AMD Ryzen 5 5500GT vs Intel Core i9-11900K Comparison

The AMD Ryzen 5 5500GT and Intel Core i9-11900K occupy different corners of the desktop market, yet their aggregate benchmark scores land them within 0.4% of each other. The Ryzen 5 5500GT averages 26,748 points, while the Core i9-11900K averages 26,639, placing both at the 79th percentile among all CPUs. However, the head-to-head data tells a far more lopsided story, as the Intel part wins all 17 matched tests, often by substantial margins.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The Core i9-11900K’s dominance is most pronounced in Cinebench. Across every rendering workload, the Intel chip holds a consistent ~25% lead. In Cinebench R23 multi-core, the i9 scores 21,168 against the Ryzen’s 15,848, a delta of -25.1%. The single-core R23 result follows the same pattern: 2,988 versus 2,237, again -25.1%. This uniformity extends to R20 and R15, where the multi-core deltas are -25.1% and -25.1% respectively, and single-core deltas are -25.1% and -25%. The i9’s higher 5.30 GHz boost clock and 8 cores versus 6 clearly translate into a sweeping victory in threaded and lightly-threaded rendering alike.

PassMark’s integer and floating-point math tests show the widest gaps. In floating-point math, the i9 scores 52,841 versus 36,694, a -30.6% delta. Integer math is nearly as decisive: 89,279 versus 64,218, a -28.1% delta. These are the largest percentage differences in the entire comparison, indicating the Intel architecture’s raw compute throughput outstrips the AMD part by nearly a third in these workloads. The extended instructions test also favors Intel heavily, with 23,406 versus 17,027, a -27.3% delta.

Data compression and sorting workloads reveal even steeper deficits for the Ryzen. The i9’s 330,836 score in data compression beats the 5500GT’s 243,904 by -26.3%. Random string sorting is the single worst result for AMD: 37,942 versus 24,583, a -35.2% delta. This suggests the i9’s memory subsystem and cache hierarchy handle unstructured data patterns far more effectively, despite both platforms supporting DDR4 with identical 51.2 GB/s bandwidth.

The margins narrow in encryption and prime-number tests, but Intel still wins. Data encryption sees the i9 at 16,000 versus 14,754, a -7.8% delta, the smallest gap of any benchmark. Prime number finding shows a -20.6% delta (68 versus 54), while physics simulation lands at -20.2% (1,052 versus 840). The PassMark multi-thread score gives the i9 a 25,038 result against 19,000, a -24.1% delta. Single-thread performance is closer but still Intel-favored: 3,511 versus 3,066, a -12.7% delta.

Notably, the Ryzen 5 5500GT has zero wins across the 17 head-to-head tests. Its aggregate score is slightly higher than the i9’s (26,748 vs 26,639), but that average includes benchmarks not shared in the head-to-head set. In every directly comparable workload, the Intel part is faster, with deltas ranging from -7.8% to -35.2%.

The Verdict

The data is unambiguous: the Intel Core i9-11900K outperforms the AMD Ryzen 5 5500GT in every single measured benchmark. The i9’s 8 cores and 16 threads, combined with a 5.30 GHz boost clock, deliver a 24-35% advantage across multi-threaded workloads like Cinebench R23, PassMark multi-thread, and integer math. Even in single-thread tests, where the Ryzen’s Zen 3 architecture is typically strong, the i9 leads by 12.7%. The smallest gap, -7.8% in data encryption, still favors Intel.

The Ryzen 5 5500GT is the better choice only in contexts the benchmark data does not cover: it is an active, in-production part with a 65 W TDP, whereas the i9 is end-of-life with a 125 W TDP. The 5500GT also includes a Radeon Vega 7 iGPU, while the i9 has UHD Graphics 750; both are integrated solutions, but the AMD part targets a lower-power segment. For pure performance, the i9 is the pick. For a modern, lower-power platform with a newer release date (2024-01-07 versus 2021-03-15), the 5500GT makes sense.

FAQ

Q: Which CPU wins the most benchmarks in this comparison?

A: The Intel Core i9-11900K wins all 17 head-to-head benchmarks, with the AMD Ryzen 5 5500GT recording zero wins.

