AMD Ryzen 5 5600X vs Intel Core i9-9900K

Last updated:

CPU comparison with benchmarks


AMD Ryzen 5 5600X CPU1 vs CPU2 Intel Core i9-9900K
AMD Ryzen 5 5600X Intel Core i9-9900K

CPU comparison

AMD Ryzen 5 5600X or Intel Core i9-9900K - which processor is faster? In this comparison we look at the differences and analyze which of these two CPUs is better. We compare the technical data and benchmark results.

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600X has 6 cores with 12 threads and clocks with a maximum frequency of 4.60 GHz. Up to 128 GB of memory is supported in 2 memory channels. The AMD Ryzen 5 5600X was released in Q4/2020.

The Intel Core i9-9900K has 8 cores with 16 threads and clocks with a maximum frequency of 5.00 GHz. The CPU supports up to 128 GB of memory in 2 memory channels. The Intel Core i9-9900K was released in Q4/2018.
AMD Ryzen 5 (78) Family Intel Core i9 (78)
AMD Ryzen 5000 (12) CPU group Intel Core i 9000 (34)
4 Generation 9
Vermeer (Zen 3) Architecture Coffee Lake S Refresh
Desktop / Server Segment Desktop / Server
AMD Ryzen 5 3600X Predecessor --
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X Successor Intel Core i9-10900K

CPU Cores and Base Frequency

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600X has 6 CPU cores and can calculate 12 threads in parallel. The clock frequency of the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X is 3.70 GHz (4.60 GHz) while the Intel Core i9-9900K has 8 CPU cores and 16 threads can calculate simultaneously. The clock frequency of the Intel Core i9-9900K is at 3.60 GHz (5.00 GHz).

AMD Ryzen 5 5600X Characteristic Intel Core i9-9900K
6 Cores 8
12 Threads 16
normal Core architecture normal
Yes Hyperthreading Yes
Yes Overclocking ? Yes
3.70 GHz Frequency 3.60 GHz
4.60 GHz Turbo Frequency (1 Core) 5.00 GHz
4.30 GHz Turbo Frequency (All Cores) 4.70 GHz

Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning

Processors with the support of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) can process many calculations, especially audio, image and video processing, much faster than classic processors. Algorithms for ML improve their performance the more data they have collected via software. ML tasks can be processed up to 10,000 times faster than with a classic processor.

AMD Ryzen 5 5600X Characteristic Intel Core i9-9900K
-- AI hardware --
-- AI specifications --

Internal Graphics

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600X or Intel Core i9-9900K has integrated graphics, called iGPU for short. The iGPU uses the system's main memory as graphics memory and sits on the processor's die.

no iGPU GPU Intel UHD Graphics 630
GPU frequency 0.35 GHz
-- GPU (Turbo) 1.20 GHz
-- GPU Generation 9.5
Technology 14 nm
Max. displays 3
-- Compute units 24
-- Shader 192
No Hardware Raytracing No
No Frame Generation No
-- Max. GPU Memory 64 GB
-- DirectX Version 12

Hardware codec support

A photo or video codec that is accelerated in hardware can greatly accelerate the working speed of a processor and extend the battery life of notebooks or smartphones when playing videos.

no iGPU GPU Intel UHD Graphics 630
No Codec h265 / HEVC (8 bit) Decode / Encode
No Codec h265 / HEVC (10 bit) Decode / Encode
No Codec h264 Decode / Encode
No Codec VP9 Decode / Encode
No Codec VP8 Decode / Encode
No Codec AV1 No
No Codec AVC Decode / Encode
No Codec VC-1 Decode
No Codec JPEG Decode / Encode

Memory & PCIe

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600X can use up to 128 GB of memory in 2 memory channels. The maximum memory bandwidth is 51.2 GB/s. The Intel Core i9-9900K supports up to 128 GB of memory in 2 memory channels and achieves a memory bandwidth of up to 42.7 GB/s.

AMD Ryzen 5 5600X Characteristic Intel Core i9-9900K
DDR4-3200 Memory DDR4-2666
128 GB Max. Memory 128 GB
2 (Dual Channel) Memory channels 2 (Dual Channel)
51.2 GB/s Max. Bandwidth 42.7 GB/s
Yes ECC No
3.00 MB L2 Cache --
32.00 MB L3 Cache 16.00 MB
4.0 PCIe version 3.0
20 PCIe lanes 16
39.4 GB/s PCIe Bandwidth 15.8 GB/s

Thermal Management

The thermal design power (TDP for short) of the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X is 65 W, while the Intel Core i9-9900K has a TDP of 95 W. The TDP specifies the necessary cooling solution that is required to cool the processor sufficiently.

