When you’re looking to build a gaming PC, picking the right CPU for the job is really the first thing you need to do. While a lot of the processors out right now will get the job done, your choice of processor is going to affect the motherboard you pick, the RAM you pair it with, and even influence what your PC is going to excel at. So, yeah, the best CPUs aren’t going to impact your framerate quite as much as a graphics card will, but it’s still an incredibly important part of your rig. It’s called the Central Processing Unit for a reason, after all.
TL;DR – These are the Best CPUs for Gaming
Intel Core i5-14600K– Best Overall CPUAMD Ryzen 9 7950X3D – Highest Performance CPUAMD Ryzen 7 5700G – Best Budget CPUIntel Core i5-13400 – Best Budget Intel CPUIntel Core i9-14900K – Fastest CPUAMD Ryzen 5 9600X – Best Ryzen CPU
When picking the best CPU for the job, there are a couple of things you need to consider. Price is, of course, a big one: You can find processors for anywhere from $200 to nearly $900, so setting a budget early is critical. You should also consider what you plan on doing with your PC. If you’re just going to play PC games, you’re probably not going to need the same horsepower as a creative professional that’s cranking out projects in Blender or Adobe Premiere. So no, you don’t need that Intel Core i9-14900K to run Overwatch 2 – that’s why our top CPU for gaming is the Core i5-14600K or the Ryzen 5 7600X, both of which provide excellent performance at a decent price.
The big question is: AMD or Intel? Whatever you go for, take a look at our recommendations below.
1. Intel Core i5-14600K
Best CPU for Gaming
Similar to its predecessor in almost every way, the Intel Core i5-14600K brings minor improvements while still delivering the perfect balance of price to performance. So, if you’ve already got the Intel Core i5-13600K, you can probably skip this upgrade.
This chip is part of Intel’s Raptor Lake refresh and utilizes the same hybrid architecture as the 13th-gen chips, offering six speedy performance cores and eight efficient cores with 20 threads to easily divide and conquer tasks. Those P-cores hit slightly higher clock speeds this time around at 5.3 GHz and are still capable of hyperthreading for a boost in processing muscle.
You’ll need an LGA 1700 socket for this processor, but it works with both Z690 or Z790 motherboards after a simple BIOS update. The Intel Core i5-14600K also supports the PCIe 5.0 and PCIe 4.0 interfaces along with DDR5 memory up to 5,600MHz, though you can always use more affordable DDR4 memory. Overall, it’s a solid all-around option that especially excels in gaming.
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2. AMD Ryzen 9 7950X3D
Best high-performance CPU for gaming
If you’re after sheer performance prowess in games, the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X3D goes head-to-head with Team Blues’ top processors. Offering the latest Zen 4 architecture, you get 16 cores with 32 threads, allowing impressive speeds, ready to be overclocked higher, and enough power to breeze through even your most graphically intense AAA games. Its 3D Vertical Cache technology means this chip can deliver an impressive 128MB of L3 cache, stepping up gaming performance further.
Even with all that extra muscle, the Ryzen 9 7950X3D is still incredibly energy efficient and has lower power consumption when compared to Intel chips. But you’ll still want a solid cooling system in place to keep peak performance.
The Ryzen 9 7950X3D requires an AM5 motherboard and offers the newest connectivity, like DRR5 memory and a PCIe 5.0 interface. Unfortunately, you can’t use older motherboards or DDR4 RAM to help cut costs, and this is a pricey CPU to begin with.
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3. AMD Ryzen 7 5700G
Best Budget CPU for Gaming
For those working on a budget PC build, the AMD Ryzen 7 5700G is a great processor ready to take on all your tasks. This chip uses the slightly older but still highly capable Zen 3 architecture with eight cores and 16 threads. It excels in basic gaming and is an all-around workhorse. The integrated graphics are also top-notch and ready to play in 1080p.
Since the Ryzen 7 5700G has less performance prowess compared to some of AMD’s newer and pricier Zen 4 chips, it’s super power-efficient, keeping under a 65W TDP. Thermals are equally great, so even with more modest cooling, it still maintains peak performance. And did we mention it comes bundled with a AMD Wraith Stealth cooler?
The Ryzen Ryzen 7 5700G uses an AM4 socket and doesn’t support the PCIe 5.0 or 4.0 interfaces. You’ll also rely on DDR4 RAM versus the higher frequency DRR5 RAM. But even if you lose out on speed, you can save some money, which is what this budget pick is all about.
4. Intel Core i5-13400
Best Budget Intel CPU for Gaming
The Intel Core i5-13400 proves that you don’t need to spend a fortune to get a highly capable gaming CPU. Costing around $200, this mid-range chip has no problem running games at 1080p – or even up to 1440p and 4K. If you’re on a tight budget, the integrated graphics can handle some action while you save up for a solid GPU, and it even comes with a cooler to keep your extra costs down. However, it draws more power than the last-gen model.
You aren’t making many sacrifices when going for this budget-minded processor, as you still get some of the latest technology, including DDR5 memory and PCIe 5.0 interface. It has the same hybrid architecture seen in higher-end models with six performance cores and four efficient cores alongside 16 threads. Those P-Cores can hit 4.6GHz right out of the box and offer hyperthreading for snappy performance and plenty of oomph to handle any mainstream PC build.
