Ryzen 9 3950X vs Ryzen 5 2500U

#ad 
Buy on Amazon
VS

Aggregate performance score

Ryzen 5 2500U
2017
4 cores / 8 threads, 15 Watt
4.24
Ryzen 9 3950X
2019
16 cores / 32 threads, 105 Watt
25.14
+493%

Ryzen 9 3950X outperforms Ryzen 5 2500U by a whopping 493% based on our aggregate benchmark results.

Primary details

Comparing Ryzen 5 2500U and Ryzen 9 3950X processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.

Place in performance ranking1364196
Place by popularitynot in top-100not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluationno data18.21
Market segmentLaptopDesktop processor
SeriesAMD Ryzen 5AMD Ryzen 9
Architecture codenameZen (2017−2020)Matisse (Zen 2) (2019−2020)
Release date26 October 2017 (6 years ago)11 June 2019 (5 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)no data$799

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance per price, higher is better.

no data

Detailed specifications

Ryzen 5 2500U and Ryzen 9 3950X basic parameters such as number of cores, number of threads, base frequency and turbo boost clock, lithography, cache size and multiplier lock state. These parameters indirectly say of CPU speed, though for more precise assessment you have to consider their test results.

Physical cores4 (Quad-Core)16 (Hexadeca-Core)
Threads832
Base clock speed2 GHz3.5 GHz
Boost clock speed2 GHz4.7 GHz
Multiplier20no data
L1 cache384 KB1 MB
L2 cache2 MB8 MB
L3 cache4 MB64 MB
Chip lithography14 nm7 nm, 12 nm
Die size209.78 mm22 x 72 mm + 125 mm (IO-Die) mm2
Number of transistors4950 Million19,200 million
64 bit support++
Windows 11 compatibility-+
Unlocked multiplier-+

Compatibility

Information on Ryzen 5 2500U and Ryzen 9 3950X compatibility with other computer components: motherboard (look for socket type), power supply unit (look for power consumption) etc. Useful when planning a future computer configuration or upgrading an existing one. Note that power consumption of some processors can well exceed their nominal TDP, even without overclocking. Some can even double their declared thermals given that the motherboard allows to tune the CPU power parameters.

Number of CPUs in a configuration1 (Uniprocessor)1 (Uniprocessor)
SocketAM4AM4 (1331)
Power consumption (TDP)15 Watt105 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Ryzen 5 2500U and Ryzen 9 3950X. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

Instruction set extensionsXFR, FMA3, SSE 4.2, AVX2, SMT86x MMX(+), SSE, SSE2, SSE3, SSSE3, SSE4.1, SSE4.2, SSE4A,-64, AMD-V, AES, AVX, AVX2, FMA3, SHA, Precision Boost 2
AES-NI++
AVX++
Precision Boost 2++

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Ryzen 5 2500U and Ryzen 9 3950X are enumerated here.

AMD-V++

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Ryzen 5 2500U and Ryzen 9 3950X. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory typesDDR4-2400DDR4 Dual-channel
Maximum memory size32 GB128 GB
Max memory channels2no data
Maximum memory bandwidth38.397 GB/s51.196 GB/s
ECC memory support++

Graphics specifications

General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.

Integrated graphics cardAMD Radeon RX Vega 8 (Ryzen 2000/3000)-

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Ryzen 5 2500U and Ryzen 9 3950X.

PCIe version3.0no data
PCI Express lanes12no data

Synthetic benchmark performance

Various benchmark results of the processors in comparison. Overall score is measured in points in 0-100 range, higher is better.


Combined synthetic benchmark score

This is our combined benchmark performance rating. We are regularly improving our combining algorithms, but if you find some perceived inconsistencies, feel free to speak up in comments section, we usually fix problems quickly.

Ryzen 5 2500U 4.24
Ryzen 9 3950X 25.14
+493%

Passmark

Passmark CPU Mark is a widespread benchmark, consisting of 8 different types of workload, including integer and floating point math, extended instructions, compression, encryption and physics calculation. There is also one separate single-threaded scenario measuring single-core performance.

Ryzen 5 2500U 6538
Ryzen 9 3950X 38759
+493%

GeekBench 5 Single-Core

GeekBench 5 Single-Core is a cross-platform application developed in the form of CPU tests that independently recreate certain real-world tasks with which to accurately measure performance. This version uses only a single CPU core.

Ryzen 5 2500U 809
Ryzen 9 3950X 1736
+115%

GeekBench 5 Multi-Core

GeekBench 5 Multi-Core is a cross-platform application developed in the form of CPU tests that independently recreate certain real-world tasks with which to accurately measure performance. This version uses all available CPU cores.

Ryzen 5 2500U 2370
Ryzen 9 3950X 10880
+359%

Cinebench 10 32-bit single-core

Cinebench R10 is an ancient ray tracing benchmark for processors by Maxon, authors of Cinema 4D. Its single core version uses just one CPU thread to render a futuristic looking motorcycle.

