AMD Ryzen 5 4500

The AMD Ryzen 5 4500 is a 6-core, 12-thread desktop processor from the 4000 series, built on the Zen 2 architecture and manufactured on TSMC’s 7nm process. It carries a base clock of 3.60 GHz, a boost clock of 4.10 GHz, and a 65W TDP, and it fits AMD Socket AM4. Its average benchmark score of 18471 places it at the 76th percentile of all CPUs, and its four nearest rivals all sit within 0.7% of that figure in either direction. The result is a tightly clustered competitive position where the data shows no commanding lead or deficit.

How It Compares

Against the AMD Ryzen 3 PRO 8300G, the Ryzen 5 4500 trails by 0.5%. The PRO 8300G posts an average score of 18567, while the 4500 records 18471. That margin is small enough that the two processors are effectively indistinguishable in aggregate benchmarking, and workload-specific differences would matter far more than the overall average.

The AMD Ryzen 3 8300G follows the same pattern. It scores 18570, placing the 4500 0.5% behind. With a delta of half a percentage point, the comparison offers no useful separation; any subjective impression of one being “faster” would need to come from individual benchmark subtests rather than the average score.

The Intel Core i3-14100F is the closest rival in score, with an average of 18574. The 4500 is 0.6% behind this part. Again, the gap is inside the kind of normal variance that one would expect across different batches, motherboards, memory configurations, or cooling conditions, so the data does not support calling either chip a clear winner.

The one rival the 4500 leads is the Intel Core i3-13100. The i3-13100 averages 18347, and the 4500 is 0.7% ahead. This is the only positive delta among the four nearest rivals, but at 0.7% it is still a narrow margin. Overall, the Ryzen 5 4500 sits in a performance cluster where the largest difference to any listed rival is less than one percent.

Power and Thermals

The Ryzen 5 4500 carries a 65W TDP, which is the only thermal envelope figure in the FACT PACK. This class of TDP is commonly associated with mainstream processors, though the data does not list any specific cooler model or size. What the data does show is a 7nm TSMC manufacturing process, a die size of 156 mm², and a transistor count of 9,800 million, all of which contribute to how the 65W figure is achieved. The 65W rating means cooling infrastructure designed for mainstream desktop CPUs should be enough to handle this part, but the FACT PACK does not indicate whether the included thermal solution is a stock air cooler, a tower cooler, or any other type. Since no integrated graphics is listed, the 65W TDP covers only the CPU compute die and its memory controller.

Benchmark Performance

The Ryzen 5 4500’s average benchmark score of 18471 is 0.5% behind the AMD Ryzen 3 PRO 8300G, 0.5% behind the AMD Ryzen 3 8300G, 0.6% behind the Intel Core i3-14100F, and 0.7% ahead of the Intel Core i3-13100. All four nearest rivals sit within 0.7% of the 4500, so the story in aggregate is one of near parity.

Multi-threaded results show a processor that scales well when all cores are active. Cinebench R23 multi-core score is 13677, R20 multi-core is 5744, and R15 multi-core is 1378. PassMark multithread result is 16091. In 3DMark, the 16-thread score is 4795, which exactly matches the max-thread score of 4795, indicating that the benchmark reaches its scaling plateau at the 16-thread workload; the 8-thread score is 4077, the 4-thread score is 2682, and the 2-thread score is 1400.

Single-thread performance is less dominant but still respectable. PassMark single-thread is 2593, Cinebench R23 single-core is 1930, R20 single-core is 810, R15 single-core is 194, and 3DMark single-thread is 711. The gap between single-thread and multi-thread scores in every benchmark confirms that this processor’s advantage lies in distributing work across many threads, not in maximizing one core.

The PassMark subtests add texture to the profile. Data compression scores 228741, data encryption scores 13597, and random string sorting scores 23989. Extended instructions score 15166, floating point math scores 29405, and integer math scores 49707. The find prime numbers result is 34, a value much lower than the other PassMark subtests, which shows how different algorithmic patterns can produce wildly different scores on the same chip.

