Gaming CPUs

Fire up your rig with the best CPU for gaming.

- Alan Dexter

Traditional wisdom dictates that if you want the best gaming performance there is really only one option: Intel. That thinking is now outdated. With the release of AMD’s Zen 3 architecture and it’s Ryzen 5000 family of chips, there is now nothing between Intel’s finest and AMD’s latest. Some games may favour one over the other, but we’re talking a few frames here and there on average. Intel has lost its gaming crown.

This is good news for us gamers, as it means there is now genuine competition between the two chipmakers, and that has already lead to Intel’s prices tumbling.

Ryzen 9 5900X

AMD £549

The best all-round CPU for gaming and streaming

1 AMD’s new Zen 3 architecture boasts a sweet 19 percent IPC improvement over its predecessors. For us gamers that means AMD can now stand toe to toe with Intel when it comes to gaming. Honestly, there’s so little between these two now that anyone claiming otherwise is simply delusional.