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 7 5700X

2022

Why buy it

✅Better for gaming: +41.5% higher average FPS across 3 shared CPU benchmark tests.
✅+28% larger total L3 cache (32 MB vs 25 MB).
✅Costs $1,424 less on MSRP ($299 MSRP vs $1,723 MSRP).
✅Delivers 1137.0% more PassMark for each dollar spent, at 89.0 vs 7.2 PassMark/$ ($299 MSRP vs $1,723 MSRP).
✅Draws 65W instead of 130W, a 65W reduction.

Trade-offs

❌Less compelling for workstation-style loads than Xeon E5-1680 v2, which brings 8 cores / 16 threads and 40 PCIe lanes.

Xeon E5-1680 v2

2013

Why buy it

✅Better for workstations and heavier parallel workloads: 8 cores / 16 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 7 5700X across 3 shared CPU benchmark tests.
❌Lower Cinebench R23 multi-core (8,579 vs 14,000).
❌Smaller total L3 cache (25 MB vs 32 MB).
❌Lower PassMark per dollar, at 7.2 vs 89.0 PassMark/$ ($1,723 MSRP vs $299 MSRP).
❌100% higher power demand at 130W vs 65W.

Ryzen 7 5700X

2022

Xeon E5-1680 v2

2013

Why buy it

✅Better for gaming: +41.5% higher average FPS across 3 shared CPU benchmark tests.
✅+28% larger total L3 cache (32 MB vs 25 MB).
✅Costs $1,424 less on MSRP ($299 MSRP vs $1,723 MSRP).
✅Delivers 1137.0% more PassMark for each dollar spent, at 89.0 vs 7.2 PassMark/$ ($299 MSRP vs $1,723 MSRP).
✅Draws 65W instead of 130W, a 65W reduction.

Why buy it

✅Better for workstations and heavier parallel workloads: 8 cores / 16 threads, plus 40 PCIe lanes vs 24.
✅66.7% more PCIe lanes (40 vs 24) for storage and expansion-heavy builds.

Trade-offs

❌Less compelling for workstation-style loads than Xeon E5-1680 v2, which brings 8 cores / 16 threads and 40 PCIe lanes.

Trade-offs

❌Worse for gaming: lower average FPS than Ryzen 7 5700X across 3 shared CPU benchmark tests.
❌Lower Cinebench R23 multi-core (8,579 vs 14,000).
❌Smaller total L3 cache (25 MB vs 32 MB).
❌Lower PassMark per dollar, at 7.2 vs 89.0 PassMark/$ ($1,723 MSRP vs $299 MSRP).
❌100% higher power demand at 130W vs 65W.

Quick Answers

So, is Ryzen 7 5700X better than Xeon E5-1680 v2?

Not in a simple one-size-fits-all way. Xeon E5-1680 v2 makes more sense for workstation-style multi-core throughput, while Ryzen 7 5700X 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, Ryzen 7 5700X is the better pick here. According to our tests, it delivers 41.5% 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 7 5700X is the better fit. You are getting 63.2% better Cinebench R23 multi-core, backed by 8 cores and 16 threads. It also carries the larger cache pool with 28% larger total L3 cache (32 MB vs 25 MB).

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

Ryzen 7 5700X is the smarter buy today. Ryzen 7 5700X is $1,424 cheaper on MSRP at $299 MSRP versus $1,723 MSRP, and it gives you a 41.5% average FPS lead across 3 shared CPU game tests in our data. It is also 1137.0% better value on MSRP (89.0 vs 7.2 PassMark/$), 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 7 5700X is the more future-proof choice for 2026 and beyond. You are getting a newer CPU generation (2022 vs 2013), 28% larger total L3 cache (32 MB vs 25 MB), and more multi-core headroom with 8 cores / 16 threads instead of 8/16. 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 7 5700X Benchmark Check

Xeon E5-1680 v2 Benchmark Check

Path of Exile 2

Preset	Ryzen 7 5700X	Xeon E5-1680 v2
1080p
low	156 FPS	167 FPS
medium	129 FPS	145 FPS
high	115 FPS	119 FPS
ultra	94 FPS	98 FPS
1440p
low	137 FPS	140 FPS
medium	111 FPS	118 FPS
high	95 FPS	94 FPS
ultra	78 FPS	76 FPS
4K
low	77 FPS	64 FPS
medium	67 FPS	57 FPS
high	55 FPS	45 FPS
ultra	43 FPS	36 FPS

