AMD Ryzen 5 3500X vs Intel Core i3-12100F
The AMD Ryzen 5 3500X and Intel Core i3-12100F sit within a few percent of each other on our index. Treat them as equivalent in raw performance and decide on price, power draw and — for graphics cards — video memory instead.
| Specification | AMD Ryzen 5 3500X | Intel Core i3-12100F |
|---|---|---|
| Manufacturer | AMD | Intel |
| Generation | Zen 2 | 12th Gen (Alder Lake) |
| Multi-thread index | 69 (better) | 68 |
| Single-thread index | 90 | 97 (better) |
| Cores | 6 (better) | 4 |
| Threads | 6 | 8 (better) |
| Base clock | 3.6 GHz (better) | 3.3 GHz |
| Boost clock | 4.1 GHz | 4.3 GHz (better) |
| Socket | AM4 | LGA1700 |
| TDP | 65 W | 58 W (better) |
| Release year | 2019 | 2022 (better) |
| Integrated graphics | No | No |
Green marks the stronger figure for that row only — for power draw and PSU requirement, lower is treated as better. Performance indexes are CanMyPcPlay estimates; read how they are derived.
Which should you pick?
- Games follow single-thread. For gaming, the single-thread index matters more than core count.
- Creative work follows multi-thread. Rendering, compiling and encoding scale with cores.
- Sockets differ. Moving between platforms usually means a new motherboard and often new memory.