AMD Ryzen 5 5600X Characteristic Intel Core i9-9900K
65 W TDP (PL1 / PBP) 95 W
-- TDP (PL2) 119 W @ 28 s
-- TDP up --
-- TDP down --
90 °C Tjunction max. 100 °C

Technical details

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600X is manufactured in 7 nm and has 35.00 MB cache. The Intel Core i9-9900K is manufactured in 14 nm and has a 16.00 MB cache.

AMD Ryzen 5 5600X Characteristic Intel Core i9-9900K
7 nm Technology 14 nm
Chiplet Chip design Monolithic
x86-64 (64 bit) Instruction set (ISA) x86-64 (64 bit)
SSE4a, SSE4.1, SSE4.2, AVX2, FMA3 ISA extensions SSE4.1, SSE4.2, AVX2
AM4 (PGA 1331) Socket LGA 1151-2
AMD-V, SVM Virtualization VT-x, VT-x EPT, VT-d
Yes AES-NI Yes
Windows 10, Windows 11, Linux Operating systems Windows 10, Windows 11, Linux
Q4/2020 Release date Q4/2018
299 $ Release price 650 $
show more data show more data


Rate these processors

Here you can rate the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X to help other visitors make their purchasing decisions. The average rating is 4.9 stars (7 ratings). Rate now:
Here you can rate the Intel Core i9-9900K to help other visitors make their purchasing decisions. The average rating is 4.0 stars (3 ratings). Rate now:


Average performance in benchmarks

⌀ Single core performance in 7 CPU benchmarks
⌀ Multi core performance in 9 CPU benchmarks

Cinebench 2024 (Single-Core)

The Cinebench 2024 benchmark is based on the Redshift rendering engine, which is also used in Maxon's 3D program Cinema 4D. The benchmark runs are each 10 minutes long to test whether the processor is limited by its heat generation.
AMD Ryzen 5 5600X AMD Ryzen 5 5600X
6C 12T @ 4.60 GHz
94 (100%)
Intel Core i9-9900K Intel Core i9-9900K
8C 16T @ 5.00 GHz
77 (82%)

Cinebench 2024 (Multi-Core)

The Multi-Core test of the Cinebench 2024 benchmark uses all cpu cores to render using the Redshift rendering engine, which is also used in Maxons Cinema 4D. The benchmark run is 10 minutes long to test whether the processor is limited by its heat generation.
AMD Ryzen 5 5600X AMD Ryzen 5 5600X
6C 12T @ 4.60 GHz
639 (100%)
Intel Core i9-9900K Intel Core i9-9900K
8C 16T @ 5.00 GHz
640 (100%)

Cinebench R23 (Single-Core)

Cinebench R23 is the successor of Cinebench R20 and is also based on the Cinema 4 Suite. Cinema 4 is a worldwide used software to create 3D forms. The single-core test only uses one CPU core, the amount of cores or hyperthreading ability doesn't count.
AMD Ryzen 5 5600X AMD Ryzen 5 5600X
6C 12T @ 4.60 GHz
1593 (100%)
Intel Core i9-9900K Intel Core i9-9900K
8C 16T @ 5.00 GHz
1294 (81%)

Cinebench R23 (Multi-Core)

Cinebench R23 is the successor of Cinebench R20 and is also based on the Cinema 4 Suite. Cinema 4 is a worldwide used software to create 3D forms. The multi-core test involves all CPU cores and taks a big advantage of hyperthreading.
AMD Ryzen 5 5600X AMD Ryzen 5 5600X
6C 12T @ 4.30 GHz
10988 (86%)
Intel Core i9-9900K Intel Core i9-9900K
8C 16T @ 4.70 GHz
12812 (100%)

Geekbench 5, 64bit (Single-Core)

Geekbench 5 is a cross plattform benchmark that heavily uses the systems memory. A fast memory will push the result a lot. The single-core test only uses one CPU core, the amount of cores or hyperthreading ability doesn't count.
AMD Ryzen 5 5600X AMD Ryzen 5 5600X
6C 12T @ 4.60 GHz
1572 (100%)
Intel Core i9-9900K Intel Core i9-9900K
8C 16T @ 5.00 GHz
1342 (85%)

Geekbench 5, 64bit (Multi-Core)

