But if you're using lightly-threaded apps or want the broadest spate of officially supported software, Intel tends to perform better. Know the apps you use: If your apps take advantage of superior core counts or memory channels, you might want to get an AMD chip.We'll update this listing as soon as we see how Intel's latest stacks up.
We recently put the Zen 4 Ryzen 7000 through the wringer and included workstation-class testing in our Ryzen 9 7950X and Ryzen 5 7600X reviews. However, Intel also has its Raptor Lake in the offing and it will arrive on October 20. Meanwhile, Intel's Alder Lake chips have taken over the lower-priced tiers due to the addition of ECC memory support and overclocking to the company's workstation W680 motherboards.ĪMD and Intel's desktop PC processors now pack more cores than ever and leverage the increased throughput of DDR5 memory, making them viable options for the entry-level workstation market. Unfortunately, pricing remains out of reach for most HEDT users, meaning there is no longer a value platform for workstation users.
The Ryzen Threadripper 5000 Pro chips do double duty for both workstations and the enthusiast HEDT market, as AMD has decided not to create separate lineups for this generation as it has in the past. The Threadripper chips will eventually grapple with Intel's forthcoming Sapphire Rapids-X / Fishhawk Falls processors. These chips set the new standard for workstation chips, taking the top two recommendations in our list. We recently took AMD's Threadripper Pro 5995WX and the Threadripper Pro 5975WX through our extensive set of normal benchmarks and workstation-class tests. So we've compiled a list of processors representing the best bang for your buck in common productivity tasks, based on our years of benchmarking and testing data. In fact, as highly threaded CPUs become more common, gaming CPUs and work CPUs are increasingly different silicon beasts, making it tougher to choose which CPU is the best for your workload. For an even more in-depth look, our CPU Benchmarks Hierarchy has all the processors ranked based on performance in gaming, single- and multi-threaded workloads.Ī processor that excels at gaming isn't always the best CPU if your workload is productivity-focused, so the AMD vs Intel rivalry rages on in the workstation market, too. This list focuses on performance in productivity applications for workstations, while our Best CPUs for Gaming article will give you a better picture of gaming performance. But faster CPUs (with more cores and/or faster clock speeds) chew through tough workloads in much less time, making them great CPUs for productivity. Most processors can handle just about any workload you throw at them, given enough time. If you're after the best processor for work, a lot of the decision boils down to just what your work is.