Xeon w3-2535 vs Core i9-12900

Xeon w3-2535

10 Cores20 Thrd185 WWMax: 4.6 GHz2024

Core i9-12900

16 Cores24 Thrd65 WWMax: 5.1 GHz2022

Performance Spectrum - CPU

Xeon w3-2535

10 / 20

33,367

0.0%

33,695

+1.0%

About PassMark

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.

Value Upgrade Path

This is the official ChipVERSUS Value Rating, comparing raw performance (PassMark) per dollar. Components placed above yours deliver better value for money.

MSRP is the manufacturer's suggested retail price.•
Avg price is the current average price collected from markets across the web.

Performance Per Dollar Xeon w3-2535

#222

Xeon E-2478

MSRP: $568|Avg: $269

108%

#223

Xeon W-1390

MSRP: $494|Avg: $400

107%

#225

Xeon W-1250

MSRP: $285|Avg: $333

106%

#226

EPYC 9135

MSRP: $1214|Avg: $95

105%

#227

Xeon E-2378

MSRP: $362|Avg: $562

104%

#228

Xeon w3-2525

MSRP: $609|Avg: $800

104%

#230

Ryzen Threadripper PRO 3975WX

MSRP: $1337|Avg: $368

103%

#232

EPYC 7282

MSRP: $650|Avg: $199

103%

#233

Xeon w5-2545

MSRP: $889|Avg: $1100

102%

#234

Xeon W-1250P

MSRP: $311|Avg: $311

102%

#237

Xeon w3-2535

MSRP: $739|Avg: $800

100%

#239

EPYC 7313P

MSRP: $913|Avg: $824

100%

#240

Ryzen 7 PRO 1700

MSRP: $329|Avg: $60

99%

#241

Xeon w5-2555X

MSRP: $1069|Avg: $1145

99%

#242

Xeon E-2246G

MSRP: $311|Avg: $268

99%

#244

Xeon w3-2423

MSRP: $359|Avg: $300

97%

#245

EPYC 8434P

MSRP: $1517|Avg: $3137

97%

#247

EPYC 7443P

MSRP: $1337|Avg: $1045

94%

#248

EPYC 4564P

MSRP: $1517|Avg: $1517

94%

#249

Ryzen Threadripper PRO 9945WX

MSRP: $1340|Avg: $1340

94%

#250

EPYC 7D12

MSRP: $1000|Avg: $100

94%

#251

Xeon W-1390P

MSRP: $594|Avg: $450

93%

Based on actual market prices and performance synthetic scores.

