W-3225's 18,251 — a 3.2% lead for the Xeon W-3225. Cinebench R23 multi-core: 9,500 vs 11,500 (19% advantage for the Xeon W-3225). Geekbench 6 single-core — the metric most relevant to gaming — records 1,295 vs 1,150, a 11.9% lead for the Ryzen 5 3600 that directly translates to higher frame rates. Multi-core Geekbench: 1,898 vs 9,100 (131% advantage for the Xeon W-3225). L3 cache: 32 MB (total) on the Ryzen 5 3600 vs 16.5 MB on the Xeon W-3225.

Feature	Ryzen 5 3600	Xeon W-3225
Cores / Threads	6 / 12	8 / 16+33%
Boost Clock	4.2 GHz	4.4 GHz+5%
Base Clock	3.6 GHz	3.7 GHz+3%
L3 Cache	32 MB (total)+94%	16.5 MB
L2 Cache	512K (per core)	8 MB+1500%
Process	7 nm, 12 nm-50%	14 nm
Architecture	Matisse (2019−2020)	Cascade Lake (2019−2020)
PassMark	17,685	18,251+3%
Cinebench R23 Multi	9,500	11,500+21%
Geekbench 6 Single	1,295+13%	1,150
Geekbench 6 Multi	1,898	9,100+379%

🧠

Memory & Platform

The Ryzen 5 3600 uses the AM4 socket (PCIe 4.0), while the Xeon W-3225 uses LGA3647 (PCIe 5.0) — making them incompatible on the same motherboard. Both support up to DDR4-3200 memory speed. The Xeon W-3225 supports up to 1024 GB of RAM compared to 128 GB — 155.6% more capacity for professional workloads. Memory channels: 2 (Ryzen 5 3600) vs 6 (Xeon W-3225). PCIe lanes: 24 (Ryzen 5 3600) vs 64 (Xeon W-3225) — the Xeon W-3225 offers 40 more lanes for additional GPUs or NVMe drives. Chipset compatibility: AMD B550,AMD X570,AMD B450,AMD X470 (Ryzen 5 3600) and C621 (Xeon W-3225).

Feature	Ryzen 5 3600	Xeon W-3225
Socket	AM4	LGA3647
PCIe Generation	PCIe 4.0	PCIe 5.0+25%
Max RAM Speed	DDR4-3200	DDR4-2933
Max RAM Capacity	128 GB	1024 GB+700%
RAM Channels	2	6+200%
ECC Support	No	Yes
PCIe Lanes	24	64+167%

🔧

Advanced Features

Only the Ryzen 5 3600 has an unlocked multiplier for overclocking — a significant advantage for enthusiasts seeking extra performance. Only the Xeon W-3225 supports AVX-512 instructions — important for machine learning and scientific applications. Virtualization support: Yes (Ryzen 5 3600) vs VT-x, VT-d, EPT (Xeon W-3225). Primary use case: Ryzen 5 3600 targets Gaming/Budget Workstation, Xeon W-3225 targets Workstation. Direct competitor: Ryzen 5 3600 rivals Core i5-10400; Xeon W-3225 rivals Ryzen Threadripper 2920X.

Feature	Ryzen 5 3600	Xeon W-3225
Integrated GPU	No	No
IGPU Model	—	None
Unlocked	Yes	No
AVX-512	No	Yes
Virtualization	Yes	VT-x, VT-d, EPT
Target Use	Gaming/Budget Workstation	Workstation

💰

Value Analysis

The Ryzen 5 3600 launched at $199 MSRP, while the Xeon W-3225 debuted at $1319. On MSRP ($199 vs $1319), the Ryzen 5 3600 is $1120 cheaper. In terms of value on MSRP (PassMark points per dollar), the Ryzen 5 3600 delivers 88.9 pts/$ vs 13.8 pts/$ for the Xeon W-3225 — making the Ryzen 5 3600 the 146.1% better value option.