Open Ryzen 7 5700X Open Xeon E5-1680 v2

Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2

Counter-Strike 2

Preset	Ryzen 7 5700X	Xeon E5-1680 v2
1080p
low	649 FPS	310 FPS
medium	549 FPS	310 FPS
high	448 FPS	297 FPS
ultra	404 FPS	254 FPS
1440p
low	552 FPS	310 FPS
medium	484 FPS	302 FPS
high	407 FPS	261 FPS
ultra	350 FPS	220 FPS
4K
low	343 FPS	217 FPS
medium	303 FPS	196 FPS
high	277 FPS	179 FPS
ultra	245 FPS	147 FPS

Open Ryzen 7 5700X Open Xeon E5-1680 v2

Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

League of Legends

Preset	Ryzen 7 5700X	Xeon E5-1680 v2
1080p
low	665 FPS	310 FPS
medium	557 FPS	310 FPS
high	509 FPS	310 FPS
ultra	439 FPS	310 FPS
1440p
low	554 FPS	310 FPS
medium	458 FPS	310 FPS
high	419 FPS	310 FPS
ultra	358 FPS	310 FPS
4K
low	402 FPS	310 FPS
medium	322 FPS	310 FPS
high	292 FPS	310 FPS
ultra	229 FPS	275 FPS

Open Ryzen 7 5700X Open Xeon E5-1680 v2

League of Legends

League of Legends

Valorant

Preset	Ryzen 7 5700X	Xeon E5-1680 v2
1080p
low	665 FPS	310 FPS
medium	665 FPS	310 FPS
high	665 FPS	310 FPS
ultra	665 FPS	310 FPS
1440p
low	665 FPS	310 FPS
medium	665 FPS	310 FPS
high	607 FPS	310 FPS
ultra	533 FPS	310 FPS
4K
low	545 FPS	310 FPS
medium	488 FPS	310 FPS
high	439 FPS	310 FPS
ultra	385 FPS	310 FPS

Open Ryzen 7 5700X Open Xeon E5-1680 v2

Valorant

Valorant

Check FPS for your specific build

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of Ryzen 7 5700X and Xeon E5-1680 v2

Ryzen 7 5700X

The Ryzen 7 5700X is manufactured by AMD. It was released in 4 April 2022 (3 years ago). It is based on the Vermeer (Zen 3) (2020−2022) architecture. It features 8 cores and 16 threads. Base frequency is 3.4 GHz, with boost up to 4.6 GHz. L3 cache: 32 MB (total). L2 cache: 512K (per core). Built on 7 nm process technology. Socket: AM4. Thermal design power (TDP): 65 Watt. Memory support: DDR4-3200. Passmark benchmark score: 26,609 points. Launch price was $299.

Xeon E5-1680 v2

The Xeon E5-1680 v2 is manufactured by Intel. It was released in 2015-01-01. It is based on the Ivy Bridge-EP (2013) architecture. It features 8 cores and 16 threads. Base frequency is 3 GHz, with boost up to 3.9 GHz. L3 cache: 25 MB (total). L2 cache: 256K (per core). Built on 22 nm process technology. Socket: LGA2011. Thermal design power (TDP): 130 Watt. Memory support: DDR3-800, DDR3-1066, DDR3-1333, DDR3-1600, DDR3-1866. Passmark benchmark score: 12,396 points. Launch price was $800.