Ryzen 5 2500U 4411
Ryzen 9 3950X 6102
+38.4%

Cinebench 10 32-bit multi-core

Cinebench Release 10 Multi Core is a variant of Cinebench R10 using all the processor threads. Possible number of threads is limited by 16 in this version.

Ryzen 5 2500U 15684
Ryzen 9 3950X 53396
+240%

wPrime 32

wPrime 32M is a math multi-thread processor test, which calculates square roots of first 32 million integer numbers. Its result is measured in seconds, so that the less is benchmark result, the faster the processor.

Ryzen 5 2500U 10.23
Ryzen 9 3950X 4.11
+149%

Cinebench 11.5 64-bit multi-core

Cinebench Release 11.5 Multi Core is a variant of Cinebench R11.5 which uses all the processor threads. A maximum of 64 threads is supported in this version.

Ryzen 5 2500U 7
Ryzen 9 3950X 44
+558%

Cinebench 15 64-bit multi-core

Cinebench Release 15 Multi Core is a variant of Cinebench R15 which uses all the processor threads.

Ryzen 5 2500U 609
Ryzen 9 3950X 4002
+557%

Cinebench 15 64-bit single-core

Cinebench R15 (standing for Release 15) is a benchmark made by Maxon, authors of Cinema 4D. It was superseded by later versions of Cinebench, which use more modern variants of Cinema 4D engine. The Single Core version (sometimes called Single-Thread) only uses a single processor thread to render a room full of reflective spheres and light sources.

Ryzen 5 2500U 137
Ryzen 9 3950X 209
+52.6%

Cinebench 11.5 64-bit single-core

Cinebench R11.5 is an old benchmark by Maxon, authors of Cinema 4D. It was superseded by later versions of Cinebench, which use more modern variants of Cinema 4D engine. The Single Core version loads a single thread with ray tracing to render a glossy room full of crystal spheres and light sources.

Ryzen 5 2500U 1.59
Ryzen 9 3950X 2.37
+49.1%

TrueCrypt AES

TrueCrypt is a discontinued piece of software that was widely used for on-the-fly-encryption of disk partitions, now superseded by VeraCrypt. It contains several embedded performance tests, one of them being TrueCrypt AES, which measures data encryption speed using AES algorithm. Result is encryption speed in gigabytes per second.

Ryzen 5 2500U 3.3
Ryzen 9 3950X 10.8
+227%

WinRAR 4.0

WinRAR 4.0 is an outdated version of a popular file archiver. It contains an internal speed test, using 'Best' setting of RAR compression on large chunks of randomly generated data. Its results are measured in kilobytes per second.

Ryzen 5 2500U 2426
Ryzen 9 3950X 7409
+205%

x264 encoding pass 2

x264 Pass 2 is a slower variant of x264 video compression that produces a variable bit rate output file, which results in better quality since the higher bit rate is used when it is needed more. Benchmark result is still measured in frames per second.  

Ryzen 5 2500U 35
Ryzen 9 3950X 168
+384%

x264 encoding pass 1

x264 version 4.0 is a video encoding benchmark uses MPEG 4 x264 compression method to compress a sample HD (720p) video. Pass 1 is a faster variant that produces a constant bit rate output file. Its result is measured in frames per second, which means how many frames of the source video file were encoded per second.  

Ryzen 5 2500U 121
Ryzen 9 3950X 265
+119%

Gaming performance

Pros & cons summary


Performance score 4.24 25.14
Recency 26 October 2017 11 June 2019
Physical cores 4 16
Threads 8 32
Chip lithography 14 nm 7 nm
Power consumption (TDP) 15 Watt 105 Watt

Ryzen 5 2500U has 600% lower power consumption.

Ryzen 9 3950X, on the other hand, has a 492.9% higher aggregate performance score, an age advantage of 1 year, 300% more physical cores and 300% more threads, and a 100% more advanced lithography process.

The Ryzen 9 3950X is our recommended choice as it beats the Ryzen 5 2500U in performance tests.

Be aware that Ryzen 5 2500U is a notebook processor while Ryzen 9 3950X is a desktop one.


Should you still have questions on choice between Ryzen 5 2500U and Ryzen 9 3950X, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.

Vote for your favorite

Do you think we are right or mistaken in our choice? Vote by clicking "Like" button near your favorite CPU.


AMD Ryzen 5 2500U
Ryzen 5 2500U
AMD Ryzen 9 3950X
Ryzen 9 3950X

Similar processor comparisons

We picked several similar comparisons of processors in the same market segment and performance relatively close to those reviewed on this page.

Community ratings

Here you can see how users rate the processors, as well as rate them yourself.


4.1 1108 votes

Rate Ryzen 5 2500U on a scale of 1 to 5:

  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5
4.5 710 votes

Rate Ryzen 9 3950X on a scale of 1 to 5:

  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5

Questions & comments

Here you can ask a question about Ryzen 5 2500U or Ryzen 9 3950X, agree or disagree with our judgements, or report an error or mismatch.