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 9 5900X

2020

Why buy it

✅Better for gaming: +17.6% higher average FPS across 4 shared CPU benchmark tests.
✅Costs $4,716 less on MSRP ($549 MSRP vs $5,265 MSRP).
✅Delivers 390.5% more PassMark for each dollar spent, at 71.0 vs 14.5 PassMark/$ ($549 MSRP vs $5,265 MSRP).
✅Draws 105W instead of 250W, a 145W reduction.

Trade-offs

❌Lower PassMark (38,955 vs 76,167).
❌Smaller total L3 cache (64 MB vs 96 MB).
❌Less compelling for workstation-style loads than Xeon 6740E, which brings 96 cores / 96 threads and 80 PCIe lanes.
❌Older platform position on AM4 with DDR4, while Xeon 6740E moves to LGA4710 and DDR5.

Xeon 6740E

2024

Why buy it

✅+95.5% higher PassMark.
✅+50% larger total L3 cache (96 MB vs 64 MB).
✅Better for workstations and heavier parallel workloads: 96 cores / 96 threads, plus 80 PCIe lanes vs 24.
✅Newer platform on LGA4710 with DDR5 support instead of AM4 and DDR4.
✅233.3% more PCIe lanes (80 vs 24) for storage and expansion-heavy builds.

Trade-offs

❌Worse for gaming: lower average FPS than Ryzen 9 5900X across 4 shared CPU benchmark tests.
❌Lower PassMark per dollar, at 14.5 vs 71.0 PassMark/$ ($5,265 MSRP vs $549 MSRP).
❌138.1% higher power demand at 250W vs 105W.

Ryzen 9 5900X

2020

Xeon 6740E

2024

Why buy it

✅Better for gaming: +17.6% higher average FPS across 4 shared CPU benchmark tests.
✅Costs $4,716 less on MSRP ($549 MSRP vs $5,265 MSRP).
✅Delivers 390.5% more PassMark for each dollar spent, at 71.0 vs 14.5 PassMark/$ ($549 MSRP vs $5,265 MSRP).
✅Draws 105W instead of 250W, a 145W reduction.

Why buy it

✅+95.5% higher PassMark.
✅+50% larger total L3 cache (96 MB vs 64 MB).
✅Better for workstations and heavier parallel workloads: 96 cores / 96 threads, plus 80 PCIe lanes vs 24.
✅Newer platform on LGA4710 with DDR5 support instead of AM4 and DDR4.
✅233.3% more PCIe lanes (80 vs 24) for storage and expansion-heavy builds.

Trade-offs

❌Lower PassMark (38,955 vs 76,167).
❌Smaller total L3 cache (64 MB vs 96 MB).
❌Less compelling for workstation-style loads than Xeon 6740E, which brings 96 cores / 96 threads and 80 PCIe lanes.
❌Older platform position on AM4 with DDR4, while Xeon 6740E moves to LGA4710 and DDR5.

Trade-offs

❌Worse for gaming: lower average FPS than Ryzen 9 5900X across 4 shared CPU benchmark tests.
❌Lower PassMark per dollar, at 14.5 vs 71.0 PassMark/$ ($5,265 MSRP vs $549 MSRP).
❌138.1% higher power demand at 250W vs 105W.

Quick Answers

So, is Ryzen 9 5900X better than Xeon 6740E?

Not in a simple one-size-fits-all way. Xeon 6740E makes more sense for workstation-style multi-core throughput, while Ryzen 9 5900X 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 6740E is the better fit. You are getting 95.5% better PassMark, backed by 96 cores and 96 threads. It also carries the larger cache pool with 50% larger total L3 cache (96 MB vs 64 MB).

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

Ryzen 9 5900X is the smarter buy today. Ryzen 9 5900X is $4,716 cheaper on MSRP at $549 MSRP versus $5,265 MSRP, and it gives you a 17.6% average FPS lead across 4 shared CPU game tests in our data. The trade-off is that Xeon 6740E is still stronger for heavier multi-core work with 95.5% better PassMark. It is also 390.5% better value on MSRP (71.0 vs 14.5 PassMark/$), 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 6740E is the more future-proof choice for 2026 and beyond. You are getting a newer CPU generation (2024 vs 2020), a healthier platform with LGA4710 and DDR5 instead of AM4, 50% larger total L3 cache (96 MB vs 64 MB), more multi-core headroom with 96 cores / 96 threads instead of 12/24, and AVX-512 support for heavier modern compute workloads. That should give you a better long-term upgrade path for motherboard, RAM, and future CPU swaps.

