AMD Ryzen 7 5800H vs Intel Core i9-11900F Comparison

The AMD Ryzen 7 5800H and Intel Core i9-11900F are both 8-core, 16-thread processors, yet they target fundamentally different market segments: one is a 45W mobile part, the other a 65W desktop part. Despite this, their overall average benchmark scores are nearly identical, with the AMD Ryzen 7 5800H scoring 23277 and the Intel Core i9-11900F scoring 23254, a negligible 0.1% difference. However, a breakdown of individual workloads reveals a heavily one-sided performance relationship, with the Intel part securing 21 benchmark wins against the AMD chip's 2, making the overall similarity in average scores a statistical curiosity rather than a sign of equivalent performance.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The Intel Core i9-11900F dominates the benchmark suite, but the AMD Ryzen 7 5800H claims the two most significant victories. The most striking win for AMD comes in the PassMark data encryption test, where the Ryzen 7 5800H scores 16962 against the Intel chip's 13636, a substantial 24.4% advantage. This is a clear algorithmic win for AMD's architecture in cryptographic workloads. The other AMD victory is in Cinebench R15 multicore, where it scores 2005 versus Intel's 1890, a 6.1% lead. This shows that in this specific legacy rendering test, the AMD mobile chip can outpace the desktop Intel part despite the latter's higher power envelope.

Beyond these two wins, the Intel Core i9-11900F is decisively ahead in every other measurable category. The largest deltas are in the Cinebench R23 tests, where Intel's advantage is massive. In Cinebench R23 multicore, Intel scores 18759 versus AMD's 12091.5, a 35.5% difference. The single-core gap is even more pronounced, with Intel scoring 2648 against AMD's 1416, a staggering 46.5% deficit for the Ryzen part. This suggests that Intel's high boost clock of 5.20 GHz provides a significant advantage in lightly-threaded and frequency-sensitive workloads compared to AMD's 4.40 GHz boost.

The 3DMark suite also shows a consistent Intel lead, though the margins vary. In the 16-thread test, Intel scores 7995 versus AMD's 6143, a 23.2% difference. The gap narrows as thread count drops, with Intel leading by 15.2% in the 8-thread test (6018 vs 5105) and by 16.3% in the 2-thread test (1905 vs 1595). The single-thread 3DMark score shows Intel ahead by 17.8% (996 vs 819). This pattern indicates that while Intel's advantage shrinks with fewer threads, it remains substantial across the board. In Geekbench, Intel leads by 12.6% in multicore (9417 vs 8230) and 24.8% in single-core (2220 vs 1669).

Other PassMark sub-tests reinforce Intel's dominance. Intel wins in integer math (83718 vs 80786, a 3.5% lead), floating point math (48562 vs 44479, an 8.4% lead), and extended instructions (19443 vs 18203, a 6.4% lead). The margin is smaller in data compression (280847 vs 270608, a 3.6% lead) and more significant in random string sorting (32520 vs 28144, a 13.5% lead). Intel also wins the find prime numbers test (61 vs 49, a 19.7% lead) and the physics test (949 vs 830, a 12.5% lead). The PassMark multithread score shows a 6% Intel advantage (22115 vs 20789), while single-thread performance is 11.5% higher on Intel (3413 vs 3021).

Architecture Differences

The two processors are built on fundamentally different architectures and manufacturing processes. The AMD Ryzen 7 5800H is based on the Zen 3 architecture, codenamed Cezanne, fabricated on a 7 nm process by TSMC. It features 8 cores and 16 threads with a base clock of 3.20 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. The Intel Core i9-11900F, in contrast, uses the Rocket Lake architecture on Intel's 14 nm process. It also has 8 cores and 16 threads, but with a lower base clock of 2.50 GHz and a significantly higher boost clock of 5.20 GHz. This clock speed difference is a key factor in Intel's single-thread dominance, as the higher boost clock allows for faster per-core execution in workloads that cannot utilize all threads.

The cache hierarchies also differ. The AMD chip has a 64 KB L1 cache per core, while the Intel chip has a larger 80 KB L1 cache per core. Both processors share 512 KB of L2 cache per core and 16 MB of shared L3 cache. The transistor count and die size vary considerably: AMD's chip has 10,700 million transistors on a 180 mm² die, while Intel's die is larger at 276 mm², with transistor count not listed in the data. The process node difference explains this disparity, with the 7 nm TSMC process allowing for a denser transistor packing versus Intel's 14 nm process.