Performance Per Dollar Core i9-12900

#229

Core i5-10600

MSRP: $244|Avg: $159

106%

#230

Ryzen 5 PRO 2400G

MSRP: $193|Avg: $100

106%

#231

Core i7-8700B

MSRP: $303|Avg: $139

106%

#232

Ryzen 3 2200G

MSRP: $99|Avg: $80

105%

#233

Core i3-9100F

MSRP: $97|Avg: $80

104%

#234

Ryzen 7 9800X3D

MSRP: $479|Avg: $479

104%

#235

Ryzen 9 3900XT

MSRP: $499|Avg: $390

104%

#236

Ryzen 3 PRO 8300G

MSRP: $176|Avg: $176

103%

#237

Core i7-14700T

MSRP: $384|Avg: $384

103%

#238

Core i3-13100TE

MSRP: $137|Avg: $137

102%

#239

Core i5-9600T

MSRP: $213|Avg: $118

101%

#240

Core i5-12400T

MSRP: $192|Avg: $192

101%

#241

Core i9-14900F

MSRP: $524|Avg: $579

101%

#242

Celeron G6900E

MSRP: $53|Avg: $53

100%

#243

Core i3-12300T

MSRP: $209|Avg: $164

100%

#244

Core i9-12900

MSRP: $519|Avg: $420

100%

#245

Ryzen 3 8300G

MSRP: $176|Avg: $176

100%

#246

Core i7-11700KF

MSRP: $374|Avg: $299

99%

#247

Core i5-10600K

MSRP: $262|Avg: $179

99%

#248

Core i3-10325

MSRP: $154|Avg: $130

99%

#249

Ryzen Embedded V2718

MSRP: $250|Avg: $200

99%

#250

Core i7-8086K

MSRP: $425|Avg: $178

99%

#251

Core i3-10300T

MSRP: $157|Avg: $100

98%

#252

Core i9-10900TE

MSRP: $309|Avg: $180

98%

#253

Core i9-12900T

MSRP: $489|Avg: $378

98%

#254

Core i5-12600T

MSRP: $223|Avg: $223

97%

#255

Ryzen 5 PRO 4655GE

MSRP: $200|Avg: $180

97%

#256

Ryzen 7 1700X

MSRP: $399|Avg: $60

49%

#256

Ryzen 5 3500X

MSRP: $155|Avg: $171

96%

#257

Core i9-14900

MSRP: $524|Avg: $589

96%

#258

Core i5-8600

MSRP: $213|Avg: $130

96%

Based on actual market prices and performance synthetic scores.

Performance Comparison

About PassMark

🏆 Chipversus Verdict

🚀 Performance Leadership

Use Case Distinction: This is a comparison between a Professional Workstation processor ($800) and a Consumer Desktop CPU. The Xeon w3-2535 is engineered for massive parallel workloads (rendering, scientific simulations), offering significantly higher core counts.

Insight	Xeon w3-2535	Core i9-12900
Gaming	❌ Lower gaming performance	✅ Superior gaming performance
Workstation	❌ Weaker in multi-core tasks	✅ Better multi-core power
Price	⚠️ Higher cost ($800)	✅ More affordable ($420)
Longevity	✨ Modern (Sapphire Rapids (2023−2024) / Intel 7 nm)	✨ Modern (Alder Lake-S (2022) / Intel 7 nm)

💎 Value Proposition

The Core i9-12900 ($420), however, is optimized for mixed workloads and gaming. For most users, it offers superior single-thread performance and responsiveness at a fraction of the cost ($380 less, 48% cheaper), making it the better choice for daily use and gaming.

Insight	Xeon w3-2535	Core i9-12900
Cost Efficiency	❌ Lower cost efficiency	✅ Better overall value (+92%)
Upfront Cost	⚠️ Higher cost ($800)	✅ More affordable ($420)

Performance Check

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.

Xeon w3-2535 Benchmark Check

Core i9-12900 Benchmark Check

League of Legends

No prediction data available

Valorant

Valorant

No prediction data available

Check FPS for your specific build

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of Xeon w3-2535 and Core i9-12900

Xeon w3-2535

The Xeon w3-2535 is manufactured by Intel. It was released in 24 August 2024 (1 year ago). It is based on the Sapphire Rapids (2023−2024) architecture. It features 10 cores and 20 threads. Base frequency is 3.5 GHz, with boost up to 4.6 GHz. L3 cache: 26.25 MB. L2 cache: 2 MB (per core). Built on Intel 7 nm process technology. Socket: LGA4677. Thermal design power (TDP): 185 Watt. Memory support: DDR5-4400. Passmark benchmark score: 33,367 points. Launch price was $739.

Core i9-12900

The Core i9-12900 is manufactured by Intel. It was released in 4 January 2022 (3 years ago). It is based on the Alder Lake-S (2022) architecture. It features 16 cores and 24 threads. Base frequency is 2.4 GHz, with boost up to 5.1 GHz. L3 cache: 30 MB (total). L2 cache: 1.25 MB (per core). Built on Intel 7 nm process technology. Socket: LGA1700. Thermal design power (TDP): 65 Watt. Memory support: DDR4, DDR5. Passmark benchmark score: 33,695 points. Launch price was $489.

