What is the best CPU that will save you from upgrading for 5 years from now?
| What is the best CPU that will save you from upgrading for 5 years from now? |
Whether you’re upgrading your current machine or building a PC from scratch, choosing the best CPU for your needs and budget is crucial. Higher clock speeds and higher core counts can make a real difference in your system’s performance. But don’t overlook what’s known as the “generation” of the processor. In this guide, we’ll show you how to choose the best CPU that can last you half a decade or more without having to think about replacing it.
best cpu
Whether you’re working on video editing, engineering, programming, or data mining, a better CPU can make a real difference in your rig’s performance. While choosing the most powerful graphics card is crucial when building a gaming rig, the role of the best CPU is just as important with these rigs. This is because if you don’t pick the right CPU that can work efficiently with the graphics card you plan to buy, you’ll run into a bottleneck that will prevent you from getting the most out of your powerful graphics card.
As we explained in detail in the article How to Upgrade Old Computers for Less Costs , upgrading the CPU can help provide much higher performance compared to the current performance level of your device. You should know that you will not be able to determine the best CPU overnight, as it requires a lot of research and reviewing technical reviews and determining the best CPU that meets your needs and guarantees you the best value for the price. However, in this guide, we will try to extend a helping hand and pave the way for you to help you choose the best CPU at the present time.
■ What you should know first
You should know that technology doesn’t stop at a certain point. And by that we mean processor generations. The CPU generation update cycle happens almost every year, which means that CPUs released in 2025 will be slightly better than their predecessors. The newer processors may also offer significant gains in power consumption. So, “knowledge is better than money or bullets.” Knowing how to choose the best CPU for your budget will keep you from upgrading for several years from now, but this depends on your experience in choosing the best processor.
■ What is the best CPU for gaming?
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| Best CPU for gaming |
AMD has had a blast with the RYZEN X3D processors, thanks to their 3D cache that keeps the company’s processors at the forefront of gaming performance. Even if you bought the RYZEN 5800X3D processor that was released more than two years ago, it still offers exceptional performance even today with the most powerful graphics cards in the high-end category.
Even when compared to Intel's latest processors, including the Intel Core Ultra 9 285K, the RYZEN 5800X3D still delivers impressive results with many CPU-intensive titles. However, AMD has released several updates since the RYZEN 5800X3D, such as its successor the RYZEN 7 7800X3D and then the RYZEN 9 9800X3D, which currently ranks as the most powerful CPU ever in gaming performance.
But that doesn’t mean you have to buy this latest processor, especially since it’s very expensive. The unique thing about it – as we mentioned a moment ago – is that the gains that the latest generations offer in terms of performance or energy efficiency are usually slight compared to previous generations, as long as we’re comparing a group of generations that are close to each other.
If your budget is not enough to upgrade to one of the RYZEN X3D processors, there is no problem, you can buy another central processor that guarantees you the ability to run the graphics card you plan to buy and run all your games at a frame rate of no less than 60 frames per second.
The most important question is how to choose the most suitable CPU for the graphics card you are planning to buy so that you can avoid the bottleneck problem? In fact, talking about the bottleneck problem requires a lot of discussion. You should know that all platforms (computers) suffer from a percentage - albeit a slight one - of the bottleneck. The evidence for this is that with each new generation of hardware, modern computers start to provide better performance.
For example, if we built a rig with an RTX 3090, a RYZEN 7 7800X3D, and 32GB DDR5 5200MHz, and we got 100 FPS, if we bought the same rig but changed the RAM to 32GB DDR5 6400MHz, we could probably get 105 FPS. This means that the original RAM was causing a slight bottleneck, and when we combined the rig with faster RAM, we were able to get a lot more FPS.
The same goes for newer generations of CPUs. If we were to review a RYZEN 9 9800 X3D with an RTX 3090 today, we might get higher frame rates in some games than the RYZEN 7 7800 X3D. That's why we say that the bottleneck problem is always there, but the important thing is what percentage of the bottleneck is your device facing?
So, building a PC is an equation that needs to be balanced with each other. You can’t just buy a Core i3 processor and a graphics card like the RTX 4080. In this case, the Core i3 processor will cause a very big bottleneck for the RTX 4080.
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| Best CPUs and the bottleneck problem |
If you're wondering what a bottleneck is, it's a term that refers to an imbalance between components and each other, and it's a common term that's not limited to the hardware world. If you put more people than you can into a very small city, that's a bottleneck. If you build a very narrow highway in a busy area with a lot of cars passing through it 24/7, that's a bottleneck. So, you need to balance your hardware specifications to avoid the bottleneck problem as much as possible.
Very important tip: Never rely on sites that claim to be able to measure the bottleneck of your device. These tools analyze components, not test your system. The best way to measure the bottleneck of your device is the first method that we explained in the article The best bottleneck measuring tools for your device . Use a program like MSI Afterburner or HWiNFO to display consumption metrics on the screen within games. Run the game on the strongest settings. If you notice that the CPU is running at 100% all the time while the graphics card cannot run at 98% or 99%, then this means that you have a bottleneck problem. Try it in a different set of games as well because there are some games that are programmed to take advantage of the CPU at the expense of the graphics card, and vice versa.