⚡

Processing Power

Both the Ryzen 7 5700X and Xeon E5-1680 v2 share an identical 8-core/16-thread configuration. Boost clocks reach 4.6 GHz on the Ryzen 7 5700X versus 3.9 GHz on the Xeon E5-1680 v2 — a 16.5% clock advantage for the Ryzen 7 5700X (base: 3.4 GHz vs 3 GHz). The Ryzen 7 5700X uses the Vermeer (Zen 3) (2020−2022) architecture (7 nm), while the Xeon E5-1680 v2 uses Ivy Bridge-EP (2013) (22 nm). In PassMark, the Ryzen 7 5700X scores 26,609 against the Xeon E5-1680 v2's 12,396 — a 72.9% lead for the Ryzen 7 5700X. Cinebench R23 multi-core: 14,000 vs 8,579 (48% advantage for the Ryzen 7 5700X). Geekbench 6 single-core — the metric most relevant to gaming — records 2,116 vs 750, a 95.3% lead for the Ryzen 7 5700X that directly translates to higher frame rates. Multi-core Geekbench: 9,715 vs 4,500 (73.4% advantage for the Ryzen 7 5700X). L3 cache: 32 MB (total) on the Ryzen 7 5700X vs 25 MB (total) on the Xeon E5-1680 v2.

Feature	Ryzen 7 5700X	Xeon E5-1680 v2
Cores / Threads	8 / 16	8 / 16
Boost Clock	4.6 GHz+18%	3.9 GHz
Base Clock	3.4 GHz+13%	3 GHz
L3 Cache	32 MB (total)+28%	25 MB (total)
L2 Cache	512K (per core)+100%	256K (per core)
Process	7 nm-68%	22 nm
Architecture	Vermeer (Zen 3) (2020−2022)	Ivy Bridge-EP (2013)
PassMark	26,609+115%	12,396
Cinebench R23 Multi	14,000+63%	8,579
Geekbench 6 Single	2,116+182%	750
Geekbench 6 Multi	9,715+116%	4,500

🧠

Memory & Platform

The Ryzen 7 5700X uses the AM4 socket (PCIe 4.0), while the Xeon E5-1680 v2 uses LGA2011 (PCIe 3.0) — making them incompatible on the same motherboard. Maximum memory speed reaches DDR4-3200 on the Ryzen 7 5700X versus DDR3-1866 on the Xeon E5-1680 v2 — the Ryzen 7 5700X supports 28.6% faster memory, which can translate to measurable gains in memory-sensitive workloads. The Xeon E5-1680 v2 supports up to 256 GB of RAM compared to 128 GB — 66.7% more capacity for professional workloads. Memory channels: 2 (Ryzen 7 5700X) vs 4 (Xeon E5-1680 v2). PCIe lanes: 24 (Ryzen 7 5700X) vs 40 (Xeon E5-1680 v2) — the Xeon E5-1680 v2 offers 16 more lanes for additional GPUs or NVMe drives. Chipset compatibility: A320,B350,X370,B450,X470,B550,X570 (Ryzen 7 5700X) and C602,X79 (Xeon E5-1680 v2).

Feature	Ryzen 7 5700X	Xeon E5-1680 v2
Socket	AM4	LGA2011
PCIe Generation	PCIe 4.0+33%	PCIe 3.0
Max RAM Speed	DDR4-3200+33%	DDR3-1866
Max RAM Capacity	128 GB	256 GB+100%
RAM Channels	2	4+100%
ECC Support	Yes	Yes
PCIe Lanes	24	40+67%

🔧

Advanced Features

Both processors feature an unlocked multiplier for overclocking. Virtualization support: AMD-V (Ryzen 7 5700X) vs VT-x, VT-d, EPT (Xeon E5-1680 v2). Primary use case: Ryzen 7 5700X targets Gaming, Xeon E5-1680 v2 targets Server/Workstation. Direct competitor: Ryzen 7 5700X rivals Core i7-11700K; Xeon E5-1680 v2 rivals Core i7-4960X.

Feature	Ryzen 7 5700X	Xeon E5-1680 v2
Integrated GPU	No	No
IGPU Model	—	None
Unlocked	Yes	Yes
AVX-512	No	No
Virtualization	AMD-V	VT-x, VT-d, EPT
Target Use	Gaming	Server/Workstation

💰

Value Analysis

The Ryzen 7 5700X launched at $299 MSRP, while the Xeon E5-1680 v2 debuted at $1723. On MSRP ($299 vs $1723), the Ryzen 7 5700X is $1424 cheaper. In terms of value on MSRP (PassMark points per dollar), the Ryzen 7 5700X delivers 89.0 pts/$ vs 7.2 pts/$ for the Xeon E5-1680 v2 — making the Ryzen 7 5700X the 170.1% better value option.