Q: What is the largest performance gap between the two?

A: The biggest delta is in PassMark random string sorting, where the i9 scores 37,942 versus 24,583, a -35.2% difference favoring Intel.

Q: How close are the two CPUs in aggregate benchmark scores?

A: The Ryzen 5 5500GT averages 26,748, and the Core i9-11900K averages 26,639, a difference of 0.4% in AMD’s favor. Both sit at the 79th percentile.

Q: Are the single-core scores close?

A: No, the i9 leads in Cinebench R23 single-core by -25.1% (2,988 vs 2,237) and in PassMark single-thread by -12.7% (3,511 vs 3,066).

Q: Which CPU has a higher boost clock?

A: The Intel Core i9-11900K boosts to 5.30 GHz, while the AMD Ryzen 5 5500GT boosts to 4.40 GHz.

Q: What is the release date difference?

A: The AMD Ryzen 5 5500GT released on 2024-01-07, while the Intel Core i9-11900K released on 2021-03-15.

Specification Differences

The two processors diverge on nearly every core specification. The AMD Ryzen 5 5500GT has 6 cores and 12 threads, while the Intel Core i9-11900K has 8 cores and 16 threads. Base clocks are close (3.60 GHz for AMD, 3.50 GHz for Intel), but boost clocks differ significantly: 4.40 GHz for the 5500GT versus 5.30 GHz for the i9. TDP is another major split: 65 W for AMD, 125 W for Intel.

Sockets are incompatible: the 5500GT uses AMD Socket AM4, the i9 uses Intel Socket 1200. The AMD part is built on a 7 nm process at TSMC, while Intel uses a 14 nm process at its own foundry. Die size varies from 180 mm² (AMD) to 276 mm² (Intel). Transistor count is listed only for AMD at 10,700 million; Intel’s figure is absent.

Cache configurations differ in L1 and L3. The 5500GT has 64 KB L1 per core and 16 MB L3; the i9 has 80 KB L1 per core and 16 MB L3 (shared). Both use DDR4 memory with dual-channel support and 51.2 GB/s bandwidth. PCIe support favors Intel: Gen 4 with 20 lanes (CPU only) versus Gen 3 with 16 lanes (CPU only) for AMD.

Integrated graphics differ: Radeon Vega 7 on the AMD, UHD Graphics 750 on Intel. Neither supports ECC memory. The 5500GT is unlocked and active in production; the i9 is also unlocked but end-of-life. Release dates are 2024-01-07 for AMD and 2021-03-15 for Intel. The launch MSRP for the 5500GT is $125; the i9’s launch MSRP is $539.

Architecture Differences

The AMD Ryzen 5 5500GT is built on the Zen 3 architecture, codenamed Cezanne, and belongs to the Ryzen 5 generation within the 5000 series. Its 7 nm process at TSMC yields a 180 mm² die with 10,700 million transistors. The 16 MB L3 cache is not shared across the chip in the same manner as Intel’s, but the per-core L1 is 64 KB. The architecture targets efficiency, with a 65 W TDP and a dual-channel DDR4 memory bus.

The Intel Core i9-11900K uses the Rocket Lake architecture, part of the Core 11th Gen series. It is fabricated on Intel’s 14 nm process, with a die size of 276 mm². Rocket Lake’s per-core L1 cache is larger at 80 KB, and the 16 MB L3 is explicitly shared. The architecture supports PCIe Gen 4 with 20 lanes, a generation ahead of the AMD part’s Gen 3. The i9’s higher 125 W TDP reflects its older, less dense process node.

The core and thread counts stem directly from these architectural choices: Zen 3’s design scales to 6 cores in this part, while Rocket Lake scales to 8 cores. The i9’s 5.30 GHz boost clock is a hallmark of Intel’s 14 nm optimization, but it comes at a TDP cost. The 5500GT’s 4.40 GHz boost is lower, yet its 7 nm process and 65 W TDP position it as a far more power-efficient design. Both are unlocked, but the i9’s higher core count and clock speed explain its benchmark dominance, while the 5500GT’s newer process node and lower power draw define its appeal.