5. Intel Core i9-14900K
Fastest CPU for gaming
For unbeatable speeds and insane overclocking, there’s nothing better than the Intel Core i9-14900K, but be prepared for it to put a good dent in your wallet. This beastly chip boasts a heavily threaded hybrid architecture with eight P-cores and peaks at a wild 6.0 GHz. Its 16 E-cores are no slouch either, taking some burden off the P-cores and ensuring your game’s action or creative endeavors are never interrupted.
If you’re big into streaming, the Intel Core i9-14900K is an absolute must. You’ll also be hard-pressed to find a game or program that the Intel Core i9-14900K can’t handle; it actually might be overkill for some. However, this is a power-hungry, hot-running processor, so be sure you’ve got proper cooling.
Similar to the Intel Core i5, the Intel Core i9-14900K makes only minor upgrades from the 13th gen model, like slightly higher clock speeds and Wi-Fi 7 compatibility. So, if you find the Intel Core i9-13900K significantly cheaper, you may want to grab that instead.
6. AMD Ryzen 5 9600X
Best Ryzen CPU for gaming
While it’s tempting to pick up the most expensive and powerful processor on the market, it’s often better to go for a mid-range chip like the AMD Ryzen 5 9600X for gaming. You’re not likely going to need the extreme multi-threaded peformance of something like the Ryzen 9 7950X, and the strong single-core performance will back up pretty much any graphics card you pair with it.
The AMD Ryzen 5 9600X might not be that much faster than its predecessor, but it delivers similar performance without temperatures that’ll make you panic. In my testing, the AMD Ryzen 5 9600X simply won’t go above 75C using stock settings, meanwhile both the Ryzen 5 7600X and Intel Core i5-14600K will shoot straight up to 95C and stay there in heavy workloads. The processor is unlocked, so you can overclock it, using AMD’s PBO (precision boost overdrive) settings to reach higher performance, but if you just want a CPU to put into your gaming rig and forget about, the Ryzen 5 9600X is a great choice.
Plus, this processor isn’t very demanding on your power supply. Out of the box, the 9600X is limited to 88W of power, which makes it a perfect fit for any gaming rig using a less power-hungry power supply.
How to Pick the Best CPU for Gaming
The first step is determining which type of processor you want to use. Of the mainstream options, you can go with either Intel’s Core lineup of i3,i5, i7, and i9 products or AMD’s Ryzen 3, 5, 7, and 9 series. Intel does slightly edge out AMD in price versus performance thanks to their recent release of 13th and 14th gen Raptor Lake chips, but they are still pretty neck and neck with Ryzen’s 7000 processors. Both offer the latest connectivity like PCIe 5.0, DDR5 memory, and newer sockets, along with plenty of cores to cruise through the best PC games.
Speaking of cores, as a general rule of thumb, the more, the merrier. CPU cores essentially receive instructions and in turn, perform specific actions. Therefore as you increase the core count, the more the processor can do for you.
Cores
When it comes to gaming, you should aim for a Hexa core processor or higher. With six cores, you should have no problem running most games. However, you may want a higher core count for more processor-intense titles — like RTS games and management sims. A faster, more robust CPU can power more AI elements and help raise frame rates.
Intel also introduced two different types of cores with its 12th gen processors, P-cores and E-cores. P-cores do most of the heavy lifting, hitting higher speeds and taking on beefier workloads like games — essentially the cores you’re used to seeing in CPUs. E-cores are much less powerful, generally working on background tasks to help ease the load of the P-cores. AMD has yet to differentiate its cores.
Speed
Though core count is important, speed may be just as, if not more. You generally get a base clock and boost clock, telling you how fast the CPU runs, with a higher number of gigahertz (GHz), meaning a snappier performance in your games. Many options we’ve chosen are also unlocked for overclocking — letting you push the CPU past its listed clock speed limits — though there’s always a risk of damaging the chip when you do this.
Threads
Threads should also be kept in mind. These act like schedulers, telling the cores what to do next. It’s not super important if you’re just gaming, but say you also want to stream simultaneously, then grab a chip that offers hyper-threading (Intel) or multi-threading (AMD). Those terms are essentially the same, where one core has multiple threads, which is helpful in multitasking.
Upcoming CPUs
AMD is first out of the gate for 2024, launching its much-anticipated Ryzen 9000 series processors, led by the Ryzen 9 9950X, at Computex 2024. These processors are using the new Zen 5 architecture, which boasts an impressive IPC (instructions per clock) improvement, that Team Red claims to be around 13% on average. We’ll have to wait until we get the new processors in for review to see if those numbers hold up, but it’s not like we’ll have to wait long. The new AMD Ryzen processors will arrive on store shelves in July 2024.
We’re still waiting for Intel to announce its follow up to the Raptor Lake 14th-gen processors that launched in 2023. However, there has been some movement on Team Blue, with the company announcing its Lunar Lake mobile processors. Those are primarily aimed at the new AI laptops that Microsoft is spearheading, but we should see new desktop processors showing up sometime this year – maybe in fall?
CPU FAQs
What type of CPU is best for gaming?
Depending on whether you’re on team AMD or team Intel will depend on which CPU is best for gaming. Since both manufacturers are pretty much neck and neck in terms of performance and efficiency, the choice is up to you.
For AMD, the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X3D is ultimately the best option for high-performance gaming PCs. Intel fans, however, can expect great things from the Intel Core i5-14600K, which comes out top as one of the best CPUs for gaming.
Where to Get the best CPU for Gaming in the UK
Jackie Thomas is the Hardware and Buying Guides Editor at IGN and the PC components queen. You can follow her @Jackiecobra
Danielle Abraham is a freelance writer and unpaid music historian.