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 9 5900X Benchmark Check

Xeon 6740E Benchmark Check

Path of Exile 2

Preset	Ryzen 9 5900X	Xeon 6740E
1080p
low	323 FPS	189 FPS
medium	291 FPS	152 FPS
high	243 FPS	121 FPS
ultra	193 FPS	95 FPS
1440p
low	307 FPS	153 FPS
medium	248 FPS	119 FPS
high	192 FPS	91 FPS
ultra	157 FPS	73 FPS
4K
low	193 FPS	71 FPS
medium	156 FPS	59 FPS
high	115 FPS	46 FPS
ultra	103 FPS	38 FPS

Open Ryzen 9 5900X Open Xeon 6740E

Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2

Counter-Strike 2

Preset	Ryzen 9 5900X	Xeon 6740E
1080p
low	772 FPS	437 FPS
medium	647 FPS	378 FPS
high	508 FPS	306 FPS
ultra	450 FPS	241 FPS
1440p
low	619 FPS	359 FPS
medium	536 FPS	319 FPS
high	443 FPS	266 FPS
ultra	364 FPS	203 FPS
4K
low	365 FPS	222 FPS
medium	318 FPS	201 FPS
high	289 FPS	168 FPS
ultra	255 FPS	135 FPS

Open Ryzen 9 5900X Open Xeon 6740E

Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

League of Legends

Preset	Ryzen 9 5900X	Xeon 6740E
1080p
low	832 FPS	934 FPS
medium	645 FPS	831 FPS
high	558 FPS	779 FPS
ultra	459 FPS	693 FPS
1440p
low	721 FPS	746 FPS
medium	565 FPS	655 FPS
high	488 FPS	614 FPS
ultra	407 FPS	546 FPS
4K
low	511 FPS	479 FPS
medium	421 FPS	378 FPS
high	374 FPS	334 FPS
ultra	308 FPS	272 FPS

Open Ryzen 9 5900X Open Xeon 6740E

League of Legends

League of Legends

Valorant

Preset	Ryzen 9 5900X	Xeon 6740E
1080p
low	974 FPS	918 FPS
medium	974 FPS	830 FPS
high	934 FPS	715 FPS
ultra	826 FPS	610 FPS
1440p
low	959 FPS	710 FPS
medium	843 FPS	620 FPS
high	726 FPS	530 FPS
ultra	617 FPS	450 FPS
4K
low	694 FPS	509 FPS
medium	621 FPS	455 FPS
high	541 FPS	400 FPS
ultra	437 FPS	344 FPS

Open Ryzen 9 5900X Open Xeon 6740E

Valorant

Valorant

Check FPS for your specific build

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of Ryzen 9 5900X and Xeon 6740E

Ryzen 9 5900X

The Ryzen 9 5900X is manufactured by AMD. It was released in 5 November 2020 (5 years ago). It is based on the Vermeer (Zen3) (2020−2022) architecture. It features 12 cores and 24 threads. Base frequency is 3.7 GHz, with boost up to 4.8 GHz. L3 cache: 64 MB. L2 cache: 512K (per core). Built on 7 nm, 12 nm process technology. Socket: AM4. Thermal design power (TDP): 105 Watt. Memory support: DDR4-3200. Passmark benchmark score: 38,955 points. Launch price was $549.

Xeon 6740E

The Xeon 6740E is manufactured by Intel. It was released in 3 June 2024 (1 year ago). It is based on the Sierra Forest (2024) architecture. It features 96 cores and 96 threads. Base frequency is 2.4 GHz, with boost up to 3.2 GHz. L3 cache: 96 MB (total). L2 cache: 4 MB (per module). Built on Intel 3 nm process technology. Socket: LGA4710. Thermal design power (TDP): 250 Watt. Memory support: DDR5-6400. Passmark benchmark score: 76,167 points. Launch price was $5,265.

