AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D vs Intel Core Ultra 5 250K Plus Comparison

FAQ

Q: Which processor has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D records an average benchmark score of 75779, while the Intel Core Ultra 5 250K Plus records 66855. The AMD part sits in the 95th percentile of all CPUs, the Intel part in the 93rd percentile.

Q: How do the two compare in single-threaded performance?

A: The results are nearly tied. In Cinebench R23 single-core, the Intel Core Ultra 5 250K Plus scores 2261 versus 2259 for the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D, a 0.1% edge. In Passmark single-thread, Intel wins again with 4757 versus 4737, a 0.4% margin.

Q: Which chip has more cores and threads?

A: The Intel Core Ultra 5 250K Plus has 18 cores but only 18 threads (no hyperthreading). The AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D has 16 cores and 32 threads. AMD also boosts higher, at 5.70 GHz versus 5.30 GHz for Intel.

Q: What are the power requirements?

A: The AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D carries a 170 W TDP, while the Intel Core Ultra 5 250K Plus is rated at 125 W. Both support DDR5 memory and ECC memory, and both have unlocked multipliers.

Q: Which chip wins the head-to-head comparison overall?

A: The AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D wins 11 of the 15 head-to-head benchmarks. The Intel Core Ultra 5 250K Plus wins 4. AMD's largest margins come in integer math and extended instructions.

Q: Do both processors use the same manufacturing process?

A: No. The AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D is built on TSMC's 4 nm node with 16,630 million transistors. The Intel Core Ultra 5 250K Plus uses TSMC's 3 nm node with 17,800 million transistors.

Architecture Differences

The AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D is a Zen 5 part from the Granite Ridge family, built on a 4 nm TSMC process. It uses a dual-chiplet design with a die size of 2x 70.6 mm². The Intel Core Ultra 5 250K Plus belongs to the Arrow Lake Refresh family, built on TSMC's 3 nm node with a monolithic 243 mm² die. The transistor counts are close: 16,630 million for AMD versus 17,800 million for Intel.

Cache hierarchies differ substantially. The AMD chip provides 80 KB of L1 per core, 1 MB of L2 per core, and a large 128 MB L3 cache. The Intel chip offers 192 KB of L1 per core, 3 MB of L2 per core, and 30 MB of shared L3. The total cache footprint heavily favors AMD, which is relevant for workloads that repeatedly access large datasets.

Memory bandwidth also diverges. The AMD processor lists 89.6 GB/s, while the Intel processor lists 115.2 GB/s, a 28.6% advantage for Intel in theoretical memory throughput. Both run DDR5 in dual-channel mode, and both support ECC memory.

PCIe connectivity differs as well. The AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D provides Gen 5 with 24 lanes from the CPU, while the Intel Core Ultra 5 250K Plus provides Gen 5 with 20 lanes. Integrated graphics also differ: AMD pairs a Radeon Graphics unit, Intel uses Arc Xe-LPG Graphics with 64 execution units.

Socket compatibility is not shared. AMD uses Socket AM5, Intel uses Socket 1851. The AMD part launched on 2025-01-05 with a launch MSRP of $699. The Intel part launched on 2026-03-10 with a launch MSRP of $199.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D dominates multi-threaded rendering workloads. In Cinebench R15 multicore, AMD scores 6536 against Intel's 4640, a 40.9% lead. In Cinebench R23 multicore, AMD scores 42018 against 30867, a 36.1% margin. These are the largest wins in the rendering suite and reflect the thread advantage (32 threads versus 18) more than raw clock speed.

Single-core results are much closer. The Intel Core Ultra 5 250K Plus wins Cinebench R23 single-core by a hair, 2261 versus 2259, a 0.1% delta. In Cinebench R15 single-core, AMD takes the lead, 350 versus 328, a 6.7% edge. Passmark single-thread also goes to Intel, 4757 versus 4737, a 0.4% margin. The data indicates the two processors are effectively matched in lightly threaded work, with the winner depending on the specific benchmark.

The Passmark suite reveals where AMD's architecture pulls ahead decisively. Integer math shows AMD at 243209 versus Intel's 125091, a 94.4% advantage, the largest delta of any test in the comparison. Extended instructions favor AMD by 63.8%, with scores of 73011 and 44565. Data compression shows AMD at 908421 versus 568721, a 59.7% lead. Physics simulation favors AMD by 62.3%, with 5670 versus 3494. Random string sorting goes to AMD by 38.1%, 95423 versus 69090. Prime number finding favors AMD by 26.1%, 613 versus 486. Data encryption is closer, AMD at 44536 versus 42144, a 5.7% edge.

