AMD Ryzen 7 9850X3D vs Intel Core Ultra 5 250KF Plus Comparison

Where Each One Wins

The benchmark split between the AMD Ryzen 7 9850X3D and the Intel Core Ultra 5 250KF Plus is heavily lopsided, but the direction of that lopsidedness is not uniform across workload types. The Intel part wins 11 of the 15 recorded head-to-head tests, while the AMD part takes 4. The Intel wins are concentrated in heavily threaded, throughput-oriented workloads and in Cinebench rendering tests. The AMD wins are narrow, single-threaded or specialized wins that reveal a different strength profile.

The Intel Core Ultra 5 250KF Plus dominates the multi-core rendering tests by a wide margin. In Cinebench R23 multi-core, Intel scores 42,718 against AMD's 22,807, a 46.6% advantage. The Cinebench R15 multi-core test shows a similar pattern, with Intel at 4,305 versus 3,551, a 17.5% gap. These are not marginal differences; the Intel chip produces roughly double the multi-threaded workload throughput in the R23 test. The data indicates that for rendering, video encoding, or any workload that scales with thread count, the Intel part is the stronger choice.

The Intel part also wins the floating-point math test decisively, scoring 159,824 against AMD's 81,998, a 48.7% advantage. Data compression favors Intel by 14.2%, with scores of 553,155 versus 474,501. Data encryption shows a 44.6% Intel lead, 41,292 versus 22,856. Random string sorting goes to Intel by 26%, 67,209 versus 49,764. The PassMark multi-thread test gives Intel a 17.6% lead, 50,146 versus 41,318. Extended instructions favor Intel by 8.4%, 42,880 versus 39,272. Even the prime numbers test, often sensitive to single-thread efficiency, goes to Intel, though narrowly, 452 versus 435, a 3.8% gap.

The AMD Ryzen 7 9850X3D wins are smaller in magnitude but still visible. The passmark physics test is the AMD part's clearest win, 4,171 versus 3,183, a 31% advantage. The integer math test goes to AMD by a hair, 123,140 versus 123,030, a 0.1% delta. The single-thread tests also go to AMD, 4,704 versus 4,698, again a 0.1% margin. The AMD part's single-thread PassMark score is nearly identical to Intel's, which suggests that the two chips have comparable per-core efficiency despite their architectural differences.

The Verdict

The data points to a clear split by workload type. For multi-threaded productivity, rendering, compression, encryption, and math-heavy floating-point tasks, the Intel Core Ultra 5 250KF Plus is the stronger part by substantial margins. Its 46.6% lead in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 48.7% lead in floating-point math are the largest deltas in the entire benchmark set. The Intel part also sits at the 93rd percentile among all CPUs, one point above the AMD part's 92nd percentile. The average benchmark score of 66,159 for Intel versus 58,386 for AMD reflects a 13.3% overall advantage in the database's aggregated scoring.

The AMD Ryzen 7 9850X3D is not without its own strengths. The physics test win of 31% suggests that in certain simulation or physics-based workloads, the AMD architecture holds a meaningful edge. The near-tie in single-thread PassMark scores, 4,704 versus 4,698, indicates that the AMD part is not at a deficit in lightly threaded work. The integer math tie, 123,140 versus 123,030, further reinforces that the AMD chip is competitive in integer-heavy code.

For a user prioritizing raw multi-core throughput, the Intel part is the clear choice based on the recorded data. For a user whose workloads resemble the PassMark physics test or who values the narrow single-thread parity, the AMD part offers a competitive alternative. The nearest rivals for the Intel part include the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X3D, which sits only 0.4% behind in average score, and the Intel Core Ultra 5 250K Plus, which leads the 250KF Plus by 1%. The AMD part's nearest rivals include the Intel Core i9-14900 at 0.5% ahead and the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 470 at 0.7% behind.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The largest single win for the Intel Core Ultra 5 250KF Plus is in Cinebench R23 single-core, where it scores 6,030 against AMD's 2,228, a 63.1% advantage. This is an outlier in the single-thread category, since the PassMark single-thread scores are nearly identical. The discrepancy suggests that the Cinebench R23 single-core test is particularly favorable to the Intel architecture, possibly due to different instruction scheduling or memory latency characteristics. The Cinebench R15 single-core test also favors Intel heavily, 607 versus 343, a 43.5% gap.

The Cinebench R23 multi-core test gives Intel a 46.6% lead, 42,718 versus 22,807. This is the largest multi-core gap in the dataset. The floating-point math test shows a 48.7% Intel lead, 159,824 versus 81,998. Data encryption shows a 44.6% Intel lead, 41,292 versus 22,856. These three tests, all above 44% Intel advantage, define the Intel part's dominance in compute-heavy throughput workloads.

The AMD Ryzen 7 9850X3D's biggest win is the PassMark physics test, 4,171 versus 3,183, a 31% advantage. This is the only test where AMD leads by double digits. The two other AMD wins, integer math and single-thread, are both 0.1% margins, effectively ties. The AMD part also wins the duplicate PassMark single-thread test at the same 0.1% margin. The narrowness of these wins contrasts sharply with the magnitude of the Intel victories.