Who Should Consider It

Users who run heavily threaded creation workloads should find the Ryzen 5 4500’s multi-thread scores compelling. The Cinebench R23 multi-core result of 13677 and PassMark multithread score of 16091 indicate that rendering, video encoding, or batch processing tasks can take advantage of the 6-core, 12-thread configuration. The data compression score of 228741 also suggests strong archiving and file-processing throughput.

Gamers should look at the 3DMark scaling curve. Single-thread score is 711, 2-thread is 1400, 4-thread is 2682, and 8-thread is 4077. The large step from 2 threads to 4 threads tells a clear story: games that engage four or more threads will extract more performance from this chip than titles that are restricted to one or two threads. Lightly threaded titles will depend on the 3.60 GHz base clock and 4.10 GHz boost clock, while modern multi-threaded engines will benefit from the additional cores.

Office and productivity users do not need extreme multi-thread power, but they will still see value in the single-thread score of 2593 in PassMark and the data compression result of 228741. Everyday tasks like document handling, spreadsheet work, and web browsing tend to be less parallel, so the single-thread results define the baseline responsiveness. The 65W TDP also keeps system cooling requirements modest, which matters for compact office builds.

FAQ

Q: What socket does the AMD Ryzen 5 4500 use?

A: It uses AMD Socket AM4.

Q: Does the Ryzen 5 4500 support ECC memory?

A: No. The FACT PACK lists ECC memory as false.

Q: What memory bandwidth is supported?

A: Dual-channel DDR4 with a bandwidth of 51.2 GB/s.

Q: Does the Ryzen 5 4500 include integrated graphics?

A: No integrated graphics is listed in the FACT PACK.

Q: What is the launch MSRP of the Ryzen 5 4500?

A: The launch MSRP is $129.

Q: Is the multiplier unlocked?

A: Yes, the multiplierUnlocked field is true, allowing manual overclocking.

Single-Thread vs Multi-Thread Behavior

The most distinctive pattern in the Ryzen 5 4500 data is the split between single-thread and multi-thread scores. Cinebench R23 shows 1930 single-core versus 13677 multi-core; R20 shows 810 versus 5744; R15 shows 194 versus 1378. PassMark shows 2593 single-thread versus 16091 multithread. In 3DMark, the single-thread score is 711 while the 16-thread score is 4795.

These differences make sense for a 6-core, 12-thread processor. Workloads that can run in parallel see a massive throughput advantage when all threads are fed, while single-thread-bound tasks rely entirely on the processor’s clock speed and architecture, with a base clock of 3.60 and a boost clock of 4.10. The data implies that this part is optimized for mixed workloads: it will feel adequate in everyday single-threaded tasks and substantially stronger in carefully threaded applications.

The 16-thread and max-thread 3DMark scores are both 4795, which shows that beyond a certain point, adding more threads does not change this benchmark’s result on this platform. Since the processor itself has 12 threads, the 16-thread test likely already reaches the practical limit of what the CPU can feed, making the identical max-thread score unsurprising. For real-world use, the implication is that heavily threaded workloads are where the 4500 is most competitive, while single-thread-heavy scenarios will highlight its lower single-thread position relative to some rivals.

Platform and Compatibility

The Ryzen 5 4500 is built for AMD Socket AM4, which defines the motherboard compatibility. Memory support consists of dual-channel DDR4 with a bandwidth of 51.2 GB/s, and ECC memory is not supported. The CPU provides PCIe Gen 3 with 16 lanes from the CPU itself, which sets the expansion capacity for GPUs and other high-bandwidth devices. With an unlocked multiplier, the processor allows overclocking, giving users control beyond the listed base and boost clocks.

The production status is Active, and the release date is 2022-04-03. The processor belongs to the 4000 series with the Zen 2 architecture and the Renoir codename. This means the platform is an established AM4 setup with DDR4 memory, rather than a newer DDR5 platform. The upgrade path for an existing AM4 user depends on whether their motherboard supports this generation of Renoir parts, though the FACT PACK does not list specific chipset names. For a new build, the AM4 socket, DDR4 memory support, and Gen 3 PCIe define a mainstream compatibility envelope that is well matched to the processor’s 65W TDP and near-parity benchmark position.