Just when you thought we might have finally seen the last AM4 processor, AMD goes and bins yet another "new" variant. This is close to what people have been asking for, though not exactly. What many really want is for AMD to bring back the 5800X3D, but that doesn't look likely. Instead, we have the Ryzen 5 5500X3D.
So what is the Ryzen 5 5500X3D? It's a binned version of the 5600X3D, a CPU most of you probably didn't know existed – or may have forgotten. That's largely because the 5600X3D was an exclusive part, available only through Micro Center.
So the next question is: what was the 5600X3D? It was a cut-down version of the 5800X3D, released in mid-2023. Essentially, the 5600X3D is a 5800X3D with two cores disabled, resulting in the first 6-core/12-thread 3D V-Cache processor. We managed to get one back in the day and review it, and as expected it's not significantly slower than the 5800X3D – around 8% slower, which is reasonable given the 25% reduction in core count.
| Ryzen 5 5500X3D | Ryzen 5 5600X3D | Ryzen 7 5700X3D | Ryzen 7 5800X3D | |
| Price MSRP | ? | $230 | $250 | $450 |
| Release Date | Jun 5, 2025 | Jul 7, 2023 | Jan 31, 2024 | Apr 20, 2022 |
| Cores / Threads | 6 / 12 | 8 / 16 | ||
| Base Clock | 3.0 GHz | 3.3 GHz | 3.0 GHz | 3.4 GHz |
| Boost Clock | 4.0 GHz | 4.4 GHz | 4.1 GHz | 4.5 GHz |
| L3 Cache (Total) | 96 MB | |||
| Box Cooler | N/A | |||
| Chiplets | 1 x CCD, 1 x I/O | |||
| Core Config | 1 x 6 | 1 x 8 | ||
| TDP | 105 W | |||
The 5500X3D, on the other hand, is a 5600X3D with reduced clock speeds. The maximum boost frequency drops from 4.4GHz to just 4GHz, a 9% reduction. Otherwise, they are effectively the same CPU, both featuring 6 cores / 12 threads, 96MB of L3 cache, and a 105W TDP.
However, unlike the 5600X3D, the 5500X3D is not limited to a single retailer. It initially launched as a Latin America – exclusive part, though that didn't last long. It quickly appeared in China and has now started showing up in the UK. We managed to source one from China about a month ago via AliExpress, although we only recently had time to evaluate it.
At the time of writing, it can be delivered via AliExpress for around $180 or $260 AUD. That's roughly in line with what we're paying locally for the Ryzen 5 7600, and about 20% more than the Ryzen 5 5600X. With that in mind, we're interested to see how well a 4GHz 3D V-Cache AM4 processor performs in games, especially given that the 5600X clocks about 15% higher.
For testing, we have 14 games to cover, along with a substantial amount of comparative data – so let's get into it.
| CPU Motherboard Memory |
AMD Ryzen 9000 AMD Ryzen 7000 |
Gigabyte X670E Aorus Master [BIOS F41] G.Skill Trident Z5 RGB 32GB DDR5-6000 CL30-38-38-96 |
| AMD Ryzen 5000 | MSI MPG X570S Carbon MAX WiFi [BIOS 7D52v1D1] G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 32GB DDR4-3600 CL14-15-15-35 |
|
| Intel Core Ultra 200S [Default Profile] |
MSI Z890 Tomahawk WiFi II [BIOS 7E32v1B12] G.Skill Trident Z5 CK 32GB DDR5-8200 CL40-52-52-131 CUDIMM |
|
| Intel Core 14th Gen [Default Profile] |
MSI MPG Z790 Carbon WiFi [BIOS 7D89v1H] G.Skill Trident Z5 RGB 32GB DDR5-7200 CL34-45-45-115 |
|
| Graphics Card | Asus ROG Astral GeForce RTX 5090 32GB OC Edition | |
| Power Supply | Kolink Regulator Gold ATX 3.0 1200W | |
| Storage | TeamGroup T-Force GE PRO M.2 PCIe Gen5 NVMe SSD 4TB | |
| Display Driver | GeForce Game Ready Driver 595.79 WHQL | |
Benchmarks
Cinebench 2026, Screen Recording
Before jumping into the bar graphs, here's a quick look at how the 5500X3D behaves under load. Under a heavy all-core workload, we observed an average core clock of 3.95GHz. With a single core active, the maximum clock reached 4.05GHz, so everything is operating within spec.
Gaming
Rainbow Six Siege X
Starting with Rainbow Six Siege X, the 5500X3D looks pretty underwhelming, roughly matching the 5600X. That makes it about 7% slower than the 5600X3D. Still, for those coming from Zen 2, the gains are significant – the 5500X3D was 42% faster than the 3800X and 67% faster than the Zen+-based 2700X, so there are meaningful upgrades on offer.
Battlefield 6
Next up is Battlefield 6. In this title, the 5500X3D was 15% faster than the 5600X, allowing it to roughly match the Core Ultra 5 225F. Interestingly, it also came very close to the 5600X3D, trailing by just a few frames. Compared to older parts, it was 31% faster than the 3800X and 63% faster than the 2700X.
Arc Raiders
Arc Raiders shows strong gains, as the game clearly benefits from AMD's 3D V-Cache technology. The 5500X3D pulled ahead of the 5600X by a substantial 30% margin using medium settings, though that advantage dropped to 18% with epic settings. This placed it 8% behind the 5600X3D at medium and 11% behind at epic.
Borderlands 4
Performance in Borderlands 4 was also solid. Using the medium preset, the 5500X3D was just 6% slower than the 5600X3D, while outperforming the Core Ultra 5 225F by 5%, the 5600X by 16%, and the 3800X by a sizable 40%. Switching to the GPU-limited Badass preset, it matched the 225F and came in 7% ahead of the 5600X.