Geekbench 5 is a cross plattform benchmark that heavily uses the systems memory. A fast memory will push the result a lot. The multi-core test involves all CPU cores and taks a big advantage of hyperthreading.
AMD Ryzen 5 5600X AMD Ryzen 5 5600X
6C 12T @ 4.30 GHz
8420 (96%)
Intel Core i9-9900K Intel Core i9-9900K
8C 16T @ 4.70 GHz
8779 (100%)

Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)

Geekbench 6 is a benchmark for modern computers, notebooks and smartphones. What is new is an optimized utilization of newer CPU architectures, e.g. based on the big.LITTLE concept and combining CPU cores of different sizes. The single-core benchmark only evaluates the performance of the fastest CPU core, the number of CPU cores in a processor is irrelevant here.
AMD Ryzen 5 5600X AMD Ryzen 5 5600X
6C 12T @ 4.60 GHz
2113 (100%)
Intel Core i9-9900K Intel Core i9-9900K
8C 16T @ 5.00 GHz
1650 (78%)

Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)

Geekbench 6 is a benchmark for modern computers, notebooks and smartphones. What is new is an optimized utilization of newer CPU architectures, e.g. based on the big.LITTLE concept and combining CPU cores of different sizes. The multi-core benchmark evaluates the performance of all of the processor's CPU cores. Virtual thread improvements such as AMD SMT or Intel's Hyper-Threading have a positive impact on the benchmark result.
AMD Ryzen 5 5600X AMD Ryzen 5 5600X
6C 12T @ 4.30 GHz
9279 (100%)
Intel Core i9-9900K Intel Core i9-9900K
8C 16T @ 4.70 GHz
8182 (88%)

Cinebench R20 (Single-Core)

Cinebench R20 is the successor of Cinebench R15 and is also based on the Cinema 4 Suite. Cinema 4 is a worldwide used software to create 3D forms. The single-core test only uses one CPU core, the amount of cores or hyperthreading ability doesn't count.
AMD Ryzen 5 5600X AMD Ryzen 5 5600X
6C 12T @ 4.60 GHz
604 (100%)
Intel Core i9-9900K Intel Core i9-9900K
8C 16T @ 5.00 GHz
518 (86%)

Cinebench R20 (Multi-Core)

Cinebench R20 is the successor of Cinebench R15 and is also based on the Cinema 4 Suite. Cinema 4 is a worldwide used software to create 3D forms. The multi-core test involves all CPU cores and taks a big advantage of hyperthreading.
AMD Ryzen 5 5600X AMD Ryzen 5 5600X
6C 12T @ 4.30 GHz
4562 (91%)
Intel Core i9-9900K Intel Core i9-9900K
8C 16T @ 4.70 GHz
4995 (100%)

Blender 3.1 Benchmark

In the Blender Benchmark 3.1, the scenes "monster", "junkshop" and "classroom" are rendered and the time required by the system is measured. In our benchmark we test the CPU and not the graphics card. Blender 3.1 was presented as a standalone version in March 2022.
AMD Ryzen 5 5600X AMD Ryzen 5 5600X
6C 12T @ 4.30 GHz
157 (92%)
Intel Core i9-9900K Intel Core i9-9900K
8C 16T @ 4.70 GHz
171 (100%)

Estimated results for PassMark CPU Mark

Some of the CPUs listed below have been benchmarked by CPU-monkey. However the majority of CPUs have not been tested and the results have been estimated by a CPU-monkey’s secret proprietary formula. As such they do not accurately reflect the actual Passmark CPU mark values and are not endorsed by PassMark Software Pty Ltd.
AMD Ryzen 5 5600X AMD Ryzen 5 5600X
6C 12T @ 4.30 GHz
21955 (100%)
Intel Core i9-9900K Intel Core i9-9900K
8C 16T @ 4.70 GHz
18702 (85%)

CPU-Z Benchmark 17 (Single-Core)

The CPU-Z benchmark measures a processor's performance by measuring the time it takes the system to complete all benchmark calculations. The faster the benchmark is completed, the higher the score.
AMD Ryzen 5 5600X AMD Ryzen 5 5600X
6C 12T @ 4.30 GHz
624 (100%)
Intel Core i9-9900K Intel Core i9-9900K
8C 16T @ 4.70 GHz
545 (87%)

CPU-Z Benchmark 17 (Multi-Core)

The CPU-Z benchmark measures a processor's performance by measuring the time it takes the system to complete all benchmark calculations. The faster the benchmark is completed, the higher the score.
AMD Ryzen 5 5600X AMD Ryzen 5 5600X
6C 12T @ 3.70 GHz
4784 (87%)
Intel Core i9-9900K Intel Core i9-9900K
8C 16T @ 3.60 GHz
5502 (100%)