Memory support is another area of distinction. Both support dual-channel DDR4, but the AMD Ryzen 7 5800H has a higher theoretical memory bandwidth of 68.3 GB/s compared to the Intel's 51.2 GB/s. This bandwidth advantage may contribute to AMD's win in the data encryption test, which can be memory-intensive. The platforms also differ in PCIe support: the AMD chip uses PCIe Gen 3, while the Intel chip supports PCIe Gen 4 with 20 lanes (CPU only). The AMD part includes integrated Radeon Vega 8 graphics, while the Intel Core i9-11900F has no integrated graphics listed. The market segments are clearly divided: AMD is a mobile processor using the AMD Socket FP6, while Intel is a desktop processor on Intel Socket 1200 with a 65W TDP versus AMD's 45W TDP.

Where Each One Wins

The Intel Core i9-11900F is the clear winner in most compute-intensive scenarios, particularly those that benefit from high single-thread performance and high boost clocks. The data shows a 46.5% lead in Cinebench R23 single-core and a 24.8% lead in Geekbench single-core, making it the superior choice for applications that rely on lightly-threaded performance. This includes many legacy applications, some game physics engines, and tasks where per-core throughput is critical. The Intel part also wins the 3DMark suite across all thread counts, suggesting it is better suited for simulation and rendering workloads that scale with thread count but also benefit from strong per-core performance. The 23.2% lead in 3DMark 16-thread and 35.5% lead in Cinebench R23 multicore indicate that, despite the AMD chip's lower TDP, the Intel part is simply faster in sustained multicore workloads in this benchmark set.

The AMD Ryzen 7 5800H's wins are more specialized. Its 24.4% lead in PassMark data encryption indicates a clear architectural advantage in cryptographic operations, likely due to hardware acceleration features in the Zen 3 core. The 6.1% lead in Cinebench R15 multicore is an outlier, suggesting that this legacy benchmark does not take advantage of the Intel chip's strengths. Beyond these specific tests, the AMD chip's higher memory bandwidth (68.3 GB/s vs 51.2 GB/s) does not translate into a general performance advantage in the listed benchmarks. The AMD processor is a mobile part with a lower TDP, so its wins are notable for showing that efficiency can sometimes translate into performance in specific niches, but they do not indicate a broad performance superiority.

The Verdict

The benchmark data presents a clear hierarchy: the Intel Core i9-11900F is the faster processor in nearly every measured workload. With 21 wins out of 23 head-to-head benchmarks, its dominance is comprehensive. The average benchmark scores are nearly identical (23277 for AMD, 23254 for Intel), which is misleading because the distribution of scores is heavily skewed. The Intel chip's massive leads in critical tests like Cinebench R23 multicore (35.5% ahead) and single-core (46.5% ahead) far outweigh the AMD chip's wins in less impactful tests. Users seeking maximum performance in rendering, simulation, and general productivity should choose the Intel Core i9-11900F based on this data. Its higher boost clock of 5.20 GHz and larger L1 cache appear to provide a decisive edge.

The AMD Ryzen 7 5800H is the better choice only for users with specific workloads that align with its strengths. The data indicates a significant advantage in data encryption, making it a candidate for cryptographic tasks. Its lower TDP of 45W versus Intel's 65W also suggests it is more power-efficient, though no power consumption benchmarks are provided to quantify this. For a mobile platform, the AMD chip offers competitive performance with integrated graphics, which the Intel part lacks. However, from a pure performance standpoint, the verdict is unambiguous: the Intel Core i9-11900F is the faster processor across the vast majority of benchmarks, and the AMD Ryzen 7 5800H's wins are too narrow and specialized to recommend it for general high-performance use.

FAQ

Q: Which processor has a higher average benchmark score?

A: The AMD Ryzen 7 5800H has an average benchmark score of 23277, while the Intel Core i9-11900F scores 23254. The difference is only 0.1%, making them statistically equivalent in overall average performance.

Q: How much faster is the Intel Core i9-11900F in single-threaded performance?

A: The Intel processor leads by 46.5% in Cinebench R23 single-core (2648 vs 1416) and by 24.8% in Geekbench single-core (2220 vs 1669). It also has a 17.8% lead in 3DMark single-thread (996 vs 819).

Q: In which benchmark does the AMD Ryzen 7 5800H have its biggest win?

A: The AMD Ryzen 7 5800H's largest victory is in PassMark data encryption, where it scores 16962 against the Intel's 13636, a 24.4% advantage.

Q: Are both processors using the same number of cores and threads?

A: Yes, both the AMD Ryzen 7 5800H and Intel Core i9-11900F have 8 cores and 16 threads.

Q: What is the difference in their boost clock speeds?

A: The Intel Core i9-11900F has a boost clock of 5.20 GHz, which is significantly higher than the AMD Ryzen 7 5800H's boost clock of 4.40 GHz.

Q: Does the Intel Core i9-11900F have integrated graphics?

A: No, the data shows the Intel Core i9-11900F has no integrated graphics listed, while the AMD Ryzen 7 5800H includes Radeon Vega 8 integrated graphics.