⚡

Processing Power

The Ryzen 9 5900X packs 12 cores / 24 threads, while the Xeon 6740E offers 96 cores / 96 threads — the Xeon 6740E has 84 more cores. Boost clocks reach 4.8 GHz on the Ryzen 9 5900X versus 3.2 GHz on the Xeon 6740E — a 40% clock advantage for the Ryzen 9 5900X (base: 3.7 GHz vs 2.4 GHz). The Ryzen 9 5900X uses the Vermeer (Zen3) (2020−2022) architecture (7 nm, 12 nm), while the Xeon 6740E uses Sierra Forest (2024) (Intel 3 nm). In PassMark, the Ryzen 9 5900X scores 38,955 against the Xeon 6740E's 76,167 — a 64.6% lead for the Xeon 6740E. L3 cache: 64 MB on the Ryzen 9 5900X vs 96 MB (total) on the Xeon 6740E.

Feature	Ryzen 9 5900X	Xeon 6740E
Cores / Threads	12 / 24	96 / 96+700%
Boost Clock	4.8 GHz+50%	3.2 GHz
Base Clock	3.7 GHz+54%	2.4 GHz
L3 Cache	64 MB	96 MB (total)+50%
L2 Cache	512K (per core)	4 MB (per module)+700%
Process	7 nm, 12 nm	Intel 3 nm-57%
Architecture	Vermeer (Zen3) (2020−2022)	Sierra Forest (2024)
PassMark	38,955	76,167+96%
Cinebench R23 Multi	21,000	—
Geekbench 6 Single	2,174	—
Geekbench 6 Multi	11,888	—

🧠

Memory & Platform

The Ryzen 9 5900X uses the AM4 socket (PCIe 4.0), while the Xeon 6740E uses LGA4710 (PCIe 4.0) — making them incompatible on the same motherboard. Maximum memory speed reaches DDR4-3200 on the Ryzen 9 5900X versus 6400 on the Xeon 6740E — the Xeon 6740E supports 199.8% faster memory, which can translate to measurable gains in memory-sensitive workloads. The Xeon 6740E supports up to 4096 of RAM compared to 128 GB — 187.9% more capacity for professional workloads. Memory channels: 2 (Ryzen 9 5900X) vs 8 (Xeon 6740E). PCIe lanes: 24 (Ryzen 9 5900X) vs 80 (Xeon 6740E) — the Xeon 6740E offers 56 more lanes for additional GPUs or NVMe drives. Chipset compatibility: A320,B350,X370,B450,X470,B550,X570 (Ryzen 9 5900X) and C741 (Xeon 6740E).

Feature	Ryzen 9 5900X	Xeon 6740E
Socket	AM4	LGA4710
PCIe Generation	PCIe 4.0	PCIe 4.0
Max RAM Speed	DDR4-3200	6400+159900%
Max RAM Capacity	128 GB+3276700%	4096
RAM Channels	2	8+300%
ECC Support	Yes	Yes
PCIe Lanes	24	80+233%

🔧

Advanced Features

Only the Ryzen 9 5900X has an unlocked multiplier for overclocking — a significant advantage for enthusiasts seeking extra performance. Only the Xeon 6740E supports AVX-512 instructions — important for machine learning and scientific applications. Virtualization support: AMD-V (Ryzen 9 5900X) vs VT-x, VT-d, TDX (Xeon 6740E). Primary use case: Ryzen 9 5900X targets Workstation. Direct competitor: Ryzen 9 5900X rivals Core i9-12900K; Xeon 6740E rivals EPYC 9005.

Feature	Ryzen 9 5900X	Xeon 6740E
Integrated GPU	No	No
IGPU Model	—	None
Unlocked	Yes	No
AVX-512	No	Yes
Virtualization	AMD-V	VT-x, VT-d, TDX
Target Use	Workstation	—

💰

Value Analysis

The Ryzen 9 5900X launched at $549 MSRP, while the Xeon 6740E debuted at $5265. On MSRP ($549 vs $5265), the Ryzen 9 5900X is $4716 cheaper. In terms of value on MSRP (PassMark points per dollar), the Ryzen 9 5900X delivers 71.0 pts/$ vs 14.5 pts/$ for the Xeon 6740E — making the Ryzen 9 5900X the 132.3% better value option.