Cinebench R15 (Single-Core)

Cinebench R15 is the successor of Cinebench 11.5 and is also based on the Cinema 4 Suite. Cinema 4 is a worldwide used software to create 3D forms. The single-core test only uses one CPU core, the amount of cores or hyperthreading ability doesn't count.
AMD Ryzen 5 5600X AMD Ryzen 5 5600X
6C 12T @ 4.60 GHz
258 (100%)
Intel Core i9-9900K Intel Core i9-9900K
8C 16T @ 5.00 GHz
219 (85%)

Cinebench R15 (Multi-Core)

Cinebench R15 is the successor of Cinebench 11.5 and is also based on the Cinema 4 Suite. Cinema 4 is a worldwide used software to create 3D forms. The multi-core test involves all CPU cores and taks a big advantage of hyperthreading.
AMD Ryzen 5 5600X AMD Ryzen 5 5600X
6C 12T @ 4.30 GHz
1970 (88%)
Intel Core i9-9900K Intel Core i9-9900K
8C 16T @ 4.70 GHz
2245 (100%)

iGPU - FP32 Performance (Single-precision GFLOPS)

The theoretical computing performance of the internal graphics unit of the processor with simple accuracy (32 bit) in GFLOPS. GFLOPS indicates how many billion floating point operations the iGPU can perform per second.
AMD Ryzen 5 5600X AMD Ryzen 5 5600X
@ 0.00 GHz
0 (0%)
Intel Core i9-9900K Intel Core i9-9900K
Intel UHD Graphics 630 @ 1.20 GHz
461 (100%)

Blender 2.81 (bmw27)

Blender is a free 3D graphics software for rendering (creating) 3D bodies, which can also be textured and animated in the software. The Blender benchmark creates predefined scenes and measures the time (s) required for the entire scene. The shorter the time required, the better. We selected bmw27 as the benchmark scene.
AMD Ryzen 5 5600X AMD Ryzen 5 5600X
6C 12T @ 4.30 GHz
0 (0%)
Intel Core i9-9900K Intel Core i9-9900K
8C 16T @ 4.70 GHz
163.8 (100%)

CPU performance per watt (efficiency)

Efficiency of the processor under full load in the Cinebench R23 (multi-core) benchmark. The benchmark result is divided by the average energy required (CPU package power in watts). The higher the value, the more efficient the CPU is under full load.
AMD Ryzen 5 5600X AMD Ryzen 5 5600X
10,988 CB R23 MC @ 76 W
145 (100%)
Intel Core i9-9900K Intel Core i9-9900K
3.60 GHz
0 (0%)

Devices using this processor

AMD Ryzen 5 5600X Intel Core i9-9900K
Unknown Memory PC Intel i9-9900K
Multimedia Office PC Intel Core i9 9900K
Corsair ONE i160 Kompakter Gaming-PC Intel Core i9-9900K

News and articles for the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X and the Intel Core i9-9900K

Why the new AMD Ryzen 7000 processors for the AM5 socket are currently not a good deal
Why the new AMD Ryzen 7000 processors for the AM5 socket are currently not a good deal
Posted by Stefan on 2022-10-11
At the end of September 2022, the time had come: AMD presented its latest desktop processors called AMD Ryzen 7000. Initially, 4 processors with 6 to 16 CPU cores were released.

The new socket AM5 (LGA 1718) is used for the first time, which is intended to replace the very durable socket AM4 introduced in 2017 as AMDs mainstream platform. This includes (depending on the chipset) PCIe 5.0 support as well as the exclusive use of DDR5 memory on all AM5 mainboards.

Officially, DDR5-5200 is the maximum, but with AMDs EXPO Technology which is similar to Intel's XMP 3.0, AMD now also has a solution for easy overclocking of the main memory. AMD itself names DDR5-6000 as the sweet spot for the new AMD Ryzen 7000 processors.
The evolution of AMD Ryzen processors
The evolution of AMD Ryzen processors
Posted by Stefan on 2022-09-06
The AMD Ryzen processors are designed for the mid to high-end range and are grouped into the Ryzen 3, Ryzen 5, Ryzen 7 and Ryzen 9 classes. AMD follows the market leader Intel, which groups its Core i series (Intel Core i3, Core i5, Core i7 and Core i9) identically.

