What CPU is equivalent to Ryzen 9 7900X

What CPU is equivalent to 7900X? Lets find out

Table of Contents Table of Contents

AMD’s Ryzen 9 7900X is the lesser of the two processors featured in their top-of-the-line Ryzen 9 7000 series lineup. It is, however, an incredibly powerful processor capable of pairing up with a modern-day flagship GPU to offer you the very best experience. Time to find out what CPU is equivalent to Ryzen 9 7900X.

Now Read: Best CPU cooler for Ryzen 9 7900X

The only issue is that AMD’s new 7000 series processors run on the new AM5 socket and are no longer compatible with DDR4 memory. That means you’ll need to upgrade both your motherboard and your RAM to the latest stuff, and that can be quite expensive. 

Upgrading is probably worth it because, realistically speaking, you’ll have to shift to the newer hardware sooner or later. But for those who would rather not make the investment right now, let’s explore some alternative options. 

---

AMD Ryzen 9 7900X Specifications

The Ryzen 9 7900X has the following specs:

• Core Count: 12 (Multithreading Enabled)
• Thread Count: 24
• Base Clock: 4.7GHz
• Boost Clock: 5.6GHz
• L3 Cache: 64 MB
• TDP: 170 Watts
• iGPU: AMD Radeon Graphics (RDNA 2)
• Socket: AM5

With a 5.6GHz boost clock and 64MBs of L3 cache, the 7900X is fully capable of offering you industry-leading gaming performance. 

It also features 24 threads, which makes this CPU an excellent option for streamers, content creators, video editors, and really anyone who needs to carry out productivity work. 

You can learn more about the processor in our dedicated review. 

---

What CPU is equivalent to the Ryzen 9 7900X?

It’s difficult to find an exact match for the 7900X due to the fact that AMD features two processors in its Ryzen 9 lineup, whereas Intel features only a single processor in its Core i9 lineup.

However, Intel has given the core i5 and core i7 series CPUs a huge upgrade with the latest release. The latest Raptor Lake i7, the Core i7-13700K, comes remarkably close to offering similar performance as the Ryzen 9 7900X. 

Intel Core i7-13700K

The 13700K features Intel’s innovative hybrid core architecture. It has 8 hyperthreaded performance cores and 8 single-threaded efficiency cores, totaling 24 threads – a similar thread count to the 7900X. 

The new i7’s 5.4GHz boost clock is very respectable but is indeed 200MHz lower than the 7900X’s 5.6GHz boost. 

However – and quite surprisingly – when we look at benchmarks such as Cinebench 23, the 13700K outperforms the 7900X in single-thread tests by a margin of 2 to 5%.

Single-thread performance is directly tied to in-game FPS. Practically speaking, both CPUs will offer you identical framerates under CPU-bound circumstances, but it is interesting to see that the 13700K manages to win by a hair here despite punching above its weight class. 

Let’s briefly go over power consumption as well, since both processors consume a ton of power while under full load. While idle, the 13700K consumes less power due to its efficiency cores taking charge. 

However, the i7 does have a 253-watt max TDP compared to the 7900X’s 170-watt requirement. Under maximal load, the 13700K consumes considerably more power, and you’ll need a stronger cooling solution to keep its temps under control. 

---

Final thoughts

Perhaps the real kicker here is the fact that the 13700K can offer identical performance to the 7900X while costing a fair bit less. Given that, it’s hard to justify going with the latter unless you’re already on the AM5 platform or are getting a sweet deal.