( Bottleneck is a concept that expresses the inability of one of the components to pass the required amount of data during the same period of time )
If you want to save yourself the trouble, try to buy a CPU that is “as close as possible” to your graphics card. That means if you’re planning on buying a high-end graphics card, like the RTX 4080 or RTX 4090, you should buy a high-end CPU like the Core i9 or Core i7 and an AMD equivalent like the RYZEN 7 or RYZEN 9. But as we mentioned earlier, the RYZEN X3D is always the best thanks to its 3D cache technology.
If you're looking to buy a mid-range graphics card like the RTX 4070 or RTX 4060 Ti, you can stick with processors like the Core I5 or RYZEN 5. If you're looking to buy a budget graphics card like the RTX 4050, you can stick with the RYZEN 3 or Core I3.
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| How to choose the best central processor 2025 |
That’s all there is to escaping the bottleneck problem in general. You can also rely on reviews from trusted hardware sites like TechPowerUp , Guru3D , Tom`s Hardware , Tech Spot , etc. to make sure the CPU you plan to buy will perform with modern graphics cards. All you have to do is type in Google – for example – Core I7-14700K Review, and then start browsing the reviews that appear in Google results.
Most of these sites review CPUs with powerful graphics cards to calculate the bottleneck ratio between each other. If it turns out that the bottleneck ratio is small with the processor you are planning to buy, then there is no problem at all, as all processors - as we just mentioned - face a percentage of bottleneck, but it should be in small percentages to ensure that the graphics card will operate at its maximum capacity.
What you should also know is that there are exceptions. Some users tend to take risks even though they know that their hardware platforms will face a bottleneck. For example, you find someone who buys a card like the RTX 4080 with a central processor like the RYZEN 5600X, and this platform will certainly suffer a noticeable bottleneck, especially with games that rely heavily on the central processor. However, they are completely satisfied because they are able to achieve more than 60 frames per second because this is the frame rate that makes you feel the smoothness of movement and quality of performance while playing games.
So, even though there is a chance that you could take a risk with your rig, say buying a rig like the RTX 3090 with a processor like the Core I5-12400F knowing that you will have some bottleneck, you are still satisfied with the performance because this combination gives you more than 60 FPS with all your games and on the highest settings.
So, satisfaction and happiness are important, but you should also be reasonable and not take crazy risks in your PC setup. Don’t buy a Ryzen 3 processor with an RTX 4080 and expect to have a slight bottleneck. In fact, this CPU can cause you a bottleneck of more than 40%, which means you could have bought a more powerful CPU than this one and settled for a card like the RTX 4070 or even the RTX 4060 Ti.
The gist of the matter here is that while the RYZEN 5600X may be a bit of a bottleneck with modern high-end graphics cards, it’s still capable of 60 FPS, and the same goes for Intel’s Core i5 processors. These processors have been around for almost four years now, and they still perform very well in games. They can last for several more years. So, choosing the right CPU from the start will help you avoid needing to upgrade for at least half a decade.
■ You can make do with economical central processors for office work.
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| Best economical CPUs |
In fact, most light office tasks don’t require extreme CPU power. Tasks like running word processing applications, browsing the web, and streaming video are all very simple routine tasks that don’t require a lot of resources, and this is where economical processors become very sufficient. If you’re building a computer or buying a laptop for writing lectures and scientific papers, then you can get by with Core i3 or RYZEN 3 processors. In fact, even processors that were introduced more than 10 years ago still perform very well for normal office tasks like browsing the web and writing papers.
■ Professional and creative work requires multi-threaded CPUs.
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| When do you need flagship processors? |
If your professional work depends on the performance of your computer, you should sacrifice to have a powerful CPU that can last for more than 5 years. Some tasks are more resource-intensive and work better with more powerful CPUs. For example, editing high-resolution videos, graphic design, training and data mining, and gaming also all require powerful CPUs. But since we are done talking about games, and now we are talking about the requirements of professional and creative work in particular, you should choose CPUs that have a larger number of resources (cores, larger cache memory, and processing threads).
The more cores a CPU has, the faster it can perform professional tasks, including video editing, 3D modeling, data generation, etc. But if you want personal advice, we do not recommend Intel's 13th or 14th generation processors because they suffer from thermal issues due to high voltages. You can solve the problem if you have a very powerful cooler.
However, alternatives like AMD’s Zen 4 and Zen 5 and Intel’s 15th Gen will be worth a look. That’s not to say a processor like the Core i7-14700K is bad, but it does need a strong cooling system if you plan to overclock it. Some people have had to lower the voltage due to thermal issues.
If you’re stuck for choice, the best CPUs you can buy right now for productivity and professional applications are the Core Ultra 9 285K, Core Ultra 7 265K, Ryzen 9 9950X, and Ryzen 9 7950X. These are the most powerful CPUs currently on the consumer market. However, they’re not the only powerful ones on the market, there are a few less, and a few more. For example, there are AMD’s Threadripper processors, which have an awesome multi-threading capability. But you may not always need them, as cheaper ones offer excellent performance for them.
In conclusion, choosing the best CPU for your needs depends on a number of factors, including your budget and usage. Since gaming is usually a popular demand among users, you should make sure to get the best CPU that matches the graphics card you plan to buy. As for productivity tasks, the more you pay, the more powerful it will be, and the faster you will be able to complete your tasks. However, if you want a device for studying and simple office work, you can settle for budget processors that even have integrated graphics so you don’t have to buy a separate graphics card.