⚡

Processing Power

The Xeon w3-2535 packs 10 cores / 20 threads, while the Core i9-12900 offers 16 cores / 24 threads — the Core i9-12900 has 6 more cores. Boost clocks reach 4.6 GHz on the Xeon w3-2535 versus 5.1 GHz on the Core i9-12900 — a 10.3% clock advantage for the Core i9-12900 (base: 3.5 GHz vs 2.4 GHz). The Xeon w3-2535 uses the Sapphire Rapids (2023−2024) architecture (Intel 7 nm), while the Core i9-12900 uses Alder Lake-S (2022) (Intel 7 nm). In PassMark, the Xeon w3-2535 scores 33,367 against the Core i9-12900's 33,695 — a 1% lead for the Core i9-12900. L3 cache: 26.25 MB on the Xeon w3-2535 vs 30 MB (total) on the Core i9-12900.

Feature	Xeon w3-2535	Core i9-12900
Cores / Threads	10 / 20	16 / 24+60%
Boost Clock	4.6 GHz	5.1 GHz+11%
Base Clock	3.5 GHz+46%	2.4 GHz
L3 Cache	26.25 MB	30 MB (total)+14%
L2 Cache	2 MB (per core)+60%	1.25 MB (per core)
Process	Intel 7 nm	Intel 7 nm
Architecture	Sapphire Rapids (2023−2024)	Alder Lake-S (2022)
PassMark	33,367	33,695
Cinebench R23 Multi	17,500	—
Geekbench 6 Single	2,254	—
Geekbench 6 Multi	12,400	—

🧠

Memory & Platform

The Xeon w3-2535 uses the LGA4677 socket (PCIe 5.0), while the Core i9-12900 uses LGA1700 (PCIe 5.0) — making them incompatible on the same motherboard. Maximum memory speed reaches DDR5-4400 on the Xeon w3-2535 versus 4800 on the Core i9-12900 — the Core i9-12900 supports 199.6% faster memory, which can translate to measurable gains in memory-sensitive workloads. The Xeon w3-2535 supports up to 2048 GB of RAM compared to 128 — 176.5% more capacity for professional workloads. Memory channels: 4 (Xeon w3-2535) vs 2 (Core i9-12900). PCIe lanes: 64 (Xeon w3-2535) vs 20 (Core i9-12900) — the Xeon w3-2535 offers 44 more lanes for additional GPUs or NVMe drives. Chipset compatibility: W790 (Xeon w3-2535) and Z690,B660 (Core i9-12900).

Feature	Xeon w3-2535	Core i9-12900
Socket	LGA4677	LGA1700
PCIe Generation	PCIe 5.0	PCIe 5.0
Max RAM Speed	DDR5-4400	4800+95900%
Max RAM Capacity	2048 GB+1677721500%	128
RAM Channels	4+100%	2
ECC Support	✅	✅
PCIe Lanes	64+220%	20

🔧

Advanced Features

Neither processor supports overclocking. Only the Xeon w3-2535 supports AVX-512 instructions — important for machine learning and scientific applications. Virtualization support: VT-x, VT-d, EPT (Xeon w3-2535) vs VT-x, VT-d (Core i9-12900). The Core i9-12900 includes integrated graphics (Intel UHD Graphics 770), while the Xeon w3-2535 requires a dedicated GPU. Primary use case: Xeon w3-2535 targets Workstation. Direct competitor: Xeon w3-2535 rivals EPYC 7313; Core i9-12900 rivals Ryzen 9 5900.

Feature	Xeon w3-2535	Core i9-12900
Integrated GPU	No	Yes
IGPU Model	—	Intel UHD Graphics 770
Unlocked	No	No
AVX-512	Yes	No
Virtualization	VT-x, VT-d, EPT	VT-x, VT-d
Target Use	Workstation	—

💰

Value Analysis

The Xeon w3-2535 launched at $739 MSRP, while the Core i9-12900 debuted at $519. At current prices ($800 vs $420), the Core i9-12900 is $380 cheaper. In terms of value (PassMark points per dollar), the Xeon w3-2535 delivers 41.7 pts/$ vs 80.2 pts/$ for the Core i9-12900 — making the Core i9-12900 the 63.2% better value option.