As gaming graphics cards get more powerful and affordable, CPUs have become a central component of the PC build. If you want to play games at the highest settings with good frame rates, you’ll need a CPU that can handle the load. Luckily, there are plenty of options.
We’ve put together a list of the best cpu for gaming, depending on your preferences and budget. Intel’s Core i5 13600K is a solid choice for most gaming builds. It’s quick out of the box and can be overclocked for even more performance. It can’t match AMD’s hulking Ryzen processors in gaming performance, but it comes close and offers excellent value for the money.
If you’re looking for a great value, the $135 Ryzen 5 5600G is hard to beat. It has strong enough integrated graphics that you can conceivably play some light games with no additional GPU, at the sacrifice of a bit of image quality. The chip also has good multi-threaded performance and is a great fit for productivity work.
If you’re ready to spend more, the top gaming CPU is the $699 16-core 32-thread Ryzen 7 7800X3D. It’s a beast with 3D V-Cache that will deliver the highest gaming frame rates on the market. It’s a great choice for anyone who is willing to spend more on their system and doesn’t mind losing some of the productivity benefits of Intel’s Core i9 chips. best cpu for gaming