AMD EPYC 9354 vs Intel Xeon 6737P Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The benchmark data tells a clear story of two distinct performance profiles. The Intel Xeon 6737P wins 12 of the 16 head-to-head comparisons, while the AMD EPYC 9354 takes four. The Intel part's victories are often decisive, and its single-thread advantage is the most consistent theme.

In Cinebench testing, the Intel Xeon 6737P posts a 9.7% win across every iteration. The R15 multicore score is 6822 against 6221, R20 multicore is 28428 versus 25923, and R23 multicore reaches 67688 compared to 61722. The single-core Cinebench results follow the exact same 9.7% delta, with R15 at 963 versus 878, R20 at 4013 versus 3659, and R23 at 4013 versus 3659. This uniformity suggests the advantage is architectural and consistent across workload scaling, not a quirk of one benchmark version.

The PassMark suite reveals where each chip excels. The Intel part's biggest win is in floating-point math, where it scores 258811 against the EPYC's 188894 — a 37% advantage. Extended instructions also go decisively to Intel at 105453 versus 86176, a 22.4% margin. Single-thread performance in PassMark shows Intel ahead by 17.2%, with scores of 3048 against 2601. Integer math goes to Intel by 8.5% (330756 versus 304828), and the multithread score shows a 9.7% edge (79634 versus 72615). Physics is nearly a tie, with Intel ahead just 0.9% (9362 versus 9281).

The AMD EPYC 9354's four wins are concentrated in specific workloads. The largest is in prime number finding, where it scores 934 against Intel's 697 — a 25.4% advantage. Data encryption shows AMD ahead by 8.1% (71400 versus 65615). Random string sorting favors AMD by 7.9% (140690 versus 129510). Data compression is the closest AMD win, just 1% ahead with 1168626 versus 1157255.

Looking at the broader picture, the Intel Xeon 6737P's average benchmark score is 140694, while the AMD EPYC 9354 averages 126810. The Intel part sits in the 98th percentile of all CPUs, and the AMD part in the 97th. The nearest rival data for Intel shows it trailing the Xeon 674X by 1.7%, the Xeon 6732P by 1.9%, and the Ryzen 9 PRO 9965X3D by 2.1%. For AMD, it leads the Xeon 6730P by 1.6%, the Threadripper PRO 5975WX by 2.1%, and the EPYC 7642 by 2.3%, while trailing the Xeon 6710E by 2.4%.

The pattern is clear: Intel dominates in rendering, floating-point math, and single-threaded tasks, while AMD counters in encryption, compression, and prime-number workloads. The Intel part's wins are generally larger in magnitude than AMD's, which is reflected in the overall average score gap of roughly 11%.

The Verdict

The data points to the Intel Xeon 6737P as the stronger all-around performer. It wins 75% of the head-to-head benchmarks and holds a 140694 average score against the EPYC 9354's 126810. The 37% floating-point advantage and 22.4% extended-instruction lead are the kind of margins that translate directly into faster compute-heavy workloads. The consistent 9.7% Cinebench sweep across both single-core and multi-core tests suggests that the Intel architecture handles both lightly threaded and fully saturated scenarios with equal efficiency.

Buyers running rendering, scientific simulation, or any floating-point intensive code should choose the Intel Xeon 6737P. The single-thread advantage of 17.2% in PassMark and 9.7% in Cinebench also matters for database workloads, web serving, and other latency-sensitive applications that still depend on per-core speed.

The AMD EPYC 9354 is the pick for specific niches. The 25.4% lead in prime number finding points to strong integer performance in certain mathematical workloads. The 8.1% encryption advantage matters for security-focused deployments, and the 7.9% random string sorting edge could help in data-processing pipelines that rely heavily on sorting. The 1% data compression win is marginal but real.

The AMD chip also brings platform-level advantages that the benchmark scores don't capture. It offers twelve-channel memory versus Intel's eight-channel, and 128 PCIe Gen 5 lanes versus 88. The memory bandwidth is 460.8 GB/s against 409.6 GB/s. For systems that are memory-bandwidth-bound rather than compute-bound, the EPYC's platform features could close the performance gap that the raw compute benchmarks show.

Both parts are 32-core, 64-thread processors on a 5 nm node, and both are active production chips with ECC memory support. The Intel part is the newer release, coming out in 2025, while the EPYC dates to 2022. The Intel part's launch MSRP is $4995, while the AMD part's launch MSRP is $3420.