The passmark find prime numbers test is nearly even, 452 versus 435, a 3.8% Intel lead. The extended instructions test gives Intel an 8.4% lead, 42,880 versus 39,272. The data compression test gives Intel a 14.2% lead, 553,155 versus 474,501. The multi-thread test gives Intel a 17.6% lead, 50,146 versus 41,318. The random string sorting test gives Intel a 26% lead, 67,209 versus 49,764. The Cinebench R15 multi-core test gives Intel a 17.5% lead, 4,305 versus 3,551.

FAQ

Q: Which CPU is faster in multi-core rendering?

A: The Intel Core Ultra 5 250KF Plus is faster in multi-core rendering. In Cinebench R23 multi-core, it scores 42,718 versus AMD's 22,807, a 46.6% advantage. In Cinebench R15 multi-core, it scores 4,305 versus 3,551, a 17.5% lead.

Q: Does the AMD Ryzen 7 9850X3D win any benchmark?

A: Yes. The AMD part wins the PassMark physics test with a 31% advantage, 4,171 versus 3,183. It also wins the PassMark integer math test by 0.1%, 123,140 versus 123,030, and the PassMark single-thread test by 0.1%, 4,704 versus 4,698.

Q: How do the single-thread scores compare?

A: The PassMark single-thread scores are nearly identical. AMD scores 4,704 and Intel scores 4,698, a 0.1% AMD lead. However, in Cinebench R23 single-core, Intel leads by 63.1%, 6,030 versus 2,228, and in Cinebench R15 single-core, Intel leads by 43.5%, 607 versus 343.

Q: Which CPU has a higher average benchmark score?

A: The Intel Core Ultra 5 250KF Plus has a higher average benchmark score of 66,159, compared to the AMD Ryzen 7 9850X3D's 58,386. The Intel part also sits at the 93rd percentile among all CPUs, versus the AMD part's 92nd percentile.

Q: What are the closest rivals for each CPU?

A: The AMD Ryzen 7 9850X3D's closest rival is the Intel Xeon Platinum 8260M, which is 0.1% ahead in average score. The Intel Core Ultra 5 250KF Plus's closest rival is the Intel Core 9 273PQE, which is 0.1% ahead. The Intel part also sits near the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X3D, which is 0.4% behind.

Q: Which CPU has more cores and threads?

A: The Intel Core Ultra 5 250KF Plus has 18 cores and 18 threads. The AMD Ryzen 7 9850X3D has 8 cores and 16 threads.

Architecture Differences

The two CPUs differ substantially in their underlying design. The AMD Ryzen 7 9850X3D uses the Zen 5 architecture with the Granite Ridge codename, built on a 4 nm process at TSMC. The Intel Core Ultra 5 250KF Plus uses the Arrow Lake Refresh codename, built on a 3 nm process at the same foundry. The Intel die is significantly larger at 243 mm², while the AMD die measures 70.6 mm². Transistor counts differ accordingly: Intel lists 17,800 million transistors, while AMD lists 8,315 million.

Cache configurations diverge sharply. The AMD part has an 80 KB L1 cache per core, a 1 MB L2 cache per core, and a 96 MB shared L3 cache. The Intel part has a 192 KB L1 cache per core, a 3 MB L2 cache per core, and a 30 MB shared L3 cache. The AMD part's 96 MB shared L3 is three times larger than Intel's 30 MB, which likely contributes to its physics test win despite the Intel part's overall throughput advantage.

Both CPUs support DDR5 memory with dual-channel buses. The memory bandwidth figures differ: Intel lists 115.2 GB/s, while AMD lists 89.6 GB/s. Both support ECC memory. The PCIe configurations differ as well: AMD offers Gen 5 with 24 lanes, while Intel offers Gen 5 with 20 lanes. The AMD part includes integrated Radeon Graphics, while the Intel part has no integrated graphics, as indicated by "N/A" in the database.

The AMD part uses Socket AM5, while the Intel part uses Socket 1851. Both have unlocked multipliers. The AMD part releases on 2026-01-28, while the Intel part releases on 2026-03-10, a later date. The AMD part's part number is 100-000001973, while the Intel part's part number is SA4V3.

Specification Differences

The core and thread counts differ: AMD has 8 cores and 16 threads, Intel has 18 cores and 18 threads. The base clock differs, with AMD at 4.70 GHz and Intel at 4.20 GHz. The boost clock also differs, with AMD at 5.60 GHz and Intel at 5.30 GHz. The TDP is close but not identical: AMD at 120 watts, Intel at 125 watts.

The process nodes differ: AMD uses 4 nm, Intel uses 3 nm. The foundry is the same, TSMC, but the transistor counts and die sizes differ as noted above. The L1 cache sizes differ, 80 KB per core for AMD versus 192 KB per core for Intel. The L2 cache sizes differ, 1 MB per core for AMD versus 3 MB per core for Intel. The L3 cache sizes differ significantly, 96 MB shared for AMD versus 30 MB shared for Intel.

The memory bandwidth differs, with Intel at 115.2 GB/s and AMD at 89.6 GB/s. The PCIe lane counts differ, 24 lanes for AMD versus 20 lanes for Intel. The integrated graphics status differs: AMD includes Radeon Graphics, Intel has none. The sockets differ: AM5 for AMD, Socket 1851 for Intel. The release dates differ, with AMD launching on 2026-01-28 and Intel on 2026-03-10. The launch MSRP for the AMD part is $499, while the Intel part has a launch MSRP of $184.