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AMD Ryzen 5 2500X vs AMD Ryzen 5 3500U PRO: Comparison
What is the difference between Ryzen 5 2500X and Ryzen 5 3500U PRO?
L3 cache is where these two genuinely part company, Ryzen 5 2500X 8 MB against Ryzen 5 3500U PRO 4 MB, a 50% lead for Ryzen 5 2500X. There is a split on integrated graphics as well, No on the Ryzen 5 2500X versus Yes on the Ryzen 5 3500U PRO. They differ on socket too, AM4 on the Ryzen 5 2500X versus FP5 on the Ryzen 5 3500U PRO. They differ on form factor too, Desktops on the Ryzen 5 2500X versus Laptop on the Ryzen 5 3500U PRO. Release year is not the same on both, 2018 on the Ryzen 5 2500X versus 2019 on the Ryzen 5 3500U PRO. There is a split on igpu as well, Discrete Graphics Card Required on the Ryzen 5 2500X versus AMD Radeon RX Vega 8 on the Ryzen 5 3500U PRO.
Which should you buy, Ryzen 5 2500X or Ryzen 5 3500U PRO?
The Ryzen 5 2500X suits mainstream desktop builds and everyday productivity, though it is the wrong buy for extreme overclocking (unless K/X-series) and workstation-class multi-threaded workloads. Take the Ryzen 5 3500U PRO for corporate laptop deployments wanting solid 4-core performance with capable integrated graphics and business manageability features. It is the wrong buy for consumer buyers who don't need PRO features, the standard Ryzen 5 3500U delivers equivalent performance without the business-focused overhead.
What Ryzen 5 2500X and Ryzen 5 3500U PRO have in common
Where they agree, they agree completely, total cores, performance cores, efficiency cores, total threads and smt enabled included, so the decision does not turn on any of those. They match on 1 further specification as well.
Frequently asked questions
Do the Ryzen 5 2500X and Ryzen 5 3500U PRO differ on p-core boost clock?
Yes. P-Core Boost Clock reads Up to 4 GHz on the Ryzen 5 2500X versus 3.7 GHz on the Ryzen 5 3500U PRO.
Is the L2 Cache the same on the Ryzen 5 2500X and Ryzen 5 3500U PRO?
It is. Both are listed at 2 MB, so it is not a reason to pick one over the other.
Specs and benchmarks
Form Factor
- AMD Ryzen 5 2500X
- Desktops
- AMD Ryzen 5 3500U PRO
- Laptop
Codename
- AMD Ryzen 5 2500X
- Pinnacle Ridge
- AMD Ryzen 5 3500U PRO
- Picasso
Release Year
- AMD Ryzen 5 2500X
- 2018
- AMD Ryzen 5 3500U PRO
- 2019
TDP
- AMD Ryzen 5 2500X
- 65 W
- AMD Ryzen 5 3500U PRO
- 15 W
iGPU
- AMD Ryzen 5 2500X
- Discrete Graphics Card Required
- AMD Ryzen 5 3500U PRO
- AMD Radeon RX Vega 8
Market Segment
- AMD Ryzen 5 2500X
- Desktop
- AMD Ryzen 5 3500U PRO
- Laptop
Socket
- AMD Ryzen 5 2500X
- AM4
- AMD Ryzen 5 3500U PRO
- FP5
Process Node
- AMD Ryzen 5 2500X
- 12 nm
- AMD Ryzen 5 3500U PRO
- 12 nm
Total Cores
- AMD Ryzen 5 2500X
- 4
- AMD Ryzen 5 3500U PRO
- 4
Performance Cores
- AMD Ryzen 5 2500X
- 4
- AMD Ryzen 5 3500U PRO
- 4
Efficiency Cores
- AMD Ryzen 5 2500X
- 0
- AMD Ryzen 5 3500U PRO
- 0
Total Threads
- AMD Ryzen 5 2500X
- 8
- AMD Ryzen 5 3500U PRO
- 8
SMT Enabled
- AMD Ryzen 5 2500X
- Yes
- AMD Ryzen 5 3500U PRO
- Yes
P-Core Base Clock
- AMD Ryzen 5 2500X
- 3.6 GHz
- AMD Ryzen 5 3500U PRO
- 2.1 GHz
P-Core Boost Clock
- AMD Ryzen 5 2500X
- Up to 4 GHz
- AMD Ryzen 5 3500U PRO
- 3.7 GHz
L2 Cache
- AMD Ryzen 5 2500X
- 2 MB
- AMD Ryzen 5 3500U PRO
- 2 MB
L3 Cache
- AMD Ryzen 5 2500X
- 8 MBBest
- AMD Ryzen 5 3500U PRO
- 4 MB-50%
Base Power
- AMD Ryzen 5 2500X
- 65 W
- AMD Ryzen 5 3500U PRO
- 15 W
Memory Type
- AMD Ryzen 5 2500X
- DDR4, 2-Channel, Up to 2933 MT/s
- AMD Ryzen 5 3500U PRO
- DDR4-2400
Integrated Graphics
- AMD Ryzen 5 2500X
- No
- AMD Ryzen 5 3500U PRO
- Yes
Which one should you pick?
Choose 2500X if you want the higher L2 cache (2 MB vs 2 MB) and the higher L3 cache (8 MB vs 4 MB).
Choose 3500U PRO if you already have it on hand or find it at a lower price.