The AMD Ryzen processors were first introduced by AMD in Q1 2017. They are the successor to the not particularly successful AMD Bulldozer processors. The latter were manufactured using an outdated manufacturing process and could not keep up with the competing products from Intel. AMD lost a large portion of its desktop processor market share during this period.
AMD Ryzen 5 5500 - The CPU with the best price-performance ratio
AMD Ryzen 5 5500 - The CPU with the best price-performance ratio
Posted by Stefan on 2022-07-18
The AMD Ryzen 5 5500 (6C 12T) is currently enjoying great popularity and is currently one of the best-selling processors for AMD's Socket AM4 platform.

But why is the AMD Ryzen 5 5500 so cheap and what disadvantages does the buyer have to accept? We clarify that in this article. But first we have to dive a little into the technology of the current Zen 3 processors in order to understand what kind of exotic cpu AMD has actually created with the AMD Ryzen 5 5500.
Most popular processors in the first half of 2022
Most popular processors in the first half of 2022
Posted by Stefan on 2022-07-05
In the past we had repeatedly written about our most popular processors. Since this format was quiet popular, I would like to continue this today and introduce you the most popular processors in the first half of 2022.

With more than 2 million page views per month, CPU-Monkey is one of the biggest comparison sites for processors and is currently available in 16 languages.
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X and AMD Ryzen 7 7800X are coming in September
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X and AMD Ryzen 7 7800X are coming in September
Posted by Stefan on 2022-06-20
After we published a performance assessment of the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X last week, the well-known AMD leaker Greymon55 has now posted more informations via Twitter.

He predicts the first four models of the new Zen 4 desktop generation, which AMD would like to present at the end of 2022. There is also an alleged release date of September 15, 2022.

Comparison of the two processors

With this comparison you can find out whether the 2 years younger AMD Ryzen 5 5600X can assert itself against the Intel Core i9-9900K. This is interesting from the side alone, since the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X has "only" 6 processor cores, whereas the Intel Core i9-9900K has 2 more cores, i.e. 8 cores.

The base clock frequency of the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X is 3.70 gigahertz per core and the maximum dynamic clock frequency is 4.60 gigahertz. The base clock frequency of the Intel Core i9-9900K is similarly high at 3.60 gigahertz, but the maximum turbo clock frequency is a bit higher at 5.00 gigahertz. However, the fact that not only the clock frequency, but also the architecture and the manufacturing process play a role in performance, results in a different picture than the clock frequencies show.

In our single-core benchmarks, the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X is on average 15% ahead of the Intel Core i9-9900K. In the multi-core benchmarks, the 2 additional cores of the Intel processor are noticeable thanks to the, here it is on average 10% ahead of the AMD processor.

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600X does not have an internal graphics unit, so a dedicated graphics card has to be purchased. In the Intel Core i9-9900K, however, the Intel UHD Graphics 630 is used. This graphics unit clocks at up to 1.20 gigahertz and has 24 execution units and 192 shaders. With this iGPU it is possible to operate up to 3 monitors in parallel.

Both processors have 2 memory channels and these can be used to operate up to 128 gigabytes of RAM. The AMD Ryzen 5 5600X supports modules up to type DDR4-3200 and also supports RAM with automatic error correction. RAM of the somewhat slower type DDR4-2666 can be installed in the Intel Core i9-9900K.

Popular comparisons containing this CPUs

1. Apple M1Intel Core i9-9900K Apple M1 vs Intel Core i9-9900K
2. AMD Ryzen 7 3700XAMD Ryzen 5 5600X AMD Ryzen 7 3700X vs AMD Ryzen 5 5600X
3. AMD Ryzen 5 5600GAMD Ryzen 5 5600X AMD Ryzen 5 5600G vs AMD Ryzen 5 5600X
4. AMD Ryzen 5 5600XAMD Ryzen 5 3600 AMD Ryzen 5 5600X vs AMD Ryzen 5 3600
5. AMD Ryzen 7 5800XAMD Ryzen 5 5600X AMD Ryzen 7 5800X vs AMD Ryzen 5 5600X
6. AMD Ryzen 5 5600AMD Ryzen 5 5600X AMD Ryzen 5 5600 vs AMD Ryzen 5 5600X
7. AMD Ryzen 7 5700XAMD Ryzen 5 5600X AMD Ryzen 7 5700X vs AMD Ryzen 5 5600X
8. Apple M1AMD Ryzen 5 5600X Apple M1 vs AMD Ryzen 5 5600X
9. AMD Ryzen 5 3600XAMD Ryzen 5 5600X AMD Ryzen 5 3600X vs AMD Ryzen 5 5600X
10. AMD Ryzen 7 5700GAMD Ryzen 5 5600X AMD Ryzen 7 5700G vs AMD Ryzen 5 5600X


back to index