Intel wins two other Passmark tests besides single-thread. Floating point math goes to Intel, 162692 versus 159724, a 1.8% margin. Passmark multithread, however, goes to AMD by a wide margin: 70255 versus 51596, a 36.2% difference.

The overall pattern is consistent. AMD wins the heavy compute and throughput-oriented tests by large margins, while Intel manages narrow wins in single-thread and one floating-point workload. The average benchmark score difference, 75779 versus 66855, puts AMD 13.3% ahead overall.

Specification Differences

The core and thread counts differ sharply. AMD offers 16 cores and 32 threads; Intel offers 18 cores and 18 threads. Base clocks are close, 4.30 GHz for AMD and 4.20 GHz for Intel, but boost clocks differ, 5.70 GHz versus 5.30 GHz. TDP also differs, 170 W versus 125 W.

L1 cache per core: AMD has 80 KB, Intel has 192 KB. L2 per core: AMD has 1 MB, Intel has 3 MB. L3: AMD has 128 MB, Intel has 30 MB shared. Memory bandwidth: AMD at 89.6 GB/s, Intel at 115.2 GB/s. PCIe lanes: AMD with 24, Intel with 20.

Process node and die size differ: 4 nm with 2x 70.6 mm² for AMD, 3 nm with 243 mm² for Intel. Transistor counts are 16,630 million for AMD and 17,800 million for Intel.

Integrated graphics differ: AMD lists Radeon Graphics, Intel lists Arc Xe-LPG Graphics 64EU. Socket, release date, and launch MSRP all differ as well. The AMD part has a part number of 100-000000719, the Intel part SA4UZ. Both are active production desktop parts with unlocked multipliers.

Where Each One Wins

The AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D is the clear choice for multi-threaded compute workloads. The Cinebench R23 multicore score of 42018, which is 36.1% ahead of Intel, and the Passmark multithread score of 70255, which is 36.2% ahead, both point to rendering, encoding, simulation, and any task that scales with thread count. The 32 threads versus 18 threads gives AMD a structural advantage that shows in nearly every parallel benchmark.

AMD also wins decisively in integer-heavy and data-processing tasks. The 94.4% lead in integer math, the 63.8% lead in extended instructions, and the 59.7% lead in data compression all indicate that AMD's Zen 5 cores handle arithmetic and instruction-heavy workloads with far greater efficiency. The physics score, 62.3% ahead, reinforces the pattern for simulation workloads.

The large 128 MB L3 cache on the AMD part likely explains part of the gap in data compression and random string sorting, where the 38.1% and 59.7% leads suggest that cache-sensitive workloads benefit substantially from AMD's design. The 128 MB L3 versus 30 MB is a 4.3x difference.

The Intel Core Ultra 5 250K Plus wins in single-threaded performance, though by very narrow margins. The Cinebench R23 single-core win of 0.1% and the Passmark single-thread win of 0.4% are within measurement noise, but the direction is consistent across two tests. Intel also wins floating point math by 1.8%, which is the only Passmark workload where Intel takes the lead besides single-thread.

Intel also offers a higher memory bandwidth at 115.2 GB/s versus 89.6 GB/s, plus a lower TDP of 125 W versus 170 W. For workloads that are memory-bandwidth bound rather than cache-capacity bound, the Intel part may hold an edge, though the benchmark data does not include a direct memory-bandwidth test.

The 18 cores on the Intel part are all physical, with no hyperthreading, which can benefit workloads that are sensitive to thread scheduling. However, the head-to-head data shows that AMD's 16 cores with 32 threads deliver higher throughput in every multi-threaded benchmark, so the lack of SMT on Intel does not translate into a practical win in the tested workloads.

In summary, the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D wins the majority of benchmarks by large margins in multi-threaded and integer-heavy tasks, while the Intel Core Ultra 5 250K Plus takes narrow single-thread wins and offers a lower power envelope. The choice depends on whether the workload is primarily parallel compute, which favors AMD, or lightly threaded with power constraints, which favors Intel.