Marvel Rivals
In Marvel Rivals, the 5500X3D was 8% slower than the 5600X3D at medium settings and 12% slower at ultra. That also meant it was 12% faster than the 5600X at medium, but only 8% faster at ultra. The scaling suggests the 5500X3D struggles slightly more under heavier settings, though it still delivers a 26% uplift over the 3800X, making it a worthwhile upgrade for Zen 2 users.
Baldur's Gate 3
Baldur's Gate 3, like Arc Raiders, benefits heavily from 3D V-Cache. As a result, the 5500X3D was 28% faster than the 5600X – a substantial uplift. However, it remained about 10% slower than the 5600X3D, suggesting core clock speed still plays an important role here. Memory bandwidth is also critical for strong 1% lows, which helps explain why DDR4-based chips fall behind DDR5 platforms like the Core i5-14600K in those metrics.
Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty
In Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty, core clock speed appears far less important. Here, the 5500X3D nearly matches the 5600X3D. It was just 8% faster than the 5600X using the medium preset, though enabling ray tracing increased that margin to 12%.
Counter-Strike 2
Next is Counter-Strike 2, another example where the 5500X3D closely mirrors 5600X3D performance, trailing by just a few frames. That made it 18% faster than the 5600X at medium settings and 14% faster at very high. It also delivered massive gains over older AM4 parts – 77% faster than the 3800X and an impressive 126% faster than the 2700X.
Space Marine 2
Space Marine 2 performance is also strong, with the 5500X3D coming in just 6% slower than the 5600X3D while beating the 5600X by 11%. It was also 31% faster than the 3800X and nearly 60% faster than the 2700X.
Mafia: The Old Country
In Mafia: The Old Country, the 5500X3D trailed the 5600X3D by 6-7%, making it 13% faster than the 5600X at medium settings, but only 5% faster with the maxed-out Epic preset. Even so, with the game fully maxed, it was still 20% faster than the 3800X and 46% faster than the 2700X.
Assetto Corsa Competizione
Moving on to ACC, this is another title that performs exceptionally well with AMD's 3D V-Cache. Although the 5500X3D was 8% slower than the 5600X3D using the medium preset, it was still 27% faster than the 2600X and a significant 43% faster than the Core Ultra 5 225F. Compared to older parts, it delivered 75% more performance than the 3800X and an impressive 109% uplift over the 2700X.
Spider-Man 2
Spider-Man 2 is heavily influenced by memory bandwidth, so DDR4 parts do struggle somewhat compared to DDR5 platforms. Even so, 156 fps on average using the medium preset is strong performance for the 5500X3D. That result placed it 10% behind the 5600X3D, but still 16% ahead of the 5600X. Enabling ray tracing wasn't ideal, though average frame rates above 60 fps remain acceptable.
Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered
Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered ran very well on the 5500X3D, with performance broadly comparable to the Core Ultra 5 225F. Overall, it was 6-8% slower than the 5600X3D depending on quality settings, and 16-17% faster than the 5600X. That also translates to a 35% gain over the 3800X and 64% over the 2700X.
The Last of Us Part II Remastered
Finally, in The Last of Us Part II Remastered, the 5500X3D was 5-6% slower than the 5600X3D and 9-11% faster than the standard 5600X. It also delivered a 37% uplift over the 3800X and a 70% gain over the 2700X.
14 Game Average
Here's the 14-game average, and as expected the 5500X3D is 7% slower than the 5600X3D, a margin that held at both medium and ultra settings. It was also just 13 – 15% faster than the 5600X, so it's not a compelling upgrade for those already on Zen 3.
However, for users still on Zen 2, the gains are substantial. The 5500X3D was on average 40% faster, which is a major uplift. Moving from Zen+ pushes that improvement to roughly 71%, making it a significant generational jump.
14 Game Average (Against More CPUs)
For additional context, we've included a few more CPUs, including the 5800X3D. On average, the 5500X3D is 14% slower than the 5800X3D and 17% slower than Intel's Core Ultra 5 250K Plus.
Who Is It For?
For anyone building a new gaming PC, the Ryzen 5 5500X3D isn't particularly compelling. Once you factor in the cost of a motherboard and memory (even assuming more typical memory pricing), spending around $180 / $260 AUD on the 5500X3D doesn't make much sense.
For example, the Core Ultra 5 250K Plus costs about 23% more locally. While it was roughly 20% faster on average for gaming, it's a far more capable processor overall. For any core-heavy workloads, the difference is night and day.
Alternatively, the Ryzen 5 7500F is ~4% faster for gaming on average and can be purchased locally for around $270 AUD, just 4% more than the AliExpress price of the 5500X3D. More notably, the 7500F can be found on AliExpress for as little as $180 delivered, making the 5500X3D roughly 44% more expensive from the same source. Given that, the 5500X3D doesn't make much sense for new system builders.
However, for those still on AM4 with an older Zen 2, Zen+, or even first-gen Zen processor, the 5500X3D could be a tempting upgrade. While the 7500F is cheaper and arguably the better long-term investment, moving to AM5 requires a new motherboard and DDR5 memory, and right now memory pricing is a big dealbreaker.
Spending ~$180 / $260 AUD for at least a 40% uplift in gaming performance is a strong value proposition, and many AM4 users will likely see it that way. Still, for the 5500X3D to stand out, it would need to drop closer to $200 Australian.
For those already using a Zen 3 processor such as the Ryzen 5 5600 or 5600X, the 5500X3D isn't worth considering, the performance uplift simply isn't large enough to justify the cost.