Architecture Differences

The two processors come from fundamentally different design philosophies. The Intel Xeon 6737P uses the Granite Rapids architecture, built on Intel's own 5 nm process. The die size is 598 mm². The AMD EPYC 9354 uses the Zen 4 architecture, codenamed Genoa, fabricated by TSMC on a 5 nm node. AMD's chip is built from eight chiplets, each 72 mm², totaling 52,560 million transistors.

Cache hierarchies differ substantially. Intel allocates 112 KB of L1 per core and 2 MB of L2 per core, with a shared 144 MB L3. AMD uses 64 KB of L1 per core and 1 MB of L2 per core, with a larger shared 256 MB L3. The AMD part's larger L3 could explain its wins in compression and sorting workloads, which often benefit from larger caches.

The memory controllers are also different. Intel uses an eight-channel DDR5 configuration, while AMD uses twelve-channel DDR5. This gives AMD a memory bandwidth advantage of 460.8 GB/s versus Intel's 409.6 GB/s. PCIe connectivity differs as well: Intel provides 88 Gen 5 lanes, AMD provides 128 Gen 5 lanes.

The sockets are incompatible — Intel uses Socket 4710, AMD uses Socket SP5. Both parts have ECC memory support and neither has integrated graphics. Both have locked multipliers. The Intel part is part of the Xeon 6 (Granite Rapids-SP) generation, while AMD's is in the EPYC 9004 series.

The Intel part's release date of February 2025 makes it nearly two and a half years newer than the AMD part, which launched in November 2022. This generation gap may explain the Intel part's single-thread and floating-point advantages, as newer architectures often improve these areas.

Specification Differences

The two chips share core and thread counts — 32 cores and 64 threads each — but diverge on nearly every other specification.

Clock speeds favor Intel on boost, AMD on base. The Intel Xeon 6737P has a base clock of 2.90 GHz and a boost clock of 4.00 GHz. The AMD EPYC 9354 has a base clock of 3.25 GHz and a boost clock of 3.80 GHz. The higher Intel boost clock aligns with its single-thread benchmark wins.

Thermal design power differs slightly: Intel is rated at 270 W, AMD at 280 W. Both are high-power server parts.

Memory bandwidth goes to AMD: 460.8 GB/s versus 409.6 GB/s. PCIe lanes also favor AMD: 128 versus 88. Both are Gen 5.

Cache totals differ significantly. Intel's L3 is 144 MB shared, while AMD's is 256 MB shared. L1 and L2 per core also differ, with Intel using 112 KB and 2 MB respectively, and AMD using 64 KB and 1 MB.

The manufacturing details show Intel's monolithic 598 mm² die against AMD's eight-chiplet design totaling 576 mm² (8x 72 mm²). AMD's transistor count is listed at 52,560 million, while Intel's is not provided.

The launch MSRP is $4995 for Intel and $3420 for AMD. The part numbers are SRVNZ for Intel and 100-100000798 for AMD.

FAQ

Q: Which processor has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The Intel Xeon 6737P averages 140694 across all benchmarks, while the AMD EPYC 9354 averages 126810.

Q: What is the largest single benchmark margin between the two?

A: The Intel Xeon 6737P leads by 37% in PassMark floating-point math, scoring 258811 against the EPYC 9354's 188894.

Q: In which benchmark does the AMD EPYC 9354 have its biggest win?

A: The AMD EPYC 9354 leads by 25.4% in PassMark find prime numbers, scoring 934 against Intel's 697.

Q: How do their memory systems compare?

A: The AMD EPYC 9354 uses a twelve-channel memory bus with 460.8 GB/s bandwidth, while the Intel Xeon 6737P uses eight channels with 409.6 GB/s bandwidth. Both support DDR5 and ECC.

Q: Which CPU has the higher boost clock?

A: The Intel Xeon 6737P boosts to 4.00 GHz, while the AMD EPYC 9354 boosts to 3.80 GHz. The AMD part has a higher base clock at 3.25 GHz versus 2.90 GHz.

Q: How many PCIe lanes does each processor provide?

A: The AMD EPYC 9354 provides 128 Gen 5 lanes, while the Intel Xeon 6737P provides 88 Gen 5 lanes.